End of Silence

So, it’s official. Either I or someone in my immediate family has amassed way too much bad karma, broke a mirror or pissed off the wrong <INSERT DEITY HERE>. In addition to having our downstairs flood back in March, our three-year-old car needing a new transmission and multiple illnesses for various family members, our washing machine decided to die Sunday night and send water into the laundry room and garage. I’m guessing it’s a cracked tub, so it’s a goner.

On the bright side, this is the washer that we got for free from Scott and Colleen nearly 8 years ago when we moved into the house. Before Sunday, the only thing it needed was to have the mixing valve replaced by yours truly for $20. (I’m still patting myself on the back for that one). The Wife is delirious with new washing machine facts and stats. We’d better decide on one soon or we’re all going to be either very dirty or naked.

We finally got new carpet into the bedroom on Friday. It’s pretty sweet. All we have to do now is finish painting the front room, rip up the entryway tile, and rip up the linoleum and paint the fireplace and built-in in the den so we can have the laminates put into those two rooms. We also need to have a massive garage sale. All of this is on hold until next week though as we have out-of-town guests this weekend. Anybody want a slightly-broken and very used washer?

Wow, that wasn’t a very relaxing Memorial Day weekend.

We drove to Dallas to say farewell to the house my parents have lived in since the summer of 1975 (or was it 1976?). Anyway, they’re selling the place and moving to Oklahoma of all places. It’s a long story. We rented a truck yesterday and hauled a few things back with us since my parents’ new place is a bit smaller. Loading up a truck, driving from Dallas to Austin, then unloading and returning the truck makes for quite a long day. I hadn’t done that in quite some time and I can’t say that I missed it. On top of moving stuff from Dallas, work is very busy right now. I’m just not feeling the start of summer. Perhaps later this month I’ll have a bit of breathing room.

Max needs bags? Well, so do we, but hopefully not for much longer. Like Max and Courtney, we resorted to using grocery and take-out bags to dispose of our small creature by-products.

The difference is that our small creature is well on her way to using the potty instead. Can I get an amen? With any luck, we soon won’t be filling up the landfills with plastic encased nuclear diapers. Even better, we won’t be buying the damn things anymore. Man, they’re expensive. Getting rid of that cost will subsidize my morning Starbucks habit (I know, I know, I should use a local shop. Anybody have a good alternative near Braker and Mopac other than Texpresso, which I can’t stand?) and the gym membership that I still pay for, but never use.

Damn you, automatic credit card billing!

We’re still wading through the insurance morass with the house. Just so we didn’t get too complacent, the transmission on the minivan that we’ve barely had for a year decided to die.

Yes, that’s right, the transmission on a three-year-old car with 38k miles went out. We were seeing signs of the problem last month and got it in under the three year warranty time limit, but, like an idiot, I forgot that it’s mileage or years, whichever comes first. We hit the mileage sometime earlier this year. Luckily, Honda is standing by their crappy transmission and covering the cost of replacing it.

They were waffling on paying for the rental car while it’s being fixed, but they got as far as trying to install the new transmission Monday only to find that they had been sent the wrong one. The service advisor claimed that it’s the first time that’s ever happened in the 5 years he’s been there. Did I mention how good our luck has been the last couple of months? Anyway, now that they’re delaying the fix, I think they’re going to pony up for the rental as well. I know that the 2000 and 2001 Odysseys have extended warranties for their transmissions. It’s not officially the case with the 2002 Odysseys, but it appears that they aren’t any better than their predecessors.

This one’s been repeated a few times of the last couple of days, so I thought I’d post it.

The kids were getting ready for a story just before bed. We do the story in The La’s room. We’re currently reading Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire. The Boy is digging it. The La usually just picks another book and looks at it. Eventually, she gets tired and goes to sleep, usually before I finish reading to The Boy.

Anyway, The Wife came in just before we started reading to say goodnight to the kids. As she was talking to The La, The La was standing in her crib, nudging a sippy cup of water with her foot.

The La: “That’s my water.”

The Wife: “Who knew?”

The La (after a pause): “Lily.”

The Wife (laughing): “You’re cute.”

The La: “No, I Lily.”