In Hot Water for 2011

A couple of weeks ago¬–months ago, whatever¬–when I went to take a shower in the master bathroom, I realized that we had no hot water. DH checked the heater and called Harry the Plumber; meanwhile, we started showering in the Shop Bathroom.

I gave HtP a key, and after he replaced the 2-year-old water heater, we had hot water.

For exactly 2 days.

HtP picked up the key again, and after he had a lengthy discussion with Rheem, the company okayed another new water heater. Negotiations about the mounting labor costs were ongoing.

Luckily, we had hot water while the fam was here for the holidays, but on Christmas Eve, as they were packing to go, the water turned ice cold. Once again, HtP called Rheem, who seem to be challenging AT&T for Worst Customer Service Ever, and reported back.

HtP: They wanted your address again, along with some other stuff. I reminded them that I was paying three people to stand around while I looked up all this information.
TS: So you gave them our address. And then what?
HtP: They had a whole list of useless information they wanted, so I just started making things up. I don’t think they’re going to pay me for the three guys standing around.

This morning, I gave HtP the key again, and this afternoon, I met him at the house.

HtP: I told them we need three new water heaters of a different brand—one that actually works. And I’ve been telling them how mad the customers are about not having hot water for their guests during the Christmas holiday.
TS: Good thing they don’t actually know us.
HtP: Yeah. Anyway, the other day they said they’d come out, but I talked to a different supervisor today, and she said they’re not coming.
TS: I don’t know if that’s good or bad.
HtP: And they're only paying for half the labor, because the heater's over a year old.
TS: Perfect. Are you gonna get another key made, or do you want me to do ti?
HtP: I’ll do it.

On a more positive note, Two-Joke-Limit surprised me today by fixing our annoying kitchen doorknob. I’ll be Googling “water heater” to see if anybody still makes one that works, and I have a nice new sawdust-friendly shower curtain in the Shop Bathroom. And we’re looking forward to a day, maybe in the spring, when we’ll have hot water again.

Dirty Jobs

One of our favorite features of our home is our pond. Actually, we have two ponds—a small upper pond and a large lower one with koi swimming in it. It’s so relaxing to sit out on the patio with a good book, listening to the waterfalls bubbling nearby.

Of course, every home amenity comes with a responsibility. I was the one who wanted a swimming pool, so I take care of the pool. And, once a year or so, DH gets to clean out the ponds and cut back any overgrown foliage. This is a relatively brief but very messy job. Actually, that doesn’t do it justice--today, he could have been on that Discovery Channel program called Dirty Jobs.

Suffice it to say there will be no photographs of this particular activity. No one sees us this dirty but each other.

The large pond wasn't bad--DH hacked away at an overgrown plant and handed chunks of it to me while he stood in hip-deep water. But when he got into the small upper pond, which had heavier mucky debris in it, he had to heave that wet, heavy goops into the wheelbarrow next to the pond. After one of those tosses, the wheelbarrow tipped over.

DH: Oops! Can you tilt that wheelbarrow back up?
TS: No.
DH: Could you try?
TS: Sure. Okay, no.
DH: Well, you have to admit that was a half-hearted effort.
TS: Sweetie, you’re thinking I have upper body strength like a man. Look at these little arms.
DH: Well . . .
TS: I’ve told you before, you should have married a woman with a big strong back, somebody like my great-grandmother Clarissa Joiner.
DH: Who?
TS: You remember her—we have that ancient picture of her. She rode on horseback from Louisiana to South Carolina while pregnant with her first of twelve children. She looked like a man. You should have married someone like that.
DH: I like being married to you better.
TS: That’s the right answer.