The ongoing Puddle Problem

Well plumber number one did not return the phone calls, so I let my fingers do the proverbial walking to the yellow pages and found a nice big ad for plumbers. Very nice lady answered the phone -I do like people answering phones, not machines, when you have a problem. After just a few minutes she had secured a truck to come round late afternoon. At 5.15 he phoned to say he was on the way and would be 40 minutes. That was time to run to fast food place for nuggets and burgers for the charmers (kids).

Large truck arrives with guy to mend problem. He looked down the septic tank and thought we had a root blocking it. Funny thinks I, there isn’t a tree for 20 feet or more. He gets a light and decides that there is no root there (phew). So I flush all the toilets in the house and they obediently all enter the system on schedule.

So… the good news it is not a backed up septic system.
But to see what is causing the problem, they need to get behind the wall. This can be done with a light thing, which the gentleman in the truck didn’t have. Seems he was the guy to sort out the blogged up outside problems. A leaking thingy inside is a different sort of plumber. He called to schedule one for Sunday morning, or if they get a cancellation they will arrive this today.

We can shower but I cannot use the dishwasher or washing machine. I had planned to go shopping today anyway to get jeans and clothes, so instead of washing I will just buy a few extras!

After the plumber left I decided that the kids were old enough for me to leave them while I nip for an hour at the pub with some folks from work. I needed to get milk, fruit juice and cat food anyway, so a beer was kinda along the way. We spent an hour whining about work, objectionable editors etc, – nothing special but it was a much needed time-out from the drama of the basement being smelly, unsolved and unusuable. After shopping today I may have to face the fact that some of the things in the basement need to be moved so that we can see what has got wet and what is safe. I think I will stick to the shopping bit!

The puddle gets bigger

We have a pipe or something leaking down the basement wall – what fun.  Had to call the plumber who has not called back yet.  The puddle on the floor in the basement has grown and is now smelling.  I hope it is the chemicals in the carpet rather than contamination.  We relocated the bomerang kid (25, post college, who has a room in the basement) to the main floor spare room.  Husband seems to think that this is my fault somehow, but things like this always happen when he is away! 

The animal control folks are coming tomorrow to replace some traps so that we avoid last year’s problem of rodents in the kitchen after five months of pest control telling us that they had cleared the problem.

There are days when I think we bought a dud of a house.  It looked decent but everything that they touched to update or change was done on the cheap and is now showing as a disaster.  I wonder if the insurance will cover this, after claiming for a the cars.  Kiddo #2 reversed one car, the SUV, into the car, a Mustang, the night before he went to Europe for a year.  Fortunately the husband was away and we got the cars fixed before he returned!  The lady at the repair shop seemed to think that wives trying to get things repaired while husbands were out of town was quite common.  it seems we all want just a quiet life sometimes.

halloween

Halloween was a bit of a bust here.  The house is well back from the road, so in previous years we have gone out to join others.  This year that was not done, so we only got one set of larger, trick or treaters.  The youngest, 12, wanted to go out, but had the day off school because of a reaction to yesterday’s immunization.  We have a rule that no school in the day, no fun at night! They watched the Legend of Sleepy Hollow instead which was plenty scary enough I think!.

The Health Dept

Well the trip to the Health Dept was short but at 8.30 in the morning we still had the remnants of rush hour to content with – people whe leave it to the last minute to change lane, and expect you to create a space for them, even though you got into the correct lane two miles earlier, etc.

So we are the 7th person to sign into the elegant suite called the County Health Dept.  We hand over immunization records and take a seat.  This was at 9 a.m.  At 10.45 we were still in the seat.  Finally someone found time to call us to the desk so that they could put the data into the computer screen. 

‘I don’t see Hib A down here – you should have that one today too’ said the lady.  ‘No thank you’ said I.  ‘You really should, its recommended’ said the lady, staring at me as though I didn’t really understand the importance of towing the official health department line.  Then she started on the meningitis.  Why would a 12 year old in a small school need meningitis???? Perhaps I am careless, but I really do not think it is a high risk in small environments.  The good news was that this procedure got us through the door to the next waiting room.  We sat here for another 70 minutes.  In that time the immunization ladies saw two patients.  Eventually she saw us, and again harangued me for not taking advantage of doing all three immunizations at the same time.  Now, with the concerns about immunizations contributing to autism, and the concerns with the MMR combinations, why in the world would I willingly do another combo-pack to increase the chance of of further problems? No thank you.

She took three phone calls why we were in there, and finally we had the shot, had the peice of paper in my hand and we exited the building – a full 3 hours and 20 minutes after we went in for the single shot.

I didn’t even have a sense of accomplishment.

New immunisations

I was called last week that our county has decided on some new immunizations.  They want a second Chicken pox (Varicella?) in first and six grade.  So the eighth grader didn’t need it but the sixth grader does – by Wednesday.  I am hoping to get something that does not have mercury as the preservative.  Our local family doctor apparently does not see enough kids to merit keeping this on hand, which makes me wonder about our choice of doctor right now as well.  Tomorrow I am trolling off to the county health department and hoping it is not swamped with sick people.  It seems simpler than going to find  a pediatrician.  If we went to a pediatrician we would have to make an appointment, then get a general check up, all for the sake of a simple $8 chicken pox vaccine. 

Afterschool

Goodness it  been a while since I posted to the blog.  Summer went quickly and return to school went smoothly. The afterschool business though is becoming a problem.  Last year there was karate and bowling, plus homework hour two afternoons.  This year the sports have been placed after homework hour which is great for me, but kiddo is not happy.  Karate and bowling are fine and stable.

One afternoon they go hiking which is great for them, but its the volleyball that is the problem right now. There are only 6 kids, so that should not be a problem for getting to know them.  I drove on Thursday, and with four kids in the car, three chatted about things 12 yr olds chat about, mine sat sullen in the car.  He couldn’t think of anything to say apparently, so we need to work on conversation with this small group.  Unfortunately the volleyball itself is not his thing though.  He is reasonably coordinated, but does not like sports.  I think we will have to drop it for this semester and try again next when he knows the kids alittle better.

The holiday weekend

It was a holiday weekend here last weekend and we had visitors so we went out to visit the brand new Coke museum place.  It opened on Friday, and we went Monday.  I was surprised at the number of people that were not there – I expected swarms, but the place was relatively quiet. The exibitions were ok but the kids got bored.  One film goes on for about 45 minutes, in 3 fifteen minute segments.  Kiddo wanted out at the first break.

They have finished School!!

Well the end of our first year in Georgia.  The kids finished school last Friday and they are still in the post-school wake up zone.  The pool is barely warm enough to swim in, but they have been in all the weekend. 

As I am writing this I am waiting for a bug guy to spray for cockroaches and other nasties that the south seems to take in its’ stride.  Trades folk down here seem to have a very casual approach to time.  In my book between 9-11 would indicate that he arrives then.  Its now 11.30 and no sign. 

We are in a drought.  Its the talk of every news show, along with petrol prices.  It seems though that there is a drought here about 3 out of every 4 years, the odd one being a storm ravaged rainy year.   I should now better than to buy annuals but I arrived home yesterday with four flats of pretty annuals that will die if we don’t get rain soon.  I have timers on the outside faucets to come on before dawn, as required by the town.  The timers are all set to do the same thing – water every other day at 4 or 5 for 60mins.  Alas one comes on at 6 each and every morning, one pops on sometime in the late morning and the other seems to come on and go straight off agian because the plant hose is dry by 5.30 a.m.

Update on bug guy: he put the call on the wrong board and will now be here next Tuesday (maybe).  So I went and found a nursery and brought plants.  Yes its a drought, but I wanted to track this place down anyway. 

Almost the end of the School Year!

We have almost made it to the end or the school year!  It has been a really mixed one with kids settling into school and other things.  #2 kiddo graduated from university though so that was fun.  May will be a turmoil of end of school things.  Tomorrow we do a bowling night, Friday Breakfast w/Mom. 

The youngest got an award for social studies : this was wonderful as he had never won an award before.  He has come a long way in the school he is in.  The small classes (4 kids) and the flexible schedule really paid off.  We are still unsure about the long term effect of the small grouping though.  Next year he will be in a group of 6 but as it is middle school he will get to move around to different rooms and different teachers so his organizational skills with the tested, no doubt.

Scary school procedure

I was talking to another mother the other day, who related that her friend has a child with learning/behavioural problems.  They problably stem from a diagnosis of Asperger’s syndrome.  The child is in a school district to the north of us.  The school wants to put him into the special education/learning room.  Apparently when the mother went to the room and spolke to the teacher, misbehaving children are put into a cupboard unti they quieten down!  I have to stress that this is hearsay right now, but this abhorent behaviour on the part of a school has to be stopped.  Since when does an autistic child need to be scared out of his wits to conform?  Yes a room with no undue stimulation may be wanted, but also one with decompression items such as stress balls, somewhere to feel safe… but a closet? please! Lets have some education for these teachers.