Nightmare On Edwards Street

Why, exactly, does God hate me?

There are really, truly, agonizingly hideous people on the face of this earth who are walking around without lightening striking them down (smoting is always welcome, Big Guy), but instead He's pickin' on me? This is just not fair.

So. I'm here. In Bath. A lovely town, I suppose. The house is in even far worse shape than I have described before. The floor of the old section of the house (you know, where my daughter's bedroom and the living and dining room are) slopes toward the middle - there's a lolly column holding it up underneath crossing an old 4 x 8 supporting the even older floor beam. One out of four outlets in the living room worked. Half of one other, which I shortly (no pun intended) learned is a bad thing. The dining room has no working outlets whatsoever and the kitchen...well, you just wait until I put pictures of the kitchen on my website and THEN you'll know what I'm talking about. I don't know how people can live in an environment like this and be so (bad language alert) God-damned disgusting. I would be ashamed to have strangers see that I think this is "leaving the house broom clean". For four months - off and on - people have been cleaning this house and it is Disgusting. I found the paint in the kitchen is actually half a shade lighter than originally thought (still baby shit green, but a lighter baby shit green) and there are food stains in places that...well, I don't know how they got there. The kitchen is huge and the work space takes up approximately 1/8 of the entire area. What with the dish drainer (yep, I'm the dishwasher), the baby bottle rack and the Brita pitcher (geez, do I miss my BI well water or what?) that is the total extent of counter space. I stopped cooking when I found that the range hood dripped ooey brown goo onto the stove - more so when it got warm. Finally hubby #2 (cuz I'm seriously considering options the way I'm feeling these days) rips the damn thing out of the wall, stuffs the hole with paper towels and I like it a heck of a lot better. We finally gave up on the refrigerator (the mold could not be removed from the freezer) and bought a new one - but getting it in the house was an interesting experience. The massive amounts of biblical rains that happened here last week taught me all about sump pumps. Specifically: a) what they are (cuz I didn't have the slightest clue what it was or why I needed it) and b)what one does when the on/off switch of a sump pump doesn't work and your basement needs to be drained once an hour (once a half hour for the first day of my new education) - by the way, I don't own rain boots and the first morning showed 11 to 12 inches of sewage and lime infested water. How happy go lucky am I now, huh? Cosmetic work needed my ass.

Last week-end, for my husbands weekly visitation, he went downstairs (for lack of a better term) to get the cable ready for the cable guy (who is from...wait for it...MISSOURI!) and starts cutting dead wire out of his way, etc. Two small electrocutions later...he did manage to get the living room lights and outlets restored. Apparently the electrician did 3/4 of the job. I'm hoping the upstairs hall light (it's on Colleen's side, not like she actually uses it) and dining room light will be restored this week-end.

The baby (who climbs stairs now, if you can believe it, and he's not yet eleven months - she bragged) is having a very, very, very difficult time adjusting. Every Monday when Daddy leaves, his behavior and sleep patterns get more and more distraught. Last night he slept six hours (Mom got three and two of those were in and out cuz I heard unfamiliar noises and was wondering whether I should draw the sword kept by the bed) with three hours of nap today that I forced him into and he still didn't want to sleep tonight (he should be sleeping about 14). The outgoing ped's office said that everyone he's known and seen (he saw his father on a daily basis and throughout the course of the day as well) has suddenly disappeared - this week he's alone in the house with me (don't even go there about the teen-ager, I'm WAY over that, too) and he has no guarantee that if he goes to sleep, Mommy won't be gone and never come back, too. Well, if that doesn't get 'cha, then you're one cold hearted bas**rd.

On a positive note...

...

...there's a frog in the "pond" in my front yard. And there's a train not terribly far from here that let's out it's whistle at night and makes me feel like I'm back home where I grew up. It's lonely and adventurous and so very comforting. It also makes me hum "Blues in the Night" under my breath so the baby (who has to share my room, unfortunately) doesn't wake up...but at least I still play to an audience.

I miss life as I knew it - in all it's forms. And I very much miss the Scarecrow, the Tin Man and the Cowardly Lion. Even Toto only comes for visits. (Jinx and Boobala, however, love the new house and wish never to leave.)

I've been without TV, radio and computer for almost a month, so give me a few days to learn what's been happening in the world. I also have a great deal to tell you about the kids here!

At least we're safe and the roof doesn't leak. But I never say "come hell or high water" anymore as I live in both right now.