The Sagas

This was supposed to be the year of things getting better.  Maybe that's why the mess of the past six months or so has hit me so hard, both physically and emotionally.

The "sagas" that have been going on are the "car saga", "the air conditioner saga", and the "bathroom saga".  And scattered in between each of those situations have been multiple other issues that range from slightly smaller to almost as problematic.  The result of all of it has been to push my stress levels through the roof.

In short, the AC saga was that the AC was throwing off bright white electrical sparks when starting and while running.  Despite two visits from the repair guy it didn't stop.  On labor day the AC stopped working.  Since I didn't want to end up with a holiday visit fee we waited until Tuesday to call the repair guy again.  This time he found the problem - a wire that was completely exposed.  None of us understand how the breaker didn't pop or how he didn't get shocked when he handled the wire bundle.  And the AC didn't stop running because of the wire.  It stopped running because the wire apparently, finally, at a hole through the coolant line and released all the coolant.  So despite all the males in my life saying that it was nothing to worry about, including the repair guy.  Despite all of their assurances that I couldn't be seeing what I was, in fact, seeing.  Despite their assurances that it couldn't cause a fire.  The problem indeed was something to worry about.  I did see what I was seeing.  And the problem could have caused a fire.  And I still jump every time the AC kicks on, especially during the busy times of day when it causes the house lights to dim for a moment.  I'm not looking forward to winter and frost on the unit.

The car saga started with the old van and its transmission.  I thought it was over when I got the "new" van back two weeks ago after some drastic and expensive repairs.  But yesterday while running errands it became apparent that there is still an issue.  I've only driven the van 4 times since I got it back and each time is an exercise in nerves since I'm as nervous about it as I am about the AC.  This last repair was because the flywheel disintegrated while I was driving the vehicle.  Oh, and finding parts for old cars nowadays is an exercise in frustration.  Fortunately we discovered an auto supply store that has experienced folks and knows how to get parts that are not readily available.

And the bathroom saga, well that's still ongoing.  I will hopefully get to put another patch on the bathtub today.

But, on the positive side, my son is responding really well to the new curriculum I created for him.  And even if we found another one of those learning "gaps", he is learning to overcome it.  I have a couple of gracious helpful acquaintances who made sure I got home when I ended up stranded.  And one wonderfully helpful friend who took me grocery shopping for two months.

We've been walking to all the local places that are within a few miles of the house.  While one side of town isn't accessible, because the bridge crossing isn't safe with my son, the other half of town has a decent grocery.  And I can pay most of the bills on this side of town.  (Realize that this is a two stop light town.)  While the walking hasn't caused me to lose weight, it has actually helped me a lot.  I discovered that I had to change the speed on the lawn mower the last time I used it.  And I've been using the walks to do road safety and science observation lessons with my son.  I was using it to teach him where the fire hall and police station were until I discovered that the police station is moving.  So that lesson is temporarily on hold. 

So I'm taking deep breaths a lot and trying to focus on the good.  Trying really hard.