That Sinking Feeling

When Peter and I moved from the country to the city, we chose a house that was in move-in condition. No renovations or repairs for us; we wanted a stress-free life. Or at least that’s what we planned…

One thing we loved about our new house was the kitchen – newish and modern, lots of space, black and white granite counter tops, and high-end stainless steel appliances; the perfect place for 2 people who love to cook. Things were OK for a while, but then the kitchen started falling apart. First the upper rack on the dishwasher began coming off its tracks if we pulled it out too far. We called Kitchen-Aid and, much to our surprise, the agent told us it was a recall product and would be replaced for free! We gladly welcomed the repair person and the free fix.

Next, the fridge began leaking. Peter, anxious for another free fix, was only too happy to call Kitchen-Aid again. But this time – no luck. In fact the repairman was in our kitchen for only about 15 minutes, replaced one very tiny part, and presented us with a bill for $200!

Then one morning the microwave refused to heat up. We hadn’t realized how often we use this small but mighty appliance, but at least several times a day: to heat things up, to defrost things, to make sauces and gravies, to dry out the cat…just kidding! Anyway, we know from previous experience that it is usually not worth the money to fix a microwave. So off we went to the store for a new one. We put the old one on the curb and it was gone in minutes.

At this point we were thinking: what else could break in the kitchen? Well you’re wrong – it wasn’t the stove.

We had a very nice Thanksgiving dinner with our family and we didn’t eat in the garage! Instead, we set up the basement banquet hall – almost like the olden times. We enjoyed a lovely evening together and everyone left by about 10:00 pm, full of turkey and laden with bags of leftovers. Peter and I put on our pyjamas, set the house alarm, and sat down in the living room to re-hash the evening – our first big event in almost 2 years. Then suddenly we heard a loud CRASH from the kitchen.

We rushed in and there was the sink, I mean WHERE was the sink? Well the sink, loaded up with dirty dishes and greasy water, had crashed through the counter into the cupboard below, knocking itself off the drain pipe. Apparently it had been held up by only a layer of glue, which had disintegrated. We stared in disbelief, dumbfounded. Then we started into clean-up mode: grab a bucket, slowly get the dishes out of the sink, edge the sink out of the cupboard, and start mopping up the water. Then, to add insult to injury, the dishwasher, which was running the first load of dishes, started into the drain cycle and the dirty water, with no drain to go down, poured into the cupboard too! How could this get any worse?

Well it did. I ran into the garage to get another bucket for the dirty water, and accidentally set off the house alarm. “This is the alarm company! Identify yourself immediately!! The police are on the way!!!”

“YES!” I thought. More people to help clean up!

Well we did manage to calm down the alarm company and clean up the mess ourselves. When we finished, it was after midnight – well past our bedtime. We changed out of our wet, greasy pyjamas and went to bed. But we didn’t sleep soundly; we were too busy thinking about what mischief the stove might be getting into.

Sue