Yesterday morning I woke up to the sound of rain. Actually, that’s not true. I woke up to the sound of Caroline calling “Mama! Mama! Mama!” and then I heard the rain. It was 6:00 a.m. and a full hour before we actually needed to be awake. So I did what all wise mothers do in this type of situation. I poured her a bowl of Cinnamon Toast Crunch, turned on Tom & Jerry, told her that Daddy was up if she needed anything, and then crawled back in bed for another hour.
She woke me up at 7:00 a.m. with all the gentleness and subtlety of a pack of wild dogs. I helped her get dressed which means I suggested various outfits while she repeatedly laughed and mocked all my suggestions. Fortunately this process was short-lived because we were in the midst of a clean clothing shortage due to our washing machine issues.
After I dropped her off at school I came home and put on something other than workout clothes because I had plans to meet my friend Steph to go shopping. The rain was pouring down so I called her to make sure she really wanted to go because I would have totally understood if she wanted to drop her kids off at school and spend the day watching Lifetime movies. I’m not saying that I know anyone like that; I just hear it’s what some people like to do on rainy days.
Steph said she was still up for the challenge if I was and we agreed that our shopping time was worth the risk of running all over town looking like two drowned rats. And it was. We had the best time shopping, found a couple of cute things ON SALE, and we even got to meet Gulley for lunch because Tuesdays are her half-days.
While we were at lunch I pulled my phone out and placed it on the table because I was waiting on a call that I didn’t want to miss, the call letting me know that the Sears repairman was on his way to my house. I kind of felt nervous and apprehensive like I used to feel before going out on a blind date because you know there’s a good chance that something ugly is about to happen.
Naturally he called right as I was on my way to pick Caroline up from school. I told him I’d be home in ten minutes and begged him not to leave me in my time of laundry trouble and sorrow. As I drove to get Caroline I prayed that our washing machine issues would turn out to be something a little less serious than a whacked-out motherboard.
By the time I got home, P was in the laundry room with Hugo the Sears repairman. I never dreamed that I would fall in love with a mustachioed man named Hugo in a striped short-sleeve dress shirt with “Sears” embroidered on it, but I did. I fell in love with Hugo when I walked through the back door and he informed P and me that the problem wasn’t with our motherboard. In fact, our motherboard has never looked better.
I don’t know if that’s true, but I like that way it sounds. Like maybe she got some Botox and appears refreshed.
The problem was a clogged drain. That’s what the F2! F2! F2! meant. However, the repairman who came out on Monday allegedly cleaned the drain and it didn’t fix the problem, so he jumped to conclusions and blamed the poor motherboard who was only trying to use her powers for good.
Repairman #1 (as he shall be forever known) didn’t have the tenacity of my dedicated Hugo. Hugo would not rest until our drain was clean. He used bleach and some kind of magical tablets because apparently our biggest issue was that the washer had never been cleaned. Am I the only one who didn’t know you’re supposed to run a cycle with just a cup of bleach once a month? We have been living like savages.
Hugo pulled out all manner of gunk from our drain and even some assorted pieces of metal which I take full responsibility for because I am forever leaving empty shotgun shells in the pockets of my hunting pants.
When he was finally satisfied that the washer was clean (I am not even kidding when I tell you that he wiped out the entire rubber gasket around the door even though it had nothing to do with our problem) Hugo stood up and announced that the washer appeared to be as good as new. There is a possibility we might need a new pump, but if we have anymore problems in the next 90 days all we have to do is call Hugo and he’ll get us one for 15% off. Hugo completes me.
He also let us know that our dryer is spectacular and will last for “forty or sixty years” if we just remember to clean out the lint. In fact, he said it would last long past our washer which makes total sense considering that we paid about $900 less for it and all you do is turn a knob.
And last night I did laundry with enthusiasm. I washed towels, sheets, colors and whites with a renewed appreciation for the convenience of newfangled technology that allows you to wash clothes in the privacy of your own home with little to no effort.
Now if only someone would fold it and put it all away.