#2 - I Wanna go BACK to the Ritz!

#2: Attempting to Make a Home of the Apartment

After the raining tub incident, we cross our fingers that it truly was fixed and move into the apartment. 

Thinking that everything must be pretty clear of issues, I start setting up shop. First is the laundry. Now you tell me if any of these symbols are meaningful to you... Because for me, I was lost. All I tried to do was find a setting, any setting, that would get it done in less than 157 minutes. 

Of course it's 2pm and I need to wash the new sheets for that night's sleep, and towels, too. But again, each load is taking me more than 2 hours just to wash. And then there is the dryer. I will admit I am somewhat expecting this, but... we had requested a separate dryer, one that only dries. Instead, we have a washing machine on one floor, and on the second floor a machine that washes and dries.

Let me tell you, those suck! They essentially steam dry. And after each load, the clothes are just wet enough that you have to hang everything to air dry. So after more than two hours of one load of laundry, I got to the dryer - only to see so many words that I only half understood, but I gave it a shot. Once again, when I saw the time on the screen, I went nuts - no less than 110 minutes, and I couldn't open the door before that time was up. And then when I went to "dry" the second load, I forgot to check that only the dryer was selected, so it both washed and dried the load in there.

So, I put the girls to bed on unwashed sheets, gave up on the laundry, and dreamt of a fully functioning home.

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After finally getting the simple task of doing laundry efficiently down, I have moved onto day to day living in the house. So, showering... I will admit, I now have a fear of leaks and water after our oozing bathtub incedent. Not only have I come across more water damage, and this time from above us, but I am sure I hear dripping everywhere I go.

When I asked the girls to shower, and I hear Izzy request help. The shower head is installed at about 9 feet above ground. Even I can barely reach it. As I try to move the shower head to a more convenient location, the head comes off of the hose. So, I reattach it... it seems secure. And I turn the water back on. The shower head shoots off of the hose across the room and certainly would have made a dent in someone's head had it been installed at a normal height.

So, no more showering for Izzy, no tub for Tash, then in the process of the girls bathing in our shower, one of the body sprays shoots off of the wall! And then, suddenly, there is no more hot water.

I haven't even gotten to a description of our boiler room. I am scared to enter this room. When Andrew first came to visit, he reported back "we have a great room for storage where the water heater is!" I will not be storing anything in this room, not skis, a mountain bike, or anything!

Unless the window is left wide open, this room is about 90 degrees. And therefore, paint is peeling off of the wall in large swaths, there is mold in certain places, rust, and multiple large units of who-knows-what functionality that have no ventilation to speak of... Again, unless you leave the window open... but there are pigeons on all of the window sills and they are apparently dying left and right of salmonella poisoning. So, I'm not that excited about opening it up to let them in.

So we shower at the gym and hope the next day the maintenance man can fix the water.

Signing off... and wishing that I could return to the Ritz!