As we are all, painfully aware, 2020 is not going well on the COVID side of things, but really...it's SO unfair that other awful things are going on at the same time. Actually, it would be REALLY GREAT if we only had to deal with ONE crisis at a time.
(I know - this is life, and life is never really fair, is it?)
In the past two months, in addition to COVID, we have had our hot water heater die. Granted, we knew it was on its last legs from the beginning. When it began to leak copious amounts of water, we smugly said, "AHA! We have a home warranty!" - so we called the warranty people. They are very swift in their responses and had someone out here rather quickly.
He signed the death warrant for the water heater. The warranty people okayed the new water heater...and then informed us that we would need to pay $800 to bring all the connections up to code.
I'm not going to lie - this infuriated me. It seemed to me that the connections should be grandfathered in but, apparently, that is not the case. It did appease me when we realized that if we didn't have the warranty we would have had to spend $800 on the water heater that was installed in addition to the $800 for bringing the connections up to code. This, of course, brought me to my senses...and I was again grateful for that home warranty. I just hope when the AC dies (and it will, it's original to the house) we won't have to bring anything else up to code!
Not long after that, we noticed ants. In the kitchen. Obviously, this will just not do. So we called a pest control company. They came out and declared that we had an infestation. An infestation...lovely. They sprayed the house and recommended that we order a service that would spray the yard in a 25 foot radius around the house. We readily agreed.
Probably two weeks after they sprayed the yard I noticed a bevy of ants on the front walk. Since we were within the 30 days of the spraying, they came back out to spray again.
Fast forward to yesterday. I walked out to the back porch to enjoy the evening where I immediately noticed lines of ants marching back and forth across the porch. *sigh*
If I'm not mistaken, we are still within that 30 day window. So, obviously, they weren't kidding about the infestation. Pest Control is coming on Monday.
What else are you planning to throw at us, 2020? Should I expect locusts next? A hint would be nice.
I will say this. The ants are kind of fascinating to watch. All day long they have marched, back and forth, along the same route. Occasionally, three or four will branch off in a different direction and I will think, "Have they gone AWOL? Why have they defected?" Only to note, that eventually, they come back to the original route, while another two or three will branch off to the different route.
At this point, I'm assuming those are the scouts doing recon.
It's painfully obvious that I need to get out more.
Well as you know, we have had three pets either die/go missing in 2020, so I know well what a bastard 2020 has been.
ReplyDeleteI am sorry you are struggling as well. It has been a hard enough year alone with just having to quarantine. Sending you a hug.
Sorry to learn about your extra outlay of money for that water heater and the nuisance of all those ants. I too have been fascinated by them and how they manage to get wherever it is they are going. And yes, 2020 has been a horrible year and isn't looking to get any better, as we move towards the election. :-(
ReplyDeleteLocusts, or your local creeks turning to blood, one of the two. Yeeeeeeesh. We had ants in the house once, due to the kids putting sticky Freezie wrappers in the downstairs garbage...ugh.
ReplyDeleteHome ownership means constant repairs and spending money. All.the.time.
ReplyDeleteThis post made me think of one thing: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MNgJBIx-hK8
:)
I feel you. This has been quite the a**h*** year! We just had the plumber out yesterday because I can't wash clothes because the water keeps backing up. Apparently, roots are the cause. So now we're expecting they are going to have to dig up and replace plumbing in a location tbd. It's probably plumbing under our house. I don't even want to think about them digging up concrete in my home!!!! Then my husband collapsed and had a seizure about a month ago. My son who has autism isn't dealing well with changes to his routine. I can't tell you how much has gotten broken during nightly meltdowns. I also just found out that some people are not able to comment on my blog site for some reason...and the list goes on and on. So you're reduced to watching ants, huh? Please, do get out of the house, stop by and pick me up and let's go to Vancouver Island, where I understand it's gorgeous and nothing bad ever happens! I need a change of scenery and a vacation...only I can't afford one because of all of the upcoming home repairs. At this point, bring on the blanking locusts! Hugs, my friend! Sorry for losing it there. Stupid, determined ants. Mona
ReplyDeleteI feel your pain sister! As you read in my post, 2020 threw a humdinger at me too. Everybody it seems. My sister tested positive for Covid, as did her husband. We were worried about my sis because she has asthma and it did get into her lungs, but was more like a bronchitis which she recovered from like any other bronchitis she's had. So all was well. I got tested but did not catch it from her. We were careful the few times we were together, so that helped. Anyway, sorry for the house troubles, ants are maddening! We were besieged by wasp nests all over our yard but managed to destroy them ourselves. Soapy water. Who knew? Hope the rest of the year is better for everyone.
ReplyDeleteI found a dead mouse behind the washer the other day. I was crawling around in the attic this morning (installing a TV antenna, don't ask) and found another under the insulation. *shudders* I can't even think about there being more. I just can't. Please don't make me. :(
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