I made it through what I’ve been calling Rat Race Week. A week when I had ten commitments stacked up: Book club, mahjong, a lecture about NATO and a follow-up appointment for my cataract surgery, my annual bone density test, a haircut, a blood draw and an ultrasound screening test for stroke risk, aneurysms and peripheral arterial disease plus my second appointment with my new financial advisor. Added in the mix was a last minute invitation to go downtown to an art show and because the Ring Master of Rat Race Week didn’t think I was busy enough he threw in the unpredictable---two fire alarms, two days in row and a washing machine that quit working in the middle of a cycle.
The first fire alarm was caused by someone taking a long, hot shower and the steam setting off the alarm. A maintenance man with a couple of firemen close on his heel burst into the woman’s door using a pass key but with an axe handy in case that didn’t work which put the fear in all of us regarding taking long, hot showers. And doing them naked if we do. The second fire alarm was harder for the fire department to assess and they were all over the buildings trying to figure out what caused the alarm to go off. They finally concluded it was caused by the maintenance men who were power blowing and washing our underground parking lot. It took over an hour of it annoying everyone with ears before the alarm company was able to talk our maintenance men through disconnecting the main system because even the fire department couldn’t over ride it this time---the dirt in a smoke alarm fried the unit. Thankfully that happen the morning I had to get up early for my blood draw so I was dressed properly for standing on the sidewalk.
My follow up for my cataract surgery went as well as could be expected. I didn’t see the surgeon, knew I wouldn’t as another doctor does most of her pre-op and post-op appointments. He says in a year I’ll probably need laser surgery for tissue that has already started growing over the artificial lens. I didn’t know that could happen but I guess they do the laser thing in the office and it’s no big deal. My sight in my left eye with the macular pucker still sucks, but I did get a prescription for computer glasses which should simplify my life. Finding the right space to look through on trifocals is a constant and annoying series of head bobbing. He also gave me a sample of over-the-counter drops for dry eye that are supposedly easier to get in your eyes because the container is softer to squeeze. I do 3-4 drops for every one I get in.
The blood draw should have been simple but when I got to the blood lab I used just a month ago it was closed down permanently and they sent me to an urgent care I’d never been to. I am not good with driving changes like that in parts of town unknown to me and in the morning rush hour to boot. But I did it and the results were waiting on my patient portal before I got back home. If I was a doctor I’d be ordering me an iron infusion but I’m not so I’ll have to wait and see what happens next. At least I’m finished with blood tests until late July when I’ll need them for my bone infusion treatment.
That same morning I got invited to go to an art show downtown and out for ice cream afterward with four others from my CCC. I didn’t really want to go because by then---Friday night---I knew I’d be dead tired but it was the first invitation I've gotten to go off campus so I didn’t think it was wise to turn it down. I did managed to stay a wake and not drop my ice cream cone in my lap.
It was also the day my washing machine quit working with an error message that the filter needed changing. I’ve never had a washer with a filter before so I dug out the manual to figure out where it was but I couldn’t get the little door off to get at the trap. I called maintenance. It was the end of the day so they sent someone who’d never done it before and it took him over a half hour and a YouTube video to get the damn little door open. When he finally got to the filter and unscrewed it water flooded my laundry room. So I’m grabbing towels to soak up the water and wondering why he didn’t have common sense enough to screw the thing back in until I could find something to catch the water draining out. You can’t yell at a maintenance man like you would a husband so I kept that thought to myself.
That was late Friday afternoon and the clothes I wanted to wear to the art show never made it on my back. One of the other ladies I went with had the same thing happen to her with the filter shutting down the machine and water all over the floor. But another woman in the car kept insisting her machine stops all the time, too, but if you just wait it will start up again. Hint: I met my match in the bullheaded department. I kept insisting this was different, that all machines appear to stop/pause before they change cycles but when the filler needs cleaning you could wait for a month and it’s not going to start up again and she kept laughing, while insisting I didn’t wait long enough. The other woman in the car who’d had a filter problem too was smart and dropped out of the bickering contest when even the fact that the machines flash an error messaging wasn’t getting through to the woman. "I'm not in the laundry room when it stops and starts up again to see any messages." The whole thing was like living in a Golden Girls skit and I was Dorothy trying to reason with Rose. I wish I had apologized to the group for my surliness, though, with one of Sophia’s famous lines: “Forgive me [for bickering], I haven’t had sex in 50 years and it’s starting to get on my nerves.”
Oh and what was in the filter? A Color Catcher sheet which brought on another round of crazy talk. Two of us use them and the other three didn’t have a clue what they are. ©
What a mess! I hope this week is better.
ReplyDeleteIt's Wednesday and no water disasters so all is good. Busy again. But good.
DeleteI've never heard of a washing machine having a filter... wondering if mine has one!
ReplyDeleteIt's a GE. Why after all these years of having washing machines without filters they decided they need them now is a mystery unless it has something to do with it being a low water unit.
DeleteI’ve never heard of color catcher sheets! What a day you had.
ReplyDelete
DeleteI have used them for years. Cuts down on the number of loads because you can mix colors. Especially great when you buy something new. Here's how the company (Shout) advertises them: "Locks up loose dyes found in the wash water, Helps prevent dye transfer to maintain original colors of clothes, Saves time by reducing the need for sorting, Saves money by reducing the need for half-sized loads, Safe for all colorfast washables and works in all water temperatures."
They come out of the machine all kinds of colors and I've often thought of saving them to make art with. I've lived here since October and do 4-6 loads a week (tiny machines) and I use at least one color catcher per week, so this was a just fluke that it ended up in the filter. I did notice one was missing after a load a few weeks ago and now I know where it went. You can dry them out and reuse them if they aren't too full of dye. This one was dark purple from a new top. You can bet if one comes up missing again I will clean the filter before it has a chance to stop a load from finishing.
Like Susan, I had never heard of color catcher sheets either. I had to Google it and they said something about putting them in a small mesh bag when using in front load machines. I'm gonna try them! When we moved to our home, there were fairly new front-loaders in place. I like them, but when hubby opened the little trap door for cleaning, we flooded the floor, too. Very irritating. Why don't they put a warning sticker inside that door? Ours is so close to the floor, that you can hardly find any type of container shallow enough to catch the water coming out of it. Enough complaining. Just wanted you to know that I understand your frustration.
DeleteJean, I don't think I could keep up with you, but your life certainly isn't boring. Glad you survived going through your medical appointments. Between the doctors and dentists, sometimes it gets crazy.
Thank you SO much for passing on the tip about the mess bag. I will be getting one before I use a Color Catcher again. My trap is the same way---close to the floor and very little room to put a pan under it. I thought if you cleaned the filter without it being in the middle of a cycle there wouldn't be any water? I guess I'm wrong? I did see a YouTube video about putting two bricks under the front first but even the maintenance man couldn't have done that with a stacking unit. My best chances of a repeat is to use the mess bag and extra careful to check pockets. Thanks again!
DeleteI've finally learned not to argue with people after I've made my point and had it disregarded completely. I simply say, "Well, perhaps you're right, but this was my experience" in a situation like yours. Or sometimes I just laugh and say, "I wish you had been there to help!" or something like that.
ReplyDeleteIt took me forever to realize that I don't have to have a dog in every fight.
Aside from that, I hope things settle down for you now and you can have less busy weeks. I like when my time is less spoken for.
I need to take a page out of your book. Mostly I can back off but I was too tired out to let my reasonable side rule my mouth.
DeleteI tend to schedule Race Race Weeks two three times a year, get all the running around done and out of the way so I could have long stretched to play. It worked better when I was younger. LoL
I had never heard of color catcher sheets either. Glad you can prevent the filter problem in the future. You sure have been busy! Hope all the medical issues get sorted out with positive results! Stay well!
ReplyDeleteThanks. Me too!
DeleteAs I like to say, "you can't match wits with those unarmed" you know like 'Rose' :-)
ReplyDeleteI sometimes feel like Rose when I think I'm being logical and explaining a problem in simple terms, in easy steps, and I'm still misunderstood. I'd say I won'st do it again but....
DeleteWow! What a week you've had. It must feel good to get all that done, though. Sounds like a more restful week is in order. I'm not going out much until it cools down.
ReplyDeleteCount me as someone who had never heard of Color Catchers! I looked at them online and they have a safety note saying if you have a front loader, they recommend putting it inside a mesh/delicates bag. That makes me nervous...with my luck, my filter would jam on the first load. LOL.
I wish I'd have seen that safety note and as I told another commenter up above I will be buying a mess bag before I use another Color Catcher. I really do love using them and if you saw the dye it picks up so would anyone. I should have known to google using them with front loaders because in a top loader them come out quite dry but in the front loaders they are quite wet at the end of the wash.
DeleteI'm going downtown to the Van Gogh exhibit tomorrow! I can't wait.
Oh, I'm jealous! We have looked at it, but didn't buy tickets. Will be interested to hear your thoughts on it!
DeleteCount me among the people who haven't a clue what a "colour catcher sheet" is. Sounds like quite the busy week...I don't blame you for your "surliness". Too true that you can't yell at a maintenance man (or any tradesman) like you could at your husband...that one made me laugh out loud! Some of them are dumb as doornails despite their apparent "expertise"...I had a plumber once remove a toilet only to place it directly onto a hardwood floor just outside of the bathroom. Thankfully I caught it right away and had him place a towel and some cardboard under the toilet. The urge to yell was strong that day, let me tell you!
ReplyDeleteDeb
Oh, ya, that would make me want to yell at a plumber.
DeleteI don't like to back down when I'm right or when I'm disregarded even though I had the situation happen to me. Occasionally, I'll ask, "Are you calling me a liar?" (but that's when I'm feeling very assertive) I haven't heard of those sheets either.
ReplyDeleteNot being understood makes me stupid, like I'm not explaining it right. I dug in too deep.
DeleteMy son in law says my daughter and I are founding members of the "always right" club!
DeleteBoy am I glad I have an OLD washer. Came with the house in 95. I'll try to remember the filter if I ever have to replace this one.
ReplyDeleteWhat a frustrating experience with that woman. I usually follow Nance"s lead. I hate to argue. If I did, I'd still be married:)
Guess that's a lesson to all of us getting new appliances. Ready the manuals cover to cover. Sometimes I think we need a bickering partner in life to take out all the little frustrations on. LoL
DeleteOh my - what a week. We have a 5 year old top loader and when it wouldn't drain after about a year we discovered the same kind of filter although in our case it was just the usual wash runoff plus very hard water. Hubby was able to get it out and clean it but I can't understand why they don't make it easier to do. Can't wait to hear how you like the Van Gogh exhibit - it appears amazing! LOL several times on the image of the "discussion" you had with the other woman.
ReplyDeleteThe other woman is very tiny and soft spoken. I felt like a tyrant trying to explain the stopped washer to her. LoL
DeleteI'll probably do the Van Gogh post next week, I can't wait to see it.
Being ten years younger than you, I could NOT handle that many things to do in one week! You astound me. What is a bone infusion? I don't know why I don't use color catchers but I think I'll give them a try! I learn so many things from you and your blog. Thank you!
ReplyDeleteI say bone infusion but it's really an infusion of medications that is supposed to build density inside your bones. It's worked for me for the pass 5-6 years but you can't keep getting them forever. I've only got 2-3 more years. It's a once a year treatment and you go to an infusion center and sit with an IV in your arm for an hour or two
Deletewhat a bloody week you have had
ReplyDeleteSure was and I survived to tell about it.
DeleteYour busy life is a bit astounding. No filter in my washer. Glad you made it through.
ReplyDeleteI didn't know I had a filter until it got plugged, wish I didn't have one.
DeleteEither you have very busy, exciting weeks, or you pay attention better than I do. A flooding washer would be an annoyance, but a long-lasting alarm would be worse. I hate the sound of alarms.
ReplyDeleteI hate those fire alarms! They are set super sensitive and can't be turned off by anyone but the fire department.
DeleteI have busy weeks but I'm also looking for blog fodder so I do pay attention to what I'm doing. Blogging is like my diary.
I've had a front loader for quite a few years now, but have never known about them having filters. Also, had to look up color catchers and came across instructions on how to make your own. I always wash any new items separately the first time, then have just white and colored clothes (sometimes broken down to additional dark and light colored piles -- except for reds I usually exclude from all). Fortunately haven't had any machine problems or color bleeds so hope I'm not jinxed now since I wrote that. Sure sorry you had such a hassle.
ReplyDeleteI, too, tried to schedule appts within a close period of time to get them all done. Regrettably, now I just can't seem to work them all in as I once did. I really resent them taking more of my time as so many things seem to do anymore.
I usually try to avoid arguments at some point with some innocuous comment, like, "Interesting." or, "Hm-m-m" inflected knowingly, among other non-committal responses. Of course, all bets may be off on what I might say if I'm tired and short on patience.
I'm really shocked at how many people have never heard of Color Catchers. I just ordered a mess bag to use mine in so that can't happen in the future. I've been using them for years but just yesterday read the box and it does tell you with front loaders you have to put them in a bag. They hadn't even invented front loaders back when I started using them.
DeleteTo me it feels good to get all the medical stuff done in a short period of time so you don't have to feel old and needy. I like having blocks of time for projects like sewing, painting, cleaning or whatever rather than picking that stuff up an hour here or an hour there.
I wouldn't call it an argument as much as a bickering and I'm not proud of being part of it.
Yeah, it felt good to me, too, to get everything done in short order. I have to really press myself to do so many times now, only to discover sometimes I simply can no longer cut the mustard. You keep referring to mess bags -- are those different than mesh bags?
DeleteGood grief, Charlie Brown! You don't stop, do you? It's allowed, you know! And what's this about filters? I swear, they build things that consistently need repair or wear out! i'm curious about the OTC drops your doc recommended. I have the same issue with mine!
ReplyDeleteThe drops are Systane Complete PF for Dry Eyes. They come in a bottle you can actually squeeze and see through to know when the drops are low or gone. I'm finding them much easier to use plus someone at the office told me to just aim for the inside corner of the eye and drops will flow into the eye where they need to go. It works!
DeleteFilter discussions up above. In all the years of having washing machines and never needing a filter I'm guessing it's because the new machines use less water.
Thanks, Jean. I need to make a "supplies" visit to the store this week and I'll get those. My others are almost done. The eye corner thing is a great idea!
DeleteOh, the first time (after I moved into my condo) that I tried to do a load of clothes in the "space-aged" washer, it never drained. Called the appliance guy and he would recommend a commercial washer with just regular dials. I just love it.
ReplyDeleteWe didn't have a choice of brands for our appliances or styles for that matter. I wish!
DeleteA filter in a washing machine? That's news to me. I agree with you that: "You can’t yell at a maintenance man like you would a husband so I kept that thought to myself." Pity about that, but it is the truth of things. Happy laundry
ReplyDeleteOur two maintenance men are super good at handling us old woman but the one who came work on my washer was a trainee and in his twenties. Other other two are in their '40s and claim when they worked in schools that teachers were harder to work for. LoL
DeleteOMG, I love the quote you ended this with -- that is a lesson I definitely need to learn! The teacher in me finds it difficult to let misinformation or misunderstanding go, which can easily tip over the line into "obnoxious know-it-all."
ReplyDeleteJust reading about everything you had scheduled in one week made me feel tired, and I don't even have anemia. Adding the fire alarms into the mix would have sent me over the edge. I have personal experience with the down-side of those hard-wired smoke alarms that all go off if any one of them malfunctions. Early in the pandemic, I found myself getting out my tall ladder from the basement and lugging it up the stairs at 3 a.m. because, of course, the smoke detector that was malfunctioning was the one nine feet up from the floor in my bedroom. When I thought about the fact that I was all alone out on a rural dirt road and that getting that ladder up from the basement and climbing up on it to disconnect the alarm both involved serious fall risks, I decided to replace it with a stand-alone battery-powered alarm that sits on top of a bookcase in my bedroom and can be reached with both feet planted firmly on the floor.
You've got the pioneer spirit in you. I would hate to be doing all that at 3 AM. Our fire department installs smoke alarms for free in my old neighborhood and I went with the ones that are not hardwired in and had 20 year batteries.
DeleteWhen I volunteered at a stroke survivors and caregivers website one of my jobs was teaching users how to do things on the website and ended up writing how-to manuals for various stuff. I prided myself on being able to break steps down and communicate the processes for others who weren't computer literate. So when I couldn't make myself understood with this woman I internalized it to mean I'm losing that skill.
Sophia's famous lines were top shelf, weren't they? *LOL* The bickering types I shut down immediately with "You could be right..." and then Move On. Those prone to be argumentative cannot forfeit their Need to be Right and so it's a waste of my time and patience to enlighten them when clearly they don't know what they're talking about. The new Machines do have Maintenance prompts and I heed them since ignoring them would be too risky and foolish. The Fire Dept. bursting in with Axes during a long, hot Shower would be pause for considering long, hot Showers... more for their sake, I have zero inhibitions, as us Old Hippies are prone to being uninhibited Souls, but they wouldn't be able to Unsee what they'd Seen... and buying them Couch Time would just be Cruel. *winks* I'm glad you did the off Campus Social Event with Friends, even if some were probably the type you might Opt Out of going places with again? It does give you a sense of who you would want to do things off Campus with another time.
ReplyDeleteThere are a few people here I don't care to spend much time with but that's true no matter where you go or what you do. Its all great blog fodder and I'm happy its coming to me instead of me having to go find it.
Delete