So yesterday was a proper vacation day, in that I sat in front of the TV all day in Mom's big brown chair and watched I Love the 80's, knitting like a fiend.

This is the great thing about knitting, you are never wasting time anymore, even when you are only staring at the tube, you still are doing something useful that needs doing! And I nearly finished the dove grey scarf at last, and after a great deal of un-knitting.

I love this mohair yarn desperately, but one annoying thing about it is that it's terribly hard to un-knit when you have made a mistake, because it sticks together like crazy and you have to rip it apart and it's a big pain.

Frankly, it would be easier just to knit it properly in the first place.

Gawd, this house is absolutely falling to bits around our ears, but Mom is refusing to repair anything that isn't completely necessary since the damn thing is coming down eventually anyway. And yes, I know it's been eleven years, I don't really want to hear about it.

One good thing is that she got a fantastic new water heater for free, because the old one was still under warranty and was unfixable. We have spent years with the hot water running out every 15 seconds, making it very difficult to wash dishes or for both of us to take baths in a row, but it turns out that it's not supposed to do that. Who knew?

This new water heater is glorious--acres of hot water available for hours at a time, you don't even have to turn it all the way to hot in order to fill a bath! If you do, you will be scalded! It's fantastic!

On the other hand, the one working toilet is less working than not actually working.

The tank doesn't fill, or it fills but leaks out immediately, so what we are doing is only flushing when absolutely necessary, putting the paper in the garbage rather than dropping it in the toilet (We had to do that when I was visiting Denise's house in Greece many years ago, because the pipes couldn't take it), and then filling the tank with the garden hose.

Yep, you open the window, where the hose is hanging from a branch on the camellia tree next to the house, pull the hose in, stick it in the back of the tank, go out in the backyard and turn the hose on, then wait until the person inside (Mom) flushes, then yells that she wants to flush a second time. Complain about flushing twice, then turn the water off and go back inside.

And to add insult to injury, this isn't the only water problem, we also are washing dishes in a bucket in the sink and then pouring the water on the plants outside, due to the leaky pipes under the sink. Strangely, the plants are thriving on the soapy water and are growing huge and healthy.

I swear to God, it's like living in Hooterville.

Today's horoscope
You're at home in an expanding universe. Taste everything that comes your way. Take your pleasures one by one or experience them simultaneously. You're too smart and responsible to go too far over budget.

One year ago today
It's huge, cathedral-sized, but it's mine and feels as homely as if it were tiny. Anything can fit you if it is yours.

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Last Updated Thurs 3 February 15:12:09 2005