Water Heater Saga

      Another Friday post! And for much of the same reason as last week. Yes, the water heater saga continues. So, last week, after I wrote you, I decided to take a shower, to get ready for my gig that night. It went pretty well by the way. One of the bands I was looking forward to seeing cancelled, so that was kind of a bummer, but other than that it was okay. I really didn’t care for the second band, I was having trouble following along, and distinguishing between songs. The “headliner” was okay, I had been wanting to see them since I was 20, and finally got to play a show with them. It was, okay. I was not mesmerized. I also didn’t realize that both of the bands we played with had the same members. There were more people there than I thought. It was the same night as Punk Rock Bowling in Vegas, so we weren’t sure if anyone would be there. It was a decent turn out. One of the cool things that happened was a line to shake my hand when we were done. It was kind of awesome, but weird at the same time. At first, I wasn’t sure why so many people were just standing there, and then, when I tried to squeeze past them, it was like: “Oh, you wish to speak to me.” A lot of praise from a lot of strangers, that’s one of the best things about playing in front of new people. Anyway: My shower never got hot. It was “lukewarm,” about the temperature that I would normally want. I only take “hot” showers when it’s cold out. But, since I just got the new water heater, I wanted to try it out. All the way hot never made it any hotter. I was bummed. It was too late to do anything about it, so I texted the technician, and let him know it was not working. He texted that he’d be there in the morning.

     It was hard not to think about the water heater at the gig, but I did my best. The next day we had dinner plans at 4. The technician said he’d be there around 10. That was not the case. He called around 11:30 and said he’d be about 30 minutes. That was not the case. It was almost 1! When he got there, he realized that the heating mechanism was not working. It was a faulty water heater! What are the chances!? So, because it was Memorial Day Weekend, he was not able to get the parts he needed, and, was not able to get a replacement. He ended up having to set us up with a temporary water heater, sitting out in our yard, looking like R2-D2 hooked up to our house. It worked, but he’d be back on Tuesday to replace the water heater. He literally left at 3:15! We were starting to get nervous about our plans. We hadn’t spent time with these people in years, and it was seeming like we may have to cancel, or Susan go by herself. I was just about to tell him we had plans, and he said he was done. Just in the nick of time! I guess that was a blessing, but we still didn’t get to anything that we were going to do that day. Oh well, at least we had hot water, even though we weren’t going to be at home. We did get to our dinner date on time. It was nice to see them again. I’m not even sure why we stopped hanging out. We used to get together once a month, practically every holiday, and then once our children went to different high schools, it just kind of stopped. They had another baby, and that’s just what happened. When our children started high school! They are 25 this year! It felt good to see them, almost like no time had passed. It felt very comfortable, and we’ve already made more plans.

     Sunday was fun. We went to a different friend’s party. They have an annual party to kick off the summer. It was a lot of fun. It’s also the annual “pool’s ready” bash. Only 4 of us were brave enough to get in. They make it a game, so there are no toes allowed in if you’re taking the plunge. You have to just go for it. It’s fun. This was the first year we participated. Susan was the only female. It was not that bad. The other 2 got out immediately, but we stayed in for a bit. I didn’t want to get cold for just a few seconds! Staying in was nice. I like not having gravity’s full force on me, it’s relaxing. Nothing hurts when I’m suspended. We had a little bit too much fun, and ended up staying over. Better than driving!  We got home around 10, and were having dinner with my parents at 3. Just enough time to relax before we were on the road again. Dinner was nice, probably the best tri-tip my mom ever made. It was good to see them. We got home early, it had been a long weekend. I was notified by the technician that he would be at my home between 8 and 10. At 8:30 I got a call from the technician’s manager that they were stopping at the warehouse, then coming to my home. Wow! I thought. But, you guessed it, I never saw them. I wasn’t sure if I’d have to cancel band practice. So, I called them at 1 to see what was going on. And wouldn’t you know it, he was just about to call me, and let me know that they couldn’t get a water heater, and tell me it would have to be on Thursday. Thursday! At least we had hot water. The temp was doing its job. So, finally yesterday we got a new water heater. There was a little mildew in the closet, I’m a little nervous about that, but I cleaned it up. We’ll see.