Never take for granted

Most of my adult life, I have lived in an apartment. Except for the time I was married, I have enjoyed the convenience of having someone take care of things that might break, like AC units not working, toilets overflowing, bathtubs stopped up, dishwashers suddenly not working, etc. Even when I was married and living in the house that we are in now, my ex knew how to take care of these things, and I didn't have to worry about it.

Never take for granted the things that make your life simpler. I found out that the hard way. About a week and a half ago, both bathrooms started backing up. We first noticed it in the bathtubs, then in the toilets. I called my ex (who is in New Mexico at the moment) and he said to look at the clean out in the back yard. This is when I wish he was here, because I have no idea what a "clean out" is, or what it does, nor do I care. Anyway, Corinne and I went to the backyard and looked down this pipe that was sticking out of the ground, of course, after we removed the cover. We were supposed to look for water backing up in the pipe. All we saw were roots, and no water. If we saw the water backing up there, it would mean it was the county MUD's fault. But because we didn't see any backup there, it was backed up under the house somewhere. Great. That means someone will have to unclog it somehow. To see if we can unclog it without using a "snake", he had us put some plumber's lye down the drain. Nope. Didn't work. Next thing, he said we would have to get a 4 in "snake" and run it to get it cleared. That means I would have to rent one of those things and get one of my guy friends to run it for me, or hire a plumber.

The backup created havoc on us. We couldn't wash clothes or run the dishwasher. Corinne's bathroom was unusable, but you could still flush the toilet in mine and take a short 10 minute shower before the water started clogging up. Life wasn't fun for awhile.

Hiring a plumber was too expensive. Corinne called around, and the lowest quote we got was about $130 through almost $200, just to snake the line. Forget it if it involves something else. I guess we'll go with the second option: doing it ourselves (or with the help of friends).

So, now I had the task of finding a snake to rent. How do you find a snake? Well, I had enough sense to know that if you need to rent some kind of equipment, Aztec Rental is the place to go. (I later found out that Home Depot or Lowe's might have it as well). We called and found out that we can rent a 4 inch snake for just under $60 for 4 hours, or if you pick it up after 3 pm and return it by 9 am, you can have it overnight for the same price. The latter is what I would need it for because the guy friends were coming over at night.

Once we determined what day the guys were coming over, I had to make arrangements to go and pick up the snake. Since Aztec closes at 5 pm, I had to leave work a few minutes early just so that I can make sure that I can get there in time. I walked into Aztec and three guys were behind the counter. At first, they all looked at me as I entered the store, and then one of them said, "What can do for you, honey?" Seeing that this was a country man's world, and I was just one of them city women, I went up to the counter and said, "I need to rent a snake. You know, one of them 4 inch snakes?" Now, I was doing it. I didn't intend to sound country. It just popped out. He replied, "Sure thing, honey. We have plenty of those. Let me set you up." He went to work, asked me for my driver's license, asked for the payment, and then asked me to drive around to the side yard to pick up my snake.

I went to the side, and immediately I saw these two hispanic guys waving at me to go down and turn around so that the side door is facing them. As soon as I pulled up, they immediately started to open the side door. I jumped out and helped them unlock the back door. They were so funny. I went from country to talking in Spanish. The hispanic guys were talking fast Spanish, so I was only catching half of what was being said. But they were good. They unlatched the back seat, rolled the seat forward so that the snake can fit, and put the snake in the back of my van. They had it loaded in about 5 minutes.

I went home and waited for the guys. They got there about 7:30 pm. They had to snake the line from the back through the clean out, and through both toilets. The snake broke up the roots, which made it easier for the water to move. But Corinne's bathtub was still full of water, so they used the small snake to unclog it. After that, everything ran great.

I felt really dumb the next day. The next morning I needed to take a shower, and the water started clogging up in my bathtub. I told myself I didn't care, so I continued on with my shower. I was mad because we still had a clog and the guys might have to come back. I wasn't mad at the guys, I was just mad at the clog. I called home later and asked Corinne to look at my tub and see if the water was still there. If it was still there, then I would call the guys back out to see what we can do. Corinne went to the tub and said yes, the water was still there. Then she said, "Mom, the drain is up. Do you want me to release the drain?" Of course I said, and immediately the water went down. The guys must have put the drain up while they were working on the pipe so that water wouldn't go down accidently. I felt stupid! It works now.

The return of the snake was just as memorable. I drove to the side, and two guys immediately came up to my van and unloaded the snake in about two minutes flat. I didn't have to lift a finger. Then they directed me inside to "take care of paperwork". These guys are good!

Never take for granted modern conveniences. I thank God for these things, and for friends who can come out and help me with my problem!