Why, Thank You!

Bee was out of town this weekend.  Naturally, the main water line at our rental house chose that time to show evidence that it was broken.  The renters called me less than an hour after Bee left, then had to deal with me hemming and haahing while I tried to figure out what to do.  At seven o'clock.  On a Friday night.

How is it that houses only have problems requiring professional assistance when it's after hours or on the weekend?
  It's as if they know the plumber's going to charge you that extra $89 just to come look at it.  And my house waited until Bee was out of cell-phone reach, so I had no partner with which to come up with a plan of attack.

However, rather than focus on the bad, I am determined to count my blessings.

Blessing Number 1: I have excellent renters, who called me as soon as they discovered the problem.

Blessing Number 2: My excellent renters helped me (well, OK, did most of it) dig down into the ground to locate the break.

Blessing Number 3: At least there are plumbers who will come out on a Saturday.

Blessing Number 4: The plumber told me it would cost $1,800 to dig up and replace the line.  Then he called back, highly apologetic, to say that, actually, it would be $2,837.  Which doesn't sound like a blessing, but it will when we get to Blessing Number 9.

Blessing Number 5:  A neighbor agreed to let us hook up to their water supply until we can fix the leak.

Blessing Number 6:  I recalled that a friend down my own street used to be a repairman, so I asked if he could recommend a good plumber.  Not only did our friend do so, but he came to our house at 9 p.m. on Sunday to explain to Bee and me what would most likely happen, how much it would most likely cost, and what things to look out for.

Blessing Number 7:  Bee only got back into town just before Blessing Number 6 Friend arrived, so the first time he heard about the problem was when the friend was there.  So he had to be calm.

Blessing Number 8:  Bee has continued to be realistic and not fatalistic about the issue. He even thanked me for being so good in a crisis (I chose not to tell him about my near-breakdown when he was gone).

Blessing Number 9:  The very nice-seeming plumber recommended by Blessing Number 6 Friend has agreed to do the repair work for $1,600.  Which is still a lot, but -- since our first bid was for $2,837 -- I feel like we're getting a bargain (hence why Blessing Number 4 feels like an actual blessing).   

 Blessing Number 10: Yes, we're a single-income family right now, and we really don't have that sort of extra cash every month.  But we will be able to cover it without filing for bankruptcy, which is more than lots of other folks can do.  In fact, we know we could save a lot of money by digging up the pipe ourselves, but we have the means to pay the plumber to do it, freeing us up that day to work at Bee's business instead.

So, while I am upset about this broken water main, it has at least reminded me about the things and people in my life that I can be thankful for.  What a lovely gift!

A $1,600 gift.