Last week was a pretty sad week- our washing machine broke and left us with piles of unwashed diapers for five days, and our toilet overflowed, filled the bathroom with three inches of water, AND leaked into the basement (requiring every remaining towel in our house for clean-up, and of course we couldn’t launder them afterwards).

Since things pretty much sucked anyway, we decided to put together my parents’ hand-me-down office desk. It was fairly straightforward except when the baggie of hardware to go with it disappeared for twenty minutes or so until C innocently suggested, "Maybe it’s in the Lerkim," which is his Lorax-inspired hiding place behind the chair in our living room. Indeed, we found it there- apparently a Barbaloot had whisked it away when we weren’t looking.

This desk was large enough to replace three desks previously inhabiting the office, and they spent several days being shifted around the house. (For a while they blocked our downstairs hallway completely; for a while one prevented us from opening the hall closet; for a while one occupied our bed.) Also, the transfer of computers-and-supplies between desks has been fairly painful, and two large plastic tubs that we’d just purchased for storing recyclables have been usurped and are now holding piles o’ crap under the desk.

But now, all is good. The washing machine was fixed and while it still cost plenty of money, the repairman took pity on us and sold us a "service agreement" that covered the repair for about a quarter of what he could have charged us. The toilet disaster is cleaned up and may have provided C with a good visual lesson in what happens when you use too much toilet paper. (He also has been instructed on where the water turn-offs are.) The new desk is much prettier and more functional, and the old ones have all been relocated or sold at a convenient neighbors’ garage sale.

So now what are we in for?