Day 14

Magneto, The Cat and Madame Chabou's Lover.

Sometimes shit just doesn't go as planned.  The day started like any other.  The daily grind.  Up with the sun . . . children to dress and miles to walk.  Another scream fest at the early learning center.  Par for the course.  Could not deny the spring in my step, knowing that this would be the last time I would travel this route on foot.  By nightfall I would have my feline UAV (urban assault vehicle).  Life was good.  Even locking myself out of the hotel this morning was not enough to bring me down . . . not today.  The folks at the front desk know me well by now.  An extra key was waiting for me.  It seems that there is something about my body chemistry that de-magnatizes the room keys.  I am on my 5th set.  I am very careful to put the keys in my left front pants pocket to ensure that they aren't next to any electronics or keys that might have a negative effect on their proper functioning.  I keep telling my wife that my junk is a magnet, but she ain't buyin it.

Lunch consisted of the last of our supplies . . . French Ramen Noodles . . . the verdict?  Terrible.  Oh well, we would be in our new house this evening and able to properly stock our cupboards.  Picked up the eldest at 4 and headed to meet my wife for a very busy evening.  First to the car dealer and then to the House for final walk through.  What could go wrong?  EVERYTHING, that's what.  Traffic was a nightmare and after just a few moments waiting in line to finish the final paperwork on the Renault, it was clear we were going to have to divide and conquer.  Reluctantly I left my wife at the car seller and made a mad dash across town through dimly lit narrow corridors to make our 6:00 appointment at the house.  With two kids in tow and a notable language barrier, we began our inspection. 

I would like to tell you that the kids welcomed this event with open arms, but after a long day at school, neither was in any mood for what was to transpire.  It mattered not, because there was to be no translation here.  I could spend my time managing the children.  The inspection would proceed in the mother tongue between the landlady, our agent and a woman who was never introduced, but I suspect may be cohabitating with said landlady.  The house is now empty, well sort of.  It appears that we are to inherit some items.  A few dirty mattresses, trash bags of unknown content, broken windows, misc. home furnishing and a tabby cat named Ristine.  The mystery as to the strong feline content of our stay so far was not a coincidence.  It was an omen.  Lion cereal, Cat detergent and car with a notable hood emblem . . . I should have known.  Here kitty kitty.  Ristine seems to be a pleasant enough cat, but the notable fragrance of the now empty house would indicate that perhaps Ristine had used the kitchen as a litterbox.

The stench was not the only horror we would encounter.  The repainting that we had been told would be completed, had not . . . and would not.  The filth on the walls gave them a nice grey sheen, sort of like the walls at a bus depot.  The grey wall color went nicely with the orange carpet.  Newly installed carpet that doesn't appear to be affixed to the floor in any way.  Curious contruction practices.  It was time to bring these proceedings to a halt.  We pulled our agent outside for a bit of a chat.  I kept looking up and down the narrow road infront of the house, hoping . . . no, praying that at any moment Holmes on Homes would show up to intervene.  No such luck.  After some phone calls and some not so pleasant conversations about what was promised and not performed, a few concessions were made . . . most of which involved a lot of manual labor on my part.  So much for my life of leisure.  One thing was clear, we would NOT be moving into this home this evening . . . if at all. 

The misery of the evening left its mark.  Tempers were high and spirits were at an all time low.  To add salt to my gaping wounds, it would not be possible this evening to go and pick up my newly purchased muscle car.  We were being tested.  As we always have, we let our cooler heads prevail and decided that tomorrow was another day.  Sleep well Ristine . . . sleep well.