Skunked, Shocked, and Slightly Concussed
The week I held down the fort—and the fort fought back
This past week was memorable. My husband and daughter were 500+ miles away, surprising my mother-in-law for her birthday, while I held down the fort. Said “fort” consisted of a normal 40-hour work week and my usual tasks (tidying the house, laundry, etc.), plus taking care of our three dogs, watering the plants, getting the mail, putting out the trash bin, keeping track of deliveries, and the list goes on. Like my phone during this time, I rarely had any battery left at the end of each day.
The last few days were the grand finale. Apparently, we had to go out with a bang…literally. I slammed my head into a kitchen chair one morning—a chair that hadn’t moved in quite some time—while bending down to coax one of the dogs into her kennel. That left an impression. The next day I found out my boss of six years was no longer my boss—he wasn't at the company anymore. I didn’t even get to say goodbye.
Another morning I got up to let the dogs outside. As I opened the door to the master suite, a distinct and overwhelming odor came wafting in. I’m quite skilled in the scent department, but this one didn’t need any analysis. Sometime before I awoke, the outdoor A/C unit startled a skunk who thought it was a predator and did its thing, circulating its special surprise throughout the entire house via the HVAC unit. I wasn’t planning on changing the filters that day, but it was time. A couple of hours later, a transformer went down. No power. No circulation. No fresh air. Thankfully, the crew was on it. The outage only lasted an hour, enough time for inside the house to get even mustier, if that was possible.
By the time the lights flickered back on, I'd stopped counting how many things had gone wrong that week. There wasn’t enough caffeine, candles, or vinegar to prepare me for this adventure. Some weeks just want to see if you'll break. This one didn't get the satisfaction.
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