Well, that was a short night!

Okay. Here's the story:

Around 3:00-3:30 a.m. I was lying in bed awake and trying to get back to sleep when suddenly I heard what sounded like a hard, heavy rain shower. But with it, I also heard something dripping or gurgling or splashing in the bathroom. So I got up and guess what? Water was gushing out from under the bathroom sink!

Now the powers that be who built this house, and Mr. Monroe, who 'renovated' it, didn't believe in shut-off valves for under bathroom sinks. So, while the Girl, who had woken up, and I were trying to sop up the geyser with all the towels in the linen cabinet and more, Hubby had to go out and turn off the water to the whole house just to stop the leak!

The Girl went back to bed, and after a while, Hubby and I wrung as much water from the soppy towels as we could, putting it into a bucket for toilet flushing purposes later on. He went out to get water for drinking and for the toilet and when he came back, we loaded up the heavy towels and off I went at 5 a.m. in search of an open laundromat. I pulled into the parking lot at the one nearest us just as two older folks, who I assumed were the owners, pulled up beside me and unlocked the doors, swinging them wide open. The man said that they usually opened at six, but I figured that if he had the doors open like that, he must not mind me using the place.

After I picked my jaw off the floor at the price of one load of laundry, I went over to the 24-hour grocery, got myself a cold bottle of Starbucks mocha frappacino and one of cranberry-grape juice, a package of six little powdered donuts, and five dollars in change, three of it in quarters. Then I went back to wash the towels.

I used the Mega Load washer, which fit all the towels at once. It took 18 quarters! I think you're supposed to use powdered detergent in these things but all I had was my liquid stuff and a bucket of Oxyclean so that's what I used. Everything looked very, very sudsy in there. While the washer was running, I drank my Starbucks and my juice and did a couple of word search puzzles... in ink. Of course, there was really no good "spin" cycle on the washer: when the load was done the towels were wetter coming out than they had been going in. So I had to pay an extra dollar to use the two "extractors", centrifuges that squeezed the surplus water from the towels. I suppose this is their way of making extra money.

Finally, I was finished. While the extractors were running, two cleaning ladies came in. If they were surprised to see me there, they didn't say anything. I packed up my towels, detergents, laundry baskets, puzzle book, and donuts and headed home. Hubby was waiting for me and transferred about half of the towels into our dryer. Then the two of us got ready to go out again and take him to work.

The plumber has been and gone. His verdict: we need a new faucet. I've tried to call the claims department of our homeowner's insurance twice and have been basically cut off. Took the kids out for breakfast (and a bathroom trip) then went to the hardware store after the plumber left to buy a new faucet (and have a bathroom trip). And tonight, when he gets home, Hubby gets to be a plumber.