Don’t pull the plug

Setting up a place to live from scratch for one of the off-spring transferring schools might be called a challenge. I have been leaving a lot out between the lines but have been called to task enough times in the last couple of days by everyone who has become confused. Seemed like the time to review the bidding.

Now, this past fall with Maus it wasn’t completely absurd. She was headed to Pratt, she was going to be living in the dorm and excellent friends in the city helped out going over and above anything rational to give us a hand. (At least that is what Mark and Deb did, from bailing us out of the airport, dropping off Miriam’s stuff at school, putting us up overnight and dropping us again at the airport the next morning). Then there were the shopping runs.

Transferring Ms Soprano to Columbia College in Chicago was made more challenging by Gwen. When you have a dog, you don’t live in the dorm which necessitates finding an apartment. It also means a drive from DC (where her stuff was) to Chicago because of the stuff and the dog. Staying in motels which are dog friendly makes sense, and staying with friend in the area for a couple of days also meets the common sense test when you have keys but a completely open and empty place.

Today we managed to accomplish some major tasks. We didn’t buy out Costco, but she should not be lacking for supplies for a long time. They kept a bit of my money in return.

And then we went 0-2 at Apple once again failing to be able to execute a phone contract. AT&T managed to unscrew the paperwork but it took long enough to see 1/2 football game and reassure myself that I have been missing absolutely nothing by not watching TV for years. For an encore we stopped at Target for the rest of the house hold basics (those things which you really don’t want to buy in case lots – vegetable peelers, can openers, pillows……)

What we haven’t really settled is the furniture. I think it shouldn’t be an emergency decision driven by not wanting to sleep on the floor. After attempting IKEA yesterday and spending a bit of time on-line today I have had my thoughts confirmed. Whatever we buy, Ms Soprano is going to have to live with for a long time. Which is the long way around of saying that we haven’t made any decisions at all.

Don remembered the air mattress which has been hiding in his closet for several years. Originally purchased for one of his sons heading out on a similar type adventure it has seen a lot of use. We hauled it out, pulled it from the bag and unrolled it. Carefully peeling off the two sheets which had been packaged in with the air mattress we opened it out on the floor, plugged it in and watched it start to fill. It wasn’t hard to figure out the setting for the intake value but it just didn’t seem to be filling. As I am standing on the far end, I feel a cool breeze on my ankles. Looking down, there is a gaping hole with printed directions to the right. Funny thing, there is an out flow as well as the intake.

Seems that if you want to effectively inflate this double decker charmer it really helps to close the valve.

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5 Responses to Don’t pull the plug

  1. Pat says:

    I meant to offer a small thought on tips for shopping in Chicago. For
    food, yes, the chains are pretty expensive. The small corner stores
    are worse. The cheapest places to buy food are at the neighborhood
    ethnic groceries — Mexican, Puerto Rican, Jewish, Russian, Polish,
    Hindi. Whatever is the dominant immigrant group in the neighborhood
    will tend to have both the most interesting food choices and the
    cheapest prices. Why, I don’t know, but that is what I found when I
    lived in Chicago (granted, this was 15 years ago!). I expect any kid
    of yours will probably like ethnic foods. 😉

  2. Isobel says:

    Good luck. Sounds as though you need it!

    Gee, I think IKEA is great!

  3. Ann says:

    Our daughter lived on Aerobeds for quite a while until she bought her futon. Still uses Aerobeds alot!
    If you need help or crash pad in Skokie, my brother …..

  4. Steve says:

    Ah, thanks…makes much more sense now. FYI, I ‘taught’ at Columbia a few years back to their Cinematography dept. Wish I could remember the dean/dept head’s name, but it was a fun filled couple of trips for a couple days each.

  5. Alison says:

    *snerk* on that last line!

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