TEMPORARY FIX
Autumn has finally arrived. The Autumnal Equinox marking the first day of this new season. A time when the leaves turn beautiful colours of red, orange, and yellow, eventually falling off tree branches. This day being a time when the day and night are approximately the same hours in length.
I look forward to the time when we are in a place where we can settle down. Somewhat. When you move often, you learn not to expect to be in one place for too long. It happens when you are a single parent without a house and with a job that just about pays the bills, leaving you to rely on credit for the rest. Not ideal, but necessary. The situation becomes even more temporary when your furniture and most everything you own is two thousand miles away, locked up in various storage units. Adding to the monthly costs.
The challenge, now, lies in our finding a place where we can move to and bring our belongings. Our two choices now lie equidistant from our current location. One being more ideal due to a large international airport, meaning more direct and less expensive flights to Europe. It would also be a shorter distance to see my daughters. Sometimes it’s better to simply move somewhere to try out for a while without having to bring everything you own.
In the past four months, we have tried to make do with what we have. But the sleeping solution needed to change. A blanket on the hardwood and concrete floor was taking its toll on our bodies. And the quality of sleep. I had a few ideas, from extra blankets to a cheap foam mattress, but finally decided on a real mattress. Which arrived tonight. Earlier than the scheduled time tomorrow morning.
It is not a perfect solution, as nothing is ever truly perfect. But this will help us count the sleeps until we find the route to our next adventure. After graduation.
I guess it shouldn’t have come as a surprise to have heard from the assistant principal today. Things were quiet as my son stayed home on Friday and Monday. But as soon as he stepped into school today, the AP had to find something to use against him. His not getting the tardy slip when he arrived late to school. Leaving the school during fourth period from a door that he was able to use at the end of last semester but somehow wasn’t able to use it today. The explanation being that he was working on a construction project for class. The other one, disconnecting the Chromebook monitor from the keyboard during class, was unexplainable. But that was still from last week.
My son learned that trying to explain anything was useless. So, he just sat in the AP’s office and listened for a few minutes until finally asking if he could return to his classes. Eventually he was let go, but will have to serve lunch detention for those offenses. I’ve also learned not to bother saying anything and do not even answer those calls or emails. We just have to make it through these next eight or so months.
As for the kitchen sink, I waited and waited. In the afternoon, I sent an email asking why nobody bothered to show up yesterday or ‘first thing’ this morning. The reply was that they didn’t seem it was worth it. To do another temporary fix. It certainly would have been useful to know that’s what they decided. Had I not sent the email, I would still be wondering why they never showed up. Stating my case any further was useless. And exhausting.
And just like the sink, we continue to work on a more permanent and stable solution. Not simply a temporary fix. But somewhere we can get out of survival mode and on to living life.
