Houston, We Have A Problem (Part 2)

     In a short recap from part 1 (blog posted on January 23, 2013 - Houston We Have A Problem Part 1), our water pipe that connected the house to the city water broke underground and our insurance company paid for our hotel stay at the Residence Inn in Grandville, Michigan.  We were at the hotel just over a week while a crew was at our home in Allegan fixing the water lines.  Brian came "home" from working half way into our hotel stay. 

     One night Brian and I were laying in the queen size bed flipping through the channels on the TV that sat on the long dresser in one of the bedroom in our hotel suite.  Some shows caught our interest for a moment but we mostly couldn't find anything impressive to watch.  We came across one station that did catch our attention.  Before our eyes we were watching astronauts moving about on a shuttle out in space.  Confused, we watched a bit more.  We looked at the corner of the screen where it gave the call letters NASA TV.  We grabbed the hotel TV listing card and realized it was the station live programing of what is going on at NASA.  We had Directv at home and we didn't receive this station, nor did we know it existed. 

     I looked over at Brian.  "Did you know we had a shuttle up in space?" I asked him.

     Without taking his eyes of the TV, "No, I had no idea." 



The crew of the Columbia. 





     I resumed watching the NASA TV.  We seen people wearing blue suits working on something.  You couldn't hear what they were saying.  Every now and then a speaker radio would break the silence and ask the astronauts a question and the astronauts would reply back.  It wasn't overly enjoyable to watch yet there was something intriguing about knowing these astronauts are in outer space doing their work and we are watching them in the comfort of the bed.  We must of fallen asleep because we woke up in the morning with the TV on and more of NASA TV was playing.  We had Christian to take to school and things to do so we shut off the TV and went on with our day.

     It was January 31, 2003.  We couldn't wait for the kids to fall asleep so we can "spy" on what the astronauts are doing.  We found out it was the Columbia that launched January 16.  Their mission was to do an Earth Science research.  They had over 60 different science experiments that involved spiders, insects, bees, and other animals.  They were also working on microgravity research as well.  The camera would go back and forth from the Columbia to Mission Control.  The camera would give a wide angle shot of Mission Control and you can see people walking about and some seated at their posts doing minor things. 

     February 1, we wake up to start another day.  On the radio we heard of the Columbia disintegrated upon re-entry into the atmosphere.  A numb feeling swept across us.  This can't be right, I thought, We were just watching them last night on TV. 

     We got back to the hotel and turned on the NASA TV station.  There was a picture of an empty Mission Control room and a recorded message saying the station is temporarily down for the moment.  Dread fell upon us.  We sat staring at the picture not able to move.  Several hours prior we were watching them move about on the shuttle and now all seven on board perished.  One minute they are coming home and the next minute they are a memory. 

     The cause of the Columbia accident all started from the moment the shuttle took off for outer space.  A hole was made in the shuttle's wing when a piece of foam broke off from the external fuel tank during lift-off.  At the time it didn't seem like a big deal.  It was normal for bits to break off with the stress of lift -off.  When the Columbia was re-entering the atmosphere hot gases entered in the wing of the shuttle causing it to disintegrate.  Parts of the shuttle were found throughout the northeastern part of Texas and into Louisiana.  Over 84,000 pieces have been collected and they are still finding parts of the Columbia to this day. 

Workers piecing the shuttle debris together.



     Some of the odd things that have been recovered is the Caenorhabditis elegans worm, one of the worms the Columbia crew was doing an experiment on.  It was in a petri dish that was in a container that was in a locker.  The worms, actually the decendants of the original worms since they don't live very long, were amazingly found alive.   Astronaunt Kalpana Chawla brought with her 2 Deep Purple CD albums.  The CD's ended up surviving the distruction of the Columbia.  Deep Purple ended up making a song dedicated to the Columbia called, "Contact Lost". 

     If our pipes didn't break we would of never known about the Columbia being up in outer space working on a mission.  We would of found out about it by watching the news like most of America that fateful February 1, day.  We enjoyed being able to watch what they were doing on the shuttle and how Mission Control connected with them.  We felt honored to step inside NASA albeit via TV station but to get an inside look of what went on in the Columbia. 

     

    

Houston, We Have A Problem (Part 1)

     This is a two-part blog.  The events that will be told before you lead up to another set of events the week after.  Since it is two different events I will keep them seperated in my blog but have the next blog be a continuation from this blog.

     One thing about being a trucker's wife is that you learn how to be independent.  The husband is out on the road for weeks at a time with usually an unknown date on his return.  He is working hard on the road with different hours and different weather with idoit drivers.  It is not an easy life and and only certain people can live in that lifestyle.  The wife tends to the home and children and and everything in between.  It is not easy for wife either.  Again, only certain types of people can live in that lifestyle. 

     My husband is very handy with everything.  I don't think there is anything he cannot do.  If there is something he is unsure of he fakes it well and still does the task right.  When he is home he fixes the things that need fixing or tinkers with other things around the house.  He likes to stay busy.  

     I, on the other hand, is the baby of the family and I was pampered.  Everything was hired out that needed to be done around the house.  My dad left the state, my mom was losing her vision and her parents (my grandparents) passed away when we were young.  Looking back things around the house had to be hired out because no one was there to fix it for us, whether it was painting our walls,  putting in a new dishwasher or moving across the state of Michigan.  We depended on others for most of the "honey-do" list.  I never set foot in a hardware store until I met my husband.  And the old joke of a car needing "blinker fluid"?  Yea, I fell for it.  So it was very hard when my husband would go on the road and something unexpected would happen.  Many times he would try to talk me through things and try his hardest to figure out what I am talking about because I didn't know the correct terminology for certain parts or pieces of what was happening.  A quick example:  Just recently I had to replace a broken pipe.  I told my husband I had to get a plastic piece thing to connect the two pipes.   He told me that it is called a "union".  Then when I went to the hardward I was able to tell the guy I needed a union instead of a plastic connector thingy.   I have learned a lot in our marriage and at times impress myself.  I am still learning a lot of things too.

     The year was 2003.  It was late January and if I remember correctly it was an average winter.  We had snow on the ground and it was cold but not overly cold.  Christian was in kindergarten and I had our daughters Elizabeth and Ashton along with our almost 5 month old son James at home.  We owned our own semi-truck and Brian was over in Wisconsin making deliveries and pick-ups.  Everything were going pretty much normal.  Until I went to give the girls a bath. 

     It was mid-morning.  I turned on the water and checked the temperature and flipped the switch to plug the tub.  I reached to turn off the tub.  I turned one knob to the off position but the water kept coming.  Confused, I reach up and grab the other knob and turned that one to the off position.  The water still kept coming full force.  I grabbed both knobs and twisted them back and forth and the water would not shut off.   NOOOOO!  I thought to myself.  I have dealt with water freezing up in pipes but not water that does not want to stop coming out of the faucet.  I didn't get it.  I flipped the switch back so the water can drain out.  Then I called Brian. 

     He sounded as confused as I did as to why the water wasn't stopping.  "See the panel next to the tub?"  he asks. 

     "Yes."  I replied back.

     "Pull it off and there should be a twist valve that looks like the outside faucet.  Turn it the opposite direction to shut the water off."

     I pull off the vented metal panel.  It was a small little cubby space that showed the pipes to the tub.  There was also an old wooden potty chair with a picture of a bear painted on the back of the seat and wooden arm rests. I wonder how long that has been there, I thought.  I returned my attention to the pipes and looked around.  "There isn't a valve in here."  I tell Brian over the phone.

     "There has to be.  Are you sure you are looking in the right spot?  Look up and down the pipes.  It has got to be there." 

     I look all over the pipes.  "I'm sorry, hun, but there isn't a valve anywhere back here."

     Brian gave a frustrated sigh trying to figure this out being across on the other side of Lake Michigan.  After a brief moment of thinking Brian says, "Go to the back room, open the door to the cellar and there should be a valve on one of the pipes down there.  Let me know when you find it and call me back." 

     I walk to our back room and look at the U-shaped cord on the floor.  The wooden gray door that led to the cellar was on the floor to our back room.  When opening it you had to give the door a hard push to swing it up and over the opening it revealed in the floor.  If you leaned too far forward you had a chance of falling in.  Cobwebs usually lined the bottom side of the heavy door which seperated from the ceiling wall from the cellar.  No doubt it was creepy.  I grabbed our outdoor broom and quickly swept around the entrance of the cellar and the first few steps.  I used the broom like an expert swordsman swatting away all the webs I could find.  I didn't want to look too deeply into the webs for fear of finding a spider.  I knew if I were to spy a spider I would of hightailed it out of there in lightning speed. 

     The height of the cellar is about 5 feet.  It was narrow and small.  Three people could probably fit in there but that would be about it.  I hunch over making sure my head would not come in contact with the cobwebs hanging from the ceiling and looked around.  I seen the silver metal pipes but I wasn't seeing a valve.  The phone rung.  It was Brian.  "Are you down there yet?"

     "Yes I am but I am not seeing a valve."

     "WHAT?!  The valve has to be there!  You aren't looking hard enough."  I can tell he was getting frustrated over the situtation. 

     We argued about it for a moment and he hung up.  I stood there for a moment wondering what to do next.  I could hear the girls coming near the back room.  I didn't want them to fall in the opening so I popped back out and led them to the livingroom.  My phone rung again.  It was my mother-in-law.  Brian called her to come and help me out.  I filled her in on the situtation.  She came over to see if there was anything she can do.  "I've never seen such a thing."  she says as she watches the water pour out of the tub faucet.  She tried the knobs but with no luck.  She looked behind the metal panel and was amazed that there isn't a knob.  "There is supposed to be a shut off valve here."  she informs me, "but there is not."   She calls Brian to confirm that there isn't a shut off valve behind the tub.  We both head back down into the cellar to look and she was half laughing at the lack of sight of a valve.  "I have a friend who knows about plumbing.  Let me call him to come and take a look."

     She calls her friend and in a few hours he shows up with his wife and accesses my plumbing situtation. "Hi.  Don't worry.  I am a jack of all trades and a master of nothing, "  Right away I envisioned his head on a jack of diamonds playing card.   "Looks like you have a problem."  he informs me.  

     No kidding!   I thought to myself.  I never thought I would want to see the water shut off.   "Let me see what I can do."  He heads outside and brings in his bag of tools.  His wife, my mother-in-law and I go into the livingroom to talk and  the kids were happily watching tv. 

    He traces one of the pipes in the bathroom to a wall.  "Where does this pipe go, do you know?"  He certainly asked the wrong person.  I shook my head and gave my sholders a shug to indicate to him that I didn't know.  He walks outside and around the house.  On the side of the house, just under the bathroom window, was a large silver metal slab.  I never knew what was under it.   He opened it up and found the pipes and a valve that led out to the city water.  He turned that valve and my water shut off in the house. 

     "I know where the pipe goes out to."  he explained to me about the metal slab, "Unfortunally, I have to shut the water off to your whole house.  You might want to call a professional plumber to come and and look things over.  I think you have a broken pipe under the ground." 

     "Oh no!"  I exclaimed back.  I knew this wasn't going to be good. 

     Since it was getting late in the day I had to wait the next day, without water, to call a professional plumber to come and look at it.  He said that they would have to do some digging to fix the pipe and it could take up to a week to fix.  He informed to check with my house insurance to see about the work being covered. 

     I called up State Farm and told them of the situtation and gave them the name and number to the plumber.  Thankfully because the break was under the ground the insurance does pay for it and they will also cover the cost of a hotel for our family.  This unfortunate event ended up being like a mini vacation.  The insurance agent tried looking in the area for hotels with a double room.  We were a family of 6 but 5 at the time since Brian was in another state.  There wasn't a hotel that would accommodate our family size.  She looked in Grand Rapids and found one.  Residence Inn in Grandville up off of 44th st (now near Rivertown Point) had a two bedroom suite with a kitchenette.  Perfect!  The only down side to it was having to drive down to Allegan every day to take Christain to school at East Martin Christian with all the children in tow.  We had to wake up earlier than normal but it was something we had to do. 

Ashton watching TV in the livingroom of the hotel.

     I packed up several of their clothes and toys and made my way north to the hotel.  We took the elevator to the second floor and made our way to the room at the end of the hallway.  We opened the door and I was suprised by how beautiful the room was.  The kitchen, complete with cupboards and dishes, were off to the left.  The livingroom was straight ahead with a faux fireplace.  Off each side of the livingroom was a bedroom with a queen size bed.  Christian, Elizabeth and Ashton took one room and James (since he was still a baby) and I took the other room.  They even had a portable playpen that I could use for James.  I put their clothes in the dressers and organized their toys and books.  The kids really enjoyed having a TV in their room since I don't allow them to have one in their own bedroom at home.  But there was also a TV in the livingroom and one in my bedroom.  It was very roomy and comfortable since we were displaced at the moment.

Ashton (age 2 and a half) and Beth (age 5)

     Later on in the week Brian came home, or I should probably say the hotel.  He would talk to the plumber and see how things were progressing.  He had the plumber install shut-off valves to the the bathroom and the kitchen and another one under the house for those just in case moments. 

     We enjoyed our time at the hotel and tried to make the most of it.  We would kick back, lounge around watching news programs while the children were in their room watching episodes of Rugrats or Blue's Clues.  Then one station caught our attention that we didn't have at home.  At the time we didn't realize the historical event that was about to take place several hours into the future  as we sat back and watched what was before our eyes. 

     This story will continue on the January 29th blog of the historical event that happens next.
    

    

    

Thanksgiving Day Disaster

     Autumn was fully upon us in 2003.  Thanksgiving was quickly approaching.  As long as Brian and I have been together we would alternate years on whether we would spend Thanksgiving with his family or mine.  Now we had 4 children.  Our oldest was 6 and our youngest turned 1 a few months back.  This year it was going to be different.  Brian decided it was time to start having our own Thanksgiving in our home.  He wanted the children to play outside in the crisp fall air only to come inside to the welcoming aroma of a home made Thanksgiving dinner.  He enjoyed memories of that as a child and he wanted his children to have the same wonderful memories.  I, too, grew up with Thanksgiving dinner at our home and had fond memories of it.  I did want the children to have the same Thanksgiving day memories with the perks of leftovers the next day. 

     There was still one problem.  I couldn't cook very well.  I never made a turkey before.  I haven't even made chicken before.  Well, I did try cooking chicken legs once.  It was burned on the outside and raw in the middle.  Roasts I could do.  Just toss it in a crock pot for several hours and it's ready to eat.  But a huge dinner I never have done.  Even as a child, during the Thanksgiving prep, my mom, nonnie (my grandmother), and my sister would be busy in the kitchen doing women's work.  My brother and grandpa would be in the livingroom watching the football game on TV and I would busy myself by trying to sneak a quick bite of something from the kitchen or playing with my toys.  I was not interested in football or kitchen duties.  I just wanted the finished product of Thanksgiving. But Brian was adamant about having Thanksgiving at home and that I was going to fix it. 

     I spent the two weeks prior planning out a menu.  I racked my brain thinking of all the Thanksgiving foods I ate growing up.  I asked my mom about prepping the turkey and how to make the stuffing.  I looked in cookbooks trying to find recipes for foods I usually took for granted of always being there without me making it.  I bought a huge turkey platter and other serving dishes to go along with our dinner.  I was thrilled and getting a sense of  domesticated feelings rising in me.  I was having fun.

     My mom and his mom were half laughing at how this Thanksgiving was going to turn out.  Both knew I was lacking in cooking skills.  They both did offer to have us to their homes on Thanksgiving but we were determined to have it at home.  For 2 days I was prepping for the big day.  I fixed up a veggie tray complete with carrots, broccoli, cauliflower, and cherry tomato's.  I made ambrosia salad, jello salad, deviled eggs, baked beans (not home made but out of a can), mashed potato's, stuffing, yams, sweet pickles, spiced peaches, sliced cucumbers, cranberry sauce (again out of the can), green bean casserole, rolls, and of course the turkey.  I did attempt to make squash but it didn't turn out right.  I later found out that I was supposed to use a different type of squash to make the orange creamy texture that I like in squash.  For 6 people, 4 of those are young children, I had a lot on the menu.  I just wanted things to be perfect.

     The turkey came out perfect.  It had a nice golden brown texture to it.  Brian came into the kitchen to see how it looked and he was impressed.  I was very pleased.  Our table is normally a circle but we extended it to add 2 leafs to it in the middle.  I set the table while trying to keep the younger children away from the food.  The wonderful smells were tickling their tummies for a taste of the wholesome goodies I was placing on the table.  I pulled out our wedding gobblets for Brian and I to have some wine with our dinner.  The kids had kool-aid.  Dinner was ready!

     We all sat around the table and I had James, who was just over a year old, sitting in a high chair next to me.  This would be his first Thanksgivng where he can eat from it.  Brian was at the head of the table and Christian, Elizabeth and Ashton were around the sides of the table.  We gave our thanks to the Lord for our wonderful feast and Brian took the knife to start cutting into the turkey.  I started to fix James' plate and placed a serving spoon into the green bean casserole.  Then suddenly CRASH!!!!!

     In less than a second the whole table split in two and everything came crashing down.  Brian still had the knife and fork in his hands still in the position of carving the turkey that is no longer under the knife.  My serving spoon still had a scoop of green bean casserole on it however the green bean casserole was now on the diningroom floor.  The kids started screaming and crying.  My first thought was to make sure they were okay.  The table edge came across James' high chair.  The arms of the high chair stopped the table from crushing down on his legs.  He was crying for a moment, probably from the excitment from it all but he was okay.  Christian wasn't fully under the table so he was okay as well as Ashton.  Beth's legs did get pinched from the table falling down and Brian was right there to lift the table off of her legs so she can back away from the mess.  Both girls were crying very hard.  Physically they were okay.  They were mostly sad by having their dinner in a huge pile on the floor.

Our Thanksgiving dinner table that collasped. 

Another angle of our Thanksgivng dinner.

My son's turkey napkin holder ruined among the yams.

As I lifted up a table leaf there I found the squished deviled eggs.

Ashton (3 years old) was upset by the table falling.

Beth (age 5) was also upset by the table falling. 
Her leg was pinched a bit by the falling table but it scared her more than anything. 

     Our dog, Cuddles, started to come up and help clean up some of the liquid juice that was all over the floor.  We quickly pulled her back and placed her in the enclosed porch.  We surveyed the damage.  I didn't know whether to laugh or cry.  Brian, overwhelmed by it all, steps outside for a moment to have a cigarette.  All that hard work, all that prepping and preparing is now all over my diningroom floor.  I knew I would be laughing at this later so I might as well start now.  Our wedding gobblets shattered and glass pieces and slivers went everywhere.  The sweet potato's scattered across the floor landing in the green bean casserole and baked beans.  The deviled eggs plopped upside down squashed between the floor and the leaf of the table.  The liquid from the cramberry sauce, yams, spiced peaches and gravy made a huge puddled mess all of the place.  My son's turkey napkin holder was destroyed by food falling on it.  Because of the small pieces of glass everywhere we had to throw everything away.  The only thing that was saved was the squash that wasn't placed on the table because it wasn't made correctly and it did not taste as well as I was hoping for.  Four paper towel rolls and two garbage bags later the mess was cleaned up.

     Looking at the table we seen that the arms that hold the leaves of the table snapped in two.  All the weight of the Thanksgiving dinner put too much stress on the arms which caused it to break.  I called my mom.  She laughed and laughed.  She told me it was Karma by not being with her on Thanksgiving.  Brian called his mom to let her know what happened.  I could hear the laughter coming from the phone.  She begged for us to come over and have Thanksgiving over there.  She only lived 3 miles away.  Brian declined.  I looked at him thinking, what else are we supposed to do?!  Brian looked at me, smiled, and said he would be right back and he went out the door and drove off. 

     Like a knight in shinning armor Brian comes back with McDonald's in his arms.  Four happy meals for the kids and two Big Mac combo for us.  We went to the livingroom and made a picnic for the children in front of the TV and Brian and I sat on the couch.  We gave thanks, again, to the Lord and to have Him bless our McDonald's Thanksgiving dinner.

Our 2003 Thanksgiving Dinner

Christian (age 6) was quite pleased with the Happy Meal Thanksgiving dinner.