Damn! 'N Stuff

Here we are.  We are in that wonderful time of year.  It's that time where bills mount up, money is short, ramen noodles reign over dinner, and Kevin and I walk around scowling all day.  Yup, it's a new year.

Everyone I know tells me that January and February are tough.  We struggle each year, wondering how we'll make it.  Each new year, we struggle, barely getting by, paying bills late, and then something happens.

Sometimes it's a transmission going out.  Sometimes it's a need for new tires.  Sometimes it's a kid who needs new glasses.  This year, you ask?  This year?  Yeah, something happened.  Last night, my dryer quit.  Damn.

Now, you need to know that we are a family of 4.  Four people who shower every day, needing towels and washcloths.  Four people who want to go about their daily business in clean clothes.  Four people who prefer "clean" over "dirty" any day.  The dryer quit.  *sigh*

Because I've never owned a new appliance in my life, Kevin is pretty damned good at fixing a dryer.  He went down and found the problem.  The burned wire was fixed in short order (thank goodness for electrical tape) but it still didn't work.  He was afraid of that.

I guess, when the wire shorted out, it messed up a thingimajig.  That thingimajig shouldn't cost much.  He called our favorite used appliance place, in Oak Grove, and they said, "Yeah, it's about $5."  Kevin got there before 5:00 and saw that they had misunderstood what he needed.  It was the wrong part.  *sigh*

Tomorrow, he'll try again.  He's got one more day to get things done, before he's off work for weeks, post-surgery.  I can dry a load here or there, at Mom's, but that's not going to cut it.  A laundromat is an expensive endeavor.  *sigh*

Here's hoping that the right part will appear tomorrow, when Kevin can take the old one in for comparison.  Here's hoping that it will be cheap.  Here's hoping that we make it through until March. 

Come on, March.  I'm waiting, barely hanging on, here.  Can you cut me some slack?