Fridge fail and ingrown nail
Because of course there was more going on with this week.
I'll start with the latter. I noticed early in the week that my thumb was hurting. I couldn't figure out what it was, only that it seemed to be in the area around where the skin meets the nail, or just under my nail, somewhere in there. It wasn't until Wednesday morning that I took a good look at it and went, oh geez, my nail is digging into my skin, to the point where it has split and was painful. I was keeping my nails long for the concert--they've since been cut--and one edge was curved and pointed and dug in. I quickly filed it down, then slapped Neosporin and a couple bandages on there, since it was in an awkward place. One bandage wouldn't do anything. At work, several people were all concerned since it was all wrapped up. Don't worry, guys, it looks worse than it is. It was better enough by Thursday that I did take off the bandages, that plus I couldn't play with them on since they'd catch on my flute. My thumb is doing a lot better. It doesn't hurt at all and while it's not fully healed, there's a sort of callus around the split area. Now I know of another reason not to let my nails get too long.
Then, yesterday morning, dad and I have returned from shopping and he's putting stuff in the fridge, and all of a sudden he let out an exclamation, and the next thing we know he's cleaning out a bunch of water from the area of the crisper drawers. The best we can tell is that condensation leaked down into there. Maybe? What I can tell you is that recently, the fridge was overly cold. Dad said mom had turned it down, but stuff was actually freezing in there, so he turned the temperature back up. I had noticed some condensation on the underside of the lowest shelf, above the right crisper drawer, but didn't think anything of it. The fridge will also occasionally make noises though we don't know what that's about. Well, mom pulled out the user manual and it appears to be related to the auto-defroster. It's a frost-free freezer, so we don't have to manually defrost it; there's some sort of hose involved. If it gets gunky or if the hose freezes then thaws, it can leak into the fridge. That appears to be what happened, but there was a LOT of water in there. I don't know if it's just been building up to this point or if something all of a sudden happened, because that was the first time any of us has noticed water down there, and it was puddled along the bottom front of the fridge, in front of the two drawers. Dad spent a good 5-10 minutes cleaning it out, and I spent that time on the other side of the door, in front of the pantry, holding the door open with my foot underneath it while mom handed me stuff to get put away. That was fun. We haven't noticed anything since then, either. Hopefully all is well?
More from the other issues this week: The stain remains on the table, but it seems better. Part of the stain removal concoction dad created involved baking soda, dish soap, and hydrogen peroxide. I don't know where the ammonia came in but that thankfully did not get used. Seriously, I was half expecting to come home and find them gassed out. Part of the instructions is to cover the stain, with the concoction on top of it, with clear plastic wrap for 24-48 hours. Dad wrote it on the shopping list Saturday before we left. Uh, we have that in the pantry. Dad said, mom looked and all she found was pink. ...Really? Because the pink plastic wrap got used up ages ago. I went to the pantry, pulled out the box, and showed him not only that the box specified it was clear, but then opened the lid and pulled some out. Like, I've used this the past two holidays we've had in November and December. I seal several food items with it; it's integral to my stuffing. Trust me, it's clear. At least it was one less item we needed to buy.
Also, related to my bathroom, I don't think I ever mentioned the tape. A few years back, dad insisted I get new blinds for my bathroom. He'd bought the same ones for several other windows in the house and I think he likes them because the slats are longer and thicker. There was nothing wrong with my old blinds, and in fact once he installed them they made me really upset--he had to cut the strings to length and my new blinds were crooked. It looked really bad. He fixed them, and they were better, but now I had a problem: There was a gap at the bottom. The blinds weren't long enough to allow for the last slat to sit at the correct angle. It was always propped open. And, as I hope you're aware, if you're in a room and the light is on, people outside can see in if there's not something fully covering your window. This is a room in which I get naked. That gap was at boob level. That is not okay. I mean, I mostly take showers with the lights off, but every so often it's too dark outside to do that. Last year, finally fed up, I actually taped the slat to the strings so that the gap got closed. I remember thinking that my parents may not get naked in this room, so they might question it, but nobody ever said anything. They still haven't mentioned it, and they actually are getting naked in there, since this is currently the only shower in the house. Really, the only people who'd likely see into that bathroom are the people behind us, but I'm not looking to put on a show for them.
I'll start with the latter. I noticed early in the week that my thumb was hurting. I couldn't figure out what it was, only that it seemed to be in the area around where the skin meets the nail, or just under my nail, somewhere in there. It wasn't until Wednesday morning that I took a good look at it and went, oh geez, my nail is digging into my skin, to the point where it has split and was painful. I was keeping my nails long for the concert--they've since been cut--and one edge was curved and pointed and dug in. I quickly filed it down, then slapped Neosporin and a couple bandages on there, since it was in an awkward place. One bandage wouldn't do anything. At work, several people were all concerned since it was all wrapped up. Don't worry, guys, it looks worse than it is. It was better enough by Thursday that I did take off the bandages, that plus I couldn't play with them on since they'd catch on my flute. My thumb is doing a lot better. It doesn't hurt at all and while it's not fully healed, there's a sort of callus around the split area. Now I know of another reason not to let my nails get too long.
Then, yesterday morning, dad and I have returned from shopping and he's putting stuff in the fridge, and all of a sudden he let out an exclamation, and the next thing we know he's cleaning out a bunch of water from the area of the crisper drawers. The best we can tell is that condensation leaked down into there. Maybe? What I can tell you is that recently, the fridge was overly cold. Dad said mom had turned it down, but stuff was actually freezing in there, so he turned the temperature back up. I had noticed some condensation on the underside of the lowest shelf, above the right crisper drawer, but didn't think anything of it. The fridge will also occasionally make noises though we don't know what that's about. Well, mom pulled out the user manual and it appears to be related to the auto-defroster. It's a frost-free freezer, so we don't have to manually defrost it; there's some sort of hose involved. If it gets gunky or if the hose freezes then thaws, it can leak into the fridge. That appears to be what happened, but there was a LOT of water in there. I don't know if it's just been building up to this point or if something all of a sudden happened, because that was the first time any of us has noticed water down there, and it was puddled along the bottom front of the fridge, in front of the two drawers. Dad spent a good 5-10 minutes cleaning it out, and I spent that time on the other side of the door, in front of the pantry, holding the door open with my foot underneath it while mom handed me stuff to get put away. That was fun. We haven't noticed anything since then, either. Hopefully all is well?
More from the other issues this week: The stain remains on the table, but it seems better. Part of the stain removal concoction dad created involved baking soda, dish soap, and hydrogen peroxide. I don't know where the ammonia came in but that thankfully did not get used. Seriously, I was half expecting to come home and find them gassed out. Part of the instructions is to cover the stain, with the concoction on top of it, with clear plastic wrap for 24-48 hours. Dad wrote it on the shopping list Saturday before we left. Uh, we have that in the pantry. Dad said, mom looked and all she found was pink. ...Really? Because the pink plastic wrap got used up ages ago. I went to the pantry, pulled out the box, and showed him not only that the box specified it was clear, but then opened the lid and pulled some out. Like, I've used this the past two holidays we've had in November and December. I seal several food items with it; it's integral to my stuffing. Trust me, it's clear. At least it was one less item we needed to buy.
Also, related to my bathroom, I don't think I ever mentioned the tape. A few years back, dad insisted I get new blinds for my bathroom. He'd bought the same ones for several other windows in the house and I think he likes them because the slats are longer and thicker. There was nothing wrong with my old blinds, and in fact once he installed them they made me really upset--he had to cut the strings to length and my new blinds were crooked. It looked really bad. He fixed them, and they were better, but now I had a problem: There was a gap at the bottom. The blinds weren't long enough to allow for the last slat to sit at the correct angle. It was always propped open. And, as I hope you're aware, if you're in a room and the light is on, people outside can see in if there's not something fully covering your window. This is a room in which I get naked. That gap was at boob level. That is not okay. I mean, I mostly take showers with the lights off, but every so often it's too dark outside to do that. Last year, finally fed up, I actually taped the slat to the strings so that the gap got closed. I remember thinking that my parents may not get naked in this room, so they might question it, but nobody ever said anything. They still haven't mentioned it, and they actually are getting naked in there, since this is currently the only shower in the house. Really, the only people who'd likely see into that bathroom are the people behind us, but I'm not looking to put on a show for them.