When it rains, it storms and causes $2k of damage. in 2022

It’s becoming an annual tradition that every summer some cataclysmic event strikes my home and cost me a boat load of money. Two years ago, water started pooling at a spot in my front lawn. I called the city to come look at it, and the fellow said that my meter wasn’t running, so it was likely a ground spring. I asked if he could verify it, and he said sure, but he’d have to return at a future date with some extra equipment. He didn’t follow up with me, but he assured me that since my meter wasn’t running, I wouldn’t be charged. A few weeks later, the county water department calls to notify me that I’m using hundreds of gallons of water, and after calling a private well company to investigate, there was indeed a broken water line. So that was a nice $1k+ gone.

Last summer, I had the same thing happen in the back yard. I knew what to do this time, so I didn’t waste any time calling another well company for a repair. The water was pooling in a spot right next to my shed, which has a concrete foundation. Fortunately, the broken part wasn’t under the foundation, so it was a cheap fix. At least, it was “cheap” in comparison to the previous year. I think it was less than $500.

In order to compensate for last year’s affordable fix, this year the universe decided to crank it up a notch. A storm came through a couple of weeks ago and knocked over a dead tree on the outside of my fence. Pictures can be seen here, here, here, here, here, and here.
here, here, here, here, here, & here.

Man, I really wish I could figure out how to embed the photos in my entries. I contacted two companies for the tree removal. One company wanted $1,100, while the other would do it for $550, but I’d have to wait several weeks. Obviously, I opted for the cheaper option. The tree wasn’t laying anywhere inconvenient, despite being an eye sore. Friday, the manager at the latter company called to inform me they had a sudden opening on Friday morning, so I obliged.

Another fellow was supposed to come look at the downed sections of my fence to give an estimate on the repair. He didn’t make it, but my insurance gave me an estimate below the $2,500 deductible. Fifteen hundred dollars, if my memory serves. Presuming All State is correct, I’ll be losing $2k from my savings.

Then, a whole bunch of other comparably minor expenses/aggravations occurred this week just to irritate me. I tried to install a picatinny rail on the fore-stock of my shotgun. The fellow who assembled it at the law overtightened the hex screws, so I inadvertently stripped them while trying to remove it. I thought maybe it was just my allen wrench set didn’t have the right size key, so I bought a ratchet screwdriver set from Lowe’s. Of course, that solution didn’t pan out, so I bought a rotary saw and some disks for cutting metal from Amazon. My intention was to cut a new groove on the 3 defiant screws without damaging the stock, and use flat head screw drive on the resulting slits. That plan didn’t work either, so now I have to send it back to the manufacturer for repair, a (likely) $200 repair stemming from his dumbass gun smith overtightening hex screws. Furthermore, when I was setting up my table vice for this project, the sliding jaw fell off on dropped right onto my shotgun’s receiver marring the finish. Grrrr.

When I realized I’d have to purchase a rotary saw to complete my project, I propped my shotgun against my desk. I would have put it in the safe, but I had left the door ajar that morning, and one of my cats decided it would be a cozy place to nap. So, I get an email from a student with a question regarding a semester project. It was an easy question to answer. In fact, it was so easy, she shouldn’t have had to ask it. That wouldn’t normally annoy me, except that after I sent her an explanation, I replaced my laptop in its usual spot on my desk, and its power cord caught on my shotgun and knocked it over into the wall leaving a not insignificant gouge. Double grrrr.

I then tried to go mow my lawn, but when I try to edge the side, the string of my weed eater kept tangling around the spool cover. At this point, I kind of lost my mind. “THAT’S IT!!! I’M JUST GOING TO BLOW MY ENTIRE MONTH’S PAYCHECK!” I screamed to no one in particular. I immediately got on Amazon and bought a cordless weed whacker and leaf blower by the same company. I didn’t need the blower, but I figured I might as get one that used the same battery pack as the weed eater, then I wouldn’t’ have to fool with my power cord at all. To make the matter either more amusing or frustrating, I went inside to throw out the other weed whacker spools I had previously bought, and while I was going through the packaging, I found it came with a replacement spool cover, which had some sort of plastic part my current one lacked. Obviously, my current one likely had whatever this piece is called, but it had become lost recently without my noticing it, and its function is to keep the string from unraveling and becoming tangled while the weed eater is operating. I made the swap, and now my old weed eater runs fine, minus the damage to the casing caused by the string becoming entangled. I can at least return the new weed whacker and leaf blower, saving $260.

The portable AC in my upstairs living room broke, just in time for summer, so that’s another $300 replacement.

It’s all very irritating, especially the fiasco with my shotgun. Why in the hell can’t a simple task just remain simple.

Last updated July 12, 2023