Well, it's not only Melinda's flat - I just finished flooding our neighbor below us. Sigh. Not the first time this has happened. It has to do with our washing machine and the way it's set up. It is in the kitchen and the drain hose goes into the kitchen sink. After flooding the neighbors two or three times in the early days of living here, I just permanently tied the hose to the faucet. The problem was, I would forget to move the hose to the sink. This is not something you have to do in the States, normally and I'd just space it out. (A couple of people who have stayed here while we were gone also flooded them, that's part of the reason I made it "permanent.")
Well, today there was a plate in the sink - one of my Christmas plates. Normally having a plate or glass in the sink is no problem, the water just drains around them. These plates, however, apparently form a seal with the weight of the water pushing down on them over the drain. I heard the machine spinning out and it sounded like it was slightly unbalanced, so I wandered out of the office room to see about trying to get it better balanced. (It can get really noisy and I know all the neighbors can hear it - Nina above has commented that I sure do wash clothes a lot.) My first clue was all the water on the floor in the little hallway.
I about cried. I ran - well, kind of slipped and slid actually, into the kitchen and switched off the machine, reached into the sink and pulled the plate off the drain. Then slipped and slid into the bathroom, grabbed two towels and threw them on the floor. Several minutes later of sopping up water I screwed up my courage and went downstairs to face the music.
Our neighbor downstairs can barely walk. She is in considerable pain, uses a cane all the time now and rarely leaves her flat. I knew she just could not come up stairs to complain, so I went downstairs. There is no door bell, so I knocked and heard her yell soemthing through two doors. Finally, she hobbled close enough to yell more clearly and I understood that she was telling me to open the door and come in. It seems strange to me to leave your door unlocked - we lock ours at all times.
She was very surprised to see. I explained in very broken Russian - it gets worse when I am upset of course - but she understood. She told me she had not been in the kitchen - let's go look and see. I followed her and we examined the ceiling. Sure enough - new water damage on top of the old. But she was surprisingly calm and said don't worry about it, no problem, etc. I told her if there were repair costs, please let us know and we would pay them. She laughed and said - what is there to repair.
I am so thankful I went downstairs. But I am also emotionally exhausted right now. This is part of the problem with living a "fish bowl" existance, knowing that everything we do and say is being watched and weighed in the balance all the time. My going downstairs and confessing to her will make a difference in our relationship over time (she is not always friendly, but I attribute that to the pain she is in and a sometimes violent family that visits). I just wish there was an easier way than "being in the wrong." :):)
At least the clothes are washed and now I can hang them out. It's warmer today - in the mid 50's, so hopefully they will dry quickly.
Another day in Ukraine.
