Chapter 3 of 44

The Dwelling

A house is a slow adversary. Plumbing, power, the people you share it with, and the long list of things that were fine yesterday.

86 verses

1. 1 The building shut the water off without telling anybody Plausible
2. 2 There's no hot water and there's no notice about it Plausible
3. 3 My heating has come on in August and won't come off Concerning
4. 4 There's a leak from the apartment above and I'm catching it Plausible
5. 5 The ceiling in the bathroom has started to bulge Unverifiable
6. 6 Somebody has to be in for the plumber and I'm the somebody Plausible
7. 7 My electricity has gone off in half the apartment Unverifiable
8. 8 The fuse box is making a sound and I've stopped touching things Concerning
9. 9 There's a smell and I have to find out what it is Unverifiable
10. 10 The gas people have told me to stay out of the building Concerning
11. 11 My front door won't lock and I can't leave it like that Plausible
12. 12 The intercom has been buzzing all night with nobody there Concerning
13. 13 Somebody has been in the hallway since six and hasn't gone anywhere Not reassuring
14. 14 The upstairs neighbors are moving furniture, or something heavier Concerning
15. 15 Next door started drilling at seven and hasn't paused Plausible
16. 16 There's scaffolding gone up overnight and it's across my window Concerning
17. 17 The elevator is out and I'm on the eleventh floor with a bad knee Plausible
18. 18 My apartment has developed a draft that seems to have opinions Not reassuring
19. 19 There's a second door in my apartment now Please take the day
20. 20 The boiler and I have reached an understanding and I have to honor it Please take the day
21. 21 The hallway is longer today and I want to see where it goes Please take the day
22. 22 My mail has started arriving pre-opened and I need to sit with that Not reassuring
23. 23 My blinds came down and the street can see everything Concerning
24. 24 A very calm man is in my kitchen measuring things Not reassuring
25. 25 There's a shape on the ceiling that wasn't there Friday Concerning
26. 26 My smoke alarm went off at four and I still don't know why Unverifiable
27. 27 The window in the bedroom won't shut and rain is forecast Plausible
28. 28 Somebody has parked across my driveway and gone Plausible
29. 29 The trash hasn't been collected and there's a situation Unverifiable
30. 30 My yard gate has come off and the dog knows Unverifiable
31. 31 There's water coming up through the kitchen floor Concerning
32. 32 The washing machine has walked out of its alcove Concerning
33. 33 My oven is on and I can't turn it off Concerning
34. 34 I've just put a casserole in and it's a four hour casserole Concerning
35. 35 The freezer has defrosted itself across the kitchen floor Plausible
36. 36 My pressure cooker has done something and everyone is fine Concerning
37. 37 I've flooded the bathroom and I'm on my hands and knees Plausible
38. 38 The extractor fan has stopped and the kitchen is unusable Unverifiable
39. 39 I'm waiting on a man about the roof and he's late Plausible
40. 40 The house is in a state I can't leave it in Unverifiable
41. 41 I've got the carpet up and I can't put it back tonight Concerning
42. 42 There's a smell in the car and I've had to leave it open Concerning
43. 43 My key snapped in the lock this evening Unverifiable
44. 44 The heating has failed and I have to stay with it Concerning
45. 45 I'm moving on Saturday and everything before Saturday is now about that Plausible
46. 46 The movers have moved the date on me and it's now tomorrow Plausible
47. 47 I'm waiting on keys and the keys were meant to be at noon Plausible
48. 48 The completion has slipped and I've got a van booked either way Plausible
49. 49 I've got a viewing and I can't be in the house for it Plausible
50. 50 The inventory has to be done today and it takes two hours Unverifiable
51. 51 I'm handing back keys and there's a list of things I have to do first Unverifiable
52. 52 The deposit is being disputed and I have to be there in person Unverifiable
53. 53 I've got a survey happening and I've been asked to be present Unverifiable
54. 54 There's a leak the landlord has finally agreed to look at and it's today Unverifiable
55. 55 I've been given notice and I've got a lot to arrange quickly Unverifiable
56. 56 The place I'm moving into isn't going to be ready Unverifiable
57. 57 I've got boxes arriving and nowhere to put them until I move things Unverifiable
58. 58 I'm painting a room today and painting a room is never a day Unverifiable
59. 59 The floor is up and it can't be down again until somebody comes Unverifiable
60. 60 I've had a quote for the roof and I need to sit with the number Unverifiable
61. 61 The people I'm buying from have pulled out this morning Unverifiable
62. 62 I'm decluttering and I've reached the part where everything is on the floor Concerning
63. 63 There's a dumpster coming and it's here for one day only Unverifiable
64. 64 I've found something in the loft that I have to deal with today Not reassuring
65. 65 The previous owner has left something and it can't stay Not reassuring
66. 66 There's a room in this house we haven't opened yet Please take the day
67. 67 Somebody has left something on and I've had to deal with it Unverifiable
68. 68 The kitchen was left in a state and I couldn't start until it wasn't Unverifiable
69. 69 There's a conversation I've been putting off and it's happening this morning Concerning
70. 70 Somebody's guest is still here and it's a small apartment Concerning
71. 71 I've been locked out because somebody bolted the door from inside Unverifiable
72. 72 Somebody has used the last of something and not replaced it Plausible
73. 73 My food has gone and I've decided not to make it a thing Unverifiable
74. 74 Somebody has moved my things to clean and now nothing is findable Unverifiable
75. 75 There was noise until three and I'm not at my best Unverifiable
76. 76 I've been left a note and the note is longer than a note should be Concerning
77. 77 Somebody has changed the wifi and not told anybody Concerning
78. 78 The heating has been set to something somebody else likes Concerning
79. 79 There's a rota on the fridge and I'm circled Not reassuring
80. 80 Somebody has done all my dishes and I don't know what that means Not reassuring
81. 81 The house has been very quiet since somebody said something on Sunday Concerning
82. 82 Somebody has taken a door off its hinges and not said why Not reassuring
83. 83 I've come home to furniture in different places Please take the day
84. 84 There's a smell in the shared hallway and everybody is pretending Concerning
85. 85 Somebody's package has been delivered to my room Not reassuring
86. 86 I've been asked to sign something about the apartment and I don't understand it Concerning