I'm starting to see the downside to raising strong, independent daughters. Another one, I should clarify. Periodically we run into the brick walls that get thrown up when strong people hold firm convictions. Those are to be expected. Today my frustration results from having my children as my tenants. They are so used to being their own masters, they forget that they actually have landlords who are responsible for keeping the properties in working order. We have encountered this many times. Something in the unit breaks, like the garbage disposal or clothes dryer, and they think they have to pay for it themselves, so they just shut up and live with it while they wait to have extra funds. This time around, the heater is not adequately keeping the condo warm. Granted, there are pieces of walls missing, and no carpets throughout the garden level unit, so it's not a big surprise that the place is difficult to heat, especially on days like today when the outside temperature is below zero during the day. When their father was there last month, he changed a furnace filter that was unbelievably thick with dust and cat hair. We thought things would improve after that. But now my daughter is back to complaining that without space heaters, the unit is too cold. When I suggest a maintenance call, her first assumption is that the bill would go to her. How many times must we communicate the same message before it sinks in, that if something breaks, the landlords will fix it?
Today was another physical therapy day. He seems to feel like this dry needling business is working for me. I can't say that I enjoy it at any level. In fact, it pretty much sucks when it is happening, and for hours (days) after. But there is more movement in joints that have been locked up for so long, and the therapist is pleased. I have to hope that I am building strength along with the flexibility. It's far too early for me to tell yet.
I went to a movie today, one I have been meaning to see for a very long time. It was only in the art theater at first, until it won some Golden Globes, and got a handful of Oscar nods, and it got a second chance to be widely distributed. Going to movies alone was one of the first things I found I could do alone, without feeling overly conspicuous without a date. I still won't go to a restaurant alone. But for all that I feel perfectly comfortable going solo to a movie, it is one of the things that makes the silence of my daily life seem the strongest. One of my favorite aspects of watching movies is sharing the common experience with someone. Leaving the theater in silence, driving home alone, it just isn't as much fun. But it is still a few hours of escapism, so I guess it's really like having your least favorite dessert. It's still pretty good.
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