Sometimes, no matter how hard you try to plan in advance, things just to not go according to schedule. Take my weekend in RI as an example. I should have known something was up when I called my grandparent's house from the bus to tell them I had arrived. Momma answered & she was yelling into the phone, but I could hardly make out a word she was saying. There was a very loud vacuum cleaner running in the background. When I entered her house a half hour later the deafening noise could still be heard, only I soon realized that it was a several water pumps. Eight full days & nights of torrential rains flooded my grandparents cellar. Family members all took turns trying to stay one step ahead of mother nature, but it was a losing battle. They'd suck up a puddle in one spot only to have water swoosh in from another. It was impossible to find the source of the leak. It rushed in from under the refrigerator, behind the stairs & even from the shower. This space is the center of my grandparents home. It's where all of the magical cooking takes place. The rain did finally cease the day after I arrived. The cellar's carpet was drenched & instantly began to smell of mildew. By day 3, I couldn't go anywhere near the basement. An instant allergic reaction would occur. To my horror, my grandparents couldn't smell anything out of the ordinary!! The odor hit you the moment you opened the door to their house. It made me & my mom gag, but Momma & Poppa didn't even notice it. They sat in the stinky cellar & ate lunch & didn't even flinch. Their sense of smell is totally gone, which also means the same may be said for their sense of taste! No wonder I'm struggling with this cookbook. So, no recipe testing was accomplished. The thought of deboning the smelts in the mold infested cellar made me want to barf. Our cooking date has been rescheduled to mid November. Weather permitting.
Oh dearie me. Water damage is one of the worst to worry about in a home. I love that your grandparents weren’t privy to the mildew smell. That is funny and great for them in a way…
sounds like how things have been around here! I hope all is well now. I have the same smell in my basement at the moment and I know exactly what you mean…so my nose must be in working order!!
Oh NO! It’s so not funny (how horrible!)…but I did have to laugh at your line about “No wonder I’m struggling with this cookbook.” The bad news? Their sense of smell is gone. The good news (given how long it takes to get that kind of odor out): Their sense of smell is gone. Let’s hope your November visit has things back on track!
Ugh, yes, we got way too much rain here. A similar thing happened to lots of my friend’s houses. My sister’s office had 10 ft. of water in their basement, which knocked out the power, heat, phones, faxes for a week. And she works for a local magazine, so it wasn’t exactly a good thing!
But it’s been back to sunshine and nice weather. FINALLY!
Oh dear what a fiasco! I hope it is all dried out now. I have the same reaction as you to molds and mildew. I immediately feel ill. It is a blessing that it did not bother your grandparents! They have to live with it! Cheers~ Shelagh
All artwork and content of this site copyright Dawn Falcone. All
rights reserved.
Designed by
Paper Relics thanks to squid fingers for the wallpaper
Powered by Blogger -
Syndicate
12 Comments:
113160915660336293">At 2:52 AM,
Anonymous said...
On October 27th, 2005 at 10:13 am e
Pat Says:
So sorry, Dawn, that your weekend was a diaster! Too much rain everywhere on the east coast this year.
I hope Momma & Poppa got the basement dried out and that next time you’ll have smelt success!
At 2:52 AM,
Anonymous said...
glycerin Says:
Great story. It will be a cool addition to your cookbook near the recipe using smelts!
huge hug!
At 2:53 AM,
Anonymous said...
Giao Says:
Oh dearie me. Water damage is one of the worst to worry about in a home. I love that your grandparents weren’t privy to the mildew smell. That is funny and great for them in a way…
At 2:54 AM,
Anonymous said...
Jenn Says:
sounds like how things have been around here! I hope all is well now. I have the same smell in my basement at the moment and I know exactly what you mean…so my nose must be in working order!!
At 2:55 AM,
Anonymous said...
On October 27th, 2005 at 5:42 pm e
Belinda Says:
“The rain did finally cease the day after I arrived”
Well, it’s obvious, isn’t it? You should have gotten there MUCH sooner!
I can absolutely imagine the smell…once you’ve smelled it, you never forget it.
Although, to be perfectly honest, I can’t say I’m exactly waiting with bated breath for the whole smelt thing…but at least it’s not lutefisk!
And BTW…yayyyy! New post!!
At 2:55 AM,
Anonymous said...
Marilyn Says:
Oh NO! It’s so not funny (how horrible!)…but I did have to laugh at your line about “No wonder I’m struggling with this cookbook.” The bad news? Their sense of smell is gone. The good news (given how long it takes to get that kind of odor out): Their sense of smell is gone. Let’s hope your November visit has things back on track!
At 2:56 AM,
Anonymous said...
Jen Says:
Ugh, yes, we got way too much rain here. A similar thing happened to lots of my friend’s houses. My sister’s office had 10 ft. of water in their basement, which knocked out the power, heat, phones, faxes for a week. And she works for a local magazine, so it wasn’t exactly a good thing!
But it’s been back to sunshine and nice weather. FINALLY!
At 2:56 AM,
Anonymous said...
On November 2nd, 2005 at 1:01 pm e
Leslie Says:
What a NIGHTMARE. Oh my lawd!!! Poor grandparents. . . but so great they couldn’t smell the yuck!
At 2:57 AM,
Anonymous said...
Lisa Says:
Gross! Husband tells me I have a nose like a deer. I can smell EVERYTHING sometimes from something small like baked potatos to dirty feet!
At 2:57 AM,
Anonymous said...
shelagh Says:
Oh dear what a fiasco! I hope it is all dried out now. I have the same reaction as you to molds and mildew. I immediately feel ill. It is a blessing that it did not bother your grandparents! They have to live with it! Cheers~ Shelagh
At 2:58 AM,
Anonymous said...
Hope Says:
oh no! Well - a little progress was made - we tested. And I suceeded - we are going to make more this week we loved it so much!!
At 3:14 PM,
Anonymous said...
Very cool design! Useful information. Go on!
»