Personal Crisis

J. Kevin Tumlinson

This week's tale is one of overcoming abject misery and tragedy. It is a personal tale, full of intimate details about yours truly. You see, on Wednesday, April 16, 2003, my apartment flooded.

There was a clogged drain, that's all. But as luck would have it, the nice Korean couple that lives above me had decided to have shrimp and onions as part of their dinner. They also decided to put their dirty dishes in the dishwasher without rinsing them. I know, I know, a lot of people do that in the name of "Why wash twice?"

As you might guess, the scent of rotting shrimp, co-mingled with just a smidge of onion, doesn't make for the most pleasant living environment. I had to evacuate.

The management has generously offered to give me new carpeting and floors. I do appreciate that, actually. It's almost worth the hassle of cramming everything I own onto my kitchen and bathroom countertops. We're still in negotiations about the huge electric bill I'm likely to have (due to all of the industrial fans, de-humidifiers and the AC that had to be left on its lowest setting for five days).

But as in all aspects of my life, I have attempted to see some moral, some lesson-learned that would benefit not only me but you, my beloved readers. And here is what I came up with.

I think that sometimes we get a little static. We get into routines, we get used to things happening a certain way at a certain time on certain days. What we're talking about here is the every day grind. You may like it - I certainly did.

I had things spinning like a top. But like a top, it's easy to upset the balance. Throw in an obstacle or two, shake things up a little, and there you are, teetering to one side and struggling to keep right-side-up. Last week was my little shake up. I realized, after having to change my patterns drastically for nearly a week, that I have become too dependant on my routine.

Lucky for me, though, I've always been good at improvising. As life skills go, I think that's one of the most important. You take what you've been given and you get the job done. No questions, complaints or hesitations need rear their ugly heads.

But for all the improvising skill in the world, it would have meant nothing if not for the people I was able to turn to. I've always considered myself to be fiercely independent, but I have to admit that I was stumped as to how I was going to get myself out of the mess into which I'd been dumped. I've been blessed with good friends and family, though. I had several of my friends simply volunteer to come over and lend a hand, no questions asked. One of my long-time compadres even came by after working a 12-hour shift, just to help me cram stuff into any available space. Another, with a broken collar bone, hobbled into my apartment and helped me at least keep my sanity as strangers manhandled my belongings and interrupted my evening.

Here's a moral for you: The value of friends is in knowing you have someone to turn to when you are in need.

To recap, important survival skills: Know how to improvise and make a lot of friends. Hey, here's one better - make friends who know how to improvise!

And always wash off your plates before you put them in the dishwasher. You never know if you're going to flood the poor guy below ya.

J. Kevin Tumlinson is a writer and a schoolteacher living in Lake Jackson, TX. He is wearing several pairs of underwear.