If bad luck does truly come in threes as the old adage indicates, I am relieved. My only hope is that silver linings don't negate or decrement the count in any way.
Back in January I lost my job...boo hoo, sad for me. Bad luck number one. However, I wasn't getting much professional satisfaction there so I wasn't heartbroken (bit of silver creeping in). Thank the Lord in Heaven, Angie and I had gone through Dave Ramsey's Financial Peace University. One of the first things they tell you to do when you get the boot is to figure out your "runway", how long will your cash last before you are hosed. 10 minutes - that was all it took; we knew exactly how much we spent, on what, and which expenses could be cut. Much to my pleasant surprise we had a bit more of a highway than a runway (a thick lining...maybe a double coat on that cloud). The best part of being laid off in my personal opinion is time with the family - I have walked the kids to and from school most every day for the last quarter. I have spent hours and hours of time normally wasted facing a computer screen looking at my beautiful wife. I can take Jake to karate. I can play basketball with Josh. On a warm sunny spring day I can make calls about a potential job while sipping tea by the pool. (By now there is a little bit of cloud in the middle of a big ball of silver.)
Cars, the good old reliable target for gremlins, the never fail source of bad luck and bad timing. Half way to a camping trip with Jake the transmission all but dropped to the ground on my car. Angie to the rescue in the van that had so many issues we decided last year to not fix anything else and just run it into the ground until we could replace it...oh yeah, we bought two brand new shiny air conditioners for the house and now unemployment...the whole save for a car thing has been a bit behind due to life continuing to happen on a regular basis. This was bad luck number two but I would give it a compounded factor due to the fact that it was the reliable car not the piece of something or other that broke down. Silver lining....Angie and I have tremendous family that know no end to their generosity. The car is fixed and Angie is driving a new vehicle with a wonderful reliability rating (she thinks its cute too).
Bad luck number three isn't about a silver lining - its about a vinyl one, the pool. While cleaning out the pool I noticed the water level dropping. Cleaning out the pool this spring has been especially fun as we decided not to cover the pool this winter and just see what it does. What it does is fill up with leaves and worms and all sorts of nasty decomposing things that have to be mucked out for you to be able to see the bottom of the pool. Once the mucking was complete, Angie found the source of the leak - a tear about 18" long. A vinyl repair kit will likely do the job but the liner is aging a bit and at some point will need to be replaced...what fun. The more immediate issue is I have to get my butt in that freaking freezing cold water. I don't normally venture into the water until May...and then only for a bit because the boys want to play or some favorite pool toy is in the bottom of the deep end. Upon emerging from the water it takes an hour or so before the numbness subsides. Fixing a tear will take a bit of time. I will need to measure the tear. I will need to clean the area pretty well. Check the size of the patch. Try to get the patch in place...add some more sealant while submerged because it is inevitable that some will wash off and not stick well (know this one from experience). Smooth out all the wrinkles, bubbles etc in the patch. After all of this I will likely be so cold that my fingers won't work and muscles will start to freeze up. Angie will have to pull on a rope attached to my waist to drag me over to the edge of the pool and lay me in the sun to hopefully thaw before sundown... in that process I will likely get a sunburn. I am looking for the silver lining on this one -Angie thinks she has found it - she gets to pick the pattern for the next pool liner.
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