Musings
an Online Journal of Sorts

By Alyce Wilson

Una enjoys the new bedroom

The weather seems to be turning around, just in time for our move this coming Saturday. Yesterday was practically balmy, and today is warm, as well. Of course, that didn't help me yesterday morning, when I encountered a stressful situation.

I had to wait for someone from the water company at the new place, because I discovered Friday they'd turned the water off. When I called to find out about it, they said they had sent multiple notices to the landlord that a new meter had to be put in, and when they didn't get a response they turned off the water.

So I arranged to be there Monday for them to install the new meter and turn the water back on.

The most precise time they could give me was between 8 and 12, so I got there at 8. Since I was tired, when I pulled the door shut behind me, I turned the old dead bolt before realizing what I'd done. When I realized it, I unlocked the dead bolt and turned the new lock instead, then sat down on a chair to read, where I fell asleep.

When I thought I heard a noise at the door, I tried to open it, but it wouldn't budge for me, no matter what. I thought it had to do with the old dead bolt, so I turned it and then turned it back again, hoping that would help. But no matter how I pulled on the door, it wouldn't open. I even tore off some skin on my right palm trying.

Realizing this was futile, I grabbed the set of extra house keys that the landlord had left in the kitchen, which had been given to him by the previous owners, and left by the back door, coming around to see if any of them would open the dead bolt. Of course, none of them did.

I decided to try once more inside, and even using both hands, I could not get the door to budget. At this point, stressed, tired and sick, I called The Gryphon in tears. I lamented that he was so far away (he works in New Jersey), and he told me that he wasn't at work yet. He was in Center City, in transit. He said he could come look at it for me.

Meanwhile, I sat on the porch in case the guy from the water company arrived. When The Gryphon got there, he went in through the back door and within a couple minutes had the door open. I jumped up and gave him a huge hug, thanking him profusely.

"How did you do it?" I asked.

"I just opened it," he said.

Then I told him we needed to make sure to do something to prevent this from happening again. I didn't want to get trapped when he wasn't around to help. I hadn't packed my tape yet, but we pulled a few pieces off some of the boxes upstairs. He used that to tape an index card over the latch so that it's not likely anyone will try to turn it.

He said ultimately we could have the landlord either recore the lock and put a new lock in or have the bolt removed so it doesn't do anything any more.

His good dead done, The Gryphon caught the bus to work. I read some more, a book I'm reviewing for Wild Violet. It's about an abusive relationship, so much of it is difficult to read, well written as it is. But it made me think about my own past relationships, none of which were physically abusive but several of which had elements of emotional abuse.

I realized that this is the first time I'm moving in with a guy where it's actually my idea. What's more, it's the first time that I'm looking forward to the move with no reservations. I told The Gryphon about this last night, and he smiled and hugged me.

Our relationship can be characterized in part but what happened yesterday morning. I called him with a problem, and he helped me out. And I try to do the same for him. That kind of relationship is actually not in my previous experience, so it's a wonderful thing.

He's also kind to my dog, Una, and she loves him. We used to joke that he was the dog nanny because he'd come over in the evenings while I was working, and when Una needed attention I'd direct her to him. He'd play with her, pet her, feed her or take her outside. But I stopped referring to him as the dog nanny when it began to seem she thought that was his name.

She barely eats anything when he's not there, and if he doesn't come over for a couple days, when he does come over, she reads him the riot act. This little dog sits in front of him and barks at him, as if telling him off. So I know she'll be happy about this move, as well.

In other news, when I called my mom to wish her a happy Mother's Day on Sunday, she told me she'd finally had a chance to read Wild Violet, the online quarterly literary magazine I've been doing now since October 2001. Of course, she hasn't been a regular computer user, and now that they have one put in at work, she was able to check it out.

She told me how impressed she was with the material and that she thought it was a high quality journal. Her only comment was she felt I should put more of my own poetry in it. I told her I hadn't done that since the early issues because I didn't want it to be an "ego project." Plus, I think it's better to try to get published elsewhere than to publish it myself all the time.

It was great to hear those positive comments from her at long last and to know that she knows what I do.

Of course, the spring issue is being delayed by the move, but I hope to have it done in June before my sister's wedding. In the meantime, Mom has plenty of Wild Violet to read!

Copyright 2005 by Alyce Wilson

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