What the Hell?
Preexwife pulling her Dr. Jekyll and Mrs. Hyde routine again.
The 20 year maintenance on the house is underway at the moment. Among other things, this means that we cannot hang laundry out to dry as it interferes with the sealing and painting. After today’s regular laundry dried, hanging in the house, I ran a load of more of my clothes, which are now hanging in the living room to dry. Yes, the house looks and will continue to look like a Chinese laundry for a while.
The Kid is pulling their hideout in the toilet routine again. They were an hour late to elementary school again today because they were on the toilet for an hour or more in the morning. They were let go from school early today because of a faculty meeting and ran into the toilet as soon as they got home. In there for more than hour again, they got out with about 30 minutes to spare before they had to leave for cram school.
The Kid directed that I pick them up at 8:30 tonight, meaning right after class ends without staying there to study with the aid of a teacher. I started the washing machine just before going out the door. As soon as we return, The Kid runs straight into the rest room again and stays there until 11 pm. Food was already on the table for dinner when we got home. Waiting for The Kid to exit the restroom, I hung this second load of laundry in the living room after taking down the now dry from this morning.
In a replay reminiscent of the movie “Groundhog Day”, we grow tired of waiting for The Kid and sit down to eat the now cold meal that would have passed for dinner had it not sat on the table for an hour or so. We’ll call it supper instead.
Finally off the toilet, The Kid refuses to eat, not hungry they say and pleads with mommy to tuck them in. Some horrible event happened at school again and their need mommy’s ear. According to the preexwife, a minor thing but to The Kid, the end of the world. No Zoom with my parents again tomorrow as Preexwife will take The Kid to the clinic again for their “stomach issues” in the morning before the meeting with the cram school’s teachers.
When she came down after hearing The Kid’s complaint that school did not go as perfectly as they wished, she opens the door to the living room, eyes my laundry hanging everywhere in place of the family’s laundry as if seeing it for the first time, she was in the room as I hung it up, and says, quote, “IF you leave, you cannot leave anything in the house.”.
……………………………………
Most, perhaps all programs on TV in Japan are close captioned. One expression of Japanese close captioning that we do not have is, “………..”. It is used often when a variety show host asks a passerby on the street a question that leaves the poor person struck dumb. I LOVE this expression, “………….”.
After a short pause yet long enough to convey meaning, …………, I remind the preexwife that it was HER decision that I leave the house. “Ah! WHEN you leave, you must take everything. If you leave anything, I’ll throw it out.”. Earlier today she asked about several plastic storage tube that I recently bought and I tole her I was packing things up.
Sorry, negative once again.
Good news, for the first time in many days, it is in the low 20s (c) today and dry!
Need another beer before taking a shower.
I think part of what she is doing is trying to reframe the narrative. She doesn't want to make herself into the "bad person." No one wants to be the bad person.
As far as the kid goes, why the bathroom? Don't they have their own room?
I spent time in the bathroom when I turned thirteen, and there was a reason for that I won't get into except to ask...are they going into the bathroom with anything other than themselves?
I wouldn’t be waiting around for the kid to come out before eating. That only encourages the behaviour. It must be seen not to affect you at all then the behaviour starts to lose its power.
You did at least try to end on a positive note - good weather, beer and you’re not dead yet!!!