It is gonna be messy. I just KNOW it is!

The big water bowl in the back yard that I float around in all summer, "working," has been leaking for sometime. No biggie. Every morning we'd just throw the hose in it and bring the water back up to where it needed to be. We DH decided a couple of weeks ago that now is the perfect time to find out what is wrong with the pool - where / why it is leaking. We quit filling the pool in the morning. It kept going down and down and down. Our all around handy-man, "Mr. Don't Get Anything Done On Time Ever Refuse To Speak Clearly And Give The 'Madam' The Run-A-Round," Rev, came by and said, "Iz leeeeeking in the valve." Okay. Rev, who never showed up to fix the pump that was making loud obnoxious sounds like it was a jet engine getting ready for take-off - even though he was called a dozen times - said, "Weel shut pump uff." Good. It's broken anyway. Why don't you get it fixed, while you're at it? He had the pool cleaner quit cleaning the pool - actually, since the pump quit, the pool couldn't be vacuumed anyway. No since having just the leaves skimmed off. I can do that when I'm retrieving toys out of the pool [don't ask].

No, Rev. It "iz not leeeeeking in the valve." We quit filling the pool and the water just kept draining out. A couple of days later the water level was well below the valve [don't ask me why it is called the valve - I would call it a "jet," but whatever] and it was past the "filter level," too. The water continued to go down. It was leaking more slowly, but it was still leaking. Somewhere... The pool contains a lot of water. You'd think with the amount of water that was leaking out we'd have a sink hole in our back yard somewhere. We don't. DH called Rev and said, do you think it's the light? Is it leaking through there? Rev came by. His answer was, "Weel seeee." And, then Rev had his worker - out regular pool guy - take the light out. Only the light isn't in there with a couple of screws. It was grouted in. So, the light has now been hammered and chipped out. The light is not the problem.

The light - dangling and useless.

Two days ago, Rev came by and was trying to tell me what he thinks the problem is now. None of what he said made any sense to me - phonetically or literally. I basically threw my hands up in the air and said, "Rev, I don't understand a word you are saying to me and the words that I do understand make absolutely no sense. You need to talk to DH." Rev's standard response to me - always - is, "Yeah, yeah, yeah." No, Rev. Do it now. Call him on his cell. The number is 050-555-5555. Rev set up a time to meet DH this morning at 8:30. When Rev tells DH something - he keeps his word. If he tells me something - he blows me off, completely. I would much rather that DH deal with the man. I just don't have the patience.

The problem, apparently, is behind the tile. The cement must be cracked somewhere and water has been slowly leaking - increasing in its frequency - for sometime now. The tile is going to have to be taken out, the cement repaired, then the whole area will be regrouted and retiled. Great. Rev took one of the tiles with him - he is going to try to match it. Good luck with that. The pool is some twenty-plus years old. Those tiles were likely a much different color blue then than they are now - between the chlorine and the sun. The new tiles are never going to match the old tiles. Not a big deal, really, as far as I'm concerned. Rev has yet to tell us what it is going to cost to repair the pool. We will be responsible for the cost, not the company which DH works for which rents us the house, even though we don't own the pool. Whatever.

What I am not pleased about is the mess it is going to make - of our entire back yard and patio area. There is no way it is going to be a nice, neat, quick one-afternoon fix and repair job. Rev does not work that way. He is spread too thin, here, with all the work he does. For certain things we can find someone else to do the work and conversely, with other things, Rev seems to have a monopoly on - pools being one of those "things." Great. He will show up one afternoon when he had said he'd be here in the morning, start a job, then tell me he'll be back the next day and we won't see him for a week. That the backyard is The Kids play area and "business" area is a big concern. I am incredibly anxious over the pool now NOT having water in it. DH says I'm being overly frantic over nothing. No. I don't think I am.

Not enough that I was worried about The Kids falling in the pool when it had water in it. Now, I'm worried about The Kids falling in the pool while it is empty. It won't be The Baby, either. Nope. It will be The Boy. And he will be hurt. I'm picturing broken legs. Plural. I am very careful about them being out there. I am either out back with them, or I am in the kitchen where I can keep an eye on things at all times. That is their backyard - their play area. One of them is going to run by - too closely to the edge - and wham! It is going to hurt. A lot. I've been taking them out at night separately to do business. At least during the day they can see where the big hole is, but at night - the pool light has been disconnected and "removed," and I'm just concerned for their safety. Their little playmate, Nuffie, hasn't been over to play in the yard because with the three of them there IS going to be an accident. So far, Nuffie is the only one of them that hasn't been in the pool. I would hate to see her get hurt.

The Baby, The Boy, and Nuffie [red collar] playin!

The Baby and Nuffie

The three of them: Nuffie, The Baby, and The Boy

The good thing - if there is something good about having to have your pool completely drained, untiled, repaired, retiled, etc., is that it is too cold to be spending time outside either by or in the pool. Since it has to happen - the work on the pool - better it has to happen now, in January, instead of in June when we are using the pool every day. The pump on the pool broke about two weeks ago - completely broke - and we started letting it drain on its own for the first week. Then we had it manually - with an electric pump - emptied. We have gone a week now with a completely dry pool. Let's just see how long it takes Rev to get his act together and get our pool fixed. We know how long it took him to do the work in the bedroom - six weeks, from start to finish, maybe a little longer. I'm guessing the work on the pool won't be done until sometime in March...