Black Art

I shall start with a photo.

This was the mess chaotic scene in our kitchen when F opened the cupboard under the sink to put my stash of food pouches in my special bin, and was greeted by a flood on its way out.

Floods (as many people in Western Europe currently know far better than I do) mean water (in their case way too much of it). While I'm of the view that any water is way too much, at least our flood could be controlled with a mop. 

I supervised at a safe distance.

F isn't fazed by water and quickly discovered it was coming from the sink drain (plughole thing no longer sealed). The assembly fell apart in her hands. Interestingly that's the second drain assembly to disintegrate on us in a matter of months here. I wonder what she's been doing to them.

Problem identified, it was quickly determined to be unrepairable (brass nut had pulled out of plastic seat, and plastic split and splayed out - suspect previous person attendant on this over-tightened it), and F set off (mid Saturday afternoon in Greek summertime) to try and find an open shop that sells a replacement. Remarkably she did, and quite close by as it eventually turned out after a complete circuit of the neighbourhood (a 'volta' in Greek terms).

There's still a lot of STUFF isn't there?!

 

This is the same scene a couple of hours later. Sink operation restored, drain reconnected, cupboard dried out and some jerry (or F) built oven tray storage glued back together under there, catfood bins stowed, chicken minced and portioned into the freezer, dishes done, laiki produce levered into the fridge, and that which didn't fit turned into baba ganoush, Greek salad, Korean eggplant salad (yes, way too many eggplants/aubergine/melitzania - they were 50c a kilo), and a pot of vlita being steamed. Also way too much vlita (amaranthus) so F's going to have to make callaloo out of the rest tomorrow.  Oh and a nearly empty olive oil tin cut open and drained.

The coffee's gone cold....

Cat has died..... 

(Only joking. I do 'dead cat' when it simply gets too boring to supervise.)

She managed to cut herself on the olive oil tin lid. 

Blood. 

Stupid woman. All for a few spoonfuls of olive oil.

The rest of the apartment is still a chaotic scene, but at least we can see the kitchen bench top now and my food is safe - including the chicken purchased at the butcher's shop on our way home from work on Friday.

Some people think plumbing and drainage is a black art. F says it's simple really - water runs downhill, called 'finding its own level', and will do so by the shortest route available to it; including gaps and holes in your pipework. It's easy to see where the gaps are because the water comes out..... all you have to do is.....