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Displaced

At the beginning of August we started having electrical issues. Lights would flicker, and dim throughout the house. Our breakers would jump at least once a week. So my dad shut down the power that was being transferred to the second house because we assumed maybe we were just using too much. The double wide is old, and the wiring leading to our house would probably need to be replaced. Well, the issues stopped for about two weeks. One night mid-September we woke up to popping sounds going off through out the house. I checked our breaker box and all of them had jumped. So, I turned them back on and my husband went around checking the power through out the house. Since it was around 2 am he didn't really check thoroughly, but just glanced to see if the clocks were back on and if he could hear the fridge running. 

The next morning I was running late and my husband was leaving to go do some odd jobs so we were in a hurry. I don't remember opening the fridge or even checking the clocks. That evening when we got home though, something was off. Our TV wouldn't turn on, and the lights were super dim. I opened the fridge and everything was warm/melted. When we turned on the lights to our rooms in the back, the entire house "shut off". When I flipped the breakers back on we figured out that we couldn't have too many things on at once. And it turns out that the popping we heard that night wasn't just the breakers going off. Our TV was fried, the fridge no longer worked, and our electric heaters had burnt plug ins. 

We called an electrician, and they took a look around. It took them six days to tell us nothing. Our house was having surges and they didn't know why. When we plugged something in, it was like the house would drain power from the other end and they didn't know why. In the end they charged us over $500 just to tell us that they'd have to send someone else out to "take a look", after they had already sent two gentlemen out to our house every day for the previous six days. We finally told them, no thank you...we'd look else where. Unfortunately, we couldn't afford to do that.  

We turned our "laundry space" into our bedroom. Started using the front bathroom only. And shut off the whole back section of our house. We pretty much lived in our living room. Since our fridge was dunzo, I would buy our meals that same day and we'd cook on the grill. But there was a lot of fast food trips taken as well. We used our computer screen as our TV and only hooked up the DVD player. It wasn't ideal, but it worked. Since everything else in the house runs on propane, I wasn't too worried (or rushed) about having to find a new place. We used as little electricity as possible to get us by and that was fine.  

Well, last Tuesday our house shut down completely. No amount of breaker flipping was turning it back on. We called the electric company and they showed everything was running fine on their end. We checked the outside box to make sure it wasn't damaged. Everything was "fine" but nothing in our house would turn on. We stayed at my parents house that night. The next morning we called someone about giving us an estimate on what needed to be done. They came back with a number around the $5,000 range. My dad said the house wasn't even worth that much, so there really wasn't much point in fixing it. So, you can all guess what that means. Yup. We are now living with my parents. Again.  

Currently, we are in no position to rent an apartment or house. Everything we've seen has been priced at over $600 a month along with an equal amount for deposit. So we're looking at $1200 to just get a place. And it's no secret that we can't afford that. Even with my husbands part time job, we'd still come up short. We were coming up short while our house was still livable and we didn't even have to pay rent. So as you can see, we're in a bit of a pickle. Thankfully, my parents are letting us stay with them. We have a roof over our heads, food, and warmth. What more do we really need, right? Well, it still sucks that we don't have our own place but we're making the best of it. And I'm hoping that something turns up soon. For now, I'm just going to count our blessings. We're really lucky to have family that opens up their arms and home to help us out. 

Introducing: Gotham

It's been over a month since Sampson died. Emery still asks for him. Occasionally she cries for him. I still tear up just thinking about him. He's missed so much. Sometimes I wake up and for a second I forget. But then the absence of his presence is pretty loud. Thankfully we have a lot of happy memories. And even though it saddens us sometimes when we're reminded of him we can't help but smile at the thought of our goofy boy. For those animal lovers out there who understand what I'm talking about, isn't it the worst? The emptiness and the hurt that you feel mixed in with the gratefulness of having had them at all in the first place. For those that aren't as in love with animals as we are, well in a way you're lucky. In others, I feel sorry for you.

After Sampson died we started looking into adopting an adult pit bull, and we even visited that shelter I told y'all about. But we didn't "click" with any of them. And the one that we were considering completely ignored us the whole time we took him out. It was disheartening. I know this might sounds silly but I wanted that connection. Maybe it wouldn't be as strong as the one we had with Sampson, but I knew that it existed and I wouldn't settle for anything less when it came to adding a fur-baby to our family. So as we were heading home empty handed I questioned whether or not we were even ready. Maybe I had too high expectations? Maybe we were rushing it? Maybe we'd never find another dog because none would ever compare to our Sampson?

Well that same day a cousin of a friend contacted me on instagram about this little puppy they had. She was the last puppy they had, and it didn't look like anyone else would be taking her. She was a pit bull, three months old, and needed a good home. They had recently heard about what happened to our Sampson and were willing to just let us have her if we were interested. They told us to stop by and just play with her a bit, get a feel for her, and see if we even wanted a puppy. So, we decided to go for it. 

The minute I saw her, I fell in love. It was that thing, you guys, that connection. We were bonded. She was black, with floppy ears, and a big head! She was very interactive with us and I knew right then that she was coming home with us one way or another. Before I even expressed my opinion my husband voiced what I was thinking. He wanted her too. She was perfect, and she'd grow up knowing us. Emery asked if we could keep her (as well as the puppy's mom who was playing fetch with her). So it was settled! We were getting a puppy. The only thing left to do was pick out a name! Which we argued about for two days. Eventually, my husband let me have my way and she was officially named "Gotham".

The first week was spent allowing her to get settled in with us and her new surroundings. It was a bit stressful for me at first because it's been seven years since we've had a puppy. The accidents, the jumping, the nipping, and hardheadedness. I had completely forgotten how much time and work goes into a puppy. But, we've come out the other end completely in tact. She's doing really well with Emery and learning commands. She's such a smart girl, and has a lot of energy which we take care of by going for walks (and before the snow- runs). She's put a smile back on our faces. She's helped us keep busy, and given us an opportunity to share our love with her. I only wish that Sampson were here for it.

Until we see you again big guy! We miss you!