another message
October 3, 2012
I’ve been dying to address this for the last two weeks:
I was going to discuss how:
- I knew I’d be home late from work and thus, prior to leaving for the day, I took out a can of Chicken Noodle and steamed some broccoli for Maya’s dinner. (Don’t be too jealous of my culinary skills.)
- Prior to my departure, I informed my husband of the latitude and longitude of Maya’s meal in our super full fridge (note sarcasm) to avoid receiving terse text messages insisting, “Maya’s food is not in the fridge. I checked.”
- I’d instructed my husband not to let Maya go crazy with the Chex and string cheese, no matter how much she hassled him.
- I’d advised Ali to assure Maya that no, life is not fair. And yes, Mom is mean.
But then this happened:
A hit and run.
And then Ali told me that because he didn’t chase down the other driver to obtain a license plate number, our fabulous insurance company is making us cover the deductible. On top of that they informed us that it’ll be 2 months before the car is fixed and they have no plans to provide us with a rental during that time.
So I felt bad and decided to cut my husband some slack on the whole soup debacle. But it’s been a couple of weeks, Ali is driving his parent’s extra car again, and my sympathy has worn off.
And now that the debacle has finally been addressed? I feel…liberated.
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While I'm not going to win Mother/Wife of the Year Award anytime soon, I haven't killed anyone yet or shot myself in the head. And that, my friends, is how I calculate success these days. 
FANCY THAT FANCY THIS 
Ohh man what a tragedy…I am just glad that no one was in the car when that moron decide to ram into your car! And that’s lame about the insurance company not covering the expenses….had you been able to track down the license plate #, obviously it won’t really be a hit and “run”!
On a lighter note, all this tough love to Maya will pay definitely off…life sure ain’t fair ;)!
Life isn’t fair…I become more and more aware of this the older I get!
Men are so cute. They can never find what you want them to find especially in the fridge! I am so amazed that Ralph has actually been eating the hard boiled eggs I made for him as snacks! I make things for him and they turn into science experiments! What a shame about the car!
Luckily our fridge is so empty that I can catch things before they turn into science experiments…
I was laughing at the soup message until I read about the car. Sorry about the car and I am glad no one was hurt.
Thanks Ayala…I am definitely glad Ali wasn’t hurt.
Unfortunate events happening all at the same time – on the positive, at least no one was hurt and we can have a laugh over the soup – which out of interest begs the question – what was the soup?
Chicken Noodle from Trader Joe’s! Maya loves it.
You should write a PSA piece on which insurance company NOT to use. Seriously. That’s cahrayzeee.
I don’t know what would happen if I asked Chad to microwave soup for the children. I THINK he knows the metal can doesn’t go in there… Sunday morning he tried to get up early and make me coffee, but halfway through he kept coming back in the bedroom to ask me questions and I started to worry about the state of my kitchen.
The refrigerator thing: I call that Man Disease. They are all afflicted with the problem of not being able to find things that are right IN FRONT OF THEIR FACE.
One cannot assume their husband knows that metal can’t go into the microwave…I would definitely notify him. Not that it’ll matter because he’ll likely forget but it doesn’t hurt to try.
Man Disease is right. Ali has a serious case of it. As does Maya for that matter.
You guys seriously have the worst luck with cars. Is it just bad luck or is it location or is it both? Remind me to never drive in California…
I think it’s a combination of both. We need reliable public transportation. Badly.
Oh no! Sounds like you need a new insurance company. When we had a branch crash down on one of our cars, it was 2 months in the shop. We did have to pay the deductible, probably b/c the tree did not have insurance, but we did get a free loaner for the entire time!
Love the text message, so funny!
The tree didn’t have insurance? How irresponsible of it! 🙂
Glad you got the loaner.
Bummer about the car situation…that really stinks!
Men are funny 😉
Hope Maya got dinner that night 🙂
Katie
She did…eventually. Not sure how it tasted but she ate it!
I’m glad Ali is okay. The insurance company should be more accomodating though. That conversation about how to heat dinner sounds very familiar! Sounds like my husband. Man!
Same conversation….all throughout the country.
lol! wow nate makes me look bad—he cooks out of the ad hoc cookbook by thomas keller. that is ridiculous of the insurance company! what if the car was not in a state of function…how could you ‘chase’ down the offender then? dumb. i am glad everyone is ok and hope they get you sorted quickly!
Thomas Keller is a star. And I know nothing about food!
I wish I knew how one is supposed to chase down an offender when their car is inoperable but apparently that’s what you need to do when you have insurance with AAA.
I think we should toss the word “wife” and re-style ourselves as man-shepherds. Because I mean, really. I’m doing the same thing with Marcus all the time. It’s sort of ironic that even though we have full pantries, men are patently unable to find anything to eat.
Man-shepherd…I love it. No seriously, it’s brilliant.
My husband is really good about finding things and I just went away this weekend with some friends and he did all 4 children on his own quite well. Sorry about the car and I can’t believe that they would actually want you to chase down the driver! In LA?! Do they want you dead on the side of the highway? Of course in that scenario they wouldn’t have to pay for anything so maybe that is their evil master plan.
I am impressed with your husband. 4 kids? Single-handedly? That’s more than I can do. Hats off to him.
Sorry about the hit and run!
Thank you Katie!
Sorry to hear about the hit and run 😦 That sucks! The text messages between you and Ali – hilarious!
Thanks Jolene!
I love it that you ‘capture’ the most unexpected visuals, like chat messages – cool! Soooooooo sorry about the car 😦 I really wish you come up with something to make the insurance co. cough up the cash. Haven’t they amassed enough public wealth already?
You would think so…but no, apparently they have not amassed enough from the public. Not even 12+ year customers like us!
Gah! That sucks!
I swear my car is a magent for getting hit and no one leaving notes. I’ve had to fix it twice because of that — both times paying the deductible.
So this deductible on a hit and run thing is a common expectation? I suppose I shouldn’t complain too much then…
Your culinary skills way outdo mine…I’m often a “cheese & crackers” or “cereal for dinner” kinda cooker. Total Slacker!
The fender bender (buster?) blows – but I’m glad everyone is ok!
I’ve done cheese and crackers…I throw in some hummus and grapes and call it a gourmet ensemble. Maya loves it.
the in laws come through again! so sorry about the hit and run, people suck.
as far as ali’s soup text…..i have no words!
People do suck. This is a major problem….
Boy….I think the real lesson here is to switch to a different insurance company and thank the inlaws!
and I can tell Ali is super smart. or using soup as an excuse to confirm that he is be nutritiously minded.
I agree with your lesson…my generous in-laws are just beyond words.
Hey, at least you were quite polite when you told him how to heat up the soup. I would have been like, “Dude, you are literate, right? READ THE CAN!” Perhaps this is why my husband says I’m sarcastic…
LOL !! Sounds like me 🙂
Normally I would have said/written something like this…not sure what happened to me? Maybe being at work dulled my sense of sarcasm? No other explanation…
Oh MAN… Is it LA or do you just seem to have bad luck with cars lately, or is it just THIS car?
We just have bad luck with cars…but this car in particular has been quite troublesome on all accounts!
I had the exact same reaction when I read Ali’s line “I’m not that lame”! Priceless. So sorry about the car woes though 😦
Thanks Emily!
I’m not even sure what to say here. Do I comment on the soup, or the car?
First, I think it’s amazing that you clarified to him that he needs to put the soup in the bowl. That made my day.
Second, the car situation is awful. I’d be devastated. But on the plus side, at least you live in the States where you get to choose your insurance company. We have one in BC. Just one. And they were voted the worst in Canada. So that’s really awesome.
So you have government mandated car insurance? How on earth does that work? How am I Canadian and yet I had no idea? You have my sympathies Leah.
It doesn’t work, that’s how. It sucks and we all hate it.
Oh man, so glad they’re okay! But now that they are, you are right, the canned soup fiasco needed to be addressed. So glad you remedied that asap 😉
I feel 100 X better now that I have…
Wow, I’m so sorry about the car, but I’m glad that there’s an ‘extra’ that Ali can borrow (as the person left stranded in our one-car family, I’m immensely jealous) until his is fixed. Honestly, I think Ali just wants you to FEEL him over the course of the day. He already knows the answer to the questions.
I wish he knew the answers but I really think he doesn’t. Or he doesn’t care enough to think a little to come up with an answer. After all, he has an MBA. He should know this stuff, right?
oh my- i am sorry about the car situation and the deductabile that you guys had to pay..on a side the soup situation is very hilarious-
Thanks Dixya…things could be worse so I’m not that upset.
No rental? That’s very odd. I have a suspicion that your agent is trying to cheat you on that end. At least you waited two weeks before talking about the soup incident!
I’m letting Ali deal with the agent so I’m not really sure…insurance always overwhelms me!
Ouch – too bad about the car! But the text exchange was hysterical.
Thanks SAW…
Oh men. Good call on the microwave. It sounds like attempting the stove could have been disastrous. lol
Are you kidding? I never ask Ali to turn on the stove because that’s just asking for disaster.
Man, you are having the worst car luck! Thank goodness for the in-laws.
I felt vaguely guilty reading this being as I inherited from my father to stare straight at something(or hold my iPhone in my hand) and not be able to find it. I’d probably need refrigerator longitude and latitude too. But he should heeded the chex and string cheese instructions:)
I’m not surprised that you inherited the disease from your dad and not your mom. 🙂
awww… ameena you got to cut him some slack… some more slack, the man is down with the paperwork monster, he needs all your sympathies 😀
I have difficulty cutting any one slack…it’s a weakness of mine!
Ameena I think you are a wonderful wife and mother and I love you blog to bits. But I do feel sorry for your husband! That message about the soup could so easily have my name and my wife’s replace yours! I’m afraid all men are somewhat like your good man. I may have to make sure my wife NEVER finds out about your blog. She would laugh herself silly and tell you that you have her sympathies! 🙂
You should tell your wife to start a blog so we can make each other feel better…it’s always nice to know that I’m not alone!
LOL – I’ll suggest that to her but I suspect she will say she is too busy running house and home to write one because I’m too busy writing one to do house and home! Of course, I maintain that she is exaggerating…
i kind of give credit to Ali for asking. I think my husband would heat the soup in metal in the micro or in plastic. Sort of brave of him to send you that text. More importantly, what does it say Ali is “available” at the top of the message?
“Available…” Love it. I didn’t notice it until now!
Ouch! Not the Porsche. Oh I feel so bad for Ali, men and their cars are a serious thing. Just a guess, but was Ali spoiled rotten as a kid? My husband is bad, but know he can heat up leftovers.
Ali’s mom does everything for everybody, including me. So I guess I can’t really complain about Ali so much when I’m now used to being spoiled?
Oh, man, what the heck? It was obviously a hit and run. That’s so lame about the insurance company — sorry to hear it, Ameena 😦 You are so patient, not only about explaining the perfectly obvious, but for doing it more than once! You’ve made my day once again 🙂
Thanks Jessie…the insurance company IS lame. We are considering switching coverage because of the whole mess.
What did he type afterward?
I closed the window and went back to working…so curious though what was about to come next!
Hit and runs are one of my biggest fears :P!
I hate how the person who gets hit gets hit by the insurance companies as well ><
Well said…so basically we were hit twice!
Yikes, the Porsche? Unbelievable, dang people without any values or morals, it’s crazy. So sorry, and so lovely about the insurance company too, a lovely bonus.
Good Luck.
And I love Santa Barbara. My grandparents lived there and had a huge house overlooking the ocean. I use to go into the backyard and pick their strawberries, while overlooking the ocean. It was awesome. Ameena, you look so pretty in your pictures, I love your hair. Take care,
Shauna
You are always so generous with your compliments Shauna…thank you.
As far as Santa Barbara goes, I would love to have taken Maya to pick strawberries! Wish I’d thought of that.
What a douche…not your husband. The driver who ran away…and we will throw in your insurance company too.
Heck, let’s lump in Oprah and snooki and that fat assed chick who is disgracing my name, Kim Kardashian.
Kim Kardashian just needs to…stop. So sick of her. Funny enough, she’s one of the few reality TV stars I haven’t seen in LA. And I thank my lucky stars for that.
Ick. “Do not heat the can, I repeat, do not put the can in the microwave.” I like that he was offended, but sad about your car and the hit and run. Some people’s kids.
Some people’s kids is right. Never thought of it that way but so appropriate…
I admire your forbearance. 😉
Ha. My husband is just as bad. We had to have a little chat the other day about how much I would appreciate it if he could possibly manage to change the toilet paper roll instead of just leaving no toilet paper for the next person. He was dumbfounded at the concept.
That sucks Ali’s car got damaged. Insurance companies are annoying, not sure why the victim is expected to pay a deductible. Yup, life isn’t fair. 🙂
Btw.. love your chat convo… I forgot to comment on that. So funny! You guys have a cute relationship.
ouch! sorry about the car. but i love your messages with ali. can’t believe we’ve never met – i feel like i know him…
Are you serious? That’s just horrible. I hope karma bites the other driver you know where.
I hope so too!