We had moved into a home in Salt Lake City just a few months earlier and the home was our favorite home so far that we have lived in. Taylor was just little and he had one of the neighbor girls over and I was making them lunch, grilled cheese sandwiches. All of a sudden the smoke detector starts to go off. I jump into action and start to do the only thing I know of to do, swing the broom in front of the smoke detector so it will move the smoke away. Only this is different, the broom isn't working. That's when it dawned on me that it had triggered the alarm system. I knew the house had an alarm system but never gave it a second thought. The sandwich that I was cooking was barely black, not even really burnt, but it had set off the entire alarm system. In my confusion with the noise I called Kenny. Who else would I call but my husband? Don't all husbands know all and can fix everything? Here is how our phone call went and you have to keep in mind that the alarm has already been going off for a few minutes before I called Kenny and it was still sounding in the background of our conversation.
Kenny: Hello
Me: I need your help, the alarm is going off!!!
Kenny: How did you do that? I can hear it.
Me: I was cooking grilled cheese sandwiches. How do I turn this off?
Kenny: I don't know! I'm in the middle of test driving a car and I need to get back to the shop.
Me: If you're already out driving then come home, I need your help!!
Kenny: You don't understand, this car is ready to die right here on the freeway, I can't come.
Me: Fine!
I hung up and walked around in circles trying to figure out what to do. I couldn't handle the noise and was beginning to wonder what the neighbors were starting to think. This stupid alarm had been going off for over 15 minutes at this point. Kenny called back a few minutes later when he was back at work and suggested that I call the alarm company. Duh! That was an obvious suggestion, why didn't I think of that? Oh yea, I have the house screaming at me. I found our phone book and looked up the number to the alarm system company. Here is how this conversation goes (with the alarm still sounding in the background):
Poor Guy: Hello, bla bla bla company how may I help you?
Me: I am having a problem with the alarm system in my house.
Poor Guy: Ya, I can hear it. Did you enter your code to turn it off?
Me: I don't have a code. We are renting this house and I haven't activated the alarm system.
Poor Guy: Then why is it going off if you don't have it activated? Just put in your code!
Me: I DON'T HAVE A CODE!!!!!! Please tell me how to turn this off.
Poor Guy: Why is it going off in the first place?
Me: I burned a grilled cheese sandwich and that set off the smoke detectors.
I'm pretty sure I can hear chuckling on the other end of the phone but with the alarm still going off I can't say for sure. I know he was laughing at me.
Poor Guy: Um, we need to have you unplug the system. (He then continues to talk me through where the system should be located and how to cut the power to it.)
Me: It is still going off, that didn't stop it.
Poor Guy: It must have a back up battery in it, you are going to have to open the main box and pull out the battery.
Me: huh?
At this point I have to move several sheets of sheet rock (those suckers are heavy) so I can reach the main box and then this poor guy has to talk me through opening up the box (which required using tools, so he had to wait while I went back and forth to the garage) and removing the heaviest battery I have ever held. Finally, there was silence! I'm pretty sure I have permanent damage from this experience. I think the guy on the phone could have come away with some damage as well, that is how loud the alarm was.
Once we have the battery out I thank him and hang up. I know everyone in the office that day got a good laugh out of this one, they had to have, I'm still laughing about the day I burned a grilled cheese sandwich, yelled at my husband to get home, and then had to explain that I had set off the alarm from burning a stupid sandwich. I then did have one neighbor come over to see what had happened and why the alarm had been going off for so long. Note, she didn't come over until all was quiet. I'm glad it was something silly and not something serious.
I had to share this story because it was better than the time that I set off the smoke detector making french toast while my mom was in the shower and had her hair full of shampoo. That one is a much shorter story and it isn't as funny because I was the one getting yelled at instead of the poor guy at the alarm company. I really have gotten better over the years and now the only time we really have to worry is if Kenny is baking a pizza or french fries.
In general, we are both much better and I really am thankful for the poor guy who just happened to be the one to answer that phone call. I'm glad that he could help and talk me through disconnecting the alarm system. Kenny and I were talking about this over the weekend while we were remembering things that have happened while we have been married. I'm sorry to say that I still need to forgive and understand that he couldn't come home that day. I understand the car was ready to break down and leave him stranded, but if he was already on the freeway and heading in my direction, I still think he could have made it to the house. Okay, maybe he couldn't, but it's hard for me to think that because I just wanted him there.
Kenny, thank you for being so patient with me and my emergencies!!
No comments:
Post a Comment