My home away from...everything

After the electricity went out as I was showering tonight, I thought it would be good to document the various "features" of my Dutch home. First, the power. This was about the fifth or sixth time it has gone out since I've been here. It's not a big deal to get it turned back on, just takes some fiddling with the box, very safe I'm sure. My landlord said that she had an electrician take a look but everything was fine. She said the problem was most likely having too many things plugged in. I thought I should be fine, I barely use anything. After one blackout, one of my roommates came into my room, looked around, and said she thought I had too many things running. Computer. Heater. Light. At that point, I could have argued and live in fear of my toothbrush going in the toilet or I could comply with Greek Bob Vila. Lights out.

I can't really complain about my roommates, they have been pretty nice and considerate. The rapid fire Greek banter gets old sometimes but everything in this house seems loud because the walls are ridiculously thin. I'm not talking poorly built Gainesville apartment thin either, I mean put your fist through the wall thin. Which coincidentally, I did. No, it wasn't Gators/Magic loss related. I went to brace myself as I was leaning over my bed to reach something and crack -- right through. Luckily, there are some otherwise useless Dutch pictures hanging in my room. Problem solved, deposit saved.

Now, the clothes washing situation. There is a washing machine, probably the smallest model ever made and takes about 3 hours per cycle, but it's there. There is no dryer, however, only clothes lines in the garage. The not exactly warm temperatures are not too conducive to drying so it takes a good 2-3 days for everything to become wearable again. Right now, I have two weeks worth of boxers hanging by the door. I'm guessing at least part of the banter today will be dedicated to the American flag pair greeting the girls as they get home from class.

I've never seen the show (lie), but I think the house should be featured on an episode of Antiques Roadshow. The entire house is full of things that appear to be older than the United States. There's also an attic filled with random old stuff that my roommates said they thought was used to hide Jews during the Holocaust. I said I thought King Arthur may have hidden Excalibur in there. No response.