Self-inflicted Punishment

Kitchen floor that I damaged myself

Elective surgery and home renovation.  What do these two have in common?  Having experienced both in the past two weeks, I know the answer to thisquestion. They're both forms of self-inflicted torture! 

    How are they alike?  Both are a matter of choice. Both require preparation, planning, and expense. Both require a succession of strangers coming through your space (home or hospital room) on their own schedule, doing mysterious things.  In my case, both things could have rocked along indefinitely as they were.   But noooo -- suddenly I decided that improvements just had to be made and it was now or never!

    My two self-inflicted forms of abuse were elective toe surgery and kitchen floor reno.   Both had needed doing for quite some time, and I cleverly thought I could supervise the reno while I was housebound recovering from the foot operation.  Two birds with one stone and all that!  Well, it wasn't quite as bad as having two knee replacements at the same time, but it was close.

   There wasn't much physical pain after the toe operation.  But the kitchen floor!  There was a lot of psychic pain around that because --like an idiot -- I'd damaged it myself by using too harsh a chemical to clean the grout.  All I managed to clean, in truth, was the polished surface off the hand-laid tiles, as you can see in the photo.  Nobody to blame but myself, and my folly was visible to everyone who entered this place.  As for the toe, I inherited that problem and I'll spare you the pain of seeing photos of my foot showing why this surgery needed doing sooner or later.   

  So, both of these costly, complicated procedures -- surgery and reno -- cause pain or at least discomfort while they're going on, but you go forward anyway, envisioning vast improvement on the other side of the ordeal.  Both processes require lots of consultation and preparation, more than you'd expect.  Photos (or X-rays) are taken, trips to choose the tile, consultation on grout color or type of anesthesia, choosing starting dates, and so on. It's all about the same.  

     In the case of foot surgery, you need to prepare by laying in supplies because there's no going out for a while after you return home.  For the reno, you prepare by covering everything with sheets and moving small stuff as far away as possible.  But you still find dust on everything for ages after it's all over (or so I'm told).  I'm still finding it.

This helpful post-op boot lets you walk soon 

   In both cases everyday life is still possible but inconvenient.  You can function even the day after foot surgery, thanks to something that resembles a moon walking boot.  You can clump around on it, but you think twice before you do much unnecessary walking.  During reno you can still put together a meal if you can find your fridge (in the living room), your micro (on the floor in the study) and your toaster (in the laundry room). At least you can until the concrete (or is it cement?) is down and the tile is laid. Then the kitchen is off-limits for a while.   But here in Penang, "Domino's Pizza Delivers" and the outlet is less than a block away from our place.  Not healthy, of course, but all bets are off during reno and after surgery.  It's an allowable self-pity indulgence since you can't go out for chocolate or retail therapy.

    And, in the end, if you're lucky, you have a new floor that looks like this and a straight toe that will make you walk like you're twenty years younger.  (Though that remains to be seen.)  

   There's one thing I do want to say before I hobble off to reunite all the electrical appliances in the kitchen, and it is this:   I know it's unseemly, even ridiculous, for me to complain about my comfortable life and lovely home.  I should not be complaining about my kitchen renovation when there are folks all over the world who are living in refugee camps or have lost their homes to natural disasters. 

Newly completed floor.  What do you think?

   I shouldn't complain about having had my toe surgery either.  Rather, I should be grateful that I live in a place where capable doctors and good hospitals are available to me.  So, I may sound like I'm complaining, but I'm really not.  I know I'm blessed and lucky! 

Dog Abuse or People Abuse?

  Does this little dog in a little cage seem like he's abused?  Of course not.  But if you keep a dog this size in a cage this size outside in the Malaysian heat with just some cardboard on top for shade for 12 to 15 hours a day, would that be animal abuse? 

   If you left this little lapdog out in this cage during a torrential rainstorm for hours at a time, would that be dog abuse? 

 I think so.  And if that little, poorly-socialized dog barked and barked and barked almost every minute of those 12-15 hours he was penned up, would that be considered noise pollution or "people abuse"?  Again, I think so.

     Sorry to make this a personal lament, but I can't help myself.  And apparently I can't help the constantly-caged little dogs next door, either.    
  
     The backstory:  There's a social club / eatery right next door to our condo complex.  From the day they began renovating it two years ago, they've kept a dog on-site to act as a watchdog. I could understand that, as they worked alone far into the night getting the place ready for customers. The dog they had then was something like an Akita, so I really could believe that it was a guard dog or watchdog serving a purpose. 

     But when they brought in two little caged lapdogs, separated their cages, and let them bark non-stop from 11:00 a.m. until 1:00 or later at night. . . . well, these little doggies clearly weren't functioning as guard dogs because they barked (I should say "bark') all the time!

    Usually I didn't care too much, though I should have.  Two Christmases ago, I did beg the owners in a note hand-delivered over the wall to keep their dog from barking long enough for us to enjoy our family holiday dinner in peace and quiet.  They did comply with that request.  

        However, recently I've had surgery that has kept me close to home, so I've been working online with the TV off.  With the incessant yipping from over the wall, I can't concentrate and I can't escape, either!

    I've called all the authorities I can think of, but each one listens politely and then hands me off to another authority by giving me a phone number to call.  I don't think phone calls are going to do the trick, somehow. As soon as I am able, I'm going to hop on my motorbike and head down to the municipal offices to plead with someone in person.  

   My concerns are many.  On a humanitarian level, I do believe this is a form of animal abuse.  I also believe that it's legitimately a form of noise pollution.  In most developed countries it would be.  Here, maybe not.

   On another level, I think the incessant barking is causing undue stress to all of us living or working just across the fence from these poor, unfortunate dogs.  Our condo office manager has gone over there recently to ask them to make the dogs be quiet because he, himself, couldn't think enough to do his work.  So I know it's not just me.

   On a purely financial level. . . . those who own property in this condo and especially in our block may well suffer because our units are unrentable or unsellable with this going on year in and year out.  Who would rent a unit or continue to do so with a public nuisance like this going on for weeks, months, even years?  

   I wouldn't if I didn't have to.  I wonder what can be done?  I'm willing to try almost anything.