So It Goes

When I was planning this trip, I often said: "I want to live in Paris, truly see what it’s like to live in Paris for a month." As we all know, as we have all experienced, life includes a variety of unplanned and unexpected events, expenses, and so on. I got that health issue and healthcare stuff squared away on Monday. Life, it happens, you deal with it. I did. That’s how life works.

Now, let’s go back to before I left for Europe. It was a week or so in advance of the trip and I was made aware of a recent roof leak above the apartment I was renting. I had a discussion with the homeowner and we covered all the details. She assured me there was minor cosmetic damage, but that my stay wouldn’t be affected by it. She believed her contractor. I believed her. She went on her vacation. I went on mine.



Fast forward to this Tuesday, the day after the doctor, when an extreme rain came down over Paris for a sustained period of time. When I returned to the apartment, the bathroom was flooded. I cleaned up the mess, laundered the towels and rugs, and spoke at length with the homeowner. She felt awful, but I agreed to stay home the next day to be here for the contractor’s return visit. Everything went well, I only lost half a day of my vacation, and I was on my way. The homeowner was grateful and effusive in her praise of my willingness to help. We all need a little help every now and then. No sweat. Everything is now in the rearview mirror. Later, we agreed to cash compensation for my troubles.

Early in the morning on Wednesday, as I was waiting for the contractor, I was listening to podcasts through an iPad. This had become my norm while doing any activities around my apartment here. The iPad stopped playing so I stopped what I was doing to check on it. It had entered an endless reboot loop. Apple logo, black screen, Apple logo, black screen, repeat. I have a long history of troubleshooting Apple devices so I knew what to do. Quickly, I realized that this poor iPad had likely just given up the ghost right in front of me. It was a goner. Due to various reasons, I had decided to bring “work” devices on the trip instead of personal ones. Mainly, I am to be gone for an extended period of time and I wanted to be able to work remotely if some urgent matter arose. I double-checked the stats on this iPad, handed down to me due to an administrator opting for something newer, and I realized it was well out of warranty. At nearly 4 years old, iPads that break are basically disposable. Please recycle them in the greenest means possible.

Today, I decided I’d make a Genius Bar appointment at the Apple Store Opera and have them confirm or deny the death of the iPad. It received its death certificate at approximately 2:30 PM local time in Paris. I’d been considering buying myself a personal iPad for some time. It has been ten years since I owned one and thought maybe that an iPad is all I really need for a portable “computer” outside of work. The stars had aligned and I bought an iPad Air and the keyboard case that transforms it into something akin to a slim laptop, instead of a tablet to poke at. An unexpected expense, but I’ll still be able to cache videos on Netflix for all of my upcoming train rides. Onward.



I ran around a few places in Montmarte after the Apple Store visit and eventually headed back to my apartment. As I was exiting the Metro, my Airbnb host called from Andalusia. Long story, but what had happened is pretty simple. It rained again. The rainwater had been collecting over the main room of the apartment. The ceiling has collapsed. Her neighbor had gone in to check on things after hearing the crash. Some of my stuff is wet, some of her stuff is damaged. She is canceling her vacation and flying back tomorrow. I need to find a new place to stay for the rest of the month. I bounced around some ideas, asked some people about the places they have stayed here, etc. The homeowner had immediately offered up a full refund, so I figuratively have that in my back pocket. A friend wisely reminded me to reach out to Airbnb. They are now involved. They appear steadfast in their efforts to find a resolution. My current hope is that I find a new place to move into on Saturday, unpack, and get a good night's sleep so I can ditch my stuff and head to Germany with a small bag on Sunday morning as planned. It is looking like that will happen.

I wanted to live in Paris. Life is full of surprises. I got what I wanted. So it goes.



Since the ceiling is on the floor, it is a lot easier to do what Lionel says…