Crash

I thought that there had been an earthquake, really, I did.

But it could have been an intruder and I was alone in the house, so I slunk down the stairs…. And this is what I found in the living room.

Yes, that is indeed a Chinese wedding chest that has tumbled over, launching a heavy television set toward a sofa where I had been sitting a mere 10 minutes earlier.

Here’s why:

The floor had given way and the front leg fell through.

And, yes, when my husband walked over to inspect the situation the next morning, his foot broke through, too.

Yuck, it’s wet down there — just normal Shanghai dampness, I was told. If I were a mouse like the one who ran through the living room last week, I’d want to get out of there, too.

And here’s what Xiao Gu, our landlord’s repairman, bless his sweet heart, brought for repairs.A saw and a caulking gun. Right.

So, the next time you envy me my life in an elegant old house down a Shanghai lane, remember that it has three tall stories, and apparently rotten floors. I know, everything has its pluses and minuses. But, please, try to temper your romantic notions with thoughts of sewer gas backup, and faucets in the shower that give a low-level buzz of electricity. There now– that’s more like it.