On the other hand, the appartment is very clean. That includes the bathtub, which actually took me less time to clean that it did to get down on my knees to do so and to get up afterward.

I wish I didn't keep forgetting to buy drain opener. I wouldn't need to scrub it so often if the tub drained properly.

It's just as well I spent yesterday at home, though, because a guy came to look at our dishwasher. It worked the first time I tried to use it, but not thereafter. A couple of weeks later, I pulled it out and made sure everything was connected properly, and checked the filter and so forth, and it worked again.

Once more. As in "one more time only."

It hasn't worked since.

Until the guy came yesterday, with the Porteiro, and fired it right up. Worked just fine.

Which was so embarrassing.

This happened before, in Milan, with the washing machine. That damned plumber came, turned the taps off and on again, and it worked thereafter.

Or for a few months anyway, until it stopped. His little turn the water off and on trick didn't work that time.

I'd already tried it.

The bastard ended up replacing the tap. Ha!

Which is why I made Elvis try to work the dishwasher repeatedly before informing our landlords, just to make sure it wasn't being malevolent at me in particular. It didn't work for him, either.

It's not the tap this time, either, because the washing machine works just fine, and it's on the same water line. I suspect it's a case of plain old age.

On the other hand, it could hate me. Or us.

Which is increasingly likely, because I went to use it last night and it didn't work. Not for me, not for Elvis.

So today I hunted down the Porteiro, who is the doorman and general does stuff around the apartment building sort of guy.

I'm not sure he believes me, but he's calling the repairman again for us.

I wouldn't believe it myself, if it weren't for my apalling history with household appliances and plumbing of any kind.

Whatever I have or haven't done to offend the Gods of Plumbing and Water-bearing Appliances, I would like to get it straightened out as soon as possible.

It's either that, or I'll be forced to end my days in some primitive shack totally devoid of electricity with an outhouse out back.

I don't think I'd like that very much.