Teamwork

Sam's and my life together has always seemed to require a great deal of coordination. First, there was the work on the house, which meant that along with our actual jobs on campus, we were rushing over to the house before, between, and after classes to let contractors in, answer questions, buy supplies, finish up projects, etc.

Then we moved in, the work slowed down briefly, and we had Allison Clare. When I went back to teaching, we reactivated our tag-team plan of action, and between the two of us and a cadre of babysitters, housecleaners, and other students (Sam always has some helping him with one project or another), we have been getting by. And it's all good--busy, but good. This year, one of my favorite students is nannying for us for a few hours every day, and it has given us a world of flexibility so that we can both be on campus at the same time.

But still, occasionally, it all catches up with us. Last night, I put AC's diapers into the washer, ran them through a wash cycle, and restarted the washer for an extra rinse or two (the usual routine). I was sleepy, so Sam volunteered to throw them into the dryer after the last rinse. This morning after class, I went down to the basement and re-started the dryer for a few more minutes--it takes about a cycle and a half to get them totally dry, and we have it down to a science by now, so I didn't even look into the dryer.

Then before heading back to school this afternoon, I went to pull them out so that the babysitter could fold them when she first arrived (among her other angelic qualities, she has asked for chores to do while AC is napping). But when I opened the dryer--it was empty. Sam had started the dryer without putting the diapers in (because he thought he was re-starting it for the second cycle? because he had already taken an Ambien?) and run it empty. Then I had re-started the dryer, while the diapers remained in the washer the whole time.

Is life too complicated? Or are we just too absentminded for it?