history
Infestation averted
by jerfunfin
Fri 16 Nov 2001 00:02:45
I have been waiting for about a month now for my landlord to have a replacement gas range delivered to my flat. The thermostat was busted and the oven just kept climbing = Major Fire Hazard. I wasn't going to pay for a replacement out of my own pocket but I may just do that after this evenings events.
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I came home from the office at around 8:30 with some Thai take out. About half way through my meal, my landlord knocks on my door and tells me that the delivery guys are here. I didn't think delivery guys worked after 5pm but, hey, what the hell. <br>
So these two guys take away the old unit and bring in a "refurbished" unit. I guess the landlord wants to save a few sheckles. This is fair enough as long as the thing functions correctly, right? BIG THUMBS DOWN ON THAT IDEA.
<br>Approximately ten minutes after the delivery guys disappear into the night, the biggest roach motel I have ever seen in a kitchen kicks into high gear. I must have killed a dozen of these critters of varying sizes in a five-minute battle.<br>
So, with bug spray in one hand and the phone in the other, I called my landlord down from her apartment (thank god she lives in the building) She apologies profusely while killing a few of the evil buggers herself. I call Anders for a hand but he's in East Harlem checking out a friend?s new pad (lucky him). So, I get one of my neighbors to help me carry the aluminum bughouse out to the curb. I now have lines of Boric acid and roach traps where a stove used to be.<br>
There is a one very positive side to this story, though. I WAS home at the time of delivery. Can you imagine what the situation would be in my flat if the stove were delivered at, say, 4:00pm? My kitchen... no, my entire flat would have been invaded by these unwelcome guests! In NYC during especially during the winter, roaches are impossible to conquer. My fingers and toes are crossed. I pray one of those mini monsters didn't move in during their brief stay. It only takes one pregnant cucaracha to create an army! And on that note, I am pretty sure that roaches mate once and then are pregnant for life. Ouch!
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