Another Reason I Hate Renting

This morning the toilet in our master bath backed up. No amount of plunging cleared it, so I called maintenance as soon as the office opened. They promised to send someone right away but warned me "There's a service charge if it's not our fault."

"Service charge?" I asked.

"Yes, a service charge. It's $125 if it's not our fault." I started to wonder why she kept repeating this phrase.

"We only flush toilet paper," I said. "How could that be our fault?"

"We'll send the maintenance guy right away to assess the situation," she said, implying once again that it mus be our fault.

When I relayed this conversation to my husband he said, "We're not paying $125 effing dollars for this!"

I agreed, thinking of the bid I sent the realtor last night while waiting for the maintenance guy. We're guessing they have lots of residents with kids who try to flush toys, so this is now the standard reply for toilet problems.

The maintenance arrived shortly thereafter and it took two minutes for him to plunge the toilet, no service charge. Apparently I just need a different plunger. Still, the situation was just another reminder of how ready I am to move to a house.