Dictionary Word of the Day: caterwaul
Saturday, January 26, 2008 at 08:23AM caterwaul \KAT-uhr-wawl\, intransitive verb:
1. To make a harsh cry.
2. To have a noisy argument.
noun:
1. A shrill, discordant sound.
For some reason, I've always liked this word. I like it every time I come in contact with it. Caterwauling is raucous and passionate and spontaneous and I am none of those. I'm not a caterwauler, but sometimes I wish I could.
Like yesterday. I was cleaning my little heart out all day--well until about 2:50 when I emptied the umpteeth bucket of dirty cleaning water into the toilet and, horror stricken, saw my cleaning rag disappear down the trap.
After panicked phone calls to my husband and my son and my bff Dorothy, I got out the phone book and searched for a plumber. I was immediately drawn to the full paged plumber's ad with the huge words "Don't Panic" across the top and "we'll make you smile!" Sounds good to me.
Long story short; the guy came by lickety split but since I called after 3, the dispatch was $89 and we'd have to pay after hours prices. I sighed; the last time we needed a plumber was on a Saturday and involved replacing a hot water heater. We never have plumbing tragedies at 8 am on a Monday morning.
He brought in a big old stand-up auger and with two or three twists, up popped my cleaning rag. It almost jumped out of the toilet. I was so relieved! The toilet didn't need to be disassembled, and we didn't have to do any of the vague, unmentionable options that involved sewer pipes.
Here's where the caterwauling comes in: Total bill? $304. And that was with a $30 coupon ripped from the phone book. I felt a shrill, discordant sound welling up in my chest, but I bravely held it in as I wrote the check and again when I called my husband and told him how much it cost.
I never did caterwaul because I'm not the caterwauling type, but I did cry in the shower.
Reader Comments (9)
Yikes. I think I would have come unhinged before the service guy left. Great job waiting until the shower. :)
Oh, that seems outrageous! Poor Kim.
That's so expensive,I always find the emergency call out price outrageously inflated,they usually find another problem too. I'm so thankful Andrew is able to do so many things at home.
So maddening...I think I might have learned to caterwaul!
Oh man, I'd cry too!
I almost commented yesterday that at least it would give you something to blog about but I was concerned about pushing you over the edge into caterwauling right then!
Oh my goodness! That seems outrageous to me too. I probably would have whimpered and cried right then and there.
Yikes
Gah! That's expensive!
I like a good cry in the shower. It's so nice to feel like the shower is crying with you. Sorry you cried though. Well done on not caterwauling!