The painters were supposed to show up yesterday. They didn’t. Our project manager, henceforth referred to as M, wasn’t really great about keeping in touch with us. We had progress last week with the subflooring going in and the drywall being hung. At the beginning of this week, it felt like everything was falling apart.
The drywall guy showed up here on Monday, but the job was already done. The other guy who was here came to take away the final piles of demolition debris. They were here about 45 minutes and then gone. No one else came the rest of the day which annoyed me but sometimes these things happen.
In the process starting off the new year, Rob called the IRS about an ongoing business thing. In passing, the agent asked when they could expect our 2012 return. Uhhhh.. what? It was supposed to be filed October 14 when we picked up our return from our CPA. Yes, that’s right; he didn’t file it. His response was basically, “Ooops, I thought it went through even though I can’t find the verification from the IRS.” He’s paying the penalties and fines we’ll incur but it’s infuriating to know we’ve trusted someone who was so irresponsible.
Yesterday, when the painters didn’t show up, I’d really just had enough. The tile hadn’t been ordered and it’s going to take 2-3 weeks to arrive. M told me he “forgot to call” to let me know the painters were on a different job, he hadn’t picked up the paint yet and did we want flat paint. That was the final straw. (Flat paint in a kitchen? WTF?!) I called his boss, M2, who was very quick to take the project over and make all kinds of offers to make it up to us, namely paying for the dishwasher installation so we do not have to pay it as an additional fee. We’ll still be waiting for the tile to be manufactured but at this point, I just want to cook dinner and have my kitchen/office/dining room/bathroom back.
Today, the painter was here at 9am and he worked a full day. The cabinets are done; the walls will be rolled tomorrow. The dishwasher and sink will also be installed so we’ll be back in business soon.
63 days and counting. My patience is exhausted. My brain is weary. We are waiting for client checks to come that have been mysteriously delayed. This is adding to our stress and the feeling that the roller coaster isn’t over yet.
I’m trying to remain optimistic and zen about all of this. There is so much out of our control and we are thankful we have homeowner’s insurance to provide all these repairs at virtually no cost to us. I know we have work coming in and money will arrive. The sun will rise in the morning and we will have breakfast, coffee, our animals and each other. The rest is just math. And patience. Lots and lots of patience.