Mortgage Monday: And Then That Happened…

Last week, in the early afternoon, I was in the middle of a project at the office. The deadline wasn’t until the end of the day and I was looking forward to taking care of a few other things before leaving the office that evening. After my phone had vibrated for the fourth or fifth time I found a good paragraph after which I could take a quick break and read the messages. I knew that they had to be from my wife but I had no idea what she was writing to me about.

Well, it could have been worse but it also could have been so much better. It turns out that the air conditioning, a project still lingering in the middle of our to-do list, decided to stop working in the middle of the day. And, of course, it was one of the hottest days of the year. That short break from the project I was working on was no longer a short break as I had to make half a dozen phone calls before a “solution could be found”.

Between the calls with my wife to get some additional details, texting my brother in law (this is what he does for a living), calling and emailing the home warranty company (the AC is covered under our policy), and finally trying to get a hold of the referred service company, all that time that I once had quickly went up in steam. Thankfully, I had gotten enough written before the chaos and I was able to get the project completed by the time I left the office (which was a little earlier than usual so I could meet the repair person when he arrived at the house). Driving home, I was expecting the worst as the half sized unit had been struggling lately.

I arrived at the house just as the service window was opening. Not surprising was the fact that it was another two hours before the technician pulled into the driveway. Almost immediately he began making comments on the small AC unit tucked away behind the garage. What did provide us with a rather pleasant surprise was the fact that it was a relatively simple solution to our problem with a loose wire (likely due to the constant usage) being the culprit. Thankfully, the air conditioning was restored quickly allowing for the house to cool a little before we put our son to bed.

Of course, this little hiccup has really put our renovation list in focus as the overhaul needs to be completed in the near future as I doubt that the next stoppage will be remedied so easily. We really are just waiting for the next time at this point and hoping that it holds off just a little longer until we can budget for the replacement system. But, for now, we are just going to enjoy the cool air for as long as it lasts.

Not A Happy Anniversary

There are some days that you mark on the calendar that you look forward to and there are other that you hope never some to fruition. Sometimes it is a major life event while other times it is just an annoyance that keeps frustrating you every day when you come home from work. Unfortunately, today we marked the latter of the two which I had been anticipating but hoping that I would be proven wrong. That’s right, for those of you that recall the gripes from the summer, the work on the leak is still not complete.

While the actual issue with the water seems to have been solved, or at least the band aid is holding up, and the painting was completed a couple of weeks ago, the building has yet to clean the space which we still have quarantined in our living room. Keep in mind that maintenance has not been in to check this ‘fix’ since they closed the ceiling so it is questionable whether or not the mend will hold. If it were a few little pieces and drips on the carpet I probably would have addressed this once the painting was done but this is a much bigger mess than what our vacuum can handle. This is the kind of job that requires professional carpet cleaning which the building manager had agreed to employ not long after this whole debacle began.

So now I have to burn another early morning and corner this woman in her office to at least get a response to the countless queries that have gone unanswered. While we had issues with the previous building manager it was never this bad and things continue to deteriorate the longer this management company runs the facility. Hopefully, this issue will be resolved soon but I lend that statement no more credence than the cliché of yelling fire in a movie theater.

With all of that said, there is a positive side to this whole thing in that it has motivated us, more so than before, to get the heck out and find another place to live. While we made an attempt in the spring, we will be successful this time around as our lease winds down to a close. Hopefully, if we begin looking a little earlier we can find a better place to call home not just a box in which we live. I guess we will just have to wait and see what we can find and hope that there are options available to us.

The Extras Are What Get You…

As you know, my days are full of work and other activities which translates to more work. With this schedule occupying most days of the week, sometimes the smallest addition can throw the entire calendar off kilter. What’s worse is when other things are put on my schedule that require me to either work from home or take the day off.

Lately, as you have read, much of this has been caused by issues in the apartment and the attempted wrangling of management and maintenance. While I am not the one that has had to actually fix the problem it has been a constant time suck over the past two and a half weeks with 5 minutes here and 20 minutes there. This of course is on top of the fact that it has put my wife and me in less than pleasant moods.

While it may seem like an odd time of year, taxes are also messing with the little time I have to relax as I have to submit local, state, and federal tax forms all stemming from the work that I do at the lodge. Keep in mind that the forms are not by choice but rather the quarterly schedule is required by each. Can’t wait until the end of the year when there is an additional stack of forms that needs to be filled out. Yay!

However, next week will be the biggest waste of time for the year as I must report for jury duty. Yes, I am most likely have to burn one of my vacation days driving to the court house in Norristown and sit in a room until they realize that they really don’t want me on a jury. This is after burning a little pocket of productive time filling out the questionnaire online this week.

Of course, the last gripe may be moot as I was honest in my responses on said questionnaire and unless their objective is to specifically waste my time and their own I should be dismissed rather quickly and that is if I have to show up at all. I really don’t want to burn a vacation day for this crap! But, for now, next week has a big steaming pile filling up my Thursday and all I can hope for is that the apartment will be done by then so that I am not returning to a three week cluster. One can only hope.

Familiarize Yourself With A Nonalcoholic Screwdriver

It has always amazed me when I have come across people that don’t know how to use basic tools like a screwdriver or a hammer. Throughout my working life in particular, every once in a while I have had to fix various things especially at the office which remained in disrepair because no one knew how to fix them. I am not talking about major projects. I am talking about basic maintenance items such as wobbly desks and chairs to office doors sticking. Anyone who took basic wood shop would know how to fix these things.

Oh wait, that’s right, kids don’t take wood shop anymore.

People, in general, don’t know how to work with their hands anymore. It is too easy to call someone or replace something than invest some time and thought into how something can be fixed.  This is an issue that is only going to get worse over time as each succeeding generations learns less and less about how to complete small hands on projects around the home or, in this instance, office.

I find it relaxing to sit down with a project, tools in hand, and make something functional again. Sometimes it’s as simple as tightening a hinge or removing the wiggle from a chair while other times it could consist of assembling furniture or building a complete lower. Other times I have done some basic mechanical and refinishing work. By no means do I consider myself good at this but I can get the job done with adequate results.

However, I do know my limits. I do not mess with plumbing or electrical. Most of that kind of work is still beyond my basic knowledge at this point. For those projects I do call in a professional but I try to be there and observe what is being done in case there are minor things that I can pick up and deploy in a pinch.

This is something that everyone can do and should do as it provides you with a small amount of self reliance and know how that can’t be taken away from you. Too few people know the satisfaction that this can bring when you fix something with more than just duct tape. When you fix something in a way that lasts it is always a reminder of what you can do when you take the time and put your mind to something.

In the end, I think this all comes down to two things: a desire to learn and a willingness to work. We would all be better off if we could get more people to fix the things that break instead of just complaining on Facebook and asking for recommendations for a replacement. It really is that simple.

Take the time to educate yourself and start from the beginning if you need to. Basically, if you can’t differentiate between a flat head and Phillips head screwdriver just ask someone and start from there. There is no reason for your only exposure to a screwdriver having been at a bar.