Mama Told Me There'd be Days Like These ...
Dear Diary,
I'm beginning to question my relationship with Bad News Bill. It was so great in the beginning, but lately it seems every time I hear from him he's dropping a disappointment bomb of some sort or another. First it was a ridiculously expensive glossy glass tile backsplash (which we scaled back), then it was incredibly expensive cabinetry (which we scaled back), then we were told we couldn't do our cool cooktop (not enough space) and then he wanted an enormous raise to cover his rising fuel and insurance costs. Since he had made such a great impression on Michael and I and we felt so good about his ability to deliver us the kitchen of our dreams, we grit (gritted?) our teeth and granted his raise anyway. It was worth it, to get the job done right. Right? You get what you pay for. Right?
Oh yes, and installation of appliances isn't necessarily covered by your contrator. Read your paperwork carefully. I wish I had.
Three weeks later and things are moving slower than hoped. We still have a non-functioning kitchen although we do have beautiful brandywine-stained maple cabinets and gorgeous creamy yellow paint on the walls (Kansas Grain, it's called - so appropriate for my dear M!). The stone countertop is scheduled to be installed next Wednesday, at which point the work on the kitchen should accelerate and we can be up and running again by 7/24 - a scant 7 days before we hop the plane to Amsterdam.
Or maybe not. This afternoon, I was in meetings from 1pm - 5pm. After attending to a couple of urgent items I thought to check my cell phone around 6pm and of course there was a message from Bad News Bill. He's telling me that the countertop as most recently designed will not fit onto one slab of Silestone. It will require a second slab. And it's going to cost ... wait for it ... $4000.
Four-thousand-f%^&*( dollars? Is he high? What should I do, Dear Diary?
(to be continued)
I'm beginning to question my relationship with Bad News Bill. It was so great in the beginning, but lately it seems every time I hear from him he's dropping a disappointment bomb of some sort or another. First it was a ridiculously expensive glossy glass tile backsplash (which we scaled back), then it was incredibly expensive cabinetry (which we scaled back), then we were told we couldn't do our cool cooktop (not enough space) and then he wanted an enormous raise to cover his rising fuel and insurance costs. Since he had made such a great impression on Michael and I and we felt so good about his ability to deliver us the kitchen of our dreams, we grit (gritted?) our teeth and granted his raise anyway. It was worth it, to get the job done right. Right? You get what you pay for. Right?
Oh yes, and installation of appliances isn't necessarily covered by your contrator. Read your paperwork carefully. I wish I had.
Three weeks later and things are moving slower than hoped. We still have a non-functioning kitchen although we do have beautiful brandywine-stained maple cabinets and gorgeous creamy yellow paint on the walls (Kansas Grain, it's called - so appropriate for my dear M!). The stone countertop is scheduled to be installed next Wednesday, at which point the work on the kitchen should accelerate and we can be up and running again by 7/24 - a scant 7 days before we hop the plane to Amsterdam.
Or maybe not. This afternoon, I was in meetings from 1pm - 5pm. After attending to a couple of urgent items I thought to check my cell phone around 6pm and of course there was a message from Bad News Bill. He's telling me that the countertop as most recently designed will not fit onto one slab of Silestone. It will require a second slab. And it's going to cost ... wait for it ... $4000.
Four-thousand-f%^&*( dollars? Is he high? What should I do, Dear Diary?
(to be continued)
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