The Post-Graduation Life

I had to take a caffeine pill today because my brain was shutting down in the middle of work. One doesn't recover from a Memorial Day / Graduation weekend quickly; it takes a while for the world to return to normal.

It's Wednesday, but it feels like Thursday. Monday was a blur. Was it really a holiday? Not really. Is it ever? Not really. One of these years, it would be nice to "do the right thing" and spend the day thinking about the men and women who gave their lives to defend our country; as things go with our busy lives, there's barely time to turn around before the day is over and it's time to think about the next day, a workday, and all the things that need to be done before bed.

Today was Wednesday, and it was busy, but not terribly busy, but it was still necessary to infuse my blood with extra stimulants because the sleep hasn't been restful, the nights have been too short, and day comes too soon (mostly thanks to the cat). The effect is not perfect. It's like giving large quantities of coffee to a drunk; the tipsiness doesn't subside, it is merely accompanied by a sensation of being wide-awake. That is, the eyes are open but they aren't actually seeing anything. Oh, well. It got me through the work hours, and through dinner. But when it came time to head downstairs and do some work on the cabinets, my alertness deserted me, leaving nothing but vapor in its wake.

I'll need the extra sleep tonight, though. Tomorrow is Orientation Day at GVSU, where Deb is going to college. And since Cheryl's job is not one that can be easily skipped, I'm the designated parent who will attend to find out the answer to the big question of How Are We Supposed to Pay For This.

(There's actually a session with that title. GVSU's administration has a sense of humor. Black humor, but humor nonetheless.)

::

We ran into some interesting issues whilst attempting to install the kitchenette cabinets while Mom and Dad were out here. The cabinet top was not an exact fit, not even for the cabinets which went underneath. They were off by about half an inch. Not sure how that happened, since they were supposed to be paired together in the original design. But Dad came up with a solution that allowed the lower cabinets to fit underneath the countertop, so it was cool. (He's a genius, you know.)

There was another issue, too, related to the fact that the left-hand corner isn't exactly straight. (Don't blame me! It was the original wall, not one I built!) This time, it was down to an eighth of an inch. Too wide. Dad had to trim the cabinet by an eighth of an inch to fit. And the countertop had to be notched in order to fit.

Well, like Dad was saying, you learn something every time you work on a house.

When it came time to work on the upper cabinets, the same issue came up again. Which makes sense, due to the fact that the wall hadn't changed, and the upper cabinets are the same width as the lower cabinets. So I'm going to need to shave an eighth of an inch off the side in order for it to fit.

But not tonight. I'm too tired tonight.

::

Speaking of "things you learn" when doing a house -- well, maybe not something learned, but a fact of life that keeps re-appearing lately -- the old adage, "When it rains, it pours" keeps coming to mind.

In the midst of all the family coming for graduation and our efforts to get the house ready, you may recall from my last entry that there was this little issue of a "gas leak".

Well.

The plumber came over and fixed the leak. And told us that we can't fit a tankless water heater in the basement because there's no free "lane" (i.e. joist) available for the 4"-diameter exhaust pipe. And that the backflow valve could not be checked because it was broken. Because I had not managed to get all the water out of it before winter, and the water inside froze and then cracked the iron. And they'd need to replace the valve.

For $300.

So. They charged me $60 just to show up at the door. Then they charged me $172 to fix the gas leak (which involved applying sealant to the threads of a pipe). Then they wanted to charge me another $300 to replace the backflow valve.

The backflow valve is $60 on-line. It screws onto the copper irrigation pipe very easily with a wrench. So they were going to charge me $240 labor to screw it onto the pipe??! NOT. I said no, don't bother, I'll take care of it myself.

That would've been great. If. If I hadn't already paid them $80 to check the backflow valve. And if Cheryl hadn't noticed a couple days later that the gas pipe was still leaking.

We called the gas company again and they came by and checked it. Sure enough, it was leaking again. So the $172 had been paid for nothing. And they still owed me $80. I called them and told them I wasn't happy. That I didn't want them coming back to fix it; I'd fix it myself. And I want my money back. They argued. They wanted the chance to come back and "make it right". But frankly I don't care what they want. I am furious at their ridiculous prices. I feel cheated. And I don't want to deal with them at all.

They appear to think they have all the homeowners around here over a barrel because the City requires the backflow valves to be checked. And they charge nearly twice as much as any other plumber around here to perform the check. I could've gotten one of the other plumbers for anywhere from $39 to $59, but went with them based on a recommendation from a friend. My friend got lucky; we did not.

I managed to seal off the leaking pipe in time for the family visit. But even after a week or more, I'm still angry about the price gouging.

That's the kind of thing that makes me want to do all my own work, because "professionals" just can't be trusted.

::

Deb's graduation went off very well. It was a wonderful evening, weather-wise. Near the beginning of the week, the weatherman was predicting a high probability of rain, but it had disappeared by Thursday and the evening was clear with only a slight breeze. That kept the mosquitoes at bay.

Still hard to believe she's graduated. The ceremony didn't feel very long, but we've already been through it twice before, so it felt very familiar. There were some poignant moments, especially when the teacher retirement announcements were made. Doc Sawyer, the kids' Band Director, is retiring. He's been in public education for 40 years, and at the high school for 15 of those years. The kids love him. And he's a good friend. But he feels the need to move on into retirement while he can still enjoy the things he likes to do, while his body is still in (relatively) good shape for the world-traveling he and his wife have planned.

Deb is so glad to be done with high school, and is so looking forward to college. She has enjoyed her taste of dual-enrollment, with the few college classes she's already completed. Next fall, hopefully, she'll be living in the dorm and doing the full-time college thing. And her life will get really interesting.

And things around here will get (hopefully) really, really dull, with just the three of us (or four of us) living at home and dealing with the quiet. And the completed basement.