Doin' the Limbo Rock

We have lived in the flat in town for a month now. Of that 30 days, the construction crew at home has worked ten.

We go home every day so that Scott can water the garden, I can take pictures of the building progress (or lack thereof) and Sisi can run round chasing sticks without fear of getting run over by large trucks.

 

(Can you see the difference? Neither can we)

We send an email to our architect hoping for confirmation that, even though we haven’t seen anyone doing anything at the chata for a week, things will still finish by 31 May. He confirms that the construction company says yes.

Another week goes by and still no workers.

It’s beginning to feel a little like limbo.

We hang out working in the garden or eating pizza next to the mining university in town.

(we're really hopeful about the spinach this year)

 

Materials are delivered – lots of really big sticks of wood, concrete blocks, big ceramic pipe parts – all just sitting there waiting to be used.  Still no workers.

It’s feeling a lot like limbo.

We hang out at the flat and nap

After two and one-half weeks of seeing no one working we ask for a timeline of milestones, so that we can stop worrying about whether we’ll have a place to live on June first. The email is dated 26 April.

A meeting is set, for Tuesday 3 May.

Here we are another week in limbo.

We hang out in the car

The Tuesday meeting is attended by our construction company, our architect, Scott, Sisi and me. And we bring our good friend, Silvia along, who speaks English fluently (her first language is, of course, Slovak, being Slovak herself).

The builders say they’re waiting for the carpenter  (not subcontracted through them) to deliver the windows and door for the kitchen. The builders say they’re waiting for the stair guy (no subcontracted through them) to come measure.

They could have told us that two and one-half weeks ago when we first asked why no one was working at the site. (!!!)

And isn’t it obvious that the windows can’t go in until the rest of the building has been constructed? Including the roof??

Okay we’re not construction professionals. But we know there are known unknowns. We also know there are unknown unknowns, but hey. C’mon.

Now the carpenter (we chose him because he is a known entity, does excellent work and his bid was half of what the construction company’s was) has now been given the green light to being his work. He was already paid half of his fee two and one-half weeks ago. He can’t promise anything in less than one month. 

That means earliest is 4 June.

We have ordered the construction company to continue work immediately on the chata using a temporary door and plywood for windows. The stairs guy is contractually obligated to get the stairs installed within three weeks of notification, which was last week.

All the tile for the bathroom redo will be delivered next week.

We will move back home on 31 May.

We have told the construction company they must have everything done except the kitchen by then. This means the water must be turned back on (!) and the downstairs bathroom must be finished.

We have guests coming to visit the week of June 14 (brother Jim and wife Cindie) so there is a real deadline here.

Doin’ the Limbo Rock.

Postscript: the owner, his foreman and another worker were at the chata when Jo visited this afternoon. Is that light at the end of the tunnel?

Comments

[Angele Switzler]

I think your contractors and my contractors have gone fishing together.

[Karen]

How I wish we could be there. This is the kind of work Curt and son Jake do all the time...and on schedule I might add!
Hope that you will begin to see changes every day now. There is nothing quite to frustrating as being "mid construction" or worse yet...no sign of construction!
Say "Hi" to Jim and Cindie when they visit!

[Karen]

PS
I am evious of the fact that you can be in the garden, Scott. Nothing here has even begun to bloom save a few daffodils and of course, the dandelions. Soil temperature is still under 50 degrees F. so can't even think of putting anything in the ground and have it grow. I am getting antsy to build our new raised bed veggie garden. Have all supplies but need the rain to hold off long enough to get it built. Rain in the forecast for the next several days! Arrrghhhh

[Wilmer Geraci]

Yep, they should start building the base before installing the windows and the roof. How did they plan to do it the other way around? Anyway, a chata is usually made up of wood. One would understand why you didn't use steel columns for the building.