POPCORN PERSISTENCE
My sons decide to make popcorn in the microwave. They love popcorn. My youngest, age eleven, starts talking about re-popping the kernels to enjoy every last one. I get it; I love popcorn too, but REALLY? He starts insisting on it. We start to argue. As he is arguing, a tear falls from his eye, and I see his passion. I am reminded of someone. Myself. This is not about the popcorn. It’s about the fact that he knows he CAN do this. It’s about tenacity. I ask him to show me how. He puts the popcorn kernels into a bowl (no extra oil), covers them with a paper towel and secures it with a rubber band. We put the bowl into the microwave. After 2 ½ minutes, the popping finishes and the kernels look like they just came out of the bag. I look at his face. He is beaming. I think back to when David and I wanted to remove our retaining wall and add an island. The contractor brought over his expert engineer. “Can’t be done,” he said. “The plumbing is too complex and the beam length is too long for extra framing.” I was not going to let this “expert with a ‘no’ attitude” stop me. When you really want something, you find a way to get it done. I found another engineer with a creative attitude. An engineer like my son. One with tenacity. We now have an island AND extra popcorn!
BUSY BATHROOM
Six installers come to inspect the bathroom material. I tell them I didn’t get it yet because they were out of stock. They tell me since there’s no rush, would I like to have the chicken wire and float — “it’s better”. I say “of course”. I call my project manager and ask why they weren’t doing that in the first place. He says “they’re about the same, but if I want the chicken wire and float, he’ll do that.” I say “yes” The six men have to spend two whole days on the float. It’s not a big bathroom. I look for the magician’s chicken to come out of there next. No sense waiting long; I have to spend another day shopping and searching for material that all works together (shower walls and niches, shower floor, main floor, sink backsplash) that is in our price range AND in stock. I find some new material. We end up going back to some of the old material we fell in love with. By the time we are ready, (we were on hold for the counter material from the fabricator) they are in stock again. The installers slowly piece the shower walls together. When it comes time for the sides of the niches (where the shampoo bottles will go) we run out of marble! The project manager measured the bathroom. The tile installer says he should have ordered more. Another hold!
JINXED ELECTRICAL
Problem after problem. The electrician orders some of our parts from Pennsylvania, the Dutch country, he explains. “We live in an electrical hole as far as parts go. I have to go all the way up to Orange if I want some parts or just order it. Mostly I just end up going to Home Depot and pay more. “ We’re waiting and waiting. He finally calls to find out what’s taking so long. The order never went through! He orders it again. We wait for a really long time again. We joke that it’s coming from another country. No, just Pennsylvania. The parts finally come in and one piece is back-ordered! We ordered our pendant lights ourselves, online. They came in less than a week. They look pretty cool, frosted glass and a metal pendulum inside. The electrician puts one up carefully. The glass is so fragile and the metal pendulum so heavy, that it cracks the glass. He puts the next one up. He is much more careful on the second pendant. Same thing happens. Frustrated beyond belief, he leaves. He tells us he will pay for the pendants, but doesn’t want to put up the third. We try to get our money back from the company. They refuse. A couple days later, I am about 10 feet away from the pendant when the glass just falls down on our granite island and floor, shattering into a million pieces. Thankfully, my family and dog were not close! The next pendants we buy have this weird, uneven shadow on the glass. The electrician is desperately trying to rub it out so he doesn’t have to put new lights up a third time. I break out laughing. He’s smiling, but calls me a sadist. I’m not really laughing at him – it’s the situation. What more can go wrong? They finally rub out clean. Whew!
NEXT POST
The story starts at the bottom. Check back next Monday for more restaurant stories and our kitchen remodel progression! Scroll down for the photos.
Wow Alex - how impressive with the popcorn! I may have to try that sometime. You are very smart. If you purchased the pendant lights with your credit card you can request the money back from the credit card company.
ReplyDeleteLove the Popcorn tale. It give a good holiday sparkle feel. Thanks for sharing.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the comments. I'll let him know.
ReplyDeleteWe did request our money back from American Express. We are waiting their reply.