Arizona, Diversion, Musings

The Struggle Is Real

My friends are headed off on amazing adventures while I struggle with an unplanned adventure of my own. I admit it; I’d trade places with them in a nanosecond if I could. 

On August 30 I woke before the sun (that’s typical for me) and padded my way to the coffee maker to hit the brew button. As I reached for the button, my feet made a splashing sound. My first thought was, “That’s not normal,” followed by a choice four-letter word. Instead of “brew” I flipped on the light. There was water everywhere!

I wasn’t expecting to splash in a puddle while my coffee brewed.

In the interest of keeping this short, let me sum up the past seven weeks: I grabbed every towel I could find. Greg heard the commotion and joined me in shock and disbelief. We started mopping up water after determining nothing was leaking anymore. I had no idea where it started. I called the plumber, who called a remediation company. The plumber found the leak and cleared it, but was unable to identify the cause. 

We draped the wet towels everywhere we could find to dry them.

By noon, a team of movers was in my home packing up everything in the kitchen, pantry, laundry room, and assorted other spaces. About 1pm, a demolition crew arrived and began removing everything that was wet … the lower two feet of drywall, the flooring, all the lower cabinets … in about a third of my house. 

Wrapped furniture and appliances and boxes were everywhere.

Within a couple of days, the renovation company arrived, took measurements and submitted an estimate to our insurance company … and we waited. The estimate was approved just shy of four weeks later. We signed some paperwork and breathed a sigh of relief that something was finally happening. 

Anything that was damp was removed.

Almost everything in the rest of the house was packed up and moved into a shipping container parked in front of our home in preparation for the rest of the demo.

At least we can keep an eye on our things.

The wood flooring couldn’t be matched so everything must be replaced. We’ve selected a replacement, but before it gets installed, we are watching “Don” arrive each morning and get to the task of removing the glued down wood. It’s a chore I do not envy! He’s already broken two of the jack hammer-like tools he uses to chip away at the planks.

There is a massive amount of dust everywhere.

In the meantime, we are sharing the excitement of a friend who is on her way to northern Canada on a polar bear safari. She’s an amazing photographer and I can’t wait to see the images she captures and hear of her adventure.

One friend is headed north to search for polar bears. Photo: Pexels.com

Another friend (a couple actually) are making the final preparations for their Antarctica cruise. It’s a trip that’s been on my bucket list forever and I’m anxious to hear about it when they return. 

Other friends will go south for an Antarctic adventure. Photo: Pexels.com

We’ve got a few things in the works for when we have our home back, but for now we’re sticking close to home and making the most of being in the middle of a major, unplanned renovation. We’re reveling in the travels of friends and sharing their enthusiasm. After all … there’s a whole world out there just waiting to be explored. Sometimes you have to let someone else have all the fun exploring it.

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