Last week in one word? Shitty.
Mid-last week, I emailed our builders to see when they were expecting to start out at the block. They called me to say that they STILL didn't have an approval letter from the bank, which we had been chasing about 3 weeks ago and I'd been assured it would be done asap. I was livid. I emailed our bank rep, called the customer service line, and messaged the bank on their facebook page. And what do you know, the minute I got other people from the bank involved, she pulled her finger out of her arse and wrote the letter.
SO. The builders were delighted and arranged to start right away. They organised for us to come out to the block on Friday at lunchtime to measure the piering and check everything before they poured the concrete in. We showed up and there was only one truck there, with a small auger machine loaded on the back. The site manager greeted us with 'well there's no easy way to put this… we're fucked.'
Tldr; Our block appears to have been a coal waste area in a past life. They dug 4m down and couldn't find solid ground, just big chunks of coal and shale and loose earth. Normally they only have to dig 2m, 2.5 max. If they have to go 4+ deep on every pier, we're looking at $30k extra. Thirty thousand dollars. They're sending an engineer out to look at it and see how else it can be done. UGH. Oh, and they'd been trying to call me all morning and my phone was being an arsehole, I had no record of missed calls or anything. So that was good too.
So this news understandably made us feel extremely deflated. We were meant to be putting the slab down next week, now we're still waiting to find out how to even start this. Or if we can. But N had already been having a shit week because of this kid at school. The only kid ever that he has had a problem with, normally N gets on with literally everyone. But this one little jerk just flips out at him every time N's in the same room, and he just had enough so took Friday off work. Because of this, and the kid being a jerk, the head teacher told him to go to the doctor and say he's off because of anxiety. He just wants to get out and get a new job [he's been there for 6 years!] but there's just absolutely nothing going at the moment.
Saturday was non-eventful. I meticulously organised the food pantry for reasons unknown. Threw out loads of crap, sorted out their junk. It won't last, as soon as they get back it will be a mess again. Whatever. I brushed the poochies too. Once Wesley stopped trying to bite the brush he realised it felt good, and spent the time lying on his back, rolling around happily while I brushed his tummy. Jax was easier to manhandle because he's so small & light, I just got him in a headlock and he couldn't wriggle out of it.
Sunday we went to watch the Raiders vs the Panthers - NRL started back up this week and N supports the Raiders. As soon as we got there I felt dread - it was 30C and our seats were out in the sun. I wither in heat, always have. I passed out a few times when I was a kid just from being out on hot concrete so I'm very wary of it. Sure enough, we took our seats and I felt like I was in an oven. The heat radiated up from the concrete at my feet and my dark hair felt like it was absorbing all the sun and making my head sweaty. I used cardboard signs as a makeshift hat, which at least kept my face out of the sun, but I was still melting. After half an hour I escaped to the bathrooms, drenched in sweat and feeling dizzy. I hid in there for a good 10 minutes trying to cool down, seeing my arms and chest had turned pink already and decided I couldn't handle another hour of it. I went and found a seat up in the top of the stadium, under the shade. It was even hotter up there, but at least I wasn't getting burnt. It just sucked all round though - all I could think about was how miserably hot I felt, and how I hadn't paid attention to a single aspect of the game because I'd been too busy wallowing in misery. I even shed a few tears just because I didn't want to be there, and I was sad I'd wasted N's money on my ticket and wished I could have just enjoyed the game.
N's team lost though. By quite a lot. We weren't surprised - given the week we'd had, of course they'd lose. The only good thing that happened was we bought the new Tomb Raider game. It's really fun! I'm not very far through but I think N spent most of Monday playing it and he loves it too. I love
SO. The builders were delighted and arranged to start right away. They organised for us to come out to the block on Friday at lunchtime to measure the piering and check everything before they poured the concrete in. We showed up and there was only one truck there, with a small auger machine loaded on the back. The site manager greeted us with 'well there's no easy way to put this… we're fucked.'
Tldr; Our block appears to have been a coal waste area in a past life. They dug 4m down and couldn't find solid ground, just big chunks of coal and shale and loose earth. Normally they only have to dig 2m, 2.5 max. If they have to go 4+ deep on every pier, we're looking at $30k extra. Thirty thousand dollars. They're sending an engineer out to look at it and see how else it can be done. UGH. Oh, and they'd been trying to call me all morning and my phone was being an arsehole, I had no record of missed calls or anything. So that was good too.
So this news understandably made us feel extremely deflated. We were meant to be putting the slab down next week, now we're still waiting to find out how to even start this. Or if we can. But N had already been having a shit week because of this kid at school. The only kid ever that he has had a problem with, normally N gets on with literally everyone. But this one little jerk just flips out at him every time N's in the same room, and he just had enough so took Friday off work. Because of this, and the kid being a jerk, the head teacher told him to go to the doctor and say he's off because of anxiety. He just wants to get out and get a new job [he's been there for 6 years!] but there's just absolutely nothing going at the moment.
Saturday was non-eventful. I meticulously organised the food pantry for reasons unknown. Threw out loads of crap, sorted out their junk. It won't last, as soon as they get back it will be a mess again. Whatever. I brushed the poochies too. Once Wesley stopped trying to bite the brush he realised it felt good, and spent the time lying on his back, rolling around happily while I brushed his tummy. Jax was easier to manhandle because he's so small & light, I just got him in a headlock and he couldn't wriggle out of it.
Sunday we went to watch the Raiders vs the Panthers - NRL started back up this week and N supports the Raiders. As soon as we got there I felt dread - it was 30C and our seats were out in the sun. I wither in heat, always have. I passed out a few times when I was a kid just from being out on hot concrete so I'm very wary of it. Sure enough, we took our seats and I felt like I was in an oven. The heat radiated up from the concrete at my feet and my dark hair felt like it was absorbing all the sun and making my head sweaty. I used cardboard signs as a makeshift hat, which at least kept my face out of the sun, but I was still melting. After half an hour I escaped to the bathrooms, drenched in sweat and feeling dizzy. I hid in there for a good 10 minutes trying to cool down, seeing my arms and chest had turned pink already and decided I couldn't handle another hour of it. I went and found a seat up in the top of the stadium, under the shade. It was even hotter up there, but at least I wasn't getting burnt. It just sucked all round though - all I could think about was how miserably hot I felt, and how I hadn't paid attention to a single aspect of the game because I'd been too busy wallowing in misery. I even shed a few tears just because I didn't want to be there, and I was sad I'd wasted N's money on my ticket and wished I could have just enjoyed the game.
N's team lost though. By quite a lot. We weren't surprised - given the week we'd had, of course they'd lose. The only good thing that happened was we bought the new Tomb Raider game. It's really fun! I'm not very far through but I think N spent most of Monday playing it and he loves it too. I love