Mother f.......

So, we've been waiting MONTHS for our roof to be fixed. the materials are finally in last week. It's supposed to commence work this upcoming weekend. Hooray, right? well, just to verify all this, I decide to call my roofer. Bad news: ALL roof repairs under $150,000 MUST be certified by a state-licensed inspector before any work can commence (anything over that amount already required such inspection).

you see, being licensed to ROOF is one thing. means you're capable of installing, you know, a roof. but it doesn't mean a DAMN THING about recognizing what, in fact, needs to be repaired (at least in the state's eyes). so, while our roofers are licensed by botht he state and the parish, they still need the go-ahead for what to repair. of course, home owners who don't know anything about roofing hire these guys, who tell them what they think needs repair, they do the work, the owners sell (we haven't had any rain for a while, so no problems would likely appear), and the new owners get a waterfall in their living room once the first louisiana downpour comes through. this is a new rule brought on, undoubtedly, by the massive influx of shady "not-really-roofers-just-some-guys-with-felt-and-shingles" that have invaded the area.

now you'd think, well, why not just get a home inspector to come out and certify what needs to be fixed, right? well, yeah, i COULD do that, BUT first, good luck getting someone on such short notice. and couple that with our roofer, who is in a worse bind. he's an established roofer around here, and has done plenty of work, but, as he told me, he has three roofs with just felt over bare boards right now, and three work crews sitting still and not getting paid until a certified inspector looks at everything. which means that as soon as a rainstorm comes through, those houses are TOAST. soggy toast. and that puts him out of business, and me looking for plan b's. so for the past few days, he himself has been training on passing the state inspector exam which he will take in baton rouge today, and HOPEFULLY get the paperwork done by friday.

did i mention OUR HOUSE GOES UP FOR SALE IN THREE WEEKS?!? he said every other roofer he has talked to has the same thing happening to them (so they can't even refer anyone to anyone else to complete repairs). and if this gets pushed back one week, that has them working while we're out of town for a wedding, and i am sorry, but i will not have them working on our house (needing attic access, too) while we're 1000 miles away. period. end of story. nuh-uh. no.

the worst part is the area is so f^%@'d right now, you can't just go find a different roofer to finish this stuff, so i am completely hamstrung.

GAH! despite my disagreements with my dad about how he did things repair-wise, i can start to see why he did so much himself. you saved money, and it was always YOUR timeline of when stuff got done. you're never left waiting for a phone to ring with bad news. right now, i'm so frustrated because i am so friggin' HELPLESS to do anythign about the situation but wait and hope...