A month that doesnt bear repeating

[pirahnah3]

Well, its been almost a month to the day since I last logged in...and I could really do without repeating this past month. Good things, bad things, strange things, and well weird things lol. 

 

Lets just pick on some of it, with work being nuts, snow storms that just kept coming and requiring me to continually clear the driveway after the brakes on my plow truck failed, and the Wife does want to be able to leave the house on occasion. I didnt seem to mind with 4WD on my work truck, but she had something against trying to drive thru a foot of snow in her little fusion lol. 

 

On top of all that, needed some work done on my "garage" and well, after a few contractors turned down touching it I ended up calling a friend of mine....garage is now condemned and I have to find some storage for my cars and other stuff that was in it. Now this on the surface would be bad, but thankfully I had already had plans started to rebuild it. This just kind of pushed it over the edge faster. So hopefully before the end of the spring Ill be posting up pictures of the work coming....and the EPIC garage I will have! 

 

On top of all that, my Buddy did me a favor and offered to sell me his rims off his car for really short money plus my stock ones as he got lucky and was able to trade out of his lease into a scat pack daytona charger. So I agreed to drive my car down there (7hr drive) and do the swap with him. Well, it was a jam packed weekend already and it just made it longer, which was fine, but Fri night we were talking and he said I was going to hate him but he found almost the car I wanted when I bought my Scat pack. So the discussion started Fri night with another friend who is a sales manager at a Chrysler dealership and speaking with him on and off and working numbers, started Fri at 5pm and by Sat at 6pm the car was at his dealership and numbers were agreed to lol. So I had to plan to quickly demod the car I was driving and be ready to trade it in the next morning lol. 

 

As if life figured I didnt have enough other stuff going on.....ended up needing to repalce my electrical service, from the connection to the house (up at the roof peak) down thru the mast, new lines, a new meter socked, new lines to the panel.....new panel.....rewired several circuits.....yeah. Only saving grace to that one was a great friend of mine is an electrician and when I started asking him about the issues I was having (flickering and some lack of power it seemed) he sent me out with a parts list and over several evenings of prep and work, and then two days of solid work we got it all done. Was really glad we did too, soooooo much corrosion in the old setup, he even surmised that they might have not used the corrosion inhibitor on the aluminum wire connections for the service cables. He also uncovered some really bad work along the way and was able to straighten it all out for me. 

 

Now....Off to serve my duties as the newly elected Director of Events for a local Jeep club! lol. 

 

Apparently Im a glutton for punishment, but man its great to be back, just in time for spring and detailing season. Finally I can do something to help unwind the brain. 

 

I think Im going to take after Wolfe and start drinking the detail spray, maybe it will help. 

[falcaineer]

Great to have you back, Jim! What a crazy month. Let's see some pics of the new ride and garage...

Edited April 3, 2018 by falcaineer

[TheWolf]

Welcome back Jim!  Sounds like you've been busy.  Looking forward to seeing the new garage.

[Rich]

I'm tired just reading that!   Makes me glad I'm retired!  Looking forward to seeing pics of your new garage Jim.  Glad to see you're back. 

[8675309'SS]

Good to hear from you Jim! Was just thinking about you and your garage project. I wondered how it was coming along.  I have to start calling up some contractors to work on mine this spring and summer. At minimum it needs some structural repair and maintenance. I want a much better usable environment as well, but this not the time and place for a dream garage. So I have a needs list and a wish list I am working on. Any resources you have found online that you feel like passing along would be appreciated. 

 

You know what it’s like when “you don’t know, what you don’t know”? I am at this stage in terms of what questions I should have lined up to ask these people. Then also not sure I would recognize a BS answer either. Good times.  

 

Congrats on on the new ride! Looking forward to pics!

[pirahnah3]

Thanks all, New ride will get posted once she is properly cleaned. But lets just say its not much different. 

 

As for the building, Engineered plans are done, and quotes are coming in....This will be a heck of a photographed process, I am so excited to finally have a real garage and some space to work on stuff. Do I NEED what I am about to build....probably not, but do I want it.....I want BIGGER!!!!! lol. 

 

The questions need to happen, but find some recommendations from a local trusted source. I got lucky and was introduced to a great engineer who saved me a ton of money and still produced what was needed for drawings. Quotes and contracts are highly important, dont sign anything without reading it FULLY, sometimes twice, make a copy of it so you can mark it up with notes and questions. I always have a clean copy and a markup copy, so that I can put marks to watch for key events, or to note payment dates or completion dates. Italso helps to have these lines highlighted for quick reference. Dont let yourself get carried away with what is about to happen, remember contractors are there to please you....and will at ANY cost, even if its way outside your budget. Make sure any changes are well documented and counter signed where and when possible. If I am working with a contractor and its something that has to be done right away and I cannot be there to note it, we will write it out in a text and I will approve it that way. Very plainly written and a plain approve text reply. This may seem like a lot of extra work but it protects everyone, you from them doing or not doing things according to the contract, and them from any backlash of someone saying you didnt do x,y or z, if it isnt in the contract.