| Author |
Across the Fence:  Where did our upstairs go??!!  |
|
|
Past Blessings
True Blue Farmgirl
1083 Posts
Brenda
Orchard Prairie
WA
USA
1083 Posts |
 Posted - Aug 29 2007 : 09:50:32 AM
|
Here is an update on my never ending weird life (as I told Carol Sue on the phone the other day, "It's like a really bad episode Lucille Ball! LOL!)
As you may recall on my last forum update about our disaster from the icemaker hose that leaked, we were having problems getting the insurance to want to cover it because of the mold. The mold was between the floor and the ceiling below and could not be seen until they started ripping up the ruined floor. Anyway, they finally agreed it was "recent mold" (apparently if it had been any older, we would not have been covered) and said they will cover it. So the contracter comes. First he cut a hole between our kitchen and garage, removing all drywall and insulation and leaving a "pass through" for our pets from the kitchen to the garage. It is about 2 ft. high by 6 ft. wide. Then they removed the ceiling of the room below (which of course meant my husband's huge professional drum set landed in our master bedroom! LOL!) At this point, it was just an incovenience as the stove was now moved and unplugged and the frig was now sitting in our dining room.
Then the contractor told me they would remove all the flooring (which is a really good thing). This involves the kitchen, dining room, living room, entry way and laundry room. In order to do this, they decided they needed to pack everything up and store it in a warehouse (we have yet to figure out where this warehouse is that now houses half our earthly possessions! LOL!) So literally 12 or more workers showed up and packed and moved everything out, removed all our flooring and then started im removing a couple cupboards that they discovered had mold. It couldn't be seen until they removed the veneer. It is amazing the damage water can do!
Once they did this, they found out the same cupboards are no longer available, so now they will be removing all our cupboards and counters and replacing those! Other than our 3 year old stainless appliances, it will be a brand new kitchen. In the mean time, we have had huge dehumidifiers trying to dry out the sub floors. They have now decided that the subfloors need removed & today, as I am writing this, he is removing it. We now have an 8 x 12 hole to our basement in the middle of our kitchen! LOL! Yesterday, after they had removed part of the cabinets, the insurance guy began again questioning the mold and if it was "too old"! The contractor really went to bat for us and I think we are going to still be covered. How could they change thier minds now after they have demolished half our house?!! I told Ron if they do, I am sending a mellow-dramatic video to Ty at Extreme Makeover! Add some sad background music , a mention or two about my three recent surgeries and fall from a cherry tree , insert three skinny hungry looking boys . . . it could work! LOL!
Anyhoo . . . life is never boring here. Our house is supposed to be for sale, but there is no way we can show it now. Just living her is almost impossible! Maybe this means I am supposed to wait a bit longer and that my dream farmhouse is just around the corner??!!
Hugs & Blessings,
Brenda
Past Blessings . . . Celebrating Life as it used to be . . . when people loved God, loved their families and loved their country. |
|
|
Alee
True Blue Farmgirl
22941 Posts
Alee
Worland
Wy
USA
22941 Posts |
Posted - Aug 29 2007 : 09:58:56 AM
|
Brenda- wow! But you will have a BRAND NEW upstairs which will hopefully help your house sell once you are ready for it! Hopefully this will be a huge blessing in disguise!
Alee
The amazing one handed typist! One hand for typing, one hand to hold Nora!
http://home.test-afl.tulix.com/aleeandnora/ |
 |
|
|
Past Blessings
True Blue Farmgirl
1083 Posts
Brenda
Orchard Prairie
WA
USA
1083 Posts |
Posted - Aug 29 2007 : 10:07:22 AM
|
Hi Alee,
I am sure it will be a blessing when it is all said and done. Right now I am kind of pouting, as I spent so much time putting in new baseboard moldings (nice tall ones I painted a deep espresso brown) and I painted all my cabinets the same color . . . so many hours down the drain! Funny how we get emotionally attached to things that we spend a lot of hours on. That, coupled with the fact that we have to spend $1000 because of our deductible at a time when we have been clobbered with medical bills. Life will go on, but sometimes the bumps along the way are frustrating.
Hugs & blessings,
Brenda
Past Blessings . . . Celebrating Life as it used to be . . . when people loved God, loved their families and loved their country. |
|
|
|
Firemama
True Blue Farmgirl
1731 Posts
Amanda
Medical Lake
WA
USA
1731 Posts |
Posted - Aug 29 2007 : 10:25:32 AM
|
Oh Brenda, I hope this gets better soon.
Mommy to 2
Your FreckleFaced Farm Girl!!
Help when you can, Pray when you can't. |
|
|
|
Nance in France
True Blue Farmgirl
1438 Posts
Nancy
St. Laurent de la Salanque
France
1438 Posts |
Posted - Aug 29 2007 : 10:30:00 AM
|
| Brenda, I gotta hand it to you.....you are "kinda pouting"? After all you have been through, I think I would be doing a Thelma and Louise through the contractor's or at least the insurance office front window! Course, after the surgeries and the cherry tree tumble, perhaps you're smarter to lay low for awhile. Thinking good and happy thoughts for you! Hugs, Nance |
|
|
|
Alee
True Blue Farmgirl
22941 Posts
Alee
Worland
Wy
USA
22941 Posts |
Posted - Aug 29 2007 : 10:35:38 AM
|
Brenda-
Can you have your doctor tell you whether the mold contributed to your surgeries? If they did- perhaps you can submit the bill to your insurance agent as well. Especially since it isn't your fault the ice maker dripped and ruined your home!
Alee
The amazing one handed typist! One hand for typing, one hand to hold Nora!
http://home.test-afl.tulix.com/aleeandnora/ |
|
|
|
Mumof3
True Blue Farmgirl
3890 Posts
Karin
Ellenwood
GA
USA
3890 Posts |
Posted - Aug 29 2007 : 11:04:32 AM
|
Holy moley!! That's just crazy! You are far more tolerant than I would be in that situation. Just keep looking at the big picture, girlfriend!!
Karin
Wherever you go, there you are.
Come visit me at:
www.madrekarin.etsy.com
www.madrekarin.blogspot.com |
|
|
|
KYgurlsrbest
True Blue Farmgirl
4853 Posts
Jonni
Elsmere
Kentucky
USA
4853 Posts |
Posted - Aug 29 2007 : 11:41:48 AM
|
I agree with Karin...I'd be in a hotel, hanging out at the spa. Or maybe drinking :)...just kidding!!! Hopefully your life won't be in too much uproar, and I just keep thinking, thank goodness the insurance people came through!
"She was built like a watch, a study in balance ... with a neck and head so refined, like a drawing by DaVinci"...
NY Newsday sportswriter Bill Nack describing filly, Ruffian. |
|
|
|
Past Blessings
True Blue Farmgirl
1083 Posts
Brenda
Orchard Prairie
WA
USA
1083 Posts |
Posted - Aug 29 2007 : 11:54:24 AM
|
Alee, I can't claim it on insurance even if the mold did affect my sinus's . . . because then they would call it "old mold" and not cover it. Such a silly rule!
I am crock pot cooking today, so even without a kitchen to speak of it still smells yummy! And we are going camping over the weekend so it will be a nice break from all of this.
What is really funny is that my husband and I own a Real Estate Guide (you know the freebie ones you get at grocery stores, etc.) So we put our home on the cover of the one that is now at print. By the time it hits the stand, very little of the photos will even slightly resemble our home!
Hugs & blessings,
Brenda
Past Blessings . . . Celebrating Life as it used to be . . . when people loved God, loved their families and loved their country. |
|
|
|
Phils Ann
True Blue Farmgirl
1095 Posts
Ann
Parsonsburg
Maryland
USA
1095 Posts |
Posted - Aug 29 2007 : 12:06:15 PM
|
Brenda, actually yours would make a very good "I Love Lucy", and I applaud your attitude. Funny, I'd be in a snit over those newly painted baseboards myself, but also am thinking you might love your new kitchen and want to stay put! Well, you certainly don't have a boring life.
Ann
Sairy Hill Thicket
There is a Redeemer. |
|
|
|
katmom
True Blue Farmgirl
17161 Posts
Grace
WACAL Gal
WashCalif.
USA
17161 Posts |
Posted - Aug 29 2007 : 2:21:14 PM
|
ok, so I am thinking,,,, "pastblessings" is apprapo!!! because one day this shall pass too and you can refer to it as a "past blessing" (that you survived it!!!) LOL!
Hang in there, I'm sending you lots of hugz...
>^..^< Happiness is being a katmom.
www.katmom4.blogspot.com |
|
|
|
Past Blessings
True Blue Farmgirl
1083 Posts
Brenda
Orchard Prairie
WA
USA
1083 Posts |
Posted - Aug 29 2007 : 5:16:57 PM
|
LOL Grace!! I never thought of it like that!! I came up with that name for my shows/sales for remembering blessings of the past, but I guess one day this will be a past thing too that I hopefully will remember as a blessing. We just got our "how much we can spend" estimate on flooring and it is horribly low. No way we can get nearly the quality of what we had before. So frustrating. The cabinet guy comes tomorrow and I am afraid it will be the same thing. We can upgrade but of course that gets spendy. I keep trying to remind myself it is just stuff . . . nothing eternal.
Hugs & blessings!
Brenda
Past Blessings . . . Celebrating Life as it used to be . . . when people loved God, loved their families and loved their country. |
|
|
|
Carol Sue
True Blue Farmgirl
4033 Posts
Carol Sue
Washingtonian
USA
4033 Posts |
Posted - Aug 29 2007 : 5:42:08 PM
|
Why is it with the insurance that we pay for we have to downgrade? Do ya see something wrong with this picture....chhheeeezzzzzz. You my dear have a great attitude, just keep thinking that way. Grace, you are to funny girl.
Okay, think next Thursday lovely break......
Carol Sue
Enjoying life. |
|
|
|
Alee
True Blue Farmgirl
22941 Posts
Alee
Worland
Wy
USA
22941 Posts |
Posted - Aug 29 2007 : 6:16:07 PM
|
I would contest their assesment of how much you can spend. You can request an independent adjuster and I would let them know you are considering a complaint to the BBB over all this. I would also contact Washington State Insurance regulators- I can't remember what the official name is but they are a government agency that looks out for our rights and makes sure that regulations are followed. It does sound like they are trying to take advantage of the situation which is in there mind good business, I suppose!
Alee
The amazing one handed typist! One hand for typing, one hand to hold Nora!
http://home.test-afl.tulix.com/aleeandnora/ |
|
|
|
Past Blessings
True Blue Farmgirl
1083 Posts
Brenda
Orchard Prairie
WA
USA
1083 Posts |
Posted - Aug 29 2007 : 6:29:07 PM
|
Good suggestions Alee . . . would the Washington State people be the insurance commissioner I would talk to? We were so excited three years ago when we put in our lovely wide-plank flooring that looked like something out of an old farmhouse. No way we will get anything remotely similar for the price they are quoting. So frustrating!! Just a question, for whoever might know . . . do insurance adjusters . . . the person that walks you all the way through the claim get some type of commission or rewards for keeping down costs? This guy just seems to care about that so much, that I think there must be something in it for him. Does anyone know? I've never done a home owners claim before, so this is all new to me.
Hugs & blessings,
Brenda
Past Blessings . . . Celebrating Life as it used to be . . . when people loved God, loved their families and loved their country. |
|
|
|
Alee
True Blue Farmgirl
22941 Posts
Alee
Worland
Wy
USA
22941 Posts |
Posted - Aug 29 2007 : 6:39:05 PM
|
I am sure the Adjusters are supposed to give you the lowest possible quote. They would be out of a job if they always gave you the best deal- but you have rights as a customer and you were paying to have your house insured at it's market value- not at the budget value. I think it is the insurance commissioner. Call the Capital building and they should be able to direct you to the proper authority. And do call your insurance adjuster. Tell him how much you spent on your flooring PLUS any labor cost even if you installed it yourself!
When a kid smashed into my volkswagen bug last year the Insurance adjuster HAD to calculate in the man hours I had put into it get it running since it had only been running for about 2 months and it was totaled. He asked me if I was "qualified" to work on the car and since I was he had no wiggle room.
I would give the insurance guy the "velvet glove over an iron first" treatment. Be polite of course, but don't bend. There is almost no point in having home insurance if they won't give you the value of the repairs.
Also I have found that the threat of the BBB complaint can move mountains and the BBB will also help to moderate complaints as well.
Alee
The amazing one handed typist! One hand for typing, one hand to hold Nora!
http://home.test-afl.tulix.com/aleeandnora/ |
|
|
|
Past Blessings
True Blue Farmgirl
1083 Posts
Brenda
Orchard Prairie
WA
USA
1083 Posts |
Posted - Aug 29 2007 : 7:10:20 PM
|
Thanks Alee! Good suggestions. I hate playing hardball . . . being a grown up isn't always fun is it!? . . . but I know I need to.
You are qualified to repair cars??!! Is there anything you can't do?! You never cease to amaze me. If you ever get bored we have a truck that blows anti-freeze when we turn on the AC and our mini-van's starter is going out . . . LOL!
Hugs & blessings,
Brenda
Past Blessings . . . Celebrating Life as it used to be . . . when people loved God, loved their families and loved their country. |
|
|
|
Alee
True Blue Farmgirl
22941 Posts
Alee
Worland
Wy
USA
22941 Posts |
Posted - Aug 29 2007 : 8:40:48 PM
|
Uhm- I am only qualified to work on VW Bugs. You can fix almost anything on them with string and bubble gum (Kind of just kidding)! Thanks for the complement though!
Actually the starter should be easy to replace, and the antifreeze is probably blowing from a leak in the line so a simple replacement of the tubing would probably fix that! :)
Alee
The amazing one handed typist! One hand for typing, one hand to hold Nora!
http://home.test-afl.tulix.com/aleeandnora/ |
|
|
| |
Across the Fence: Where did our upstairs go??!! |
|
Where did our upstairs go??!!
