Idiots -- me and them

Well. Looks like I am the victim not only of a stupid, insidious disease, but also of an unscrupulous home improvement contractor. The last I saw of Dave and his crew was Christmas eve. Not many days before I had told him I wasn't going to replace the roof. Since I, incredibly stupidly but with much good faith, had paid him up front, he knew there was no more money coming from me.

The soffit and facia on the back part of the house are gone and need to be replaced. The interior painting is not finished. The exterior painting is not finished. The landscaping is not done. The new fireplace insert is not installed. Closet doors need to be installed, along with light fixtures and switch plates. There is more, but these are the highlights.

The home, office, and mobile numbers are all disconnected. E-mails have gone unanswered.

I don't understand it. How can people be this way? How can people do this?

I felt at first like I'd been punched; panic and despair were around the corner. My sister (happy birthday my sweet Wendy) was the one who mentioned I might go to the media. Perhaps the woman who wrote the article about the marathon will write an account of this debacle. Anyway, rather than moan and groan, I made a phone call to the man who asked me to speak at his church. He has a wide network so I asked him if he knew a lawyer and a reasonable handy man. At the very least I need to get the soffit/facia replaced. It makes me angry that I was so stupid about paying... I thought I was doing the guy a favor in this bad economy. Who knew he'd be such an ass. I will know better next time.

I feel better having begun some sort of action. True to my philosophy, I will look forward not back, and I will get this taken care of.

But. This really sucks.