Popping the balloon

 We are approaching nine weeks since the studio building was placed on its screw piles in our backyard in High River. Initial thoughts were that since it was the second building, its completion should have been much quicker than the first. Sadly, that has not been the case.

To be fair, copious amounts of rain delayed things right off the bat. The building could not be unwrapped and unfolded until the sun came out. That initial rain delay ended up lasting about ten days. For a whole series of disconnected reasons, the finishing of the studio and in-law suite seems to have dragged on and on. 

An unexpected leak in the studio bathroom, coupled with increased dissatisfaction about the lack of progress on Heather's part, ratcheted up how I was feeling about things. My frustration balloon became fuller and fuller over the Canada Day long weekend. By this morning, I needed something to poke a hole in it and relieve the internal pressure. It was time to have a conversation with Stephen the CEO. 

Stephen is a pretty busy guy and I wasn't surprised when he suggested that we might be able to have a call later in the afternoon. But the thought of waiting until the end of the day to have this particular conversation wasn't helping my mental health.

"This is one of those sooner is better than later kind of things," I shared in an email. 

He called within the hour. I told him about our frustrations with how long everything was taking. I probably even used a few bad words (which I am wont to do when I near my breaking point).  Stephen acknowledged that the finishing was taking way too long and suggested sending out the new project manager and project coordinator out to see about getting things moving. 

By the time Amit and Alyssa arrived mid-afternoon, the site was teeming with activity. Jonathan and Zubair were making great progress on trim; Brandon and Doug were troubleshooting a number of electrical issues; David was finishing off a couple of plumbing things; and a large load of items arrived on a flatbed (Murphy bed, fridge, a/c units, furnace, skirting and myriad other items needed to finished the project). 

Many of these same folks will be back tomorrow. My hope would be that by Wednesday's end, the trim in the studio will be complete and the cleaners can be scheduled to do the deep clean. While I had done a cursory clean, of my own volition, a thorough and comprehensive wipe down of the walls, ceiling and floor is essential. Once that happens, we can fully move in and get the studio and office set up.

What have I learned through this process that began almost one year ago? The most important thing is to advocate for ourselves when it feels necessary to do so. We love the SEED Homes team and leadership. They are all great people. However, there are times when we have to push back to get things moving expeditiously in the right direction. And yes, sometimes it's effective to use a few bad words. I am not a person who swears much, so when I do, it gets noticed. 

There have been several course corrections on this journey that were preceded by us doing some good old fashioned venting. I'm grateful that the folks who have taken our calls graciously allowed us to get things off our chests. Relieving that internal pressure was so important and allowed us to get a few things accomplished by the end of the day.