Inadequate help

[steev]

So, it being Wednesday, the day he signed up for class, we came home at 11:30; as I was getting out of the truck, he asked what to do; I said "It's Wednesday, when you have your class". He replies "No, I'm not going today". "Ay mi! Que lastima!" seemed inappropriate. I replied, in Spanish, of course, "What a big surprise for me! When were you going to let me know? Expecting you to have a class, I scheduled other work to do alone; unload the truck." I wonder whether he'll figure out that he just pissed away 5 1/2 hours' work/pay; perhaps his mother will point that out.

[steev]

It appears the light went on, although it took three hours before he remembered to tell me he'd decided not to do classes this year, so he'd be free to work all Wednesdays. May well be that I can school him in practical English as much as he would have gotten from that class; no, I'll neither be teaching colloquial nor pungently vulgar usage; that's graduate-level, which he doesn't get for free; those lessons will each cost him a bit of hide.

Oh, me; he's young enough to be my grandson; I'm pretty sure he's not, though.

[steev]

I'd left him to do some pruning, with tarps to bundle the trash; he put more trash in tarp #1 than he could lift because the tarp held that much; why is that such an advanced concept: don't bundle more than you can lift? When I pointed out the problem. he got the idea of not bundling more than can be handled; I hope.

So I dropped him off at a client's while I went to the dump, returning to find him literally hanging on the fence relaxing; he says the client told him not to do the back (there's a construction thing happening). I pointed out the weeds in the front that he might have worked on and docked him half an hour for general dumb-fuckitude. I admit that it pisses me right off to find somebody fucking the dog when I can see work that needs doing. Will he come up to speed? Time will tell, but how many more years do I want to put up with this ineptitude and lack of initiative? It's not like I start anyone at minimum wage, nor fail to raise pay with greater learning; there's just some sort of "I can't see anything that isn't pointed out to me specifically and repeatedly" that goes on. It's wearing; I'm getting tired of "working for a living" and employing other people, to my aggravation.

We'll see how the rain works out; if it doesn't, I think I'll stop advertising and start letting my business die off as my clients do (some of more than 30 years); all things considered, I'd rather play on the farm.

I'm somewhat concerned that I'd prefer to be buried on the farm, but I'm not sure of the legality. It would be easy enough, were I cremated, regardless of laws, but I don't want to be (energy and mercury); got to look into that and discuss it with kin, whom I'd like to involve in us being there; I need to look into putting the land into a family trust. There're so many things one doesn't think about when one doesn't think of an "end".

[steev]

"You can't get good help, anymore!" I think that was first noted in the Code of Hammurabi. I've come to the conclusion that if I don't want somebody else screwing things up, I have to do it myself; yes, I don't need help screwing things up.

My sweetheart found there was a leak in her water main, so she got a couple bids and went with the one that was $4K; they thought maybe four days, but knocked it out in two, doing a good job getting past a deck, two cement walks, and the xeriscaping I put in last Summer. On completion, the boss wanted full payment; she demurred, saying that since they'd had to get past five circuits of drip-lines, she wanted to hang on to $400, pending inspection and possible repair of the irrigation; they had a vigorous shouting match in the street; he went away less that 10%; she's small, but wiry.

So she asked me to inspect the riega, so I knocked off work early Friday, driving out in the rush-hour traffic to catch the work on the way to the farm. I opened the valve-manifold box to manually open the circuits, but she insisted we use the controller to turn them on; fine, but no water came from the circuit she'd activated. Back to manual mode; no water; another valve, no water; a third, nada! Went around the side of the house to another set of valves: mucho agua; no problema. I concluded that a worker had cut that line off the main and failed to re-connect it, leaving the entire front yard without irrigation. She called the office and caught the guy who'd supervised and demanded full payment, loudly. She was struggling to explain the situation, so I got on the phone, informing him that the five valve array right by where they'd brought in the new main was inoperative; he immediately declared that it was an electrical problem, something with the wiring to the controller; I told him that those valves are capable of manual operation and that no water was coming to them, unlike the valves in other parts of the property; he said if I wanted to fix it, he'd see that I got paid; I told him "You broke it; you own it; you fix it." He told her they'd be out between 8 and 10 Monday morning. I called my helper to come at 8, so I could set him to some work before getting out to Walnut Creek, having no confidence in those workers nor their supervision; my concern being that they'd cut the line to those valves, left it open, buried it, and gotten soil into the line, which if it weren't cleaned out would clog emitters until they were replaced or plants started dying; it might also crap up the valves so that they wouldn't fully close, wasting a lot of water.

The twenty-something doing the work had mostly done the digging when I arrived, so I advised and supervised; he was pleasant and intelligent; we got the repairs properly done; a field-supervisor came by and we reasoned and discussed: the potential damage; the needed inspection, regardless; the cost to me of the time dealing with this obvious fuck-up. I gave him my card, pointing out the P O Box address on the back, where I could receive a certified letter, if necessary. Only later did my sweetheart tell me that the big boss was the one who had said of the gate-valve going to those valves "That's not doing anything; just cut it off." As was said by that pithy commentator, Bugs Bunny, "What a moroon!"

I just got a message from the field-supervisor that I'm to do any further work, being paid from not more than the withheld $400, by my (unknown to them) sweetheart. I may be a conflict addict; blaming inherited lemur genes, I admit that I enjoy a good stink-fight. Oh, well; everybody needs a sport, not just for intellectual stimulation, but to tone up the cardio-vascular system. Yee-ha, mutha; bite my shorts!

[steev]

So I cut off work early again today to get to Walnut Creek for further inspection of the riega. Upon manually actuating the first valve there was water-flow; went to see the emitters emitting; returned to find the valve-box flooded (Merde!). Waited while it drained; tried that valve again, seeing water rising at the other end of the box; tried another valve: water rising less rapidly (Mierda!); a third valve: water rising slowly (Crap!); fourth valve: rapidly rising water (Shite!); fifth valve: no unwanted water (that's really all I'd hoped for from any of them; praises be for any favors!). My diagnosis: while trenching, they'd cut/nicked 4/5ths of the lines downstream from the valves accidentally, one hopes (as opposed to cutting the upstream line purposely), a careless error compounding a stupidly ignorant one.

When I can squeeze time out of my currently very over-subscribed schedule, I think I can heal these wounds at a loss of NMT another half a day's travel/labor, having already spent 5 hours. This does not preclude the possibility of soil having been sucked into the lines when the valves were shut off, as the circuit drained.

Anyone want to bet on how much of that withheld $400 these guys are going to ever see? My bet is on zip, nada, rien!

I regret never having learned adequate vocabulary when I was studying Mandarin, there being a certain monosyllabic vehemence to Chinese.

[steev]

Tomorrow I'll go back to Walnut Creek (expected to be ~90F there) to splice those lines. The thing that chaps my ass is that in neither case, the deliberate nor the accidental, did they say anything; they just buried the evidence, compounding the potential damage; could that be why the boss was so intent on full payment on "completion": thinking he was dealing with an ignorant, defenseless woman; knowing he'd left a couple of time-bombs?

It's a poor workman that blames his tool; it's a tool that takes no responsibility for his work!

Will he be bothered if I bitch to the BBB or the Contractor's Licensing Board? It offends me when somebody does shit and walks away unpunished or only suffers an unimportant financial loss. Am I offended by corporate malfeasance and lack of culpability? 'Kay, I'm not going further, except to say that I think this lack of consequence is corrosive to civil society, from the multi-national to local society. If big thieves can evade punishment, why should not small thieves? The difference is only scale, but if big thieves were punished, would small thieves think twice, having less protections?

[steev]

I may get a book out of this shitteree. Hoping to repair the four breaks, I returned to the scene of the crime, excavated the main and tubes from the valve-box to the concrete path (premonition: concrete path), found that the new main came in directly over tube #4 and angled across #3, #2, and #1 to angle again, toward the house. Autopsy results: #2 is good; #4 is broken under that first angle of the main; #3 is broken; #1 and #5 are REALLY broken; those last three are under the concrete path!

I think I know how they got the new main under the path; rather than pulling out a section of the old main (larger diameter than their copper main) they used an auger to bore a new hole; while excavating, I'd found odd, thin, nearly-full-round shards of PVC; that's the "DNA" that proves they screwed those puppies!

I called the boss; explained the problem; he expressed uncertainty as to how they could have damaged those tubes; told him the time and effort I'd already put into the job already exceeded the retained money, that I could not continue to blow off my work in Oakland, and that those circuits had worked 18+ years until they did this job.

He said he'd have to examine the situation, but that if (IF?!; but I remain calm, no point in going full-bore berserk yet...) it is as I say, he'll get another plumber to make it right at no further cost (damn right!). I pointed out that it needed to happen toot-sweet, as the homeowner is getting pretty stressed by the whole situation.

I almost eagerly anticipate the opportunity to go to court and calmly, dispassionately, logically, and painstakingly go all Mount Saint Helens on this payaso pendejo fundejo sinverguenso (he's not Hispanic; I just enjoy the way Spanish rolls off the tongue, so sonorously expressive in invective).

Would it be hubris to think of a Netflix drama? Could I launch a political career based on one? Do I hear suffering humanity yearning for things to be different? I could make that happen; I don't even have a ludicrous comb-over (speaking of PPFS).

[steev]

So tomorrow they're to come to fix these tubes, sometime between 10 and 12; I'll be there, just because I don't trust them and I'll have to deal with the system when they're gone. There is no question whatsoever that soil has gotten into the tubes, which WILL cause problems and require time-consuming clean-up. The boss is supposed to show, so I hope to impress upon him the further cost of cleaning up this problem, as well as my willingness to meet him in court, if he denies my claims.

Obviously he is ignorant of how close I am to being elected Grand Poobah for Life.

[steev]

Got a call at 7:45AM that the field supervisor showed up, saying he's there to fix the problem, although admitting ignorance of what it is. He was informed that he was supposed to be there between 10 and 12, when I will also be there, arrayed in full Poobish regalia: my Stihl cap (camo), which just drips gravitas. I'm close to being tired of watching these guys shoot themselves in the foot.

[steev]

I went out Friday; explained the problem to the field supervisor, when he showed, and to the grunt, when he showed; returned ~5PM to see that they'd done a great job of excavating the tubes; Monday they're supposed to repair the damage; Tuesday, I'm to be there at 10AM, to inspect before they re-pack the tubes under the walk, so the walk doesn't crack/collapse and to fill the holes on both sides of the walk.

I've already primed the field supervisor that what I'd warned him about soil being inserted to go downstream and clog emitters has happened, due to these breaks; we'll see where we go from here.

I think they've made some very expensive errors, between misadventure, ignorance, stupidity, and mendacity.

[steev]

I went this morning to check the repairs; 3 of 4 tubes were fixed, those they could see or feel holes in the tube; the one not under the walk was not; it's a 3" lengthwise split; I'd drawn and noted these breaks and the field supervisor had copied the diagram with his phone, but these guys apparently don't know how to turn the water on, so they don't see the leaks in action.

I called the FS to report the omission and describe it in detail; he said he'd send someone to get that today; called him again to ask whether it was done; told him I'd check first thing tomorrow and if it was good, I'd let him know so they can come to refill the excavation, stressing the need for packing the soil well under the walk, which prolly has no reinforcing.

Of course, if the leak hasn't been properly repaired, I'll call him. I near the point of putting such a flame in his ear that his brain ignites.

[ferdzy]

Just saying, Steev, that I am following this tale with horror and a certain degree of amusement - since it isn't my disaster - it sure seems that once things have gone pear-shaped, they stay pear-shaped.

Off to drive half an hour each way to the town big enough to sell mobile phones, for the 3rd time... one of these days they'll get it right...

[steev]

Went out for yet another inspection; all those breaks finally repaired; called so they can refill the hole, re-emphasizing good packing under the walk.

I hope they don't re-break anything.

I agree that this is a mix of horror and comedy, kind of like a "Borat" sketch; one cringes while laughing.

Now to begin the process of inspecting, cleaning, replacing the drip circuits; no chance whatsoever that I'd trust them to do that.

Then we'll discuss how much they owe me for my lost worktime spent inspecting, supervising, tutoring, and cleaning up their mess. Of course, I don't expect them to accept my claims, but I'm pretty damned sure a judge will, as I will inform them, in case they'd rather not go to court; at this point, I begin to look forward to it, thinking they're gonna look like refried cat-shit.

Damn; I despise it when people work beyond their competence and plaster over their mistakes with bullshit!

[steev]

ferdzy: re your mobile phone issues; I worked in Quality Control and Quality Assurance (to which it was down-graded: bull-shittified) for years. Companies no longer have QC, nor even QA, departments; it has been determined that they can be eliminated, in view of the fact that the small number of customers who will complain when the product is crap is lower than the cost of just giving a replacement POS. Extended warranties only get you more POS's, not a better product.

Globalization and evasion of responsibility uber alles!

[steev]

I got three of four circuits cleaned, flushed, and working.

My sweetheart called to say she was e-mailed by the plumbing company, demanding the withheld 10%; she called to ask why they think she owes that money when they totally disabled her front irrigation, leading to three weeks of piecemeal repairs, still not finished, involving the supervision, tutelage, inspection, diagnosis, and repair by an independent contractor (c'est moi!), and declaring that while she may sue, she is certainly not paying them another cent. She's game; one of her many admirable qualities.

There is yet one circuit clearly plugged, but I'll have to do some excavation, clear the line, and replace heads on it, to get it back in service; what a PITA!

They're gonna hate it when they get my bill; I sorta hope they refuse to pay it, although it will be a big enough "green poultice" to assuage my disappointment, if they choose not to let me publicly humiliate them for their general dumb-fuckitude.

I realize that they were ignorant of plastic plumbing/drip irrigation, but this isn't brain surgery (hell, even I can do it!); it would have helped if they'd sent someone who'd been there before, so he'd have had a clue, rather than sending whoever wasn't needed elsewhere each time.