Job:

Finally talked to my boss about how frustrated I was feeling. Though he didn’t have a silver bullet of any sort, he said a number of things that were comforting, such as that my frustration was reasonable, he had questions about the particular course of action that was taken, and that the intern that got put into design is explicitly a very junior position. Still, the issue is that her title is “Designer,” and that makes a huge difference in terms of both mobility, and influence. But I think it was enough that at least I’m satisfied knowing that my boss is going to be looking out for me in some capacity, and that he knows what’s bugging me and why.

House:

Not to jinx things, but it looks like the leaking windows have been fixed. Rod Kuhns did a great job sealing up the mini-roof, and unplugging the drain holes on the windows. For what it was, I think I paid too much for the actual *work* per se, but the issue was really one of knowledge. Reminds me of a story I heard summer freshman year of college working at a bike shop. Patron walks into the shop, and talks to the owner. He’s got a rim that’s out of true, and the owner says he’ll true it for $25. Patron agrees. Owner takes the wheel, positions it in his hands, and hits it hard against a nearby workbench. Wheel’s true. Patron says, “Er… $25’s sort of expensive, given that you just whacked the wheel on the bench.” Owner says, “Yes, but I knew how to whack it.”

Rod knew where to drill a couple holes, and two other professional contractors did not. Given that I’ve spent on the order of $5K total over two years, the last bit that actually *worked* was money well spent. *shrugs* Ah, well. At least it’s over.