It was time for a new roof. Many things on my house needed to be updated, but the roof would be the most beneficial in the long run. The current roof is the original roof and had taken a beating. I set out to find a couple of quotes, as I had no idea what to expect.
There is a guy at the bowling alley that is a roofer. I remember he fell off a roof while doing a job about a week before his wedding. He was banged up a bit, but not too bad, not even admitted to the hospital. He was a youth bowling coach and helped my son when he first started bowling. I thought I'd get a pretty good quote so he came over and took a peek. After running some numbers, he came back with around $1400, he covered his own dumpster for the trash removal and he could have it done in less than 5 days.
One of the moms on my daughters cheering squad was married to a handyman contractor. He was able to do any kind of job when it came to fixing houses. In fact, he was in the business of buying houses that needed work, fixing them up, and selling them for a profit. Since her daughter and my daughter were friends, I felt sure they'd give me a good price. He came over to take a peek. After running some numbers, he said he could do it for about $1,000 but I'd have to rent my own dumpster for the debris. He was currently working on a large job on the Cape, but could get to it by the end of the month, nearly 3 weeks away.
Then a friend of mine told me about another guy she knows of that has a roofing company. She gave me his number and told me to call and leave a message if nobody answers. She insists he does good work and since we were nearing the end of autumn, he might not be as busy as he was during the summer months. I called him the very next morning and left a message. In less than one hour, I got a call back. He went to look at the house before noon the same day and came back with a quote before the end of my shift. It was $900, he provided the dumpster, and could have it done in 3 days from beginning to end. He was at my house that very afternoon so I could pick out the color I wanted.
That was on a Friday, by Monday he and his team had started removing the original roof. I didn't even have to be home. The dumpster had been delivered and most of the old roof was removed before I got home from work that afternoon. When it came time to install the new roof, I felt more comfortable being home in case anything went wrong, so I took the day off. I still got up early to see my husband off to work, and once he was gone, I started to make some blueberry muffins and a lemon poppy bread.
Although it was the end of autumn, it was a beautiful morning. The house was warm from baking in the oven, I made a fresh pot of coffee, and around 9:30, I brought a snack out to the roofers. I've always tried to be a good host. They had fresh warm muffins and bread, hot fresh coffee, a pitcher of water and a pitcher of lemonade. I must say, they were all so happy and grateful for the break, and I was happy to feel appreciated.
Around early afternoon, I was told the guys were done for the day. I was a bit surprised, as it was only around 2:00 and I thought that was kind of early to be calling it a day. However, they told me they had reached a milestone earlier than expected and it didn't make sense to begin the next step so late in the day. The roofer that gave me the original quote told me he had to bring his guys home, as they all drove up together, but he'd be back in less than one hour to pick up his tools and finish cleaning up the mess. Honestly, I think one of his guys had an afternoon appointment and he had to make sure he got him back in time.
It had been a productive day. True, I was still in an oversized t-shirt and a pair of shorts since my shower in the morning, but I didn't have to go anywhere and I had planned on remaining comfortable. That was a benefit of taking a day off. Yet, I'd managed to bake some pastries in the morning, I finished a few mundane household chores that I'd been putting off, I made a casserole to pop in the oven later on for dinner, and I brushed out my dogs and trimmed their nails.
In less than an hour, the roofer returned as promised. He gathered his tools, picked up the mess that was left behind, then knocked on the door. I let him in, he explained how far they'd come in the job and what was left to do. Then we started talking about mutual interest. He was also a bowler, he often times went out to the clubs to listen to the local bands, and he said he had a hot tub that he enjoyed most often, well into winter.