The Expected Unexpected

  “We thank you, O God! We give thanks because you are near.” Psalm 75:1

  I said something about not being a damsel in distress kind of gal the other day. But that’s not a hundred percent true. I find it interesting that there is this part of me that is (mentally) wringing my hands and crying out, “Oh dearie me! What to do? What to do? What to do!”

  Yet at the same time as these frantic whispers waft around my consciousness, I am at peace.

  After work yesterday I went home to check on the progress and to see if my bathtub had been delivered. The tub wasn’t there but the contractor had...duh, duh, duh…SOMETHING to show me.

  “Okay,” I thought, then the damsel had her say, “Oh no! Oh, No! WHAT can it be?”

  They had removed the insulation from the bathroom exterior wall. Behind it was a major case of dry rot. To explain better, an outside wall is load bearing. It holds up the roof and consists of two by four framing. Wood cladding or sheathing is attached to the frame on the outside. After that comes some sort of weatherproof siding. In my case it’s aluminum.

  Well, my friends, this had been like this for a long time because the two by fours had been improperly patched during a previous reno and even though it is probably much worse now than when that was done, the dry rot should have been taken care of at that point. I believe it spreads over time. 

  The cladding crumbled into dust at a light touch. The dry rot continued into the kitchen so it affects a large area. The only way to fix it properly is from the outside. This means tearing off the aluminum siding to get to it. 

  It would be impossible to match the existing 1970’s Harvest Gold siding and it would be difficult to remove it without it getting damaged. Soooo, new siding has been added to the roster.

  We talked briefly about only doing half of the house, the front and the side where the addition is going, but it would probably cost more in the long run to get someone back to finish the job.

  I did laugh and ask them why they had to remove the insulation in the first place! But, and this is a good thing I have hired this company because there are contractors out there who would have simply ignored the problem, covered it up and not said a word. (Like the previous person had.) 

  Praise God I have an honest contractor! Down the road, the existing damage to the wall would have spread even further and created a far worse problem like the roof collapsing!

  What’s interesting about all this is God planted the idea about getting new siding into my thoughts a while back. I had daydreamed about what colour I would choose, what style.  It kept coming up whenever I thought about the reno. He must have known there was an issue and was preparing me for this major, “unexpected” addition to the plans.

  So, like I said, the inner damsel had a bit of a fit yet the Holy Spirit peace of God has soothed her…me. And that’s the best part of all. AMEN!