He looked at the structural engineer's specs and had a lot of questions, so I didn't feel quite as dopey as I had when first looking at them myself. But he's worked with the comically challenged engineer before, so he is going to call him and get the real scoop.
So what's the bad news? Because Tall Drink of Water is trustworthy and oh-so-in-demand, he can't start the job for three weeks. Super bummer. But I guess I'd rather have someone that other people want, rather than a guy who says he can start right after his court date.
The other bad news is that taking down the walls is going to cost more than double what I had estimated (when I thought there was only one wall that had load-bearing issues). Luckily, I've built in a 25% contingency fund for these unforeseen costs. Unluckily, I've now found out I should have set aside more like 35%.
But, as I've previously stated, opening up those walls is the whole reason we bought the house, so if we have to eat beanie-weenies for the next year to recoup our costs, so be it.
I also dropped off a pseudo-contract to our cabinet maker yesterday. He showed me a sample of my chosen door style in his workshop, and I handed over our first major check of the adventure. He's going to make any needed changes to the contract, we'll sign, and then he'll start. I know, I know, I should have waited until we signed the papers before handing over the $$, but he's such an honest guy, I think I'll be OK. Oh, I just had a major tingle down my spine, like that's going to be my first line on our Judge Judy small claims court appearance.
Today, I'm all about making a list of things we need to get accomplished while we wait for Tall Drink of Water to do his thing.
Below are a couple of pics showing the kitchen in its current state Mr. Hubby took out the cabinets and tore down the drywall himself -- he's such a "stud" (more construction humor).
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