One Step Forward/Two Back


Supposedly I am on the last lap of having my apartment ready for short term rental. I had a goal of being ready to take guests on the 1st of April. And per advice attempted a listing on AirBnB as of the 15th of March. Best laid schemes of mice and men often go awry. "To a Mouse" by Robert Burns. 

After days of building my listing it still insisted it was in Taos, New Mexico. And nothing I could do got the attention of the site managers. Would have been frustrating enough without going through another virtual battle with Lowe's Building site to get a reasonably priced washer and dryer delivered. And then the plumbing issue. And Amazon failed me with their two day delivery schedule going to nine days on the little amenities required to please guests.

Oh, did I mention the succession of snow storms. Whatever snow we didn't see in "real winter" we got shoved into a couple weeks in just before spring and after. I truly harbored thoughts of admitting this was stupid and an abject failure. Killed the AirBnB site, or laid it to temporary rest, to kill it would mean I was banned forever and a day. Began again on VRBO which had been my first choice before I was talked out of it. But they knew immediately WHERE I was located. There is a mountain between Taos and Black Lake.

I also gave up on Lowe's. They seem to not have a clue about what they have in stock. Went to the Home Depot site, found what I wanted, verified by telephone real person mano y mano contact they delivered to Angel Fire on Wednesdays, placed order. In what seemed a replay of the Taos vs. Angel Fire debacle on Airbnb, Home Depot wanted to deliver my washer and dryer to Albuquerque. I tried for 48 hours to get their attention and correct the mistake and never could get a human to talk to. I spent hours trying to communicate and it wasn't until the delivery to Albuquerque failed that I did. Now I am awaiting the refund. Cannot go to Taos to deal with a in person appliance store because of snow and not having the money because Home Depot has not given me a refund.

Meanwhile those amenities I ordered from Amazon; curtains and curtain rods and blinds and holder for paper towels and flavored coffees went from delivery on Wednesday to Friday and last I checked Monday. That will be 11 days Amazon. And yesterday only one of the flavors of Starbucks instant coffees was in the package of supposedly three. And last Friday when I turned the water back on the 30 plus old shower/tub faucet failed. No repair possible but the plumber did an awesome replacement with a new Moen. And fixed the leaking pipes under the sink. That explained the bowl the last long term renter had just placed there to catch the drips.

Then last night I get my first query from a potential guest via VRBO. Oh, and did I mention the Corolla with the dead battery (hopefully just that) which has to be moved to provide parking for any guest?

Comments

  1. Ien in the KootenaysMarch 26, 2021 at 5:38 AM

    Exactly the poem our mutual friend Wendy White quoted to me in the context of my big move. Except Burns said “ gang aft agley” Delays and frustrations are par for the course in any building project. I am in awe of how fast you did it all, while cranking out a whole new line of creativity with your fabric art. I am furious with the big company scrooges who decide that they cannot possibly invest in a few live people, ideally on the same continent, to answer the phone. Bet never mind, you did it. Happy hosting!

    ReplyDelete

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