(Mostly) wallpaper-free!

Amy and I finally came to terms with the fact that we would never, ever, get around to finishing the wallpaper removal task in our house. So a couple of weeks ago, a crew from SouthEnd Painting (in Charlotte) came in and spent three days removing wallpaper from, floating, sanding and priming the walls of our kitchen, living room, dining room, and the downstairs half-bath. The crew was professional, very respectful, and did their best to keep our home orderly and dust-free (which is no easy task in jobs like this). And the end result met our expectations (also no easy task). Of course, it pained me to write a check for the cost of this service, but as my friend Fitz observed, Amy and I "finally recognized the value of our time."

Unfortunately, I'm not able to give quite the glowing review of the whole process that I'd like to.

I noticed shortly after the crew left our house that the glass break sensor in our kitchen (part of our home security system) was not functioning. Upon removing the front panel (just as I'd shown the crew leader how to do the previous day) I noticed that one of the microphone lead wires was missing, and that the microphone itself was sorta shoved up into the backing instead of in its proper mounting location. I called SouthEnd to report the damage. I wasn't sure if this kind of damage was covered by the service plan we have on our security system, so I told SouthEnd that I'd get a quote for the repair or replacement of the sensor. If there was no charge to me, then no harm, no foul — SouthEnd Painting wouldn't hear another thing about it. Otherwise, they'd be responsible for any costs incurred in the repair. I also advised SouthEnd to ask their work crew about the damage, just to make sure there was no dispute on the responsibility. I called our security provider, got the quote ($150), and relayed that to an assistant at SouthEnd, again advising that they verify the quote by calling our security provider themselves.

A few days later, I got a call from Todd, SouthEnd's owner. What happened next was simply unfathomable — after admitting that the work crew had claimed responsibility for the damage, and acknowledging the cost of the replacement, Todd had the nerve to suggest that they send me a check not for $150, but for only $125. "Why", I asked incredulously, "would I cover $25 of damage your crew caused after just writing you a check for over a hundred times that amount?!" Todd replied curtly, "Well, it doesn't hurt to ask — I'll send your check."

On the contrary, Todd, it does hurt to ask. You just lost the business I'd intended to give you for the upstairs of my house.