Moving Along

Getting the local "arawan" to finish the bathroom was really the right and wise move.  He's easy to work with, "madaling kausapin" and the job got done on time without excuses unlike the local contractor who milked the project without giving back quality on-time work.  I'm still berating myself for choosing wrongly but it seems I have a weakness where I get immediately impressed by somebody, get satisfied with just one discussion with the person and don't shop around anymore for alternatives.  This practice has got to stop.  This bad habit has got to be fixed.

The lamp foot is courtesy of Elsor who is based in Manila.  I tried it with a heavy piece of metal first but that didn't work out.  This one's a nice piece of molave from Mom's workshop.

The headboard is almost finished except for the box where the cellphones and other gadgets can be plugged in.

Locked up and secured, the house looks like this:

What I like about the picture below is that it shows how small the structures are in the landscape.  I'm afraid of the three story house my Mom would like to eventually build on this site.  I don't like buildings overwhelming natural beauty if the structure is insensitively proportioned or supersized.

Besides not seeing the mini-beach home through the finish line, the other hard thing about not being able to personally visit Calatagan now is missing my beach outings with Joshua.  At least we enjoyed a good holiday in Matabungkay the last time we went together and Jason takes pictures that make me feel I've relished the day with them.

Good and Bad

Lots of good things happening with the Calatagan project that I'm happy with but there are mistakes that should have been averted but were not, so I'd just have to take the bad with the good and the good with the bad.

The electrician didn't follow or remember or understand my instructions about this part of the house where I want the lamp to be coming out from the wall so there shouldn't have been any outlets.  But since the outlet was placed there already, I'd have to make do but this design obviously doesn't work so I'm still finding a way to solve this.  I had a thick piece of metal curved to receive the lamp but it doesn't seem like a good solution either.

The L-shaped headboard is taking form.

The ongoing debacle, dilemma, conundrum with the local contractor has finally been resolved.  Both my foreman and I lost faith in the local contractor who was doing the electrical, plumbing and tiling works of the bathroom.  He was saying that he was capable of accomplishing the tasks but he wasn't.  His people seldom went to work and didn't seem like they were serious about the whole job.  I want to berate myself for having chosen him but I can't because it was again an "innocent mistake" for thinking the best of people.

I made this mistake before when I chose a subcontractor for the spiral staircase in the clinic project and I thought I'd better exercise extra caution when outsourcing jobs.  However, it happened again.  I'm grateful though that we were able to terminate the contract before the tiling and laying of the granite sink began.  Now, we got a daily-wage worker who seems a far, far, far better option and who's also from the area.  Hmmm.  Does that mean it's really hard to trust subcons?

What I wanted to avoid also was the stress of going between my foreman and the subcon who would be saying different things and it would be one person's word against the other.  I have not been able to visit the project site in two weeks so it's stressful having to deal with it by phone, although I am quite sure whom to believe when it comes to quality of work because I've seen the stark difference between the two.

Our own team of workers headed by Foreman Raul had to correct the faulty plumbing left by the nightmare subcontractor.  The water is stronger now.

Two tries with the sandblasted glass sticker: the one on the left is correct and the one on the right was the first try that still has to be repeated.

Glad Even If I'm Not There

Even if I don't see for myself how the Calatagan beach house turns out in the last few days of construction, I'm quite happy to see it realized through the photos taken by Jess.  I've accepted the fact that I can't drive up to Calatagan for a while but I can still monitor the work by delegation.  Today, I met with the foreman in the hospital so we can discuss the final materials that need to be bought.

I'm glad with the pictures taken by Jess that show his unique perspective.  The only thing I'm worried about is the bathroom.  The local contractor has not been able to deliver on time and with the quality I expected.  Take for example the strength of the water coming out of the shower.  In fairness, they will continue to work on it but it seems one excuse after another and my staff taking attendance reports that only a few workers come from their team and there are days when no one shows up at all.  The tiling was supposed to have started days ago but now they're just welding the steel bar supports for the granite sink counter.  Despite these minor anxieties, I believe everything will turn out well because foreman Raul will be there to monitor everything.

 The bedroom's looking more and more livable, ready for use.

I'll also have to discuss with Nady, the carpenter about the desk, beds and headboard.  These were the ones crafted in Manila while there are parts that need to be constructed on site.

I don't think I would've taken a picture like this so Jess really captured beautifully a certain dynamic spirit of the light, wood, glass and bamboo.

Fresh New Eye

So here are the pictures taken from a fresh new eye.  My driver, Jess used his mobile phone to shoot these photos and they do provide a different perspective which is interesting after I've been doing all the documentation on the development of this beach home.  Aside from the photos, Jess also brings the payroll for the workers as well as needed materials.

The last time I went, I found the bottom finish much too dark and asked them to lighten it up so that the varying shades of wood could still be seen.  I got a bit too paranoid and thought maybe I should have had it bleached but then through time, this whole structure will get naturally bleached anyway through all that extreme exposure to the sun. I just didn't want that uniform shade that looks painted on even though it's Sadolin natural oil but they managed to bring it a notch down as instructed.

Last Photo Probably

After going around so many hardware depots and stores to choose the counter material for the bathroom sink, I found the one that I hope my Mom would like and that I like as well.  There were materials that I liked but I knew she wouldn't go for so I couldn't let the selfish gene get in the way.  So I was happy to find this and really hope she likes it as well.  If not . . . . well-what's-new-at-least-i-tried.

The idea behind this mobile beach home is that if my Mom is not using it, everything is closed up completely and nobody can see what's inside so I've provided these sliding doors to further seal this entry corner.

The ribbon grain plywood is getting the finishing touches.

I didn't know that this may be the last photo I take of the Calatagan project myself.  A health emergency came up and for the next trips to Calatagan, I have to send my driver to take pictures so that I could be updated. But this has happened in a previous project when a serious health issue prevented me from regular site visits.  At least I have people who can monitor for me and work around a more troublesome arrangement just to get the project done.

And I ask myself, why does this keep happening to me?  Is it because I'm not meant to be in this line of work OR are these barriers just placed in the way to test my resolve and commitment?  I think it's more of the second and the setbacks are just temporary.  I had calling cards made for my design, renovation, construction, project management biz and now I cannot practice again because of a higher priority.  Ah well, I'm getting more practice in work delegation and crafting arrangements to reach the finish line even if I'm wounded in the trenches.  Of course, it would be nice to be in the front line of battle but it's not yet time for me to die.