not what I had planned

September 09, 2018

not what I had planned

I woke up this morning at 10:17-
not what I had planned
I took a very quick shower and headed to church
I was 15 minutes late,
but I made it so that is a victory

it's been rainy
my body aches when the weather is like this
so I planned to spend the afternoon on the couch
writing-reading-maybe watching a movie
those plans got changed

I was preparing to leave after service
a friend asked if I had lunch plans
"nope"
"want to go with us? we are going out, not sure where yet..."
it is not what I had planned, but I gladly accepted the invitation

I came home expecting to follow my plan to rest
there is a water spot on my upstairs hallway ceiling that I monitor
Jonathan is pretty sure it is condensation from the a/c line
it has been cool enough that the a/c hasn't run the past two days
but for some reason this afternoon I felt the need to check

it was the same,
but I found two new small spots about 18 inches apart
they were squishy
soft enough my thumb went through the drywall when I checked it
that was not what I was expecting

I called Jonathan to find out what I could/should do
he knows the insulation around the ac line may have gotten torn
he has planned to come check it, but sometimes life rearranges our plans
I asked him if it would be okay if I cut out around the two small holes
he gave me his blessing and told me what to look for

utility knife in hand
I climbed the small step ladder
cut the drywall and found lathe and plaster
I couldn't see the line he needed me to check
definitely not what we were expecting so I facetimed him

"should I cut a bigger hole?"
"yeah, go ahead and cut around the old water spot"
more lathe with plaster
"what if I pull some of the lathe loose"
not what he expected to hear, but he said that would be okay

I facetimed him again so he could see what I was doing
the hole was not quite big enough so I cut a bigger hole
then used my little "lady hammer" and loosened lathe
I could not see any cuts through the insulation
that is not what he was expecting, "it must be the roof instead of the a/c"

I came downstairs, sat on the couch and fiddled on my computer
this problem is in the old part of the house with no attic access

my new wood floors getting water damage is not part of my plan

we are expecting more heavy rain in the next 24 hours

so I decided to enlarge the hole and loosen more lathe to look for the leak

I found where there was damage to the a/c line insulation

and the board above the line is wet
I called Jonathan again for an assessment
1.the a/c line insulation does need replaced (which we suspected)
2. there is a hole in my roof somewhere (not originally expected)
I called a friend who agreed to look at the roof when this rain stops
and not unexpectedly, burst into tears after I hung up

I threw a small tantrum as I thought about my afternoon
two semi-major problems
two things that will be big problems if they aren't fixed properly
I cannot do these repairs
I have to ask for help and the men who can "fix it" are already overworked

as I stood in the kitchen texting Jonathan
something clicked in my brain and I was instantly over my fit
I went from complaining about the problems to being thankful

the problems are in the same place
I didn't ignore the nudge to check
I have a step ladder
I have a utility knife with a sharp blade and I know how to use it
I have Bill's maglite to illuminate dark places
there is only one hole, not two in my ceiling
there was a kiddie pool behind the shed I could bring in
I have people I can all for help, I just need to swallow my pride

I hadn't planned to thank God for the leak in the a/c line
but tonight I am doing just that
without it I would not have checked the ceiling
I would not have found out the roof is leaking
things could have turned out so much worse