In a couple of weeks, it will be two years that we've bought the house and started the renovation works. Up to this day, we still can't see the end.

It is not a normal situation, and I am aware that we're not the only ones after the Superbonus mess (it even has a Wikipedia article!). What is certain, though, is that we are particularly unlucky. All the people/institutions involved in this project had some faults:

• Architect(s)
• Engineer(s)
• Bank
• Builders (including electrician and plumber)
• Government, of course

Eve-ry-one.

The first week, five builders eviscerated the house. It was really fast and impressive. Then… Disasters started happening. I don't want to complain, and maybe I'll describe the long story in a different post; anyway, once in a while, it's good to write down something about this topic.

Fast-forward to March 2024: lots of rain fell in the last few weeks. During the external works, the tuff stone that had been uncovered was deeply soaked. Builders haven't come for a few days, so the site was semi-abandoned.

Last weekend, while taking care of the trees (it's pruning time), I noticed that the water wasn't dried yet. Luckily, I had bought an electric pump a couple of years ago for the well, so I plugged it and dried the pool.

After a few minutes, most of the water was gone, but I am still worried about the potential problems that it could cause. A small work for managing the water flow was already planned, but we decided to anticipate it to avoid further issues.

The concern is that digging has to be done very near the house, and an excavator can't work there because of the tight space. We must do all by hand, and I want to help as much as I can to speed up the works.

That is the main issue: two years is way too much time for a small house like ours. We are lucky to have found another temporary place to stay that is even better as the new home (if I could go back in time, maybe I'd have searched here a house on sale).

Overall, this is just the tip of the iceberg of the things I feel I can't control. Yes, I could have changed the builders, I could have demolished the old house and build a new one on top of it, I could have bought another home,… or I could have moved abroad. And, when all will be over, there will be a 25-years mortgage to start paying.

But I keep thinking that, in life, there are no wrong choices. Every other big alternative I could have made, would have brought to possibly worse consequences.

As I heard someone saying, just yesterday: "If one is happy, he/she's half done".

So, when is the estimated delivery date for the house? At present, maybe the end of the summer (of the current year, presumably). Stay tuned for other exciting renovation news. 🥲

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🎮 Finally finished also the Ghost of Tsushima DLC. One of the best games I've played.

🎧 The Downward Spiral for its 30th(!) birthday.

📖 Still on Mysteries –meh, for now– and Maus.

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