Check In, Check On & Checkout

Eric & his crew began the demo at the shop.  Kate & I went up one morning to check it out.  The wall to the back office was already gone & there was dust & debris everywhere.  I handed him a check for $50K.  He seemed almost excited as we were, before I gave him the check.

"So here's a schedule of the buildout like I promised," he handed us a paper.  "First we're gonna make some floor cuts for the grease trap & the piping, then we'll start on framing the walls."

"You guys need any help with anything?" I asked.

"Not yet, but I'll let you know.  This should be plenty for now," he said as he held up the check.

And, that's the way it went in the new year up at the storefront.  Construction was underway & since Kate & I lived only 3 blocks away, I'd ride my beach cruiser past there a lot & check in on their progress.  

I didn't want to seem overbearing or annoying, but this was the most money I'd ever borrowed & spent on anything so I wanted to stay in the loop.  

They had to build certain portions first (plumbing) & then schedule an inspection before they could move on to the next thing (electrical, etc.).  I'm sure it was a tedious process for a small crew like his, but part of the reason we went with Eric is because he had recently built 3 other restaurants in San Diego.  So he knew some of the inspectors & knew what they were looking for to pass us.

There was a lot rain that winter & it made us restless when markets were cancelled & we couldn't work.  Being stuck at home, Kate & I shifted some of our focus on wedding preparations for September 27th.  

But, with the buildout still our #1 priority, I found myself cruising by the shop.  There were a few days where no one was on site, due to the rain or because they were waiting on the next inspection.  I even found the door unlocked one day & called Eric.

"Hey, what's going on?  I come up to the shop, nobody's here & the doors unlocked?" I asked.

"Oh damn, sorry about that.  I just popped out to run to Home Depot.  I'm on my way back right now," he said.

I gave him the benefit of the doubt on that one.  Every time I reached out to him on the phone, he would respond right away.  Comforting, after trying sometimes for weeks to get a hold of our architect to no avail.  So, I was understandably paranoid about another big hire, but Eric I felt more at ease.

That & with the printed schedule (that I lost somewhere over the years) I knew that we wouldn't have to wait another 15 months to finally open up our shop.  That would be preposterous.