“One should always be drunk. That’s all that matters…But with what? With wine, with poetry, or with virtue, as you chose. But get drunk.” ― Charles Baudelaire, Paris Spleen

I finally got my bedroom floors finished.  Originally I had a friend of mine start doing it. He is a contractor, but mostly does painting.  I had him do it because I like to throw business his way any time I can.  I also was confident that he could do it.  I was wrong!

I told him to keep the padding that I had under the carpet.  He didn’t know enough to know that vinyl plank floors cannot have the same padding as carpets.  In the end, after he was almost done with my sister’s bedroom he realized the problem.

That meant that he would have to remove all the planks, remove the padding and start it all over.  I was already stressed out over work and other stuff and over the fact that he didn’t check about the padding before, that I paid him and stopped the job.  It was better to have unfinished floors than to lose a friendship of over 30 years.

“If you really want to escape the things that harass you, what you’re needing is not to be in a different place but to be a different person.”
― Lucius Annaeus Seneca, Letters from a Stoic

I bought 2 huge rugs and put them down and decided to wait until I was less stressed to continue.  Then covid hit.

Fast forward 2 years.  After waiting for the pandemic to be over, I gave up and decided to just get it done.  This time I got a professional floor installer to do the job.  I notified our condo management company and provided the insurance and the contractor’s license.  

Sometimes management will post on the elevator about work being done so that the neighbors will know about it.  This time they didn’t.  I figured they knew it was a little job and decided it was not necessary.

On the first day, the neighbors in the apartment below mine, emailed me to complain about the “very loud, disturbing” noise.  They were both working from home.

This is vinyl planks, not hardwood.  The only noise is at the end when the baseboard trim has to be nailed down.  I think my neighbors were being extra sensitive.

“Never ruin an apology with an excuse.” ― Benjamin Franklin

Still, I don’t mind taking the high road.  I replied apologizing about the inconvenience.  Then, on the way home I stopped by a liquor store and bought a very nice bottle of Amarone wine.

I knocked on my neighbor’s door and said: “I wanted to say I am sorry in person. Here is a peace offering”.  They were surprised.

I didn’t need to do that, but I know they are wine drinkers and I thought a bottle of wine would go a long way in maintaining good neighborly relations.

My floors took a day and a half to be completed.  I have some pictures below.  Now I need to finally buy a bedroom set for my bedroom (I had gotten rid of mine before doing the floors).  I will post pictures of the bedrooms when they are all done and furnished.

“It doesn’t mean I am afraid of conflict or don’t know how to stand up for myself. I am getting to a place right in the middle where I feel good about exactly how much I apologize. It takes years as a woman to unlearn what you have been taught to be sorry for. It takes years to find your voice and seize your real estate.”  Amy Poehler, Yes Please

My bedroom

My bedroom

My sister’s bedroom