Living in a Hotel for a Few Weeks

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Last week, a pipe broke in the wall between the kitchen and the guest bathroom in our home. At first, we saw a small stain on the hardwood floor in front of the dishwasher, so we called a plumber. When he came out, he said, "Oh, this is not the dishwasher. It is a much bigger problem." He left. The next day, the stain on the kitchen floor was bigger. We called the Homeowner's Association maintenance department for our retirement community. They sent someone out who determined the problem was probably in the wall. He left The next day, the stain was bigger. We called the insurance company, who sent out their own crew to work on it, but our Homeowner's Association sent them away, telling them that they would make the repairs and, later, the insurance company could do the restoration. They left. By this time the stain on the kitchen floor was enormous and the hardwood floors leading into the bathroom were also getting discolored. Meanwhile, no actual work had been done! The next day someone came out from a lab to test for the possibility of mold, asbestos, and lead based paint. She left, saying it would take 24 hours before anyone could begin to work. The stain kept growing. Last Thursday, my husband and I moved into the Ayres Hotel, a lovely local hotel, which is located on the main road leading into our retirement community. We can actually walk between the hotel and our home! The hotel is conveniently located so I can continue to meet my friends to walk at the beach, go to my yoga class, and handle other appointments and lunches with my friends, without much of an inconvenience. The hotel provides a full breakfast, cocktails and appetizers in the evening, fresh baked cookies before bed and even a free plug-in for my electric/hybrid car. We may have to stay here for three to six weeks, depending on how fast they work. Since we are now eating all our meals in restaurants, and someone makes my bed, cleans the bathroom, and vacuums the room every day, I may not want to move back into our home when it is repaired! LOL I'm getting more and more comfortable here every day. I've decided to make the best of things and just pretend I am on vacation. Above is a photo of what my kitchen looks like right now. In addition, the hardwood floors have been cut out of the damaged area, the refrigerator and dishwasher are sitting in the middle of the living room, and they are going to have to replace the moldy drywall, which could mean pulling out some of the kitchen cabinets. Yikes!