Up on the Roof

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Time for another Go Fund Yourself (I’m amazed that only The Horse has gotten that joke) account. I didn’t sign my life away today, but I came close. I signed the contract to get my roof replaced. The total cost, including repairing the ceiling inside, is a little under $11,000. Before you go WOW (and yes, it is “wow” because the last time I had a new roof put on it was about $4,500 for the house AND the garage), remember that paying $1,000 a month for eleven months will pay it off. (It’s 24 months no interest, so actually I’ll pay about $500 a month.) After that, prayerfully all the replacements/repairs will be over (I’ve replaced every “big ticket item” associated with the house in the last three years: furnace, a/c, water heater, and now the roof). The average rent in Louisville is about $1,100 a month. So I’m saving a hundred bucks AND I only have to make eleven payments. The landlord would want another $1,100 if I were a tenant. A couple of things shocked me (which reiterates that I went with the correct company). First, I mentioned my apprehension regarding finding an old roofing nail in a tire. (Murphy’s Law #418, I think, says that you WILL find a roofing nail in your tire if there’s only one roofing nail removed from your roof.) He told me that they use a magnetic roller (it’s a cool thing if you’ve never seen it: looks like an old push reel mower but with a huge magnetic wheel) and go over the entire property TWICE; however, if I still find an elusive nail the company will pay for the repair. THAT is a good company!!! The second shock was when he said, “There are twelve roofs ahead of you.” My mind said “July” before he continued, “And we do about three-four roofs a day.” “So next week?” I said. “I was thinking more Friday or Saturday,” he replied, “weather permitting, of course.” I’ll bet you anything I could have found a roofer to put the roof on for two or three thousand dollars less; however, I’m happy to pay for that kind of customer service! They’ll be up on my roof and replacing it by this time next week, as long as the weather holds. I used the Drifters’ “Up on the Roof” in my just-completed countdown of favorites from 1962, so here’s Carole King — who co-wrote the song — doing the tune from a 1971 concert.