u/Fine_Relation_158

Seeking advice!

Hi, I would love insight from anyone who has dealt with a contractor problem.

Situation: A contractor I hired to install a screen around my front porch moved a beam that appears to be a main support for the house (there is a room above it). He did install two other beams, but I am not convinced or confident that the house won’t settle differently or become structurally deficient over time.

I am thinking of two courses of action:

A. Document the problem as insurance, should something happen later (i.e., send him a certified letter)

B. Hiring someone to put it back the way it was (I am broke, though!)

In either case, I believe I need a professional structural expert to give me an assessment. Considering I am broke, I wonder if the town’s building inspector would be the best no-cost route. Of course, there could be unintended consequences of bringing the city in.

I also think the town inspector could be a neutral way for me to approach this. Instead of telling him my concerns, I could say that the inspector arrived unannounced and flagged the issue. The contractor is loud, proud, and bossy— I would like to limit my interactions with him.

Ultimately, I could see myself taking him to small claims court to recover potential costs required to remedy the issue.

Has anyone relied on a building inspector as part of a complaint against a contractor, or as a resource to resolve a contractor problem?

TYIA !

Wouldn't it be fun to have an official time to post stories about men behaving badly? I have some to share and would love to read yours!

Seeking recommendations for selling books to a used-book retailer. I am not interested in online sales.

TIA!

Need advice about job potentials. There is a good chance I will be offered a great job (j.1) at a good organization and a good job with immediate growth potential (j.2) at a great organization.

I am asking here because I am now 50 and behind on retirement savings

Job 1

·         Awesome awesome people

·         I could see that I would be happy and fulfilled 5x week, although, potential for professional boredom someday (I am never personally bored—have a ton to do in my freetime)

·         Low pay

·         Little to no retirement plan

·         Work from home possible and very flexible overall (very important to me and also my pet has major anxiety when I leave the house)

·         No real prestige. I was laid off from a prestigious job and my ego wants me to bounce back at another prestigious organization

Job 2

·         Team unknown but probably a mixed bag. I expect there will be a lot of overall arrogant people around this workplace

·         Job would be fulfilling and fun but also lots of stress and high expectations

·         Pay would be higher than job 1 (not sure yet) with the potential for a promotion probably within 2 years

·         10% of salary

·         Mandatory four days in the office, which is far from me. I would have to stay overnight in the city 3-4 evenings per week

·         Extremely prestigious. Landing this job would feel like a major redemption after my last position was eliminated (should I really care, though?)

 

I always thought I wanted to grind for the last leg of my career to save money and just generally see an upward trajectory in my career. I got a master’s a few years ago with the intention of moving up professionally.

Now, life feels short and I wonder if I should take the happiness path. My last job was stressful, and I regularly dreamed of having a low stress job. I have so many passions and friends that I usually don’t have energy for due to work zapping me.

My spouse wants me to be happy and take the easier job (I don’t think they fully understand our finances

So, to those over 60—would you take happiness over money?