Palapa Saga, Part One

It’s been a wild week. I scratched my cornea, had a fight with a shop steward, paid off contractors and celebrated a birthday. So now you’re all caught up. Today is Jesse’s birthday and I will update; the palapa is finished, but what a rough road it was. Here is my project for the day; I’ll update this post throughout the day with something substantial.

http://picasaweb.google.com/jamnkats/DayInTheLife

Generally, when doing construction, or a project, or pretty much anything you do with a contractor, you pay 50% up front and 50% at the end of the project. It is a standard procedure and applies to extranjeros and Mexicans alike. The contractor (contratista) I’d hired to do our remodel came highly recommended by someone I know personally and I’d seen his work and was pleased. I’m still VERY happy with his work and would recommend him (and have) with reservations. He wanted to pay his workers on a weekly basis. As evidenced by the progression of photos in Flickr, they took their own sweet time. Sometimes they’d read the newspaper but generally, at least 2 (or more) of the 4-5 on the job were working. The week after I returned from my emergency trip to Ohio I told Manuel that I had paid all I was going to pay and that he’d receive no more money until the job was done. I had him sign a sheet of paper stating such.

But the storm clouds, always present along a summer Caribbean, hung low. Come that Saturday, when he liked to pay his workers, he insisted on payment. I refused and headed to Cancun to pick up a door for the project. When I returned at 4pm, I was astonished to find the entire crew still waiting (they usually leave at 1pm or so on Saturday). In addition, a man with a moto (motorcycle) was in attendance.