Work on our kitchen that was going to be finished by last Thursday or Friday “at the latest”, will now only be completed tomorrow “at the earliest”. This marks – at least – an impressive 125% run over. The work being done isn’t huge, but it does mean that kitchen is out of bounds as far as actually using it as a kitchen is concerned.
Thus, we have had to be inventive with our meals: using the oven on the one evening it was available. A couple of takeaways, the airfryer balanced on the pool table, utilising an entirely different abode for a couple of days, and tonight: a braai.
Once the work on the kitchen is completed, I need to finish things off by getting the gas hob professionally (and therefore legally and safely) connected. To that end, knowing that the other work was nearly at an end, I rang the gas people today to make a booking and got one of the most bizarre answer machine messages I have heard a business deliver:
Thank you for calling [Gas Installation Business].
Our office hours are 5:30 to 8…
Ah… I’ve really cocked that up haven’t I?
Yes. Yes, you have, but you’ve than also saved it for customers to listen to.
And you’re already playing it to them at 4pm.
And then cutting them off.
I’ve emailed them instead. I hope their Gmail (and their gas connecting) skills are better than their answer machine efforts.
Incidentally, I’ve just called them again – outside their office hours (no, not those ones) – they’re closed, but now they’ve switched their answer machine off.
That’s not how those things work, guys.