Monday, September 25, 2017
Where the wind takes us...
A friend of mine made a comment on a social media post I'd made prompting me about my long neglected blog. Of course, he didn't need to make the comment for me to know I have a blog in desperate need of attention for it's crossed my mind many a time. I'm just busy. And tired. Come 8.30-9.00pm most nights and I'm spent with no energy to do anything.
So, it's been almost 2 years....what's happened?
Well, alot's happened, but alot remains the same as well.
Remember that commercial job I mentioned in my last post? The one that we finished and the clients decided not to pay us? Well, it ended up all the way in the Supreme Court where judgement was awarded against the client. Because they're the ones who owed the money to us (as a result of a previous judgement) and because they're the ones who applied to have the Supreme Court hear their appeal they were required to deposit the judgement amount in to the Court's trust account. The court released the funds to us within hours of the judgement being handed down.
Of course, the money is good to have, but I'm still sad (even after this long) that the relationship is gone. Our sons are still in school together. I still see them around the school circles that we mingle in. And it upsets me that things aren't - can't be - the way they were with these people. I'll never understand why they did what they did.
We finished the commercial job we got in the CBD fringe. It turned out beautifully. It's kept me personally quite busy. Working on securing the next opportunity now. We did have a beautiful job lined up, again on the fringe of the CBD - an awesome re-vamp of a high-rise building plus the addition of a few floors on top - but the client died and now we need to wait for the family in-fighting to end before works can commence.
I'm still at the gym working hard. But I've uncovered a self-sabotage aspect to my personality. Twice I've gotten myself to the point of being reasonably satisfied with the way I look, and then I'll go about and un-do the hard work I've done by stopping exercising and eating with complete abandon. And the real odd thing is that I don't realise I 'm doing it until a few weeks later and kick myself in the butt and press the re-set button. I'm just ending one of these self-sabotage stages now. It started 10 weeks ago when I was knocked off my feet for 4 weeks with the flu. Then for the next 6 weeks I just couldn't be bothered! So, back to the gym this week (and suffering for it - I'm so sore tonight).
TRS 2.0 still hasn't been launched. I haven't had the $$ to do so unfortunately. But I'm still working on it very, very slowly. It has social media presence now. And it turns out that the husband isn't as supportive of it as he'd originally led me to believe. All he thinks about is himself, and what will happen in his business! I guess I can understand that to a degree. But still, he's gotten to the point now where he just rolls his eyes at the mere mention of TRS 2.0. I'm over him. I'm over his business. It's honestly causing me mental health issues that I've found myself dealing with. Nothing extreme, but there's definitely a degree of depression lingering around that I've found difficult to shake.
And there you have it, my friends, two years in a very small nutshell.
I'm going to try and keep TTWP a little more updated moving forward....let's see how we go.
Till next time...
Monday, October 19, 2015
Just when you think everthing's going hunky dory...
Something comes and smacks you in the face as if to say "don't be so STUPID, girl!"
It's like taking two steps forwad, and then being pushed back one step.
My move to commercial work only has been good, on the whole. We picked up a factory relatively straight away, and then we picked up a commercial building on the fringe of the CBD which we're just starting now, and we've also picked up a juicy industrial subdivision complex with civil works as well. So we've got a nice pipeline till the end of next year we think.
Anyway....here's the thing...when you do a job you actually want to be paid, don't you? I certainly do. I'm not here to pay for the assets owned by someone else.
I'm pretty sure I've mentioned this factory job once or twice before. It's a rebuild after a fire. The fire happened in late 2013 and after the clients stuffed around with insurance assessors and goodness knows what else, we were contracted at the end of October 2014.
How we got the job was that we were friends of the owners. Our boys all go to the same school, and play in the same school sport teams and club sports teams. We've become family friends. Family friends means that our family and their family would get together regularly. We went away on holidays together. We all got along very well. The men had common sport threads. The wife and I just got along because we had very similar thoughts and values (or so I thought). So when it came time to find a builder they asked us if we wanted to tender.
Naturally we tendered, but it was made very clear to us that the insurance assessors would be running the tender and the client's have no say in the eventual appointed builder. I wouldn't expect it to be any other way. Needless to say, it was a very competative tender situation, but we won out in the end, and works commenced late October /early November, 2014.
With the exception of a 40-odd day delay due to something needing to be redesigned, things progressed very smoothly throughout the job. We sent the invoice to the client and the insurance assessor, and 7 or so days later, it was paid in full directly into my bank account. The job flowed nicely.
As the end of the job approached, on 02nd August to be exact, we had a family dinner combined business meeting with the client, and he looked at me fair and square in the eyes and said your money is safe.
YOUR MONEY IS SAFE.
Thank god I keep notes of meetings!
I submit my final progress claim and I hear nothing. A week goes by, nothing. Ten days goes by, no one is answering my emails. I start to wonder....
Finally I receive a phone call and a meeting is scheduled for 07th September. At this meeting I'm advised that the insurance company has closed their file and they have no money to fund the final progress claim (which was $436,000 in total). The client says that they've engaged a new accountant to go over their books as they're leaking money and they'll need to enter into a payment arrangement with us. They said they didn't know they were at their limits of their sums insured. How someone doesn't know this is beyond me. I send a progress claim each month that tells them what the adjusted contract sum is, how much they've paid and what's remaining as their cost to complete. They receive a report after each payment is made by the insurance assessor telling them what their sum insured is, how much has been paid out and the balance left. So how they can say they didn't know is beyond me! It's fraud - plain and simple.
Then, to add salt to the wound, they sold their home in the southern suburbs of Sydney for $2.1m. And they bought a new home in Inner West for $2.2m. They need a 10% deposit for that. Plus money for stampt duty as well.
We left the meeting with him saying that he'll submit a payment arrangement to us in writing within a few days. I immediately followed up with an email saying that we expect a payment of at least $230k to allow for payment to flow to the major subcontractors who are waiting to be paid, and the remaining $200k we can consider a slower arrangement to help them out.
That was on 07th September.
Today is 19th October and I still haven't received that payment arrangement in writing.
What I did receive was a telephone call saying his accountant will only authorise $10,000 per month.
All of a sudden I've put a shingle that says "BANK" on my front door? I don't fucking think so.
I told him no, and we ended up screaming at each other. I immediatley sent another email reiterating our previous position that we're willing to agree to $230k now with a slower arrangement for the remainder.
Haven't heard from them since.
But in the meantime their son tells my son "we've moved around the corner, but don't tell your parents". When my asked why their son said "i don't know but my parents said not to tell you".
Sadly, I've had to commence legal recovery action, and it hurts. It's making me very upset and I'm going down this path kicking and screaming, yet resolute to recover my funds. I had a relationship with these people. They were friends. The abuse of trust is crushing and heartbreaking.
Last week we filed our Statement of Claim in the courts against his company (my contract is with his company, and he has signed a personal guarantee). It's been stamped and returned, and today he was served. We're also filing a motion for Summary Judgement given the matter falls within the Securities of Payment Act and he hasn't provided us with a payment arrangement, so he's prohibited from lodging any form of defence against our action therefore we don't need to wait the 28 days for his defence before being awarded judgement.
Once we receive all those then we can apply to garnish his bank accounts and then proceed to wind up his company and force the disposal of the company owned assets - which according to them should fetch about $4.5m on the open market - but they do have debt over them.
And failing that, we need to also go after him personally under the personal guarantee. He'll have nothing because once the company is folded then he has no source of income therefore no means of meeting his mortgage obligations on the house he bought in the Inner West.
Sadly, I think he may be well and truly fucked....
But in the meantime, so am I. I have a job in the CBD that I need to fund and I have subcontractors that I need to pay who worked on the factory job. I can't do both. All my money is sitting in that job.
Despite all the law I have on my side I have little chance of recovering my funds. Once the banks get wind of what's going on they'll foreclose and sell for a song....they only care about themselves, no one else.
This industry MUST CHANGE. The builders can not continue to take financial risk on other people's assets - it just doesn't make sense. Sadly, no one has the balls to do anything about it - not industry, not government. And what can I do...I'm just one lonely female voice.
Till next time....
It's like taking two steps forwad, and then being pushed back one step.
My move to commercial work only has been good, on the whole. We picked up a factory relatively straight away, and then we picked up a commercial building on the fringe of the CBD which we're just starting now, and we've also picked up a juicy industrial subdivision complex with civil works as well. So we've got a nice pipeline till the end of next year we think.
Anyway....here's the thing...when you do a job you actually want to be paid, don't you? I certainly do. I'm not here to pay for the assets owned by someone else.
I'm pretty sure I've mentioned this factory job once or twice before. It's a rebuild after a fire. The fire happened in late 2013 and after the clients stuffed around with insurance assessors and goodness knows what else, we were contracted at the end of October 2014.
How we got the job was that we were friends of the owners. Our boys all go to the same school, and play in the same school sport teams and club sports teams. We've become family friends. Family friends means that our family and their family would get together regularly. We went away on holidays together. We all got along very well. The men had common sport threads. The wife and I just got along because we had very similar thoughts and values (or so I thought). So when it came time to find a builder they asked us if we wanted to tender.
Naturally we tendered, but it was made very clear to us that the insurance assessors would be running the tender and the client's have no say in the eventual appointed builder. I wouldn't expect it to be any other way. Needless to say, it was a very competative tender situation, but we won out in the end, and works commenced late October /early November, 2014.
With the exception of a 40-odd day delay due to something needing to be redesigned, things progressed very smoothly throughout the job. We sent the invoice to the client and the insurance assessor, and 7 or so days later, it was paid in full directly into my bank account. The job flowed nicely.
As the end of the job approached, on 02nd August to be exact, we had a family dinner combined business meeting with the client, and he looked at me fair and square in the eyes and said your money is safe.
YOUR MONEY IS SAFE.
Thank god I keep notes of meetings!
I submit my final progress claim and I hear nothing. A week goes by, nothing. Ten days goes by, no one is answering my emails. I start to wonder....
Finally I receive a phone call and a meeting is scheduled for 07th September. At this meeting I'm advised that the insurance company has closed their file and they have no money to fund the final progress claim (which was $436,000 in total). The client says that they've engaged a new accountant to go over their books as they're leaking money and they'll need to enter into a payment arrangement with us. They said they didn't know they were at their limits of their sums insured. How someone doesn't know this is beyond me. I send a progress claim each month that tells them what the adjusted contract sum is, how much they've paid and what's remaining as their cost to complete. They receive a report after each payment is made by the insurance assessor telling them what their sum insured is, how much has been paid out and the balance left. So how they can say they didn't know is beyond me! It's fraud - plain and simple.
Then, to add salt to the wound, they sold their home in the southern suburbs of Sydney for $2.1m. And they bought a new home in Inner West for $2.2m. They need a 10% deposit for that. Plus money for stampt duty as well.
We left the meeting with him saying that he'll submit a payment arrangement to us in writing within a few days. I immediately followed up with an email saying that we expect a payment of at least $230k to allow for payment to flow to the major subcontractors who are waiting to be paid, and the remaining $200k we can consider a slower arrangement to help them out.
That was on 07th September.
Today is 19th October and I still haven't received that payment arrangement in writing.
What I did receive was a telephone call saying his accountant will only authorise $10,000 per month.
All of a sudden I've put a shingle that says "BANK" on my front door? I don't fucking think so.
I told him no, and we ended up screaming at each other. I immediatley sent another email reiterating our previous position that we're willing to agree to $230k now with a slower arrangement for the remainder.
Haven't heard from them since.
But in the meantime their son tells my son "we've moved around the corner, but don't tell your parents". When my asked why their son said "i don't know but my parents said not to tell you".
Sadly, I've had to commence legal recovery action, and it hurts. It's making me very upset and I'm going down this path kicking and screaming, yet resolute to recover my funds. I had a relationship with these people. They were friends. The abuse of trust is crushing and heartbreaking.
Last week we filed our Statement of Claim in the courts against his company (my contract is with his company, and he has signed a personal guarantee). It's been stamped and returned, and today he was served. We're also filing a motion for Summary Judgement given the matter falls within the Securities of Payment Act and he hasn't provided us with a payment arrangement, so he's prohibited from lodging any form of defence against our action therefore we don't need to wait the 28 days for his defence before being awarded judgement.
Once we receive all those then we can apply to garnish his bank accounts and then proceed to wind up his company and force the disposal of the company owned assets - which according to them should fetch about $4.5m on the open market - but they do have debt over them.
And failing that, we need to also go after him personally under the personal guarantee. He'll have nothing because once the company is folded then he has no source of income therefore no means of meeting his mortgage obligations on the house he bought in the Inner West.
Sadly, I think he may be well and truly fucked....
But in the meantime, so am I. I have a job in the CBD that I need to fund and I have subcontractors that I need to pay who worked on the factory job. I can't do both. All my money is sitting in that job.
Despite all the law I have on my side I have little chance of recovering my funds. Once the banks get wind of what's going on they'll foreclose and sell for a song....they only care about themselves, no one else.
This industry MUST CHANGE. The builders can not continue to take financial risk on other people's assets - it just doesn't make sense. Sadly, no one has the balls to do anything about it - not industry, not government. And what can I do...I'm just one lonely female voice.
Till next time....
Thursday, July 16, 2015
Legislation please...
Cyclists are to motorists as mosquitoes are to guests at a barbeque; pesky, annoying and you just want to squish them!
This morning I heard on the radio that there's talk of identifying and legislating cyclists.
Well, it's about bloody time.
These people are a nuisance on the road. Why? Because they can get away with it! We have no idea who they are. They treat the road as if they're the only people on it, and their blatant disregard of the road rules is appauling.
Identify them. Make them pay rego. Then they can get pinged for each rule they break and then, maybe just then, the may get the respect that they so crave.
Till next time....
This morning I heard on the radio that there's talk of identifying and legislating cyclists.
Well, it's about bloody time.
These people are a nuisance on the road. Why? Because they can get away with it! We have no idea who they are. They treat the road as if they're the only people on it, and their blatant disregard of the road rules is appauling.
Identify them. Make them pay rego. Then they can get pinged for each rule they break and then, maybe just then, the may get the respect that they so crave.
Till next time....
Wednesday, July 15, 2015
Look out, pedestrians about...
Pedestrian crossings were invented to enable pedestrians to cross a road safely in the absence of traffic lights.
When I was a child I was taught that pedestrians have right of way. I was also taught, however, that when approaching a pedestrian crossing, I'm to stop at the crossing and WAIT for the oncoming cars to stop before I enter the crossing (assuming there are cars, of course).
A pedestrian's right of way does not give them the right to just walk across a pedestrian crossing and just expect that a car will stop for them. In alot of instances I've observed - especially in the Inner West of Sydney - they don't even look around them to see if there are any cars approaching....they simply walk across the crossing with their heads looking straight ahead, and expect people in cars to slam on their brakes and just stop for them.
Who the hell do they think they are???
Yes, use pedestrian crossings, but use them properly!
Till next time....
When I was a child I was taught that pedestrians have right of way. I was also taught, however, that when approaching a pedestrian crossing, I'm to stop at the crossing and WAIT for the oncoming cars to stop before I enter the crossing (assuming there are cars, of course).
A pedestrian's right of way does not give them the right to just walk across a pedestrian crossing and just expect that a car will stop for them. In alot of instances I've observed - especially in the Inner West of Sydney - they don't even look around them to see if there are any cars approaching....they simply walk across the crossing with their heads looking straight ahead, and expect people in cars to slam on their brakes and just stop for them.
Who the hell do they think they are???
Yes, use pedestrian crossings, but use them properly!
Till next time....
Sunday, July 12, 2015
Simplicity at its best...
I love observing people. And I especially love talking to people and discovering the little things that light them up.
And I've come to the conclusion that we really are simple creatures, and there are really only two main things that drive our actions; sex and ego.
Till next time...
And I've come to the conclusion that we really are simple creatures, and there are really only two main things that drive our actions; sex and ego.
Till next time...
Thursday, July 9, 2015
A Snail's Pace...
Last night I was having an email conversation with a friend and something in that conversation prompted me to review my blog today. As I was reading through it I found this post here and I must provide a brief update.
The TRS 2.0 is still very much on the agenda. I shared my plans with a couple of the mums at my son's school who know of the hardships I've endured recently and they've all commented that this decision is the best I've made in the 5 or so years we've known each other, and they've further commented that I'm so much happier since making that decision. I can't help but agree with them on that count - I have been happier.....there's something nice, comforting, about having a direction to head toward. And I'm so, so, so excited about having my own thing again. My own career, my own identity, my own goals, dreams and aspirations.
Anyway, at the beginning of this year I set about updating my education (with my husband's full and complete support and encouragement). This was all simple enough. I explained to the trainer about my previous qualifications and education and he made me sit 5 exams to test me. I passed (naturally) and got a piece of paper that says I'm now smart enough to apply for yet another piece of paper that will allow me to work in the industry.
I applied for that piece of paper at the end of February 2015 and was requested to submit additional further information due to the fact that my empire collapsed in 2010 and I was a director of the controlling company. I expected it. I submitted a 100-page submission in mid May.
Finally, finally I got my precious qualification last week. It was really bizzare. I was sitting here at my desk at 10.15 in the morning feeling somewhat frustrated at how slow things move and I decided to just do a quick on-line check of how my application was going. I kid you not - the qualification was approved that morning. Given that it was only 10.15 when I made the check, one can only assume it was approved in the preceding hour. Nice little sign from the Universe, I thought.
And I got the hard-copy of my precious qualification just this morning, so I'm super excited now. Since making the decision about establishing TRS 2.0 I've held the view that once my qualifications are sorted out the right opportunities will make their way to me - I now need to be on guard and receptive.
In other parts of life I've returned to the gym with renewed vigour. I dumped all my group classes and graduated to the free weights and power racks section of the gym. This week I recorded my first weights....60kg deadlift from the hang, 30kg deadlift and a 30kg front squat. Pretty proud of my efforts given it was actually the first time I've ever deadlifted!! And I'm back doing HIIT a few times a week - managed to get back up to 10 rounds, plus reduced the off time to 1min50sec down from 2min. My body is becoming very efficient at the cardio. And people have started to comment and compliment me on the changes in my body composition, which is always nice to hear!
On the existing work front things are going OK. The move to strictly commercial work has proved to be a sound one. We picked up a factory re-build which is nearing completion, and we're about to start on the construction of a new 5 storey commercial building on the outskirts of the CBD - and we're very pleased with that win. Plus we've been invited to tender on a marvelous factory complex in the inner west as well - and that one is very, very exciting. So, things seem to be on the improve.
So, that's it in a nutshell.
Till next time...
The TRS 2.0 is still very much on the agenda. I shared my plans with a couple of the mums at my son's school who know of the hardships I've endured recently and they've all commented that this decision is the best I've made in the 5 or so years we've known each other, and they've further commented that I'm so much happier since making that decision. I can't help but agree with them on that count - I have been happier.....there's something nice, comforting, about having a direction to head toward. And I'm so, so, so excited about having my own thing again. My own career, my own identity, my own goals, dreams and aspirations.
Anyway, at the beginning of this year I set about updating my education (with my husband's full and complete support and encouragement). This was all simple enough. I explained to the trainer about my previous qualifications and education and he made me sit 5 exams to test me. I passed (naturally) and got a piece of paper that says I'm now smart enough to apply for yet another piece of paper that will allow me to work in the industry.
I applied for that piece of paper at the end of February 2015 and was requested to submit additional further information due to the fact that my empire collapsed in 2010 and I was a director of the controlling company. I expected it. I submitted a 100-page submission in mid May.
Finally, finally I got my precious qualification last week. It was really bizzare. I was sitting here at my desk at 10.15 in the morning feeling somewhat frustrated at how slow things move and I decided to just do a quick on-line check of how my application was going. I kid you not - the qualification was approved that morning. Given that it was only 10.15 when I made the check, one can only assume it was approved in the preceding hour. Nice little sign from the Universe, I thought.
And I got the hard-copy of my precious qualification just this morning, so I'm super excited now. Since making the decision about establishing TRS 2.0 I've held the view that once my qualifications are sorted out the right opportunities will make their way to me - I now need to be on guard and receptive.
In other parts of life I've returned to the gym with renewed vigour. I dumped all my group classes and graduated to the free weights and power racks section of the gym. This week I recorded my first weights....60kg deadlift from the hang, 30kg deadlift and a 30kg front squat. Pretty proud of my efforts given it was actually the first time I've ever deadlifted!! And I'm back doing HIIT a few times a week - managed to get back up to 10 rounds, plus reduced the off time to 1min50sec down from 2min. My body is becoming very efficient at the cardio. And people have started to comment and compliment me on the changes in my body composition, which is always nice to hear!
On the existing work front things are going OK. The move to strictly commercial work has proved to be a sound one. We picked up a factory re-build which is nearing completion, and we're about to start on the construction of a new 5 storey commercial building on the outskirts of the CBD - and we're very pleased with that win. Plus we've been invited to tender on a marvelous factory complex in the inner west as well - and that one is very, very exciting. So, things seem to be on the improve.
So, that's it in a nutshell.
Till next time...
Tuesday, February 24, 2015
What Isis Really Wants....
Naturally people are talking about all the looniness going on lately. A very good friend of mine (thank you McS) passed me this article:
The Islamic State is no mere collection of psychopaths. It is a religious group with carefully considered beliefs, among them that it is a key agent of the coming apocalypse. Here’s what that means for its strategy—and for how to stop it....
Read the entire article here: http://www.theatlantic.com/features/archive/2015/02/what-isis-really-wants/384980/ but I warn you in advance that it is long and confronting in parts. But mostly it's very concerning.
Note: there is a 15 second advert before you get to the article.
Till next time...
Friday, February 13, 2015
Happy St. Valentine's Day...
Blah, and bah humbug.
I just can not stand St. Valentine's day. Nor can I stand Halloween or any other "tradition" made up by marketeers to encourage the masses to spend more money. Even the modern day Christmas and Easter get on my nerves because of the overwhelming commercialisation of it all.
But in saying that I won't criticise anyone who does choose to celebrate St. Valentine's day. I will criticise those who celebrate Halloween though!
Now, I have a best friend. Her name is KMHL. As I was driving home this morning it occurred to me that if I say her initials as a word and say them quickly they rather sound like Camel! lol
LOL...oh my goodness, the things my brain comes up with sometimes. Sorry KMHL. But it is funny. I literally am laughing out loud to myself right now.
Anyway, back to the point.
I've known her near on 20 years, and she's the only person who knows me well, and I know her equally as well. There's something so nice about a relationship like that. There's no pretending, there's no filtering, we just are the way we are - and we get each other. She's the funniest person I've ever met.
I guessed last week that she was up to something when she asked me for my postal address and how often I clear my mail, but the thought left my mind....till this morning.
You've been reading my blog, Missy! And that was very naughty of you. But thank you!! I love you, and I'm so glad it's you whose weirdness is compatible with my weirdness!
I was particularly impressed with the wrapping paper and the double sided tape - the detail, hun!! Love it. mwah mwah
And I have to say what a lovely way to celebrate St. Valentine's day; celebrating friendship.
Didn't I say recently that I have awesome friends??
Till next time...
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