Light (Photo credit: Road Fun)

Yesterday has got to be amongst the worst days I have ever experienced at work. Everything started off well, got up spent some time in prayer, washed, dressed and down for breakfast before driving off to the only job I had scheduled for the day. The job was simple enough, simply replacing two ceiling light fittings for an old lady a few miles away. Normally I would have expected to be back home an hour or so later but when I arrived I found that the job was to fit one ceiling fitting and two wall lights then check why the doorbell wasn’t working and replace some parts on a cooker! The last two jobs I had completed within a half hour before tackling the ceiling fitting. Taking the old one down was simple enough as was fitting the new one but then there was the fitting of all the tiny bulbs and lampshades, a time-consuming job if ever there was one. The new light worked perfectly, however, unnoticed by myself but not by the lady was the fact that the lower part of the fitting seemed mis-aligned. Before she had pointed out the problem I had taken one of the wall lights down and replaced it not noticing that a part of it had snapped off, in transit I presumed. Hard to spot as the light was quite ornate and the small part was easy to miss. It was whilst I was fitting the lampshades that I discovered the piece that had broken off and I decided to remove the whole unit which then could be exchanged together with the ceiling fitting. I attempted to repair the problem with the ceiling fitting but found it impossible. It had simply been manufactured poorly. The lady was adamant that she wanted it replacing which is fair enough although personally I wouldn’t have bothered had it been fitted in my own house. It wasn’t that bad. Nonetheless I asked where she had purchased the fittings and I duly telephoned the store which is located in the heart of my town. I had problems getting through to their lighting department but isn’t that usually the way? After a long discussion they agreed to exchange them both. The other wall light was perfect and didn’t require exchanging. The store personnel informed me that the fittings would either have to be returned via the  delivery agent who would collect them in due course or they would have to be taken directly to the store to be replaced. I explained that it would be impossible for the old lady to return them and collect new ones because of the size and weight so they suggested I do it for her! Well I do go out of my way sometimes in my job but to ask a contractor to do things like this is never the usual practice as the customer would have to be invoiced for the time. It sounds a simple task but when making a journey into the heart of town involves not being able to park a vehicle anywhere near the store in question it does become a problem. My job is to fit the lights, not to go chasing after getting replacements even with the best will in the world, especially as I might have other appointments to keep. I asked the store staff if there was another way and they suggested I pack the broken fittings into the box they came in and they would send a taxi with the replacements and at the same time collect the broken ones, returning them to the store. A round trip of about six miles and far easier because taxi drivers are allowed to park close to the store without being booked for doing so. So that’s what they did and it took a mere forty minutes as opposed to probably two hours had I had to do it. It wasn’t long before I fitted the new lights but found to my dismay that the new ceiling replacement was making a loud buzzing noise! The internal transformer supplying the low-voltage lamps was at fault. Unbelievable! Now these transformers do sometimes buzz a little on occasion but I emphasise a little, not enough to be audible unless one is very close to them. This one could be heard in the adjacent room! It had to be replaced again. Now by this time my patience was wearing a bit thin, I had been at the house for four and a half hours when I should only have been there an hour or so. I telephoned the store yet again and was cut off twice. When I finally got through I was told that this time the lights would have to be returned by the customer or her agent. I explained this to the lady and proceeded to remove the ceiling light so the she could return it by whatever means she could. She said she would probably get someone to do that for her but thanked me for all the time and effort in trying to resolve things for her. Unfortunately she has had to pay me for the four and a half hours work and will have to pay me again to fit the replacements. That is simply business. During my time at her house I received a call to exchange another light fitting in another property but had to call them later in the morning to say I would be delayed but that I would be there sometime in the afternoon, which I duly did. I was to be informed as to when I could return to the first job. On arrival at the other house I discovered I needed to use the larger ladder which is normally kept locked on top of the van. Getting inside I found the ceiling higher than I had first though and wondered if even my large ladder would be adequate. I managed to remove the huge chandelier and proceeded to prepare the new replacement, eventually screwing the new bracket to the ceiling  and connecting the new light to the circuit cable. I couldn’t quite reach the bracket in order to attach the light fitting itself, I needed about 15cm more height to be able to do it safely. Finally I found another ladder which I strapped to mine and with the guy holding the ladder firmly I was able to attach the light to its bracket. It is very rare to find such high ceilings enough to warrant having an extra ladder that might only be used once every few years. So the light worked ok but now was the painstaking task of fitting all the paraphernalia, the glassware and chains to complete the job. That took me twice as long as it took me just to put the fitting up! The guy paid me more than I’d asked as he realised the job wasn’t as easy as anticipated. So I eventually arrived home late in the afternoon, rather hungry as I had missed lunch. I set about preparing a meal and then ate it. I had no longer sat down in the lounge when the old lady phoned and explained that she had been able to procure new light fittings from the same store but that she had gone for a completely different model. However she now wants the two new wall lights I had fitted to be removed so that she can return all three units before she can obtain the new ones! She needs all three lights to be of the same design. I have offered to go there this morning and disconnect and remove the wall lights so that she can return all three together. I am now scheduled to do it all again on Monday. This is called taking the rough with the smooth I guess but crikey…..I hope this time all will go well……..I knew I should have stayed in bed. Who’d be an electrician?

Shirley Anne