New Spa

Two weekends in a row of golf both Saturday and Sunday and it was time for a new hot tub. Darla and I have missed the hot tub over the last five years and although we didn't have a perfect spot for it, we were able to fit it in next to the air conditioning enclosure and by the window to the guest bedroom. We ended up pulling it away from the house because of the lifting mechanism that lifts the cover and drops it folded behind the spa. Darla thinks it is too far out into the deck, but I think it works. I am absolutely loving having a hot tub to soak in after my golf rounds and Darla and I have been in the spa four times already since we had it installed on Friday. The install didn't go without a hitch as one of the motors was not coming on and it just got hot. The installers had to pull the old motor and install a new one at no charge to us. It is a used spa, but the people who bought it never used it. The wife surprised her husband with the spa and he never liked it. They used it a total of about 5 times and gave up on it, draining it and having it just sit in their backyard until they finally decided to sell it. It is a 6'x7' Vita Spa and it sold new for $5,400 with the cover, lifter and steps. We bought it from Spa Doctors here in Roseville, the company that repaired our old spa. They sold it to us used for $2690 and threw in a years worth of chemicals, a one year warranty and delivery and installation.

 I paid separately to have the electrical lines run. Their electrician wanted $800 for the job, but I have two friends in the golf league that are electricians. Steve offered to do it for $400, but couldn't get to it until next weekend. Charlie came out and said he'd do it for less than $500. He runs a business and was having one of his employees come out with him to do the job. They came out Wednesday and had the lines run and the breaker box installed by 2 PM. He wanted $450 for the job, but I was so impressed with his professionalism and follow through on the job that I paid him $500. So all said and done the spa was $3,100. It will get good use by both Darla and I.

We had a contractor come out this week and give us a bid to have our master bathroom upgraded with a new tub, shower enclosure, new cabinets, granite counter tops, tiled shower, tiled tub surround, new fixtures, new faucets, sinks, new tile floor, and new paint and mirrors. The bid came in at $14,000 and we will likely decide to have the master bedroom closet redone by 3 Day Closets or California Closets and have the tile floor, counter tops, fixtures, sinks, and mirrors done along with new paint in the bathroom. I will have both 3 Day Closets and California Closets out this week to give us a bid on redoing the closet. It has been a real pain for Darla ever since we moved in and we need to have a new Closet Organizer to help us fit our clothes in the closet more efficiently.

I have two new employees starting this week, one tomorrow and one on Tuesday so help is on the way. The problem short term is that we have to train these people and get them up to speed. We finished the month up 20% on net income and 10% on written premium. I think it may be our best month ever because of the circumstances. We had both the gut check of Anthony walking out on us and the disruption of a month end move to overcome. We did it and both Matt and Peter had great new business months as they were number 2 and 4 in the region for new business in April. I will take the gang out to the Old Spaghetti Factory on Thursday and just pray that none of my other employees decides to pick that afternoon to walk out on me.

I talked to Jennifer last night and she has been working ten hour days this last week on a project. The temperature is headed to 97 degrees in Las Vegas by Friday and she will take her truck in next Saturday to finally have a leak in the air conditioning lines fixed and then new freon installed. Sam is doing great and they had been at a dog show yesterday and Sam got to see and play with a lot of the dogs.

We have plans to meet up with Jennifer and Samantha in Pismo Beach the weekend of June 10th. The boys both graduate from Cal Poly on Sunday and we will be there from Friday night until Monday. The place we have reserved is a block from the beach and is a two bedroom condo. We will have to really enjoy our time at the beach with Samantha as we found out this week that she won't be able to go to Lake Almanor. Her Dad has a family reunion in Colorado the same week and Jennifer agreed to let Sam go to that as she will be meeting family members that she has never seen. The agreement is that Sam will be able to go with Jennifer to Almanor every other year. Jennifer will still come up for about five days and use the jet ski and have a fun family time. Sam will really be missed and I have to tell you I was pretty bummed about the whole thing.

I played in the first two days of the 54 hole Individual Championship this weekend. I am in the second flight and there are 23 players in my flight. I stand in 5th place with a two day total of -1. The leader is at -6 and then it drops to -3 and down to me. I likely won't win unless I go low next Saturday and the leader implodes, but I have a better score than 18 other guys in the flight. It was a windy weekend and a lot of the golfers struggled in the wind. I shot 82 on Saturday and 85 today with my 12 handicap. I honestly don't know how I held it together as well as I did, because the driver is still giving me fits. I talked to one of the pros today and asked him to give me a one hour lesson this week and just concentrate on the driver. I'm hitting the rest of my clubs pretty well, I'm just struggling to get the ball in the fairway. I'm sure it will be a simple fix, but I need a professional to take a look and give me a few tips to improve.

We went to church last night and then to dinner at the Elephant Bar. It was a nice couple time for Darla and I and the sermon series is on How to Protect your Family in these trying times. The music was great as always and the message spot on. It is such a joy to belong to a great church. I hope you are all well, seeking Jesus constantly and living a life of peace and joy. Be well. Ciao.