November 12, 2025
Was I at all surprised to
awaken this past Sunday morning to find a lot of white stuff in the back yard
and clinging to the cedar trees? No, I most certainly was not. Was I happy
about it?
No, I most certainly was not.
Two days before, on Friday,
the road construction crew had begun to lay the asphalt. Having lived in this
town for many years now, I can tell you that they appear to have what one might
call an asphalt protocol. They lay a coat of asphalt on the newly prepared
roadway, and it’s definitely an improvement over the dirt and gravel soup that
had been there for the last few months.
And then, come the next
spring, they will lay a new layer of asphalt over the one that weathered
through winter, and that coat will be pretty and smooth, and maybe even all
painted with lines and such. Now the more curious among you might ask, “Morgan,
are you sure that’s a protocol and not just perennial poor timing?”
No, I am not sure, not one
bit. But I don’t waste time thinking about it overmuch. I just figure that
there are some questions one encounters in life to which the answer is simply
unknowable by us mere humans.
While I wasn’t unhappy with the arrival of the
cold weather a couple weeks back, seeing nearly six inches of snow on the
ground by the end of Sunday was another matter entirely. The asphalt is down,
as I said, and the road is drivable. However, the road crew had a small “oops”
and so the project manager informed us, just last Thursday, that they would fix
that “oops” before the snow flies.
He seemed a fairly smart
fellow and I don’t think I will bother to point out to him that the snow did
indeed fly before that “minor” fix could be accomplished.
The problem? The project
manager had informed the crew to install a drop curb in front of my walkway (as
they do for driveways), so that I would have access to the street, and this
they did not do.
I can’t decide if it’s just
unfortunate or if it’s punishment for that crew, that when the new curb was
examined they discovered that it had been laid more than little off, and so
they are now going to have to not just cut out the curb in front of my walkway,
but from the walkway to the corner—where that curb curls around the corner all
wrong and crooked-like.
My husband is very unhappy
about the situation. He’s become a bit more of a crabby Appleton these last
several months. I completely understand. There’s something about making the
change from being an able-bodied member of society to one who can’t do much of
anything at all that is certain to sour anyone’s disposition.
Maybe my attitude toward this
minor hiccup is different because of my having had to live with adjusting
beyond the “able bodied” category for a few decades, now. I look at the
situation, and I understand that the curb must be fixed, period.
I also know I’ve done my part.
I attended the public meeting back in March and I met the project manager at
that time. I was concerned when I learned that when the road was done, there
would only be one sidewalk – and it wouldn’t be on our side of the street. I
explained to him that I was disabled and concerned that I wouldn’t be able to safely
step over the curb to the street. The gentleman was very kind and said that if
I would send him photos of my walkway as it was at the time, then he would
ensure that I would have access. In May we learned that the project would begin
mid-to-end of July. Mid July, I sent the gentleman an email, with the pictures
I had taken as an attachment.
He responded to my email,
thanking me for sending what he had requested, and told me that once the work
was underway, he would meet with me and show me what they had in mind.
When I saw the curb had been
laid, and there was no “drop curb”, I contacted his office. The manager was
unavailable, but I spoke with the department’s engineer. She acknowledged that they
were aware that there had been a failure of communication, and the situation
would be resolved.
Then last week, I saw the
manager and the engineer outside my office window, looking at that failure in real
time, and I made my way outside. He then told me that as well as putting in my
drop curb, an entire chunk of the curb had to be replaced as it was off spec.
He said that it would be done at the soonest possible moment. And yes, he said “before
the snow flies”, and now we have snow.
As far as I am concerned, I’ve
done almost all of my part. It only remains for me to be patient and let them
do theirs.
Love,
Morgan
http://www.bookstrand.com/morgan-ashbury
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