Change of plan

M. Torelli was very apologetic that he couldn't make it here on Friday - there is a lady whose boiler had stopped working, and he went there to try to fix it. As it is, she's going to be without hot water until Wednesday. I hope I sufficiently conveyed to him that he took the right course of action, and I hope anyone's emergency would trump planned works that are already delayed.

I did manage to sneak into the conversation that I was able to profit from his absence then by asking him to make a minor change to the plumbing for upstairs. He was very gracious about it - I've added roughly 1.5m to the length of his drain run, done away with a future [putative] doorway, and moved a corridor.

And gained a box room!

We've got various things that we need to store [sun umbrellas & their bases, spare chairs etc] that we really miss having a cellar. Our cellars here are not dry enough to put anything down there that would be affected by the damp, and the barn is completely open on one side. So having a little room/glorified cupboard will be a *win*!

The plumbing is being held up by the absence of a plaquiste, but M. Torelli says he will do what he can tomorrow and then it will have to wait.

M. Alain is getting on with finishing around the window opening [and didn't turn his nose up at my bricks; hurrah!].

M. Mazij snr came and measured the height under the beams in the corridor upstairs: (when the panel-board is down) it will be 2.06m under one and 1.96m under the other. With the planned floorboards [to come later], that will reduce it by another 3cm or so.

Now I'm torn - I really don't like making a fuss, and don't want M. Mazij jnr to hate me forever [he's fun to talk with, and his face makes me smile!], but neither beam clearance is the promised 2.15m with floorboard. My brother at 6'4" is 1.93m, and other friends are equally tall, I think.

I don't know how much of this is being pissed off at the changes made by T+B without our consent/because they don't listen, and how much really is wanting the corridor to be nicer...

If there was no issues, I would go for the corridor without a step up [especially now we will have a box room at the end of it], but as the joists are already in place, should we just accept that some people will have to duck?

I really do need some advice on this!