School
I thought 2020 was challenging but 2021 had its own crazy challenges. Our challenges started at the beginning of the year when my High School Junior son lost TOTAL INTEREST in school from doing school online. He was depressed and felt that he was so isolated. Being an asthmatic, he was not ready to go back to school. To make matters worse his friends who were at school were constantly in quarantine because somebody in their classes had been exposed to the Rona.
Our House
On February the 16th 2021 during Winter Storm Uri a pipe burst between our kitchen and laundry. Our living room, dining room and kitchen were flooded. It was one of the most traumatic events I had ever been through. We were at home when it happened but could not find the water shut-off.
I don’t do well with having my house torn up. This was traumatic from dealing with the insurance company, to hiring a public adjuster. Our public adjuster seemed very quiet because he died 3 months after we hired him. We did not know that. We found that out in August when we sent an email to fire him. Also, our insurance contact person became quiet, and eventually, I found out he was in the hospital. He did not make it either. It is hard to communicate from the grave!
Dear Clients I now feel your pain
I have worked with many clients who were recovering from floods and my degree of empathy has been raised tremendously. It is very inconvenient to live in the dust. After 6 weeks I called the insurance company and they said that we have $60.000 available to relocate temporarily. Why did nobody tell us that?
During this time I stopped taking on new clients because it was all too much for me.
Even though it was all a pain, with the help of LG Appliances, Beyond floors.net, Emser tile and some friends and people I had worked with for years, our kitchen was completed by the end of July. I turned our project in a One Room Challenge. See my final reveal here.
I have to be honest that I wanted to remodel the kitchen but was just not ready to do it then. We received very little money from the insurance company but the job got done.
The upside
What do you ask is the upside of this kitchen remodel?
I got a kitchen I love in a bright green. I love to cook and entertain. Oh well, that was long ago sigh.
Our kitchen was featured in the Houston Chronicle in the Lifestyles section twice.
One of the best kitchens in 2021 in Houston!
IT DID NOT END THERE
My son had a job at a hotel working at the pool. He enjoyed his job. On September 12th an umbrella stand fell on his foot and broke it. We reverted back to the time he was in Mother’s Morning out or something like that.
I had to drop him off at school. Carpool sucks! (He used to ride the bus but there were no accommodations for somebody with a knee scooter or just a handicapped person at all). School for him ended at 12.20pm when I had to pick him up.
It was tough scheduling my business around that. It was tough for him to get around with a broken foot. Two weeks on crutches were miserable. At least he got a knee scooter after that. It was all done through workman’s comp which was not a pleasant experience. It is nice to be 17 when you break a bone because healing is fast. By the end of October he was out of his boot.
Our overseas trip
The last time I went to see my mom was in 2019. She had fallen a few times and I knew I had to go and see her now. My biggest fear was that I would get stuck in South Africa. So on the 16th of November my son and I went to go and see my mom. It was a great time to go because of the Thanksgiving school holiday.
I got sick on our second flight on Qatar Airways. Must have been the flu. Three Covid tests were negative. I was sick for 2 weeks in South Africa. Two days before we were supposed to leave the Omricon variant was discovered. Qatar Airways announced in a tweet only, that they would stop flying out of South Africa!! My nightmare became true. We found another flight back a week later at great expense.
The Rona
Two weeks after we returned I came down with Covid. I ended the crazy year in quarantine. Crazy ending to a weird and stressful year.
The OTHER good things that happened in 2021
Business
2021 was an incredibly busy year for me. Even though I stopped taking new clients, I was still very much involved with clients who hired me before the big freeze. I had many of my ideal clients search me out. In that regard, I have been truly blessed!
What else was good?
I got to see my mom who is 91 and my brother’s grandchildren including the identical twin boys who are now 15 months and very busy. I rediscovered my son and his empathetic and kind heart. He is also a baby whisperer.
I went to High Point Market in October and shared a room with a person who was unknown to me. She turned out to be my BFF. Beach friend forever! I have never laughed so much in my life! All this because I am a member of Ethos Design Collective!
I have to definitely give a shout up to Leslie Carothers of Savour Partnership who set this up and also helped me with contacts after our house flooded. I will forever be grateful.
My bonus son got married to his girlfriend of 14 years. Their wedding was beautiful.
What did I learn from 2021?
Laughter is the most important food for the soul.
Embrace the friends who support you when life is not going so well.
You always have to remain open to learning.
I can make lemons out of lemonade. I turned my forced kitchen remodel into a One Room Challenge and got published in the Houston Chronicle.
Family is everything. It was so great to see everybody in South Africa.
When things don’t go your way, pivot and make yourself happy in the new situation. Many people felt sorry for me that I was stuck in South Africa, but it gave me an extra week to see my mom. I was also so tired, jetlagged, run down and sick when I got there. I could relax for an extra week. Plus we could go to more restaurants.
It is OK to say no. I turned down jobs because I was too stressed or it did not feel right.
Sometimes a break is good. I lost the last part of November and really all of December. It was hard to get back into things after the New Year but now I feel refreshed and creative again.
What’s next?
I am running into 2022 with my feet on the ground and my heart rejuvenated!
You’ve had quite a year, Ilse, but your kitchen? and the trip back to South Africa? SO wonderful to have had those two things work out so well in the end! Cheers to a fantastic 2022!
Thank you Janet. Some good with the bad!
Sounds like 2021 was quite the year for you! Hoping your 2022 is prosperous.
Ilse, laughter is what has gotten me through the last 2 years.
What a ride you had in 2021! It was so wonderful to see your new kitchen (and your backyard space as well). I’m sorry that your had so many bumps this past year. Here’s to a less bumpy 2022!