Quotes in - check
Site visit appointments - check
Call various utility providers - check
Buy lights - check
Order blinds - check
Count number of 13amp double power sockets and other misc electrical fittings - check
Etc. Etc. Etc.
Making a list and checking it twice. (Feeling a bit Miranda-ish. Might have to break out in song though it's no longer Christmas). I must say I am the queen of making checklists. Problem is, I have a checklist for checklists. Excel sheets with 12 tabs. Multicoloured Post-it notes on my PC screen, my cork board, even in my diary. I also have a 'To Do' list as part of my Google Desktop apps; that's for stuff that's on the priority list. And yet, I fear I may have forgotten something.
This is what happens when you're project managing not just new shop premises, but project managing a new shop whilst also project managing the dismantling and move from a previous one. Hmmm, am sure I must have missed out something. On the other hand, maybe I should just chill, better to just flow. Can't plan for everything anyway. For example...
The start of fit-out's been delayed. The weather's not helping. The resin floor won't dry in this wet, cold spell. Oh well... But wait, the fire alarm first fit is in a few days. Must get electrician to start work before that. But he can't work when the floor's not completed. Then there's the door. We have to fit a new one. Otherwise the builder can't fit a vent or extractor system. And then, we received a letter in the post - from council planning department. We have to call 48 hours ahead to organise a visit. Aren't they suppose to visit when we finish to check that all's been done correctly? No, this letter says when we start work. Does that mean we don't start work until they visit? Oy vey. Aiyah. 'Call planning dept' - must get clarification on this - add another new item to list. The builder calls, the bin door lock has malfunctioned. Sigh. Call locksmith. Wait. And wait. 2pm appointment turns into 4pm turns into 5.15pm. Stood in the rain in the dark with a torch but the battery died. Thank goodness the locksmith had one of those miner-type thingamajig lamp jobbies that he strapped onto his forehead. 30 minutes later: That'll be £109 + VAT, miss. Another unexpected item to add to budget checklist. See what I mean about the futility of planning?
Tick tock. Tick tock. We have set a target of 1 April 2013 to reopen. Told Shiv that if we do organise a launch, we oughta do it after we have settled in, have a kinda soft launch, something less formal. Gives us time to iron out the kinks. We learnt this from the first time round. I.e., don't do a launch and open on the same day. I still cringe when I think about how we had exposed steel beams that hadn't yet been boxed in, cupboards without doors, brrrrrr.... We've given ourselves ample time this time round. At least I think so.
Otherwise, all else is quiet on the Southeast London front. Phew.