I Am Angry

Plenty of my posts have been about how this tough economy has had it's negative impact on my husband and I. Yet through it all I quickly praise how faithful is our God, how He has met our needs and blessed us and kept us safe. That will not change. I trust in His provisions and His love. Always have. Always will.

When things go wrong, I don't get angry at God. But I do get angry at the world, the people in it, who do things that hurt us, situations that bring us more hardships, frustrations and pain. I feel like screaming sometimes and totally get why my friends on Facebook end up posting rants that border on inappropriate. Today, even after sleeping on it, I am boiling mad over a situation that we have little choice in but to roll with.

Like most people struggling in this financial upset, we've had to let go of things, things like medical insurance. We feel fortunate to see some changes happening that allow us to return to a more balanced state.... for example we recently were able to reinstate our car insurance which was a huge sigh of relief. Last year with no income we had no way to even pay the contractors liability insurance, which resulted in his license to operate as a General Contractor being suspended. Of course this is really bad. You can't operate without one.... So..... when ever a job has presented itself he has had to be very careful to not engage in work that is beyond the scope of what is allowed by the law in this state. When the work has been beyond that scope he worked carefully in partnership with another licensed contractor. It's been an interesting shuffle but all in the name of staying legal, and hoping to scramble up enough money at some point to reinstate the license and proceed full steam ahead. Now, with the new building job looming and a deposit from the customers we would be able to do just that. In fact if my husband hadn't gotten sick that would have been one of his stops yesterday-- and we might have avoided the awful events that exploded as a result.

 Bruce had put a listing on the ever popular Craigslist, advertising only what he could advertise legally without a license: home designs. He can draw up home designs without being licensed in this state. (and he's not just good at it-- he's GREAT) He got an email from someone the other day who complimented his work, and asked some questions about whether or not he did all the work or did he sub out for building it. Bruce replied to the email thanking her for her interest and saying if he did build a house he preferred to to the foundations and framing and all things wood related and then customarily subs out all the rest. THAT resulted in a phone call yesterday from an employee at L&I (Washington State Labor & Industries, through whom our licenses and registrations for business are filtered). It turns out the email he'd gotten was actually from this woman at the L&I office... and as far as I am concerned this was entrapment. She said based on his response to her inquiry, he was soliciting for business without a license and would be fined accordingly.

$1000. 

With a renewed license the fine might be reduced but there will still be a fine. We can argue it 6 ways to Sunday and it is not likely to go away. We'd need representation from an attorney to fight this and that would cost as much as the fine.

I am angry. Angry enough to spit nails. Frustrated. Furious. I have read the emails exchanged between Bruce and this woman and it seems innocent and hypothetical in nature to me. My opinion does not matter in this case.  I do understand and am willing to uphold the law: Yes, if you are required to have a license to do business, then we will have a license. But the Ad on CL was NOT ambiguous. His response to the inquiry was simply that. A response.... which in our minds was not solicitation.

But, it doesn't matter. We owe them $1000 and we will find a way to pay it. Because we do business honestly, ethically and legally. Doesn't take the sting away though. Doesn't make me not angry. Doesn't make me wonder about the whats and whys. Doesn't make me feel good. Not at all.