I'm pretty sure we all get them, the kind where somebody or company calls up and "offers" to perform a free roof inspection so they can let us know "if" we need new shingles. I bet you even think you know where this is going, right?
I'll take it from the top.
The caller ID didn't give a name, just a number and the suggestion that this was a spam call. The area code was one of the many in this state, not necessarily informative as to actual location any more than my cell's code is. Sometimes I actually answer those calls. Call it entertainment? Some days it's fun to play, some days it's somebody useful. The label gets applied to nearly every mass-calling service these days, even my surgeon's staff whose primary duty seems to be coordinating medication instructions and arrival times pre-procedures. For roofing I'm much more familiar with the knock on the door from contractors already working on the block , pointing to their existing job-in-process so we can see how well they're working and how nice the emerging new roof looks. They'll mention something like a recent wind or hail storm, refer to your insurance, and suggest some kind of a discount for you "because we're already here anyway" and "we can put our sign up in your yard for a couple days."
I did that once in Arizona. Several roofs on our block were getting replaced, the crew were well-behaved, and a look seemed harmless. They of course found damage needing replacement. We already had solar panels up - on contract with the solar company - so there was the formality of checking with them first thing about their requirements and regulations in the matter. The two companies were familiar with each other, no impediments there, so the last thing was our insurance company. Their inspector concluded sure, they'd pay for the damage ... to a specific eleven damaged shingles. Not the whole roof. Those eleven got replaced. Somehow the dead pigeon unknowingly trapped under one of the the solar panels "couldn't be removed" however. At least it didn't stink, but a shame it didn't discourage other pigeons. Oh well.
This time the caller on the phone verified my name and address, asked how old our roof was (replaced once per our records from the purchase) and offered a free inspection the following morning around 11. I agreed, with reservations. I needed to make a phone call myself, with the park management here, as they are very fussy about workmanship, licensing, inconvenience to neighbors, and any messes at every stage. I'd just witnessed a new shingling two doors away last week, and could barely tell except for the noise of whatever machinery kept everything from reaching the ground, shingles to nails. Even the noise was short lived.
I contacted an authority within the park with years of experience, a go-to guy with lots of information and references if needed, or at least the process needed to locate reputable work. His info let me know what was needed, but informed me anybody meeting the qualifications that we chose to do work on our homes could be contracted with. We'd already discussed the work my son has been doing here, with his approval for the quality and a couple tips for things perhaps not thought of.
Meanwhile the phone rang again, same number, different gender caller. This time I was asked if I owned our home or was living in an apartment? They did have my address for the intended visit, but I guess haven't figured out Google Maps yet. I explained this was an individual home in a mobile home park. He reconfirmed the appointment time and hung up.
Interestingly enough, we had just had a storm go through, lots of hail and rain. No need to be impressed, as most of the hail was pea sized, and just fun to watch rolling down neighbors' roofs or floating down the street in the streams from rain on either side. There was a very occasional combined hail piece, as big around as a quarter but flat as a couple quarters stacked. We expected if there was any damage it would have been to plants, and this morning my blooming peony bush confirmed that assessment by damage to two of the blossoms. Awwww.... The previous day's even smaller hail had wiped out most of the iris blooms already, so not much new. Any large leaves in the area seemed immune. I figured the shingles were just fine, thank you. Leaving some windows open to cool the house, we went to bed curious how the next morning's visit would go.
First, there was a phone call. I noted the spam likely number was in the previous area code and answered it. Nobody was there. It was nearly time for their appointment. Hmmm...... About half an hour later an odd car pulled in to the driveway next door, somebody got out and disappeared across the yard between us. Thinking it might be "our" people I checked out the windows. Were they checking the roof? About ten minutes later that car was gone, still no communication, and they hadn't gone into the place next door. We can see their doors while we watch TV if our blinds are open. One of them needs a lot of assistance, and we keep a casual eye on all the traffic, checking in after an ambulance for example, maybe chat over gardening during nice weather. Nice people, new last summer, and I've shared flowers with her. Had I any reason to think our roof inspector was parked there I would have shooed them out onto the street to park instead.
Eleven came and went. Noon did the same. I looked the company name up online, since I hadn't before. They had a decent presence online. I decided they weren't going to come at all, not because the job was likely too small for them, which their website assured me was likely, but because nobody had bothered to discover our address was about 80 miles away across the other side of the metro and as far out in the boonies as we are. (Is there another street with our name way over there? I'm not motivated to check.)
A call to cancel would have been nice. Manners, you know? I managed to keep busy, between my laptop, the TV news, taking out trash and recycling, checking for hail damage, pulling an ambitious weed or three, and heading out for the mail. I got in a nice unexpected little nap about 5 minutes into a TV show we'd recorded, which I did finish later, after lunch. I even checked the condition of our shingles on the walk for the mail, something I seldom bother to do wherever we are living.
They look just fine.
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