Every Coin Has Two Sides

I normally don't revisit previous points, but several comments, both pro and con, have been coming in to me

about my column of two weeks ago "Don't go away mad, just go away" and I think enough interest has been shown to warrant further insight and a look at how the other side of the coin can be dirty as well.

It is important that my fellow transients, both rich and not, understand that if you don't try to assimilate into the society, I have a problem with you. Fellow transients, both rich and not, who do assimilate just sweeten the flavor of the High Country and that is what we all want.

Is that really so hard to grasp?

I didn't think so.

Moving on.

But now, I would like to talk about the other side of the coin. I received a letter from a hopeful transient who told me a tale that angers me every bit as much as watching off-mountain developers clear-cutting pine forests' for tract houses.

The gentleman who wrote me said he lives in south Florida but has saved all his life to build a log home in the mountains of North Carolina where he had hoped to live out his golden years of retirement.

"I'm not a wealthy person and have placed nearly all that I have into this home," he said.

His story was long and went from bad to worse, but the gist is that he finally saved enough money to buy some land and start the building process. Unfortunately the contractor, who promised him that he would put up a weather-proof shell for a set price, wound up taking all his money without accomplishing much, and he was left with an unprotected partial structure that is falling victim to the weather.

"My goal was to build the house in stages as my finances would allow. I never wanted to make any loans and was going to complete the interior myself," he said

In the end, with over $25,000 worth of uncompleted jobs that he had paid for in advance, much of the work defective or installed improperly and many building code violations unresolved. His contractor left the job, removed himself from the building permit and will not even respond to his attempts at contact.

"The Better Business Bureau has taken away his company's accreditation due to the fact that he won't even enter into mediation or arbitration in this matter, though all members are required to do so," he said.

What this guy is left with is the feeling that his money and his dream home have been stolen from him by a High Country local only because he was an outsider.

"This man has not only stolen my money and my retirement home, but he has also stolen my dreams. I've had to place my unfinished home up for sale in an attempt at avoiding bankruptcy, though selling it in its present condition will be difficult," he said.

This man has filed a formal complaint with the N.C. Licensing Board for General Contractors and has been waiting more than six months for them to reply. If you remember the information presented in these pages regarding the road contractor issue in the county, the board only has seven inspectors for the entire state. So, this guy may be waiting a while. But so far all he has been told is that according to one board member "who calls himself a review committee, the contractor's actions don't even warrant a disciplinary hearing.

"I can't help wondering just how much of my money this one man 'committee' received. The field inspector that was finally sent out (after six months) to inspect my home by the board did not even notice many of the irregularities which I had to point out to him afterwards. I question whether or not he even went out to my home. He asked me to send him pictures of the irregularities which I did so that they would be included in my complaint."

This guy has contacted the Governor's office, the Attorney General, House Speaker, Pres. Pro-tem, and all appropriate Senators (US & State), Congresspeople, State Representatives, the Consumer Protection Agency and all associations to which th contractor belongs.

With only one exception, all that I've written to have responded sympathetically and with concern, but no one will actually do anything."

This is the other side of the coin in the off-mountain/on-mountain battle of personalities and it shows that just like not all people who migrate up here are bad, not everyone they come into contact will be warm, welcoming and helpful.

I guess that, regardless of what side of the coin you are on, be it the transient side or the native side you have to choose to interact with civility, or it will always be an us against them sort of existence.

Singer-Songwriter-Actor Kris Kristofferson has a song I like a lot that sort of sums up this "us versus them" battle that I am guilty of being a part of (and most of you are too). The song is called Jesus was a Capricorn and the chorus has a line that I keep as part of my life sayings.

"Everybody's got to have somebody to look down on, who they can feel better than at any time they please, someone doing something dirty decent folks can frown on, if you can't find somebody else then help yourself to me."