Below is the OCR text representation for this newspapers page.

HOUSTON DAILY JOURNAL Bone problems serious matter Stress on the bones in your heel and ankle is increased when incorrect heel movement strains tissue. Over time, excess strain may change the structure of your foot, causing damage and heel pain. In addition, the effects of arthritis can damage bones (and joints) or injury from a direct blow, causing pain. Treatment goals include reducing abnormal stress on bones. Here are some bone prob lems to be aware of: Heel Spur A heel spur is a bony out growth at the base of the heel bone near the plantar fascia. When you stand a spur may cause pain on the bot tom of the heel. As with plantar faciitis, the pain may decrease after standing What to do when building a new home goes wrong Dear Mr. Rockefeller,: We are in the process of building our home and the contractor who poured our foundation made so many mistakes, we are going to have to pay extra. We are withholding final payment because of this and he has threatened to sue us - What are our rights? Dear Reader: Far more people today seem to be building their own homes. Consequently, construction complaints seem to have risen. Your situation sounds very similar to what I have heard from some of my cli ents. Let’s break this down a bit. From your question, it sounds to me like you are acting as your own “general contractor” meaning that you are taking responsibil ity for making sure that everything in building your new home is done correctly. You have your own plans, you are obtaining permits and you are directly hiring and paying the subcontrac tors. This contrasts with where a GC is hired to run the construction project. In this situation, as the proj ect moves long, the GC has a “draw” to pay each of the subcontractors and buy materials, although the homeowner would be asked to approve each draw based on the extent of comple tion on the entire project. If your complaint is with a GC, my analysis would be a little different, as a GC contract will probably be more detailed and have fixed damages and manda tory arbitration clauses; whereas a subcontractor’s contract may be rather informal. For this reason, a dispute with a GC is more dependent on the specific terms of the agreement. Certain professions have the unilateral right to place “liens” on property or goods over disputes. General con tractors or subcontractors have the right to do so; were on placed on your home, once it is completed, you would have to either pay the lien or “bond” it to litigate the claim in order to close on the construction loan. Hence, the threat to sue is something you need to worry about, since the lien can be placed against your home without even the necessity of a lawsuit being filed. This means that a con tractor has quite a bit more legal ammunition than you have. Your rights are basic to any contract. I have described contract rights in prior columns; here, I would like to concentrate on satisfactory performance and remedies. There is a difference between techni cal performance, where you lay any old foundation, and satisfactory performance, such as to laying a quality foundation for a project. With home construction, quality is usually tightly or walking a short time. The pain you feel is not from the spur itself. Your heel hurts because the spur pinches a nerve or pressure against the plantar bursa. If the bursa becomes inflamed (buritis), it may squeeze the plan- Dr. Jokhai Columnist The Foot Doctor tar fascia. Hagland's Deformity This bony outgrowth develops on the upper back of your heel bone. “Pump Bump” is the nicknamed given to the problem which you may feel pain where the edge of your shoe rubs the Achilles tendon. controlled by detailed writ ten specifications of what will be built, how used, and with what materials. Hence, a well-written con tract will provide a clear roadmap defining specific performance. Obviously, I don’t have any written subcontract from your situation to examine, so I can’t really comment on whether or not your foundation was satisfacto rily poured. And, if there was not a detailed contract, the qual ity of per formance may be hard to prove and might require expert testimo ny. V, *IA Jim Rockefeller Columnist Assuming it was not sat isfactorily poured, what are your remedies? Naturally, you can withhold pay ment, as you have done. This would place the next move on the subcontrac tor. If no lien or lawsuit is filed by the subcontractor, you could chose not to sue; or you could sue (directly or counterclaim) for “dam ages.” This could be for the “completion cost” of the SUBSCRIBE TODAY 1 sm over 50% on the cover price f ( Just Fill Out & Return The Form Below Or Call Our Office At 478-987-1823 ' ~ Name: Phone: - Address: City: : State: Zip: - $19.26 jdKu - $30.52 - $00.34 jjgfifljjjfiiff 1 * (Above prices include tax) Credit: ED Master Card ED VISA EH Discover - Card #: Exp: ( Pailn loMrwai | P.O. Box 1910 • 1210 Washington Street • Perry, GA 31069 478-987-1823 Stress Fracture A crack in the heel bone, usually behind or below the subtalar joint is known as stress fracture. You may feel pain during extended activi ties and when you touch the injured area. Sever’s Disease Sever’s Disease (calcaneal apophysitis) is an inflam mation in the area between the sections of bone that make up the heel. This problem usually occurs in young people whose bones have not yet fused and fully matured. Active children between the ages of 8-12 years of age are most often affected by Sever’s disease. When dealing with this disease you may be forced to limp or to walk on your toes due to the back of your heel hurting. Next: Nerve problems. foundation, repair costs, and/or ancillary damages, like the delay in the project, cost overruns, storage costs, interest, etc. However, keep in mind . . . while you may have the right to sue, it may not be practicable to do so. Hence, if the subcontractor is not “bonded,” has no insur ance, nor any assets to sue over, you might not collect on any judgment. Warner Robins attorney Jim Rockefeller is the for mer Chief Assistant District Attorney for Houston County, and a former Assistant State Attorney in Miam i. Owner of Rockefeller Law Center, Jim has been in private prac tice since 2000. His website, www.rockefellerlawcenter. com. offers more answers to your legal questions and archives of past articles. E-mail your comments or confidential legal questions toajr@rockefeller lawcenter. * jfmminil • (JWonogmmminy • Oil HhintinfjS • fiifts Custom SJramim/ 918 Carroll Street • Perry, GA 478-987-4079 LOCAL More about ‘servant leadership’ Two weeks ago, I invit ed readers to join me at Wesleyan College to hear Bill Turner, retired executive from Synovus Financial, speak about his book A Journey Toward Servant Leadership. This column is taken from notes I made during his pre sentation, supplemented with information from the book. Turner opened his remarks by explaining that he embraced servant leader ship because it transcends all religions. Every person wants to be loved and to feel appreciated. The responsi bility of a servant leader is to create an environment of appreciation and growth, so that each person can excel and be recognized for his or her contribution. Turner believes the begin ning of servant leadership is a desire to love. The will ingness to serve, by provid ing opportunity, skills, and resources, comes from that intent. The devotion to being a servant leader attracts people who care, and their commitment makes the phi losophy work. If you hire people smaller than you and repeatedly tear them down, it won’t be long before you have an orga nization of little thinkers. However, if you hire people bigger than you and repeat edly build them up, it won’t be long before it’s an organi zation of giants! Turner explained that he turned away from the tra ditional model of leadership because it drives people to make excuses for incomplete or inadequate performance. Further, it causes people to claim credit for good things that happen, even when they are not directly responsible. Everyone tends to “but ter up” the traditional boss. Early in his career, Turner’s experience with being at the top of the traditional organi zation was that it was lone ly. He never knew if people really liked and appreciated him or if they just sought his favor to enhance their own position. Everyone’s focus seemed to be on pleasing the boss, not on doing the right thing for the employees and customers. All this special focus on the leader cre ates temp tation to yield to the six deadly “Ps.” Pride. Do you have a hard time admitting you don’t know (> k k Dennis Hooper Leaders Building Leaders something, or that you’ve been wrong? Do you fight to win every argument? Prejudice. Are there peo ple you look down on and think are inferior? Position. Do you want the choice position at func tions? Do you want to be recognized? Popularity. Do you act in ways to seek approval from others or act in different ways with different crowds? Possessions. Do you judge yourself or others by their clothes, jewelry, cars or houses? Do you act as if you possess the people in your organization? Power. Do you fight to be in control? Do you use power to coerce others? Turner said that he chose the route of servant leader ship because it leads away from these death-generating Clearly, The Lighting Store is where to go for Christmas Lights. Clearly. ’ * w v Cf sere V A Division of Soiirl'ean Electrics! Supply / 926 Carroll St. • Perry, GA 31069 478-224-8888 j T-F 9am-spm SAT 10am-2pm‘ FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 24, 2006 ♦ “Ps” and leads toward the life-instilling “seven Cs.” It all begins with a commit ment to love and ends with creating an environment where each person can grow, contribute, and excel. Commitment produces caring. Caring produces compassion. Compassion produces communica tion. Communication pro duces creativity. Creativity produces common vision. Common vision produces community. Turner explained that transitioning from tradition al leadership to servant lead ership requires persistence. It is a long-term process, and leaders will be tested with all forms of resistance. Turner strongly encouraged deferring to the skills of oth ers in areas where you are deficient. Servant leadership emphasizes collaboration, trust, empathy, and contin uous growth and improve ment. Dennis Hooper is a cer tified leadership develop ment coach who helps lead ers build organizations of excellence. E-mail him at dhooper2(tvjuno.com or phone him at 478-988-0237. Char-Broiled Sizzling Steaks ustlif F 75 136 • 997 0977 40Q1 3 5A