The Last Load on a Los Angeles Morning

At 6:17 on a Saturday morning, a cracked porcelain sink sat sideways in the driveway of Elena Ruiz’s bungalow, its basin catching a stripe of pale gold sun. Behind it lay swollen cabinets, splintered trim, and a mountain of debris that had seemed manageable when the kitchen renovation began. Now the crew was due in two hours, the neighbors were waking up, and a delivery truck needed the driveway clear. Elena looked at the pile and asked the question many Los Angeles homeowners eventually face: