Well, Juan did show up. In his brand new bright red SUV. Looked over the situation and advised me it would cost $50 to fix. So I tell him that I will go inside and wait for him to fix it. "You no unnerstand Missy, I no fix today, I be back tomorrow." Two days later, no Juan. I text him and tell him that after waiting for two days for him to show up and no phone call, I have found someone else to do the work and no longer need him.
Did I just do that - with no backup plan?! What was I thinking? Now what?
I take to the local FaceBook page for the city that I live in asking if anyone knows anyone reliable, who is reasonable in his pricing and who I can count on to show up. I get two recommendations. I give my phone number to a gal who says she knows someone and get a phone number for another one. I wait for a call from the one and call the other, leaving a message to call me back and what I am looking for. I sit back and wait.
I get a message from the fellow who had my phone number. States that he understands that I am looking for someone to paint my bathroom. WTF? I call him back and tell him that I don't need my bathroom painted, but rather need my sprinkler system leak repaired. He seemed confused, or stoned or maybe both. I tell him that I get home from work around 3:45 and ask that he come by to see if he can give me an estimate. Would he like the address? No, he'll get it from me when he calls.
In the meantime, the other fellow, Scott, calls. Very professional and concerned that I might not know how to turn the sprinkler system off and that he wants to help me turn it off right away. I assure him that I already have the system turned off, and that I just need it fixed. He tells me that if it is okay with me, he will come by around 7:30 the following day to see just what I need done. I tell him that I will be at work, but he is more than welcome to come by to assess the situation.
I get a voice message on my cell phone mid day while at work from Scott, telling me that not only has he come by, but he has fixed the leak and we can work out a price when I get home from work and he stops by!
I get home and Scott calls asking if it's okay if he come by. It is. Scott explains that it will cost me $30 for having him fix the leak. I argue with him and tell him the first estimate that I got was for $50 and to please take at least $40 from me. He states that he couldn't do that and will be happy if I just tell everyone that I know that he is available for yard work. As he has been so reasonable in his pricing, I ask if he would be interested in mowing Bill's precious grass every week and he says yes. Now he's got me going...
Let me explain something - they use a lot of various size rock to decorate yards here in Phoenix. Walk areas use a very small size rock and we have a lot of it in our back yard, surrounding our grass. While this small rock looked great when we bought this house just under three years ago, it has disappeared since then (mostly tracked into the house by the dog!). It needs to be replenished. I ask Scott if he would like to give us a quote. You bet he would! Tells me he will be back to mow the grass and to give me a quote. Take that Juan - coulda, woulda, shoulda!
Scott shows up and gives me a quote. He doesn't know it yet, but he's got the job.
Oh - and by the way, I never took the other guys call. He just wasn't eager enough. And he didn't even try to reach me a second time...
Saturday, March 31, 2012
Monday, March 19, 2012
Happenings
I know that it has been awhile since I took fingers to keyboard. A lot has been going on.
My husband, who has been out of work since January, finally was offered a contract job in Orlando, Florida. He's been gone a couple of weeks now and it could go on for a year. It's a good thing though as under the contract, he gets paid an hourly wage and there is open opportunity for O.T. Right now he is staying with friends that we have known for over 40 years, who, at this point, are not asking him for any payment for allowing him to stay there. I am sure this will change as time goes by - no one wants a permanent house guest!
So, I am now having to tackle all matters with the house. I thought (foolishly) that it wouldn't be a problem as, after all, I lived a very single, independent live for over 15 years before Bill came back into my life. What could be so difficult this time?
I go out one morning and there is water all over the back patio and into the backyard. A leak has developed in the sprinkler system, which I now have to turn off. We've had leaks before and Bill has always dug them up and fixed the system. I do not know how to do this, not do I think that I would want to, even if I did know. Time to call our resident sprinkle system guy to come over to fix it. He is scheduled to show up on Monday, which I have taken as a vacation day from work.
We have a very small patch of grass in the backyard. Keep in mind that we live in the desert and having grass requires a lot of work. It is Bill's pride and joy (besides the dog) as he has worked very hard to get it to grow and be very green. It was time to mow it this week - something that Bill normally does every week, but I thought I could let it go for two weeks. So I get out the mower (electric) and start mowing... no problem. Then I realize that the mower seems bogged down and leaving clumps of grass in it's wake. Aha! Time to empty the basket. Easy, right? Not so fast. I struggle with getting the basket off. It doesn't budge. I keep struggling. Nope. I call Bill and ask him what am I doing wrong? I follow his instructions (which is exactly what I was doing before I called him). Still no go. I give up. Finnish the mowing, leaving clumps of grass all over the place including the path back to the garage where the mower is housed.
Hopeful that Juan (the sprinkler guy) can get the basket off when he shows up, if he shows up... Juan is a nice guy, but not so dependable. While he says he will be here today, I follow up with a phone call to remind him. He says "You no worry Missy, I be there later." In Juan's world, "later" could mean tomorrow or the day after. Good thing I have experience with time schedules like this from having lived in Mexico.
Ah... The joys of owning a house!
My husband, who has been out of work since January, finally was offered a contract job in Orlando, Florida. He's been gone a couple of weeks now and it could go on for a year. It's a good thing though as under the contract, he gets paid an hourly wage and there is open opportunity for O.T. Right now he is staying with friends that we have known for over 40 years, who, at this point, are not asking him for any payment for allowing him to stay there. I am sure this will change as time goes by - no one wants a permanent house guest!
So, I am now having to tackle all matters with the house. I thought (foolishly) that it wouldn't be a problem as, after all, I lived a very single, independent live for over 15 years before Bill came back into my life. What could be so difficult this time?
I go out one morning and there is water all over the back patio and into the backyard. A leak has developed in the sprinkler system, which I now have to turn off. We've had leaks before and Bill has always dug them up and fixed the system. I do not know how to do this, not do I think that I would want to, even if I did know. Time to call our resident sprinkle system guy to come over to fix it. He is scheduled to show up on Monday, which I have taken as a vacation day from work.
We have a very small patch of grass in the backyard. Keep in mind that we live in the desert and having grass requires a lot of work. It is Bill's pride and joy (besides the dog) as he has worked very hard to get it to grow and be very green. It was time to mow it this week - something that Bill normally does every week, but I thought I could let it go for two weeks. So I get out the mower (electric) and start mowing... no problem. Then I realize that the mower seems bogged down and leaving clumps of grass in it's wake. Aha! Time to empty the basket. Easy, right? Not so fast. I struggle with getting the basket off. It doesn't budge. I keep struggling. Nope. I call Bill and ask him what am I doing wrong? I follow his instructions (which is exactly what I was doing before I called him). Still no go. I give up. Finnish the mowing, leaving clumps of grass all over the place including the path back to the garage where the mower is housed.
Hopeful that Juan (the sprinkler guy) can get the basket off when he shows up, if he shows up... Juan is a nice guy, but not so dependable. While he says he will be here today, I follow up with a phone call to remind him. He says "You no worry Missy, I be there later." In Juan's world, "later" could mean tomorrow or the day after. Good thing I have experience with time schedules like this from having lived in Mexico.
Ah... The joys of owning a house!
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