A
Anonymous
Guest
I recieved a service call a few weeks back that was out in the county. I scheduled and saved it for a Friday morning just to enjoy the trip out and back, kinda ease into the weekend. <img src="/metal/html/wink.gif" border=0 width=15 height=15 alt="
"> Piddly stuff, ....remove a light, straighten another, change a lamp, <img src="/metal/html/shocked.gif" border=0 width=15 height=15 alt=":shock"> ....whatever.
So on Friday I gets to this small old cabin out in the sticks, no bigger than a huntin' shack really, and knocks on the door. An elderly woman answers and says this is the correct place for me to be. She musta been around a hundred years old and kinda ripe. Guides me in and says the owner is in the kitchen. <img src="/metal/html/confused.gif" border=0 width=15 height=22 alt=":?"> Cripes, if the second one wasn't Methusela's momma she was his nursemaid. <img src="/metal/html/lol.gif" border=0 width=15 height=15 alt=":lol"> ,we're talkin O L D.
Anyhow, they both pull ups their chairs, sits down and asks me to change their lightbulb over the sink first. Heck, I thought it was an outside pole lamp. But I managed. <img src="/metal/html/smile.gif" border=0 width=15 height=15 alt=""> Then they asks me to straighten their ceiling light in the middle of the room, which I did in about four minutes as they turned their chairs to get a better view. Lastly, they wanted me to look at taking down a sconce light in the hall. No problem there except for them bringing their chairs into the hall to watch me.
Well all of 15 minutes has gone by and I'm finished up already so I says to the youngster of the two, "You have me for a full hour, is there anything else you want me to do for you?" She thinks for a bit and says, "could I get a switch on the wall for the lights just like fancy houses have?" (She had pullchains on dern near every light.)
I explain that I'd have to get up into the attic and see if the walls were accessable as the cabin was built on a slab. She points me to the skuttle hole in the ceiling as I get my ladder and check it out. It was a tiny attic about 4' tall and 10'x10', and as I put my hand up on the ledge to hoist myself up my hand rested on something. I moved my flashlight over to see what it was and saw I was resting on an old mousetrap that still had it's prize in it from about 3 years ago. (Sweet)
Note to self, 'no wiping your face with that hand for awhile.'
Carrying on, I looked into the attic corner and noticed a reflection coming from a partial opening in a wood crate; Dang, looked like gold! So I wiggle over and give it a grab to
pull it toward me. It is a six pack of gold looking goblets and a pitcher all packed nicely with felt liners. It had a ton of dust on it and the felt was trashed; the goblets and pitcher appeared to be lead lined like nothing I've ever seen before. Kinda weird, who would drink from lead lined goblets?
I figured I better get back to work and looked for a possible route for the wiring for her fancy wall switch. As I looked into the next corner I noticed a lampshade about 2' in diameter and about 16" tall filled with dust. Geez, it looked like one of them Tiffany lampshades! So I waddle over and wipe off the dust and wow it sure looked like it to me, but I don't know jack about that kinda stuff.
As I tried to stay on topic of the light switch, I noticed a coin on the wood attic floor and then another and another! I picked one up and dang if it wasn't an indian head! So was another, and a couple of merc dimes! Crap! Now my mind it totally off her derm fancy light switch, and I got a coin woody goin' on here. <img src="/metal/html/biggrin.gif" border=0 width=15 height=15 alt="">
At this point the younger of the two women calls up, "Well? Is it possible?"
So I come on down and explain to her that I think it is gonna be possible, but that I needed to get to the wall they wanted the switch on and that there was some items in the attic that I thought might be expensive and should really get moved out of the way first so as not to break them.
She says, "What kind of items do you mean, we haven't been up there in over 30 years and I didn't know there was anything up there." So I explain what I saw and she replies that it is probably all junk and just to leave it there. But then the other gal says to bring them down and have a look at them, so up I goes again and retrieves the items. This time I turned around to miss that stinkin' mouse trap and I notice a long box that was behind me the first time I was up there, so I grabbed it first.
I pulls it towards me and it is about 3' long, 18'' or so wide and had a sloped top from about 12" to about 8" and the dusty top I found was glass after I wiped it a bit. It was a old time pinball machine! As I brought it down the skuttle hole, all of a sudden dozens of coins start falling out of the back of this thing along with about 5 pounds of mouse turds!! The old ladies schrieked a bit and starting moaning about all the turds all over the floor and how it was probably a better idea to just leave it in the attic, or toss it in the garbage!
I appologized and again told them that these things might have a sizable sum attached to them and that maybe their relatives could help them find out. As I went back up to get the other items down, I heard her tell me that they had no other relatives except eachother and that they were sure they were all garbage items. Double crap!!!!
If I was any kind of thief worth his salt, I'd have wisked that stuff off 'into the garbage' for them and billed them for it besides!! <img src="/metal/html/lol.gif" border=0 width=15 height=15 alt=":lol"> For all that was in me, I was not gonna take these two old gals to the cleaners. Also, I had heard that audio that Royal posted, about the old ladies beating the snot out of that guy in the ajacent car with their bibles! <img src="/metal/html/lol.gif" border=0 width=15 height=15 alt=":lol">
So once again I try and explain that these things have, v a l u e and that they should NOT be tossed out. Not only did they not care, they mentioned that they did not want to have to 'deal' with the junk at all and would I 'please' pick up the all my mouse turds and pennies. <img src="/metal/html/lol.gif" border=0 width=15 height=15 alt=":lol">
Having swept up all the things on the floor, I was drooling at all the old currency in the dust pan when one of them says to toss it into the paper bag she had set out. I complied about as passively as Roy Horn's tiger, but dropped the treasured mouse mix into the bag.
I told them the estimate about the light switch and mentioned that I could hunt around the internet for pricing on all the items for them and drop off copies of what I found and would be willing to pay the going rates. They said they would think about it, and asked me to move all the 'junk' into the garage for them.
She showed me where in the garage she wanted to throw them, but I noticed some empty
cardboard boxes and asked her if I could package them so they would be protected if they wanted to sell them. "Don't waste your time." she said, as I managed to hastily get most of them into boxes for a bit of protection. "None of it's worth messing with" she mumbled again as we wisked our way out of the garage.
I wrote up the bill with separation anxiety setting in. Back from the van with the bill, I explained her payment options and said thank you for the work. And reminded her that I would be in touch about her 'valuables'.
"No, never mind. We'll pass on that, and we'll call about the switch when we have enough money saved."
Well, they called the secretary back last Thursday. They'd decided to live without a fancy new light switch, but were happy with the gentleman our company sent who fixed all their problems.
Oh well that's my story. It was nice to have met them. Old and nieve, just like the little kids they had surely grown from.
"> Piddly stuff, ....remove a light, straighten another, change a lamp, <img src="/metal/html/shocked.gif" border=0 width=15 height=15 alt=":shock"> ....whatever.So on Friday I gets to this small old cabin out in the sticks, no bigger than a huntin' shack really, and knocks on the door. An elderly woman answers and says this is the correct place for me to be. She musta been around a hundred years old and kinda ripe. Guides me in and says the owner is in the kitchen. <img src="/metal/html/confused.gif" border=0 width=15 height=22 alt=":?"> Cripes, if the second one wasn't Methusela's momma she was his nursemaid. <img src="/metal/html/lol.gif" border=0 width=15 height=15 alt=":lol"> ,we're talkin O L D.
Anyhow, they both pull ups their chairs, sits down and asks me to change their lightbulb over the sink first. Heck, I thought it was an outside pole lamp. But I managed. <img src="/metal/html/smile.gif" border=0 width=15 height=15 alt="
"> Then they asks me to straighten their ceiling light in the middle of the room, which I did in about four minutes as they turned their chairs to get a better view. Lastly, they wanted me to look at taking down a sconce light in the hall. No problem there except for them bringing their chairs into the hall to watch me.Well all of 15 minutes has gone by and I'm finished up already so I says to the youngster of the two, "You have me for a full hour, is there anything else you want me to do for you?" She thinks for a bit and says, "could I get a switch on the wall for the lights just like fancy houses have?" (She had pullchains on dern near every light.)
I explain that I'd have to get up into the attic and see if the walls were accessable as the cabin was built on a slab. She points me to the skuttle hole in the ceiling as I get my ladder and check it out. It was a tiny attic about 4' tall and 10'x10', and as I put my hand up on the ledge to hoist myself up my hand rested on something. I moved my flashlight over to see what it was and saw I was resting on an old mousetrap that still had it's prize in it from about 3 years ago. (Sweet)
Note to self, 'no wiping your face with that hand for awhile.'
Carrying on, I looked into the attic corner and noticed a reflection coming from a partial opening in a wood crate; Dang, looked like gold! So I wiggle over and give it a grab to
pull it toward me. It is a six pack of gold looking goblets and a pitcher all packed nicely with felt liners. It had a ton of dust on it and the felt was trashed; the goblets and pitcher appeared to be lead lined like nothing I've ever seen before. Kinda weird, who would drink from lead lined goblets?
I figured I better get back to work and looked for a possible route for the wiring for her fancy wall switch. As I looked into the next corner I noticed a lampshade about 2' in diameter and about 16" tall filled with dust. Geez, it looked like one of them Tiffany lampshades! So I waddle over and wipe off the dust and wow it sure looked like it to me, but I don't know jack about that kinda stuff.
As I tried to stay on topic of the light switch, I noticed a coin on the wood attic floor and then another and another! I picked one up and dang if it wasn't an indian head! So was another, and a couple of merc dimes! Crap! Now my mind it totally off her derm fancy light switch, and I got a coin woody goin' on here. <img src="/metal/html/biggrin.gif" border=0 width=15 height=15 alt="
">At this point the younger of the two women calls up, "Well? Is it possible?"
So I come on down and explain to her that I think it is gonna be possible, but that I needed to get to the wall they wanted the switch on and that there was some items in the attic that I thought might be expensive and should really get moved out of the way first so as not to break them.
She says, "What kind of items do you mean, we haven't been up there in over 30 years and I didn't know there was anything up there." So I explain what I saw and she replies that it is probably all junk and just to leave it there. But then the other gal says to bring them down and have a look at them, so up I goes again and retrieves the items. This time I turned around to miss that stinkin' mouse trap and I notice a long box that was behind me the first time I was up there, so I grabbed it first.
I pulls it towards me and it is about 3' long, 18'' or so wide and had a sloped top from about 12" to about 8" and the dusty top I found was glass after I wiped it a bit. It was a old time pinball machine! As I brought it down the skuttle hole, all of a sudden dozens of coins start falling out of the back of this thing along with about 5 pounds of mouse turds!! The old ladies schrieked a bit and starting moaning about all the turds all over the floor and how it was probably a better idea to just leave it in the attic, or toss it in the garbage!
I appologized and again told them that these things might have a sizable sum attached to them and that maybe their relatives could help them find out. As I went back up to get the other items down, I heard her tell me that they had no other relatives except eachother and that they were sure they were all garbage items. Double crap!!!!
If I was any kind of thief worth his salt, I'd have wisked that stuff off 'into the garbage' for them and billed them for it besides!! <img src="/metal/html/lol.gif" border=0 width=15 height=15 alt=":lol"> For all that was in me, I was not gonna take these two old gals to the cleaners. Also, I had heard that audio that Royal posted, about the old ladies beating the snot out of that guy in the ajacent car with their bibles! <img src="/metal/html/lol.gif" border=0 width=15 height=15 alt=":lol">
So once again I try and explain that these things have, v a l u e and that they should NOT be tossed out. Not only did they not care, they mentioned that they did not want to have to 'deal' with the junk at all and would I 'please' pick up the all my mouse turds and pennies. <img src="/metal/html/lol.gif" border=0 width=15 height=15 alt=":lol">
Having swept up all the things on the floor, I was drooling at all the old currency in the dust pan when one of them says to toss it into the paper bag she had set out. I complied about as passively as Roy Horn's tiger, but dropped the treasured mouse mix into the bag.
I told them the estimate about the light switch and mentioned that I could hunt around the internet for pricing on all the items for them and drop off copies of what I found and would be willing to pay the going rates. They said they would think about it, and asked me to move all the 'junk' into the garage for them.
She showed me where in the garage she wanted to throw them, but I noticed some empty
cardboard boxes and asked her if I could package them so they would be protected if they wanted to sell them. "Don't waste your time." she said, as I managed to hastily get most of them into boxes for a bit of protection. "None of it's worth messing with" she mumbled again as we wisked our way out of the garage.
I wrote up the bill with separation anxiety setting in. Back from the van with the bill, I explained her payment options and said thank you for the work. And reminded her that I would be in touch about her 'valuables'.
"No, never mind. We'll pass on that, and we'll call about the switch when we have enough money saved."
Well, they called the secretary back last Thursday. They'd decided to live without a fancy new light switch, but were happy with the gentleman our company sent who fixed all their problems.
Oh well that's my story. It was nice to have met them. Old and nieve, just like the little kids they had surely grown from.