One year ago today: October 21, 2020, millennial salesmen suck.
Five years ago today: October 21, 2016, remember “CNN sucks”?
Nine years ago today: October 21, 2012, snarky comments on dating.
Random years ago today: October 21, 2015, aggressive women, sidecars, etc.
One day I will remember which week the garbage truck arrives on a Thursday and not have to make the mad dash. Today it’s lucky I did, because the hillbilly dogs got into the neighbor’s can. My neighbor, not his. Since the hillbilly was nowhere to be found, I had to rake up the mess before the truck got around the block. He’s here to work, not let the dogs rove around and they have learned my yard is a safe spot. With lots of shady nooks. The rub is that I have a good neighbor. But what if I had not looked up when I heard the truck and a neighbor who called the dog pound? Rule number one of living on a fixed income is do nothing that draws attention to yourself where you live. That was a close call.
That shed needs a roof this morning. I’ve got it sketched out and I’m trying to things. One is to build it on the ground and lift it into place with the help of the hillbilly. If it is too much, then partially dismantle it and do the finishing touches standing on stepladders. Of which I have two. There is another cram practice this afternoon, which has to double as the first real highway trip on the repaired van. Instead of practicing like I should, I had to chase around fixing CDs only to discover this damn Win10 unit has lost my backup copy of this band’s music.
Another thing this band doesn’t know is the importance that we all play the same version of the same song. The disk they handed me had some truly spastic versions of the classical tune of the same name. Another thing guys, please don’t hand me live concert recordings. I’m a pro and that is not the same thing as a studio piece.
By ten-ish the hillbilly came around and I put him to work on the shed. The sides are up, tarpaper covers all the big angles visible from the street, camo paint breaks up the rest, and the roof is on with a single layer of plywood. The forecast is for rain tomorrow by which time there will be camo tarps over the roof and the outside sealed against most weather. It was a big of luck, I got him to hold the roofing pieces in place while I drilled pilot holes and secured them. Then a late breakfast of pancakes, molasses, and strong coffee. I’ve shown him how his dogs will eat rice to bulk up their food volume. They are learning to associate me with food, not a good idea.
He’s starting some kind of course in a few days and will be moving in with his brother in the next town, so the work is being accelerated. Once the roof on the shed is finished, I can do the rest myself. The worst is over tomorrow, when rain is predicted. I’ll pay him enough so he can head out for a few beers or whatever the poison is these days. He’s been staying with his sister but I guess the brother-in-law isn’t keen with that arrangement.
Myself, I am the sort that avoids unwelcome co-dependencies so I’m not the one to step in and save the day. The situation is just not that drastic that it needs my resources.
Broome, Shropshire, England
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Let’s talk about band practice instead. This afternoon could be vindication that a good, stern, pep talk is what the doctor ordered. Putting things in perspective, in the past eight weeks, I’ve learned their entire song list, plus vocals I could front, plus half of what the missing guy was doing. In other words, I’ve caught up and passed anyone who hasn’t been on the ball. Two factors I can see that apply here are the overall sound that will now happen on stage (hold that thought) and band management experience. What’s happened is I’ve influence the band, which is what Dom, the original guy explained to me, was on order when I arrived.
As of this rehearsal, I think the band has enough wherewithal to get past this first gig. It also puts them on notice, of a sort. You see, if this gig is a winner, there will be a super amount of evidence over what made it so. It might give me some leverage to cut down on the number of slow tunes on their to-do list. Before I got too busy, we threw the roof up on the shed, there should be a view of it, no roofing material yet. Even though the hillbilly is no working dynamo, things are surging along by comparison.
What luck, I stopped at Home Depot on the return leg and what have we here? Enough lumber in the 70% off bin to complete that roof before the predicted storm. Plus enough cheap paneling to get at least a skirt of interior finish around most of the space. Expect pictures. Later, we got the roof framed and the plywood is laid out ready to be cut.
The shed will look over-tall because the studs are 8-foot, placed so they can be re-used when the time comes. All pieces are hurricane strapped and drop back tomorrow when the roof should be sheathed and the tarpaper in place. As far as I am concerned once that tarpaper is ready, I’m moving stuff in there.
