I could just scream...

And  no, I haven't seen another snake.  It's these blasted handymen (an oxymoron if ever there was one).

We are spoiled because our first handyman, W, was here on time every time, without fail. He worked hard, took half an hour for lunch, and was unfailingly polite and trustworthy. The one and only reason we can't get him back here now.... he has gone on to bigger jobs, not handyman-type work. Great for him, horrible for us. The W days are over.

After W, we had a few men working here from time to time, none of whom we were pleased with...... we never asked them to come back a second time. There were also a few handymen who seemed to want to do the jobs, but then didn't show up.  When that happens, I don't call them to ask if we're still on their to-do list.... I just toss out their phone numbers and forget them.

After those guys, we found JP and his son. They got here on time, worked hard, unfailingly polite and trustworthy. How could we have been so lucky twice?  We thought we'd hit pay-dirt. However..... JP is very well-known around this town, and he has a waiting list of work.  We're on his list, but it will be a while before he can get to us. Fine. Except last week, JP called and asked if he could send his son over here to do the handyman-type jobs, saving the large jobs for himself. Also fine.

Or so I thought. Give me a blessed break.

On the first day that JP's son was supposed to be here, he couldn't make it..... he lives and works on a farm, and that's his first priority. If something happens on the farm, he has to be there to fix it, do it,whatever it takes. And that's what happened.  "I will see you tomorrow," he told me.

The next morning, he was here......but  he worked for just three hours, then he wanted to be paid so he could go home. Apparently, he was up all night taking care of whatever broke at the farm job. Fine, fine, fine. "I will see you tomorrow," he told me. Fine.

And that was this morning. No sign of him, no phone call.  An hour past the time he should have been here, he sent me a text: "Having problems on the farm. Have to fix it. I will most likely see you tomorrow."  Most likely???  Is that really fine?  No, it certainly isn't.  Because now we've got the job half-done, and the wood needs to be primed and painted.

My husband and I went to the barn to look at the project. On the way there, my husband said to me "How about if you and I do this?"   My first thought was Sure, we could do this.

Then I looked at the barn.... and saw how high up some of that wood was that would need to be painted. Plus all the steps up to the guest rooms, plus the railings, the spindles... give me a blessed country break. Definitely not my kind of painting.  I've done painting inside the house... one wall a day with a brush (I'm too messy with a roller). I did three bedrooms that way, and they all look beautiful, and I was happy to do them and very satisfied with the results.

But let me repeat..... that painting was inside the house.  I didn't have to deal with the wind, the bugs, the wasps, the bees, the fire ants, and all I needed was a three-step ladder, not a ladder that's taller than I am.  Add to that the fact that my husband paints slower than I do.... he may be a whole lot neater, but we're not matched in speed, and I'd end up doing more of that painting than he would...... and I'd be so ticked off with the whole process that I'd be cranky as soon as I saw the first wasp or bee.

No. No. No. I am not painting the outside of that blessed barn.  We'll see if JP's son shows up tomorrow morning. And if he doesn't, then we'll find another person to do it. Or we will just wait till JP has time to finish the job that his son started. Funny thing is that when the son works with JP, they get the job done, they do it right, and everything is just fine. Without the father, the son is just not wanting to work.                            

To paraphrase that old saying..... This particular apple did indeed fall very far from the tree. In fact, this apple fell off the tree and rolled all the way down the hill and landed in another county.