Can't Get Good Help...

Way back...

We have always had a shed in the backyard here at Chez Sarge. In fact, when we moved in, the shed (seen above in a damned near sepia tone, well, the photo was taken at the turn of the century, yes, this century) was relatively new. Not far away, to the right in the photo above, were the ruins of an older shed. Seems the previous owners got rid of most of it. Not all of it mind you, just most of it.

When we had vinyl siding installed on the manor house, in a nice Cape Cod gray shade with a dark gray roof, the shed looked rather out of sorts in its horrid beige with reddish trim avec its reddish roof. (The original colors of the house.) I redid the roof, yes, all by myself, and The Missus Herself and I repainted it in Cape Cod gray, to match the house dontcha know?

It stood that way for many a year. Then one day I noticed that the shed was no longer gray but was now a bluish-tinged sort of "not gray, not quite blue." Matters stood that way for a couple of years until we decided that we really should repaint the old thing. That's when we discovered that the trim was rotting. So we resolved to redo it with fake wood, a sort of plastic-like substance with the look and feel of wood.

Rather than rely on my feckless attempts at setting aside time to work on the shed, she eventually hired a guy. A guy who did fair work as long as you watched him like a hawk. He was not an adherent to the "measure twice, cut once" school of carpentry. More of a "that looks close enough" character.

Apparently The Missus Herself berated the poor knucklehead one too many times for he "called in sick" on the third day of the job. Heat stroke he said, bullshit I said. The Missus Herself let him know that his services would no longer be required. Ever. As in, "if you show up we'll have you arrested for trespassing."

Not so long ago...

There matters stood for another couple of years, there were days when I would gaze out upon the shed and wonder when the sides would just fall off. The frame was (and remains) stout and well-built, might have been actual 2 x 4s used in its construction. But the inside was close to becoming part of the outside and we did want an actual shed, not just a concrete pad with a roof.

So The Missus Herself went in search of another contractor to fix up the shed. She found one who agreed to give us a good price on the work, I won't divulge how much but I will say that it was far cheaper than a new shed.

Problem was, it took this guy's crew over a month to do the job. Not an actual working on it every day month, but a "we'll show up when we feel like it" month.

By my calculations (and observations) the contractor worked five hours the first day, perhaps four the second. Then they were MIA for two and a half weeks. Finally they showed up on a Saturday morning to install the new door. During that evolution they managed to trip a circuit breaker. Rather than knock on the door, they claimed to have "tapped on the window."

Poppycock.

At any rate, they vanished like the dew on a hot day.

We waited for nigh on two weeks for their return. Phone calls were made, and not returned, texts were sent, and ignored. Until they received a text from us stating, "Finish the shed, or get a lawyer, your move."

They showed up early this past Friday and actually finished the job. Some of the detail work absolutely sucks, but I can mend that. When The Missus Herself said she was going to call them to come fix it I told her not to bother. Overall it's a fair to middling job, and it got done at less expense than some would have done the job for.

It only took them a month to perform about 24 hours of labor.

I wonder if they work for the government?

Today, ready to face another twenty years.