Something Crossed Off The 5 year List

I finally got someone to come and look at my leaking roof. It has only been leaking for, well, for years now. I haven’t known who to get to fix it. I mean, how do you know what tradie you can trust? I’d continually asked friends for a recommendation, but nothing. I googled it, but couldn’t find any recommendations. 

So, recently, I did it the logical way.

A few days ago, when we were walking Bruno, I saw two guys on top of a house in Carlton clearly fixing the tin roof. After some hesitation, and with Sam and Bruno walking on ahead while I stressed, I crossed the road and called up to them with the obvious question. “Hey, do you guys fix roofs.”

One of the guys, who was the boss guy, as it turned out, said they did. He said, “Take the number off my ute, message me, and I’ll organise to come over and look at your job, probably tomorrow.”

I stressed about sending that message all night, how can I trust this guy? I stressed and stressed until I thought to myself, it is better than continually doing nothing. So, I hit send on the message I’d written but not sent.

He messaged me early the next day to say he’d be there around midday. And in true tradie fashion, he didn’t turn up. I wondered if I should message him all afternoon, but thought if he couldn’t be bothered turning up, I didn’t need him either.

He called last thing in the day, apologised for not turning up, something about a mad day and emergencies having come up, so we organised for first thing the following day.

8.11am. Josh, the plumber calls to say he’ll be here withing the hour.

Bruno and I go for a walk down [our] Street. It is a lovely morning. It's Bruno's morning constitutional after breakfast. What the fuck, it’s not promised the plumber guy was going to turn up. We are back by 9am. 

Josh came right on 9.11am, right within the hour, as promised. 

He tried to see how he’d get up to the 2nd story roof. It’s not easy. He tried from several of my neighbours. (You know, terrace houses are joined)

He got his ladder and went up to the kitchen roof from the lane side of the hosue. He stood at the top of the ladder and surveyed the roofs. I could see up his shorts, to the hint of a bulge in his undies. Josh wasn’t a bad sort.

The problem is getting up onto that second story roof. Maybe, we’d have to hire a scissor lift.

The flashing was the problem, on either side of the roof. So, 2 lots of flashing and the hire of a scissor lift for them to get up there, plus GST took it to a figure that was more than I had anticipated it costing. Don’t ask me how much I thought it was going to cost?

“Okay, let me think about that.”

Josh stands next to me in the lounge showing me photos of the roof explaining the job. I sneak sideways looks at him, as he looks at his phone, his thick short hair, his handsome face, his chest though his open shirt, as he did the calculations. He is a cute guy.

Then Josh called his boss and they decided to buy the 3 story ladder they had always needed, so that got rid of the need for the scissor lift. Then his boss recalculated the cost of the flashing down and the quote dropped by around $1000, so, fuck it, I accepted.

Josh said it was a good deal. He said he didn’t think I would get it done cheaper by anyone, but then it is his quote.

I want it done. It has needed to be done for quite a number of years. I know I probably should have got a second quote, but I didn’t, I just went for it. Oh, it is time to stop pissing around about it and just get it done.

Josh said they’d check over the front roof and seal any part of it that needed sealing.

I notice Josh has a big, beefy butt as he walks to the front door as he is leaving. “So, we’ll get it done early next week,” he says.

Yay. Something crossed off the 5 year list.

Midday it is hot. It is going to be 35 degrees today.