October 4, 2013 - ♪ We Don’t Want to Set the World on Fire…♪
What I remember about my childhood autumns is that my Grandfather would rake up all the leaves in what seemed to be a big back yard, and he would let us jump in them. Grandfathers don’t mind this kind of thing, it seems. Fathers, now that is a different story, and for another time.
After we got tired of jumping in Grandfather’s leaf pile, he’d rake them up again and set them on fire. We’d stand around for a while and watch and sniff in some of the smoke (which I now know is carcinogenic.) We kids got bored pretty quickly, but my Grandfather enjoyed a good fire and would tend it until it was done.
It’s funny what passes for normal when everyone does it. Every year in Belleville there would be garage, shed, and/or house fires because some smoldering leaves winded (wound?) their way into a crevasse, and POOF.
As a lad, my hubs accidentally set part of a Reserve on fire doing this. The Volunteer Fire Department put it out and he got a “good talking to.” But these things happen. Or used to.
*****
At the end of October last year – as we do every year – we had a yard full of leaves to be raked up. And usually hubs and I both have a good excuse not to rake them ourselves – and it’s called “working.” Truthfully, I’ve only ever worked part-time, and Laurence always has his weekends off. Still, I’d rather make money doing something I don’t mind, than save money doing something I can’t stand.
For years we’ve been able to hire a couple of lads from a local non-profit, but last year they didn’t return our call. We had a good relationship with them – we provided the lads with all the diet cola they could drink – plus better wages then they asked for. Plus they could smoke all they wanted to – just not near the leaf piles. So I expect the society just stopped providing the service.
I found an ad in kijiji - $80 for a small yard; $100 for a medium; and $120 for a large yard. The business owner, I’ll call him Dodger, arrived with two workers to check it out. We have about eight large trees in our backyard, and a yard the size of a small park. The price went up to $150 – still a good deal. I handed him the $150 in cash and the two worker bees went at it for a few hours and built a number of leaf-mounds. And left early, promising to return the next day.
The next day came, and the day after that. I called Dodger a few times. Once I got hold of him and he said they’d be back the next day, and that’s the last time he picked up his phone. I emailed him a few times using the email provided by kijiji – but never heard back. And then his ad disappeared completely.
No matter, I was still waiting for a call to return to work (contract position) and daughter Elaine was waiting to be called to go work in Korea. We tidied up and bagged for what seemed to be three days. We then hoisted all the leaves to the boulevard for pick up. I couldn’t get mad. What I did get was embarrassed. Before, when we hired from the non-profit society, we had paid the lads who did our raking and bagging about $150 EACH. No surprise that the worker bees returned to their hive, never to return.
*****
What have I learned from this? There is the obvious. Pay people well but don’t pay before the job is done. And also, I re-learned that I would rather to do almost anything than rake and bag.
The learning continues. Apparently – according to the Scott’s Miracle Grow website, you don’t have to rake at all. The operator of the lawnmower (ahem!) need only mow the leaves to mulch them into dime-sized pieces. The coworker (that would be me) can follow her hubs around with a spreader full of turf-builder. Easy-peasy, at least for this partner.
What is it Bill Gates said? “I choose a lazy person to do a hard job. Because a lazy person will find an easy way to do it.”
I’ll keep you posted. But why do I think something’s going to catch on fire? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zz4cW7RG_pk
After we got tired of jumping in Grandfather’s leaf pile, he’d rake them up again and set them on fire. We’d stand around for a while and watch and sniff in some of the smoke (which I now know is carcinogenic.) We kids got bored pretty quickly, but my Grandfather enjoyed a good fire and would tend it until it was done.
It’s funny what passes for normal when everyone does it. Every year in Belleville there would be garage, shed, and/or house fires because some smoldering leaves winded (wound?) their way into a crevasse, and POOF.
As a lad, my hubs accidentally set part of a Reserve on fire doing this. The Volunteer Fire Department put it out and he got a “good talking to.” But these things happen. Or used to.
*****
At the end of October last year – as we do every year – we had a yard full of leaves to be raked up. And usually hubs and I both have a good excuse not to rake them ourselves – and it’s called “working.” Truthfully, I’ve only ever worked part-time, and Laurence always has his weekends off. Still, I’d rather make money doing something I don’t mind, than save money doing something I can’t stand.
For years we’ve been able to hire a couple of lads from a local non-profit, but last year they didn’t return our call. We had a good relationship with them – we provided the lads with all the diet cola they could drink – plus better wages then they asked for. Plus they could smoke all they wanted to – just not near the leaf piles. So I expect the society just stopped providing the service.
I found an ad in kijiji - $80 for a small yard; $100 for a medium; and $120 for a large yard. The business owner, I’ll call him Dodger, arrived with two workers to check it out. We have about eight large trees in our backyard, and a yard the size of a small park. The price went up to $150 – still a good deal. I handed him the $150 in cash and the two worker bees went at it for a few hours and built a number of leaf-mounds. And left early, promising to return the next day.
The next day came, and the day after that. I called Dodger a few times. Once I got hold of him and he said they’d be back the next day, and that’s the last time he picked up his phone. I emailed him a few times using the email provided by kijiji – but never heard back. And then his ad disappeared completely.
No matter, I was still waiting for a call to return to work (contract position) and daughter Elaine was waiting to be called to go work in Korea. We tidied up and bagged for what seemed to be three days. We then hoisted all the leaves to the boulevard for pick up. I couldn’t get mad. What I did get was embarrassed. Before, when we hired from the non-profit society, we had paid the lads who did our raking and bagging about $150 EACH. No surprise that the worker bees returned to their hive, never to return.
*****
What have I learned from this? There is the obvious. Pay people well but don’t pay before the job is done. And also, I re-learned that I would rather to do almost anything than rake and bag.
The learning continues. Apparently – according to the Scott’s Miracle Grow website, you don’t have to rake at all. The operator of the lawnmower (ahem!) need only mow the leaves to mulch them into dime-sized pieces. The coworker (that would be me) can follow her hubs around with a spreader full of turf-builder. Easy-peasy, at least for this partner.
What is it Bill Gates said? “I choose a lazy person to do a hard job. Because a lazy person will find an easy way to do it.”
I’ll keep you posted. But why do I think something’s going to catch on fire? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zz4cW7RG_pk