I must apologize. The creative juices are flowing about as fast as wet cement this week. Multitudes of distracting things going on.
In addition to helping screen adopters for a litter of pups being fostered by another volunteer, I’ve acquired a foster puppy of my own (dumped in my neighborhood on a sub-freezing night and rescued by some alert children) and have been following her around all week with paper towels and a bottle of Nature’s Miracle.
And today’s the day — tada! — that the kitchen finally gets a new floor. So the refrigerator’s in the living room, the house is full of noise and chaos, and I’m distracted.
The young man laying the vinyl is the best in the area at what he does, but he’s also a guy with a troubled past who’s trying to put his life together. He brings his girlfriend to jobsites, partly to help with occasional heavy lifting but mostly to bolster his shaky confidence. I’ve met her before and she’s one of those warm, wonderful people just born to take care of lost souls, human, canine, and feline. So I don’t mind at all that she’s been sitting on my living room sofa for hours while I work at the computer and he works on the floor. But I worry she might be bored.
Noticing that she brought along a Tom Bodett book, I figured she might also be okay with Hardyville Tales. So I handed her a copy.
She’s been out there ever since, belly-laughing every few minutes. And not reading Tom Bodett.
Much though I hate having my hermit cave invaded, if it’s gotta happen, this is the way to go. 🙂
Being an old suspicious male, I have to wonder what those two are learning about your world and your habits that would help them remove items from your home they might need, or know a market for.
And any male who has such a fragile sense of competence as the young man laying vinyl does not seem like he would be the best in the area. If he is, would he not also have an author-sized ego?
Just asking that you be alert to possibilities.
cctyker, I hear ya. I had exactly the same concerns (about him, not about her). I know the guy’s mother and although she has an always-hopeful attitude toward him, she has also shared his whole sad history with me — which does include thefts and prison time, as well as abuse of every recreational substance under the sun. So I let him in with open eyes. (How many other times, I wonder, have I or other people invited contractors in without knowing that they have criminal & addictive histories?)
I owed my friend a favor, and hiring her son was partial repayment. But I checked him out first and met both him and the girlfriend (who is a doll), and I had the distinct impression the girlfriend was here as his minder, as well as all those other reasons. He really did do terrific work, too, at a great price.
And should he ever come back here with malign intent, I’ll shoot his ass and let the dogs eat his carcass.
Really don’t think he will. He’s not a bad guy, just one of those fey souls who can’t manage life very well. But I appreciate you looking out for me.
nice you got your mind right!
Claire,
I thought you might like to hear about this:
http://www.ncc-1776.org/tle2011/tle602-20110109-02.html