...after all these years.?ÿ I really do try to bite my tongue, but sometimes it's just too difficult.
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One of my jobs this last week included preparing easements for a good amount of buried electrical primary on a rather large horse ranch.?ÿ This place sprawls all over two sections of Canadian River bottom.?ÿ It's really a showcase.
I had to make a call to get the gate code.?ÿ The guy on the other end asked me to stop by the barn on my way in so he could talk.?ÿ Cool.?ÿ After almost a mile I had passed about a half-dozen structures I would consider barns..but only one had a truck parked nearby.?ÿ That was the one.?ÿ This guy on the phone was the owner.?ÿ And after a brief cordial intro he started chewing on me like I was a stepchild.?ÿ Didn't sit well with me at all.
In a rather condescending manner he proceeded to explain the monetary value of all his horses.?ÿ And he was disappointed in the level of intelligence of the person that had placed a plethora of wire flags (the engineer used these to mark the proposed line) all over his pastures.?ÿ He went on, in detail, about the dangers of a high dollar horse ingesting the plastic flags and the need for life-saving emergency surgery if a horse was able to get down any of the wire.?ÿ His request was that I remove the flags and replace the marks with paint on the grass because he doesn't like all those flags endangering his top dollar foals.
In an effort to dilute the intensity of the conversation I added a bit of levity, "I bet the veterinarian likes the flags.."?ÿ ?ÿThe guy blew up.?ÿ He explained angrily he was a vet and didn't care one bit for the flags...so I'd better get to crackin' on picking them up or somebody was going to be buying him some new horses.
Still in complete control of my disdain for this guy's approach I explained I would let the engineer know and let him take care of the flags.?ÿ I really wanted to tell him he could sh*t and roll in it,?ÿbut I remained professional.
Apparently it had been a while since anyone had told this fella "no".?ÿ He threatened to "call your boss" and see if that would change my mind.?ÿ I gave him the phone number of the engineering department's HMFIC.?ÿ Then I decided to give him a piece of my mind.
The work order was dated almost a week prior.?ÿ This meant the flags had been in the ground about that long.?ÿ And there were clearly animals still grazing the pastures with all the flags.?ÿ I told him I felt he really didn't give a damn about those horse and all he really cared about was money.?ÿ I surmised if the flags were really that much of a danger and he really cared about the horses he would have either moved the flags himself or moved the horses.?ÿ I called him a fool?ÿ for leaving his animals exposed to this "danger" for over a week.?ÿ He didn't like that very much.?ÿ He wished me to leave.?ÿ I told him we finally agreed on something.?ÿ I was off the property in a matter of minutes.
Well he apparently has buddies on the Board of Directors for the co-op.?ÿ It took a little over a day but I wound up on a conference call with about half the board and engineering department.?ÿ I guessed my contract was being "reconsidered"...so to speak.?ÿ So I cut to the chase and explained if my services were no longer required I'd just as soon end the call quickly as I really didn't have time for a sermon.
To make a long story short all of the engineering staff and two of the board members agreed with me..although I don't think any of them really liked the fact that I got hot with the guy.?ÿ This is only the second time in 10 years the co-op decided to tell the subscriber the easement prep would be their responsibility.?ÿ?ÿ
I guess I dodged a bullet.?ÿ Ol' Paden's mouth can still get him in deep water.?ÿ 😉
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Hell....
I'd say the guy is lucky he still has all the teeth he showed up with...just saying...
Nice work.
Sometimes the Ballance of power has to be re-balanced.?ÿ
N
I was staking clearing limits (marking the right-of-way) when a home owner comes out. I was driving in a lath, next to a pin marking his property corner, and he asks; what are you doing? I told him I was marking clearing limits for a big sewer project that would be starting in a few days and big yellow machines would be coming through, ripping everything out. He was surprised, and exclaimed; They can't do that! That's a $10,000 Japanese Maple! My response was; it was kind of stupid of you, to plant it in the right-of-way, then, wasn't it...
That went over like a big turd in a punch bowl! I didn't get into any trouble; just asked to think, before I spoke, the next time.
I think my response on the flags would have been, "I didn't put them there, so don't yell at me. You can remove them after I get done surveying them, or you can replace them with paint if you want."
That would be standing up to him and still allowing the job to get done.
I didn't get into any trouble; just asked to think, before I spoke, the next time.
One of the cool things about it getting really really hot in the summer is, it gets really really hot.?ÿ No one comes out to bother you.
I tried the open-ended-conversation technique once, with some old dude who stopped to interrogate me. Not very good at it but, I did keep him out there past a certain comfort level.?ÿ Need to work on this.?ÿ ?????ÿ
@bill93 I would??ve tried diplomacy but maybe that??s just me, a nice guy finishing last again.
I would have told him to call the HMFIC and no more.?ÿ The need for your service was brought about by his need from your employer for that job.?ÿ His ISSUE was not with you but you were the one onsite who he could blame.?ÿ He made it about you.?ÿ BIG MISTAKE.
He's a giant A-hole.?ÿ Probably has been that way since the days when he chucked enough rocks at his mama whenever she attempted to wean him.?ÿ She had to drop by the elementary school a couple times each day to keep him happy.
The story about a youngster being six years old and still nursing comes from a well-known book for which the title escapes me.?ÿ The mother explained that every time she tried to wean him, he would throw rocks at her until she gave in.
Despite media reports of more people being confrontational to the point of being as***es, I find myself having less of these incidents.?ÿ Maybe living on a small island for 30 years and in business for 22 means I know more people and therefore get along better. Maybe I'm finally getting mellower. Maybe as I get and look older people are less likely to disrespect an "elder". A few weeks ago someone (who I didn't know) called me "Pops" for the first time. I took it as a complement, shook my head and grinned.
Circa 1984, setting limits for a pivot. The pivot was going to swing through some brush, trees, deep grasses and the area needed to be opened up. The limits were laid out with pin flags. A few months later get a call from the owner: five prized angus bulls dead!!
The autopsy revealed that the pin flags were what killed all five, they were ingested and the pin flags tore up the digestive systems of the bulls. The owner who was also a civil engineer by education had requested the pin flags, so he said no matter how bad he wanted to blame us it was his fault. But, if we ever set a pin flag on or near his properties again.........
Message received loud and clear. All pin flags were pitched and I've never touched one again. Don't know if horses will eat them, but I do know horses can easily be worth 6 figures.
DONT EVER USE A PIN FLAG>>>>>EVER!!!!!
Still the owner should have been civil about it.
And why would he allow his stock to graze near them?
I wouldn't, I would have picked them up or called the company to do it before I let the stock in that pasture.?ÿ
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I have some high dollar thoroughbred clients and when in any field where horses can be (now or in the future) no flagging/spikes etc are used and an inventory check is done of my vest/tool pouch when done. My general liability ins. doesn't even come close to paying for some of them.
Crews need to be careful even setting control. Small nails can be pulled up with flagging as cattle or horses feed. Un-capped rebar can damage hoofs. Basically think about what you're doing out there in livestock country. A pasture with polo ponies can swamp the value of an engineering company.?ÿ
On a side note I have been in a few of these high end barns and am not ashamed to say they are nicer and cleaner than my home. Wouldn't hesitate to eat lunch on the stable floor. If I recall correctly I was told they are cleaned hourly.
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I tried that for a while.?ÿ I've noticed as my age goes up the diplomacy goes down.
Went to dinner last winter with my girlfriend and as we neared the restaurant this couple and their 2 kids decided to jaywalk in front of us on a dark, unlit street.?ÿ I was rubbernecking a little bit because I hadn't been to that area of town before but I saw them in plenty of time to stop.?ÿ The guy glared at me as they continued across the road.?ÿ As luck would have it we were going to the same restaurant so we ended up in the waiting area together.?ÿ The girlfriend and I were chatting and completely ignoring these people when the guy stands up, slowly walks over to me, and bends over slightly to make sure I can hear him and goes "Are we going to have a problem here?"
The first thing I thought was "You know, when you see a story in the news about how some idiot gets shot to death at a recreational softball game or in a line at a starbucks or some other dumb thing...?ÿ THIS is how it gets started".?ÿ I wasn't mad or even annoyed about the encounter in the street, because it was obvious these were stupid people doing stupid things-- but I could also see the appeal of just smashing this idiot in the face.
I don't know what it is but there seems to be a certain percentage of the population that go around just begging to be weeded out of the gene pool.?ÿ I think most folks try to be patient with these people, but at the same time I think there's only so much obnoxious stupidity that can be tolerated, ya know?
@bstrand so tell us the rest of the story. ?ÿGive us the boring truth and then make up your preferred enjoyable ending, please.
Ha!
From what I remember I simply asked what he was talking about.?ÿ He accused me of almost running over his family and that pedestrians have the right of way.?ÿ I said sure they do... in a crosswalk.?ÿ The wife started mouthing off and said we were staring at her too.?ÿ My girlfriend can be a little bit of a firecracker so that caused her to jump in and point out we were just engaged in a conversation until we were interrupted, and reiterated the crosswalk thing.?ÿ That wiped the stupid look off their faces, they both shut up and the guy shuffled back to his bench.?ÿ I have a feeling it was the wife prodding the guy to say something because she had that look...
Anyway, no fisticuffs this time.?ÿ ?????ÿ?ÿ
That made me think of the time about 45 years ago when my wife and I were attending a dance at a family-friendly hall.?ÿ We were standing in an area near where food was for sale.?ÿ I heard a fellow behind me say "Move.?ÿ You're blocking my view of the dance floor."?ÿ I slowly turned around to see he had a knife in one hand.?ÿ I said, "Sorry about that." and moved about a foot to one side.?ÿ Meanwhile, there were pre-school kids attempting to dance like their grandparents out on the floor.
I assume you are planning to marry your girlfriend and have lot's 'o kids? If not take her to restaurant that doesn't allow children under 25 in the joint, otherwise you are giving her ideas. Hmm.. on second thought maybe it is a good idea to dine at a kid friendly place so she can see how the cute little monsters behave in the real world ie. In a restaurant my 7 and 5 year old boy's usually did the following; go to the bathroom and stay here until you go and retrieve them, if you do not retrieve them they will wander all over the place on the return trip from the bathroom, explore the floor under your (or other nearby) tables, want some crap they display at the entrance, want Pizza in a Chinese restaurant, fight (verbally) with each other and want to stop at McDonalds on the way home to name just a few. ?????ÿ
