Mundane and pointless things follow. You have been warned.
- I have a yard service that mows my postage-stamp-sized yards (back and front) every other week. They’re called MowManagers.com, and my lot is so tiny that they’re in-and-out in 20 minutes. They come like clockwork, and I don’t interact with them at all. Most of the workers do not speak much English, and I don’t speak Spanish. Sometimes they come when I’m not home. One time they came so early, I slept through the whole thing. They’re great! The charge shows up on my card the next day.
When I first signed up with them I had a bicycle cable with lock on the gate (chain-link fence) to my back yard. I did give the company the combination so they could get into the back yard when I’m not home. Several months ago, I added a second bicycle cable with lock, and I never got around to giving MowManagers the combination. But on the day they’re due to come, I usually unlock both locks, so they can easily get into the back yard. No prob.
When they came three weeks ago, I was home, and I didn’t want them to come in the back yard. So I didn’t unlock either lock and I also tied one of those yellow caution strips around the gate/fence as a visual clue that I assumed would convey the message, “Do not go in the back yard.” Here’s what that looks like. On that day, I happened to walk into the back yard when one of the workers was headed to that gate preparatory to mowing the back yard. I went over to the gate. He had already unlocked the lower cable, which they do have the combination to. I said, “Don’t do the back yard today,” and he said, “Okay.”
But here’s the puzzling thing. He only had the combination to one of the cables. He was not going to be able to unlock the other one, so why did he unlock one of them? Not to mention the yellow caution tape. Was he planning on breaking it?
So maybe it was just that guy, right?
But yesterday they came on their regular day. It was a different crew. I was home and I was sweeping the sidewalk in the back yard when the worker headed to the back gate. The gate was just as shown in the picture: both cables locked and the yellow tape in place. I met him at the gate and said, “No back yard today,” and he said, “Okay.” He had already unlocked the lower cable–the only one he had the combination to. WHY??
This is not a problem, and I’m not looking for a solution, just commenting on something I find puzzling. On those days when I don’t want them to do the back yard, the person will eventually figure out that he can’t get into the yard when it dawns on him that he only has the combination to one of the locks. On the days when I do want them to do the back yard, I unlock both cables myself.
- There’s a local chain of Starbucks-type coffee places here. I bought one of their stainless steel coffee mugs like this one with their name and logo on it. Invariably, when I walk up to the counter and say, “A latte, please,” as I hand the person the empty cup with the top off, he or she replies, “In this?”
I guess they’re being super cautious, or just making chit-chat, but… um…yeah, in **that **cup with y’all’s name on it. I guess if I want to avoid that question, I could hand them the cup and say, “A latte, please, in this cup,” but that almost seems insultingly obvious and more than a tad patronizing. I dunno.
Other people’s stories welcome.