Let’s face it, like humans, houses are subject to the ravages of time. Endless cycles of wind and weather take their toll. Inevitably, when things go awry and it’s time for maintenance, there are different categories of homeowners. At the top of the list are the well-heeled who simply call up a contractor to deal with the “issues.” Then there are the frugal and handy fellows who choose to bypass the pros and go the do-it-yourself route to fix their problems just to save a few bucks. Other folks simply love working on their homes – patching roofs, replacing pumps and installing solar panels. They have the skill, time, interest and energy to make the repairs. The savings are just a bonus to them.
The last category, The Great Unhandy – I include myself among them – have no choice when it comes to looking after our homes because we have limited skills. We turn to The Handyman. Oh, I do most of the outdoor stuff on my own. I shovel snow, cut grass and trim hedges with the best of them. I even do a decent job with our gardens. Beyond that, there’s little that I’d even dream of tackling.
That leaves myriad other jobs that might not require the attention of a certified tradesman but are well above my pay grade. No plumbing or electrical jobs for me. God knows I’ve tried them. I’ll never forget the plumber we called a few years back to finish up a botched repair I’d started. Leaving the house, he turned to my wife Joy and said, “Don’t let that guy get anywhere near a wrench or a pipe ever again.” Sound advice.
It’s about more than just skill though. Advancing years inevitably bring us to a point where many chores, especially those involving ladders, electrical connections and brute force are best left to others. Enter The Handyman. When I think of a handyman, I think of a guy who is a jack-of-all-trades. Would he wire an entire house or shingle my roof? Probably not. But he can do a lot more than I can – anything from replacing deck boards and repairing a fence to building a deck, stumping a tree and replacing a bathroom faucet. A good handyman is like one-stop shopping for home maintenance problems. But not all handymen are born equal. I’ve had a few over the years and their quality and temperament varies. One showed up a couple of times then just ghosted me. Another came, did one small job, and after discussing a more ambitious project, left with a promise to return. That was the last I saw of him. Did I do something to offend those guys? I don’t think so.
On the brighter side, I’ve had two gems. One was a retired schoolteacher who did a lot of work on our old country home. His pièce de résistance was a large deck that was designed from input provided by Joy, a friend with an excellent aesthetic sense, the handyman himself, and yours truly. It was a beauty. Proof, perhaps, that while two heads are better than one, maybe several heads are better than two. That fellow came around for a few years until he unfortunately decided (I suspect under some spousal pressure) to leave the handyman game.
That left me in handyman limbo until we moved to town and got wind of another fellow who just happens to live in my neighbourhood. I have myself another winner – a retired supermarket chain executive who transitioned from the corporate business world to the small business world at a relatively young age. He will take on almost anything I ask of him, but if a job requires more skills than he happens to possess, he is always able to recommend someone else and has yet to disappoint.
I love that his motto “No Job Too Small” is not just meaningless verbiage. He means it, and that’s a bonus. At my age, there is a plethora of small jobs I’d feel uncomfortable asking most people to do. But this chap doesn’t bat an eye at the most mundane of requests. Of course, I don’t know what he’s thinking, but at least he has the decency to take it all in stride with a smile.
Especially as we age, having a good handyman a phone call away is priceless. In a senior town like Cobourg, there is an ever-growing need for hardworking blokes who are honest, reasonably priced, multi-skilled and who understand the changing ability of their aging clientele to do work that a few years ago would have been a slam-dunk. These guys are our unsung heroes and if you happen to have access to one, count your blessings.
Story by:
George Smith
Illustration by:
Charles Bongers
