spontaneous paving

Last Friday I was taking care of some lawn issues. I’m still trying to get grass to grow and I think I found a good combination:

• water the lawn regularly
• seed the lawn once a week
• walk around the yard wondering what I’m doing wrong what else I can do

Well, while placing new sprinklers on the lawn, a guy drove up and stopped in front of the house. I thought he was going to ask for directions, but asked if I wanted a new driveway instead. I had thought about a new driveway a couple years ago, but prices were a bit high and I decided against it. So my reply was, “How much?”

He got out a measure the driveway. I told him I wanted something for two vehicles and that what price I got last time. He said he’d be willing to do it for the same price. This was good because the previous price was for a single lane of driveway while this was going to be double that.

I told him I needed a day to think about it. I wanted to compare prices and check his credentials. However, he turned and said I had to answer now. See, he had the guys around the corner finishing a job and they could start and finish that day. I said, “10 minutes and I’ll have your answer.” He agreed and off he went and online I went.

I made some calls to people I knew that recently had driveways put in. I got one friend who confirmed for me that the price I was getting was pretty good. I looked the guy up on Google and found nothing bad about him. I also asked a local neighbor that he claimed to have done work for them and they were happy.

There you have it… the guy came back for my answer and I told him I’d do it. Later that night I had a new driveway and today I got to use it for the first time.

I still feel a little like I just bought something from the street vendor on some corner in New York (which means I feel like I got something that isn’t as valuable as I thought it was). But I think that’s just my response to being spontaneous. I usually plan things out and do my research before making such big decisions. But, so far so good.

Posted in: General »  by: foyleman

2 Responses to “spontaneous paving”

1. supersword  Says:
   July 25th, 2007 at 6:21 pm

   I think if someone told me they wanted an answer there and then, I would have said no. Thats only because of a show over here which exposes people offering work on and around houses, trying to pressure people into making snap decisions because things are “cheap”. Aslong as their work is up to scratch and isn’t going to break up after a few years, you have a good deal.

   I love the new use of strikeout. That’s funny

2. foyleman  Says:
   July 26th, 2007 at 7:00 am

   That’s why I was hesitant to make the decision and also why I think it makes an interesting post. I was very nervous about having the work done without more research, but it turned out that 10 minutes is all that I needed to find out about the guy. I saw his previous work, spoke to a previous customer (of 1 or more years ago), I checked for a bad history and confirmed that the price was right. I think I lucked out.

   Then again, you could be expecting a rant in a year or two. lol.

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