Decent People

Our family seems to have the good fortune of running into good people everywhere we go, people who really look out for others and go the extra mile.

I took the kids to the hardware store to get a curtain rod and drapes. I needed an eight foot rod to fit the windows. On the way out I was carrying Isaac, a purse, the cumbersome rod, and holding Melissa's hand. Matthew carried the shopping bag for me. Naturally we were parked far from the exit. A young guy, probably in his early 20s, noticed us limping along and offered to help. Thank you! As we walked towards towards the car he talked about how he enjoyed being an uncle. He didn't have kids of his own yet, but liked babysitting his nephew. He helped get the rod in the car and then turned around to go back into the store. What a nice guy.

A chair and the top to the armoire got damaged in the move. The moving company called in a furniture repairman to fix them. He came by took the chair and the broken piece of the armoire and return two days later with both fixed. The chair's repair is so well done that you have to look very closely to see crack where the arm broke off. Nicely done. He was a cheerful, pleasant man native to San Antonio, and in his 40s. After screwing the top in place to the armoire, I asked him how I could fix the tongue that the groove which held drawer rested upon. He took a look at that and said, "Oh I can fix that in just a few minutes." And he did.

Afterwards he said he would be willing come back and help lift the armoire to slide something under the front feet to raise it a bit so that the armoire wouldn't angle forward so much because it was front heavy and the doors would close better. He did come back when Jon was home, and together they lifted. After that, he fixed the doors so they aligned nicely, placed new catches for the doors, and stained a part that was a bit worn. We bought the armoire several years ago at a scratch and dent sale for a fraction of the original price. While a solid piece of wood furniture, it had some problems. When the furniture repairman was done, it was quite a bit better than we had bought it. He spent a good half hour fixing it, and when he was finished, he wouldn't accept any payment. We were stunned. I did give him some Almond Roca, but it seemed pretty poor compensation for his efforts.

Wow!