The Legend of Bloody Mary, Swamp Witch.

The nights are cooling, its fall in Hogtown, 1859. It’s time for harvest and a time for slaughter.

Mary Worth, is a witch

.

She lives in a swamp, southeast of the settlement, by herself. Mary has a skeletal appearance, her hands and face are covered in warts and cist from embedded thorns that infected and never removed. Her fingers have long yellowed nails with embedded filth. Her face is wrinkled, with sunken eyes covered with a dull haze with black circles surrounding her eyes. Mary’s hair is long, black matted but mostly gray. She walks with a stoop and a mystic stick for support. She wears tattered, black clothing with a hood to cover her face.

Mary Worth, is a witch.

She makes a monthly trip to the general store, with a sled, of sort, strapped across her shoulders. When she walks through the swamp and forest, the dragging sound of the sled and the thump of the mystic stick echoes throughout.

Mary was met on a trail, the year prior, by a local farmer who had heard the tales of Mary. He stood in her way and looked down upon her. What do we have here; the dreaded witch from the swamp? Look at you, you are nothing more than a tattered vagabond, go back to your swamp, quit scaring my children. I do not fear you! Mary raised her mystic stick towards the farmer and hissed at him through her yellow and green teeth. A cold chill ran down the back of the farmer and the smell of earth surrounded him, as Mary hissed at him once again. The farmer stepped aside and let her pass. Later that year, his wife and children caught the fever and died. He became weak in the heart and spent the last months of his life begging, bedridden in filth. There are far worse things in life, than death.

Mary would come to town for nothing more than salt and occasionally some black cloth. She would lay her coins on the counter, never speaking a word. The merchant would set her change on the counter in front of Mary and wait till she walked out of the store before brushing the coins into a bucket of lamp oil, because he was afraid to touch them.

Mary Worth is a witch.

The next morning, the town was stirred up with fear; a young girl was missing. They searched the town and the woods surrounding the settlement, she was nowhere to be found. A week later, another girl was missing and the townspeople searched every house and building, the woods and all the way to the swamp; she was nowhere to be found. The following night, another girl became missing. It’s the witch, she’s taking the girls, the parents cried out; she’s taking our girls! Several men gathered together and made their way into the swamp to search for Mary. It took most of the day for the men to find Mary’s homestead, fighting the muck and the vines and the insects.  When they approached her shack, a dark figure was standing in back, stirring a cauldron over an open fire. The merchant stepped forward and called out to Mary. Mary, we have young girls missing; do you know where they are? Mary never looked up or acknowledged him, she just kept stirring the cauldron. You old witch; where are the girls? She turned sharply and starred at the merchant, but something was different. Her hair was straight and the gray was gone. Her eyes had a sparkle from where there was only a dull haze before and the black circles and wrinkles were gone. The moles and cist were smaller and she actually had a color to her skin. She raised her mystic stick and held it out in front of her towards the merchant; Be Gone! He could feel the pressure of her mystic stick on his chest and the smell of earth surrounded him. Be Gone, she scolded one more time, this time almost knocking the merchant off his feet. The other men started stepping backwards then turned and run. The merchant struggled through the vines and muck trying to catch up with the other men as they ran away from Mary’s homestead.

It was past dark when the men made it back to the settlement, exhausted, scratched and filthy with the memory of Mary Worth, embedded into their conscious. The merchant walked to the pump, and drew a pail of water to clean up before entering his home. The oil lamp gave an orange hue to the room as he opened the door and met his wife, waiting for him at the dining table. He explained the happenings of the day and made his way upstairs to their bed before an uneasy night of sleep.

The merchant was awaken at 12:08 by his wife; Sarah is gone, Sarah is gone; she screamed! The merchant, in a sleeping stupor, grabbed his gun from the wall, loaded two silver bullets into the chamber and headed down the stairs. He grabbed a lantern, raised the globe and lit the wick and headed out into the darkness screaming Sarah’s name. “Sarah”, “Sarah”, “Sarah”! Several neighbor, hearing the commotion, come out in their night shirts and called for Sarah. Other men gathered with lanterns and head off in different directions, in search of Sarah, calling out her name. The merchant saw a small white figure a hundred yards in front of him, it was Sarah and she was walking towards a bright light. The merchant screamed out Sarah’s name but she kept walking. As he ran closer, he saw it was Mary Worth, holding her mystic stick up, glowing in light he had never seen before. He dropped the lamp, pulled the hammer back on his gun, aimed and shot Mary in the thigh. The glowing stick fell to the ground and went dark, as did Sarah. The merchant clutched his daughter as several men ran past them to where Mary Worth lay. She had changed, the woman on the ground was a younger Mary Worth, but it was Mary. Several men tackled her, bound her wrist and ankles with hemp, drug her into a clearing beneath a grand oak. The cast a rope over a limb and hoisted Mary, by her hands, over twenty feet in the air. More townspeople gathered around to witness the witch hissing and screaming as she dangled from the branch. Several men gathered lanterns and headed back into the swamp to Mary’s shack to find the missing girls. When they arrived at the shack, coals glowed beneath the cauldron and the shack was aglow from burning candles. The door was open and what they found sickened them. One of the men found his daughter’s corpse hanging above Mary’s alter. A blood covered challis sat upon an altar, dried blood coating all parts of the challis and alter. Dried blood streams running down the sides of the altar to the skeletal remains of a child. Alongside the altar was a box of salt and when they brushed the surface, the face of the other missing girl was exposed. The men gathered the remains of the children and wrapped them in the black cloth from Mary’s bed. The poured lamp oil on the walls of the shack and lit it as they walked into the darkness. The flames rose quickly and roared above the trees as the men entered the swamp and back to Hogtown.

It would be first light before the men returned to the settlement with the remains. The townspeople cast judgement and began gathering liter and wood to pile beneath the hissing witch. At sundown, the townspeople gathered around the woodpile as judgement was passed and the pile lit. Mary Worth screamed and called out; you will all be damned! Your children will call upon me. The flames rose as Mary screamed as the flames touched her feet and her clothing started to smoke, the merchant cut the rope, casting her into the flames. The following day, they gathered the ashes, took them to the edge of the swamp and scattered them into the dark water.

Today, as you walk along Lake Alice at sundown, step off the sidewalk onto the dirt path that runs along the east side. Look across the lake, close your eyes and call out; Bloody Mary, Bloody Mary, Bloody Mary. You’ll hear the sound of her sled rails and the thumping of her mystic stick and the smell of earth with surround you.

Mary Worth is a witch.

Young girls will gather in slumber, sit cross legged on the floor with a lighted candle, a bowl of salt and a mirror, hold hands and call out; Bloody Mary, Bloody Mary, Bloody Mary. Her image will appear in the mirror.

Mary Worth is a witch.

Only the brave will venture into a dark room, alone, with a candle and bowl of salt held out in front of them, stare into a mirror and call; Bloody Mary, Bloody Mary, Bloody Mary. As her image appears, your soul will be cast into the mirror to spend eternity with Bloody Mary.

Mary Worth is a witch. 

If you want to read the rest of the story, the book is available here.

Networking the Right Way for Business and Job prospecting

For many years, networking “experts” have proclaimed; you have to be on social media to be successful in business or for your next job search. Many small businesses and job seekers have followed their advice and constantly updated on all of their social networking sites, at the recommended times during the day, as recommended by the “experts”; what has happened?
 Many boast about the large numbers of followers they have on Twitter, Facebook, Linkedin and other social networking sites; but has any of that social networking turned into profit for the business or a solid job prospect? Small businesses and job seekers often rely on software to assist them with social networking, to stay in constant contact with their database. It’s often a daily deluge of drip campaigns, blogs and dry emails reminding everyone, who is in their social network, how important they are to their business or why they should be hired. The big surprise comes when one of your followers buys a product or service from a competitor or you just got news of someone on your social network, who is less qualified than you, was hired for a position you had sent a resume to and now you can’t figure out why they didn’t contact you. You “liked” what they posted on their social networks, you made comments on their sites and yet they went with your competitor or hired someone less qualified than you; why?
 You immediately look at the competitor’s web site and social presence to determine why your contact went with them. You convince yourself, your multiple websites are more professional than theirs and your pricing is far superior to your competitor or you were more qualified for the position; so why did your follower go to them?
 For many years, many of us have gotten away from the personal aspect of business. It all started with; sly-dialing to leave a voice message, a fax, an email or a text, hoping you wouldn’t have to actually talk to a real person. We walk through our community and pass by people, never saying a word to any of them and many of you wouldn’t recognize many of your social media followers, if you passed them in the isles while grocery shopping. This impersonal lifestyle, many of us lead, is the result of our social networking failure. 
 The newest rave, spanning across nations, is the old adage of personal networking. I have attended many of these events and chuckle to myself as I watch many people stumble over themselves trying to network, which more than often turns into a social hour of people talking with people they already know or are in the same line of business. 
Networking the Right Way starts out with your appearance, a message and a goal. It’s all about developing relationships, gaining the confidence of people within your community and spanning out from there. Learning the skill of networking takes time and effort, you will gain lasting results and build confidence in yourself and develop a strong business reputation. Here is some advice I offer to those in business or those seeking employment; 

               10 Tips for Successful Business Networking 

1. Networking is about being genuine. 
2. What are your goals with participating in a network meeting? 
3. Visit as many Networking Groups in your area. 
4. Volunteer or hold leadership positions in your community. 
5. Ask open-ended questions when networking. 
6. Become known as a powerful resource. 
7. Have a clear statement of what you do, why you do it, for whom and why you love what you do. 
8. Be able to articulate what you are looking for and how others may assist you. 
9. Follow up quickly on each referral and business card you receive. 
10. Call those you meet, who may benefit from your services, and follow through on collaborating with those you can assist.

 10 Networking Tips using business cards/business positions

 1. Never leave home without your business cards.
 2. Have a Unique Sales Proposition on your business card. 
3. Treat the business cards with respect when you receive them. 
4. When handing out business cards, hand out two. 
5. Keep your business cards simple, don’t boast yourself on your card. 
6. Make notes on the business cards you receive. 
7. Be part of the networking committee, volunteer to be a greeter. 8. Follow up face to face after a networking event, personally. 
9. Get published, write letters or business notices in the newspaper. 10. Branding yourself. 

      Common Questions/Comments to make while networking

1. Tell about you’re your business?
2. What’s the most unique aspects of your business? 
3. What type of client is least profitable? 
4. What’s your biggest business challenge right now? 
5. What is the best thing that happened to your business this year? 6. What is your biggest wish for next year? 
7. Do you have employees? What is the most difficult thing you have to deal with? 
8. What’s your biggest personal accomplishment so far? 
9. What’s your biggest personal accomplishment in your career? 10. If I were to refer a client to you; what would be your ideal client? 
11. When is the most convenient time to stop by your business so you can tell me more about what you do? 
12. What can you tell me about yourself?

         Common Mistakes to Avoid when Networking

 1. Speak without enthusiasm. Lack of voice inflection when introducing yourself and emphasizing your credentials. 
2. Failure to express opinions or interest. 
3. Stuck in a routine and act bored. 
4. Looking around hoping other people will rescue you. 
5. Narrow focus of personal interaction. 
6. While speaking to people, looking around to see someone else. 
7. Crowd the food table or bar, (overeat and getting drunk). 
8. Politics, religion, off color jokes and gawking. 
 9. Negative comments, (boss, elected officials, your business) 
10. Bragging about your accomplishments or how great you are. 11. Hanging with the same people the entire event. 
12. Ignoring people who are trying to engage with you. 
13. Trying to engage in conversation while others are deeply engaged in conversation. 
14. Don’t be a cling-on.

Welcome to the New Normal

This time of year is always special for me and it has nothing to do with the holidays. Twenty-five years ago, my unit was preparing to go to war. It had been fifteen years since our military had its last engagement in Vietnam. We had had small scale conflicts; Grenada and the communist factions of Cuba and the Soviet Union, Panama and the ouster of Manual Noriega just prior to Operation Desert Storm and the many years of watching the borders of Korea and Europe during the Cold War. Now a new war is upon us, terrorism. We have watched it from afar, it is something that happens over there and we have long been isolated from terrorism. As long as I can remember, there has always been terrorist acts being reported, written about and many of the acts were brought upon by; left versus right, have-nots versus the haves and religion against religion. The fights have always been over there, as we watch from afar and thought; how terrible it must be to live with terrorism. The troubles in Ireland, the loss of life as we watched from afar, terrorism between two factions, extremism and now the start of an old phenomenon has raised its ugly head in our country; terrorism. It’s no longer over there, it’s here and will be in our lives from here on. We can wage battles, over there, and talk of how we are going to defeat those who inspire terrorism, but it’s here, now. The real question is; how do we defeat terrorism? The answer is; you don’t. Is there peace in Ireland? Can there ever be peace in the Middle East? We can answer that with our own experience within our country, our racial divide. We can all claim ourselves as being optimist and looking forward to the brighter future but, I proclaim, being the ultimate pessimist, we cannot have peace as long as we have poverty, religion, different races and language. There is no sense in hiding in your home to escape terrorism, it’s here, live your life, be vigilant and know; terrorism can happen to you. Welcome to the new normal. 

Can't Find a Job!

I just finished preparing a report I will be presenting to a room full of commercial real estate brokers, lenders and contractors next week. What I found fascinating was information during my research, (beyond what I will actually be presenting); a large number of millennials who are living at home because they can’t find employment in their field of study, are under employed or are thinking of going back to school to study another field, (adding additional debt to their excessive student loan balance). I read several responses from those who moved back home with their parents, (or never left home), they all have something in common; poor communication skills. If they speak the way they write, (or as the journalist wrote their comments), I can completely understand why they can’t find employment.

Regardless of what field you choose to work in, communication is important, especially when dealing with the public, face to face. I would love to have overheard their job interviews, especially when they are asked that one question, asked by every human resource officer or potential employer; “tell me about yourself”. How does anyone explain a lack of work history or internship within their selected field of study? In reality; who expects a mid-five figure starting income without experience and be able to explain that with a straight face, (remember, they lack communication skills); I would love to hear that one. By far, most millennials will fail in their future endeavors, if they never learn professional communication skills; emails and texting is not going to get the job done.

Thinking back to projects I have worked on within our university city, I have noticed many millennials, hanging out with their friends, (who also live with their parents), overhearing their conversations, attempting to solve their worldly problems by convincing themselves; their idea is the right way and the world needs to conform around them and businesses need to step up to the new way of thinking.

I offer this advice; take a course in public speaking at a community college where the instructor has actual business experience. Join a Toastmasters club where you will be evaluated by the members in a learning environment or hire a speech coach who will put you through the paces and develop your speaking ability. Try networking with your new found speaking skill, spend less time playing video games and hanging out with others in the same financial predicament as you. If you really want to get ahead, set yourself apart from what everyone else is doing and take control of your life. Mom and dad only have a limited time left on this earth, leave a little cash for them to live on in their final years. 
If you want a few more answers on why you can't find a job, here is a link for more "in your face" information.

Images

  I want you to take a moment and think; when was the last time you bought film for a camera?  How long has it been since you owned a camera that required film? You do realize, you can still get film processed, very inexpensively. You can take your exposed film to an outlet center, they will send the film to a processing plant, who will develop the film and send your images back on a DVD. In most cases, you will not receive your negatives, they shred them. Why would you need your negatives; you have your images on a DVD. For the majority of people, digital photography is the way they capture and keep their images. It’s easy, cheap and you can share your images instantly for the world to see, right now, on Facebook, Twitter and snapchat. It’s there in an instant, possibly shared by some of your followers and then forgotten. I recently had a conversation with Brian, at Harmon Photo, here in Gainesville, we share the same concern; where is our family’s history going to be in twenty years? He reminded me of our shared concern, which is crossing the photo industry; keeping our history alive with photographs, is a dying tradition.

Many of you will be able to relate a memory from a time when you were a child and anticipated a large family get together, with cousins, aunts and uncles and grandparents. The excitement builds, as the time draws closer, your imagination grows of what the event was going to be like; playing in the water, games, spitting watermelon seeds on your cousins, laying in the grass, looking up and trying to explain what kind of animal the clouds shaped into. You arrive late and when you woke up in the morning, it was raining and the entire brood was sitting around grandma’s house bored and fussing with each other. Grandma goes into her bedroom, brings out some boxes and very soon, the adults are sitting around the dining room table, looking at photographs,  passing them along and commenting; what would that car be worth now or, you really wore that? Soon the children would gather with the adults, where they would point out family members from the past, on yellowed gray, black and white photographs. Pictures were being taken out of the box and handed around and someone would ask grandma; who is this? She would take the photo and stare at it for a moment; that was… The picture of the naked girl running in the yard, only to find out, it was your mom. Everyone is now laughing and pointing at your embarrassed mother, but it’s not what you think, it is a picture was of a three year old girl. You find another picture of your mom, when she was in elementary school. You pick up a photo of your school picture and hold it alongside and stare at the features, how you resemble her. You dig down into the old photos and find an aged, black and white photograph of a teenage couple, standing in front of an old car; who is this grandma? She takes the photo and brings her hand to her mouth as her eyes begin to tear, from a wound which has not yet healed. That is your grandpa and me, going to a church social. She brings the photo back in front of her and touches the image of the young man. There are photos of soldiers and sailors, proms, weddings, family gatherings and funerals, all part of your history, laid out before you. Where do you keep your images?

Fifteen years ago, we kept our images on three inch floppy disks; how many of you have a computer that will read a floppy disc or where could you send the disk off to recover your images? Would it be too expensive, that’s okay, it was just some old pictures. Maybe you’ll store all your new images on a DVD or memory card; are you aware they have 64 gig memory card, that will hold up to seven thousand images? With technology increasing and in order to have the latest and greatest mega pixel gadget and the best and greatest new place to store all your images, in the cloud; what could possibly go wrong? What is going to happen to your family history?

When you’re gone… as they are cleaning out your desk drawers, cabinets and they find old technology on floppy disk, DVD’s or memory cards… it will go into a bag, your history is gone. There will be no sitting around the table laughing and pointing and remembering your history. There will be no touching your history because it will be in the trash heap of forgotten memories.  How will they remember your history? Where are your images?

Here are links to assist you of how to preserve your history;

http://www.digitalpreservation.gov/personalarchiving/index.html

http://www.digitalpreservation.gov/personalarchiving/documents/PA_photo.pdf

http://www.digitalpreservation.gov/personalarchiving/documents/media_durability.pdf

http://www.digitalpreservation.gov/documents/ebookpdf_march18.pdf

Thank You, Louise Kehoe, of Kodak, for the information.

Remembering Family This Memorial Day

She reaches down and pulls the step stool in front of the vanity, steps up to the top step, reaches for her toothbrush standing in its holder, grasps the small tooth paste tube, flips the top and squeezes the tube for a dab on the bristles of her toothbrush. She looks into the mirror, smiles, raises the handle to run water over the tooth paste and returns it to her smile as her mother steps behind her and starts brushing her hair. She parts the hair in the middle and pulls the long curly strand to the side of her head for pigtails. The young girl continues her brushing mission as her mother twists the scrunches to hold the pigtails and ties red, white and blue ribbons around the scrunches as the little girl spits into the sink, spins on the top step, looks into her mother’s eyes; is grandma going to be there too? Yes she is, her mother replies; are you excited about visiting daddy? In a quiet voice she answers, yes. Her mom wipes the excess foam from her lips and chin, kisses her on the lips; share the lipstick, as they both giggle from the kiss. Let’s get going, we don’t want to keep grandma waiting when we visit daddy. The little girl steps down from the stool, returns it to its storage position and then skips down the hall to the front door, opens it and skipped down the sidewalk to the car parked in the driveway. Her mother walked behind her, opened the door and lifted the little girl into her car seat, fastened the straps around her and shut the door. As they pulled out into the street, the little girl looked out the side window and thought about seeing her father as her mother watched her in the rear view mirror. The drive went quickly, and soon, they arrived to an awaiting grandma’s hugs and kisses. Do you know where he’s at; the grandmother asked? Yes I do, as she turned and ran to her father’s position among the other soldiers. When she reached his position she sounded out; hi daddy and touched the white tombstone marker. As her mother walked through the garden of stone and looked down at the markers of those who sacrificed their lives, so we could celebrate our freedom.  Both women knelt down and placed an American Flag on the grave and leaned a wreath of flowers against the back of the stone as the little girl talked to the father she had never touched, shared a kiss or giggled from the tickles he promised to give her on the video they had all watched hundreds of times. Her father did not return home to the pageantry of fanfare and speeches. He arrived in a solemn hearse with a veteran and police escort, in a flag draped coffin. The sound of blaring rifles, the folding of the flag and being presented on behalf of a grateful nation and a lone bugler sounding a call to rest with taps. Memorial Day is the time we remember those who defended our freedom with their last breath but it goes beyond the service member, there are families who bear the weight of loss. As we pay respect to our fallen, Memorial Day 2015, please take time and remember our Gold Star Families.

Your Voice or Your Property Rights; Choose One

The Board of County Commissioners are about to decide, which is more important to you; your voice in front of your peers or your property rights, which one are you willing to give up? How could this happen, you ask? County Staff is attempting to follow the City of Gainesville position of removing your voice, in front of your peers, in speaking out against cases brought against you from the county Codes Enforcement Board. The position of the Alachua County Building Department and Codes Enforcement officer would rather have an Independent magistrate hear each case presented by officers of Codes Enforcement. It can be intimidating to stand in front of a board of your peers, who are volunteers, but having a county paid magistrate, listen to cases being presented by county officials being paid, with a county paid attorney overseeing the counties position; what could possibly go wrong? The arrogance of members of our county commission, county attorney’s office and members of staff reflect their personal political desire of centralized government control of every aspect of your personal property rights.  You can make a difference with policy by writing our county commissioners and expressing your opinion and your choice. The motion to be read to the commission; Have an Independent Magistrate listen to specific cases, remove the volunteer codes enforcement board and have an Independent magistrate hear all cases or leave it just as it currently is; a voluntary citizens board. You other choice is do nothing, say nothing and lose your voice as well as your property rights; which are willing to give up? 

Homeowners Manuel

Here is the link to my YouTube video for my Homeowners Manual. It is a how to video to develop customer satisfaction, whether you are in the real estate or insurance industry, remodeling contractor, home inspector or handyman.

Get Some Guts

Employers, managers, superintendents and other so called supervisors; do your job! All I wanted to do was come into your store and buy a soda after filling my gas tank. As I wait in line, the line builds behind me, from other customers waiting to pay for gas or buy items, as your clerk chats on their phone while slowly using their other hand to scan items. While this is going on, several customers place their products back on a shelf and walk out of your store, very soon, I follow their lead and walk out as well. My second adventure of the day was walking into a real estate office to get a key for a project I was going to bid on, for repairs. The front desk person was entranced with their phone, texting someone, as I waited for them to look up. When they finally noticed I was standing directly in front of them, they offered a friendly smile and asked if they could help me. I asked for the key to the project, they got up from their desk to retrieve it. When they finally returned with the key, they had the phone stuck to their ear in an in-depth conversation. They sat down and moved in slow motion to get a receipt book, for me to sign for the key. They paused their conversation, only to ask for my business card, and continued on with their conversation as I walked out the door with the key.  My next stop was a supply house to pick up products to deliver to a working project. As I paid for the load of lumber, the clerk asked; do you need help loading your truck? I welcomed the help, the clerk called over the PA system for a loader, as I wheeled my cart of lumber out the door towards my truck. I started loading the lumber into the back of my truck, looked around for the assistance I was asked if I needed; nobody was walking in my direction. I continued loading my truck, as I was about to load the last three pieces of lumber into the back of my truck, a young man was walking towards me with his phone in his hand texting or playing video games, not sure which, put his phone in his pocket just before he got within ten feet of me; need some help he asked? I looked down at the last piece of lumber on the cart and then back to him; I believe I can take it from here. He shrugged his shoulders, reached into his pocket, retrieved his phone and walked back towards the building.
I have really had enough of today’s technology and the addiction which goes along with it. I’ve also had enough of the gutless supervisors, who watch this going on around them, who say nothing to the employees about their personal business on company time. We hear the complaints of low wages for these service related positions, given their lack of focus on the purpose of their employment, they are being paid entirely too much as well as their direct supervisor. If you have an addiction to technology; seek counseling. If you are in a position of authority and have difficulty supervising those who you were hired to oversee; get some guts!

I Screwed Up

I screwed up; yes, it’s true, I screwed up. Who would have known, someone actually followed my instructions for doing preventive maintenance around their home and I happened to leave out a simple piece of information. I will be the first to admit, I don’t always follow my own recommendations for home maintenance. I am no different from my dentist friend, who recommends flossing and doesn't do it himself. I've seen the high number of visitors, on the most popular page on my website, “My Home Doctor”, spend an average of five minutes reading content that is all about helpful hints to guide you in the right direction when doing home maintenance. I once appeared on our local TV station, during the evening news, giving advice on what to do when buying a home that has been sitting idle for years and yet I screwed up and left out a sort of important procedure when applying preventative maintenance to plumbing fixtures. I assumed those who visited my website, understood where the important disconnects to your home were before you started doing maintenance; I was wrong.

It all started when, someone was trying to be a responsible homeowner and stay ahead of the maintenance by checking the shutoff valves to the sinks and toilets. The owner applied to much pressure to a frozen valve and snapped the PVC pipe it was connected to and they had no idea of where the main shutoff valve to the home was located. After several phone calls to plumber’s answering service, (it was a Saturday afternoon), they found a plumber who talked them through the process of how to locate the shutoff as the water was now flowing out the front door. What the plumber assumed, the home owner knew they needed a tool to manipulate the valve; he as wrong. After the homeowner located an adjustable wrench and screwdriver to be able to turn the main shutoff valve, the water had flooded the entire house. The good news, they were insured, the bad news; they probably won’t be calling me for the restoration. So here is a note to myself; write step by step instructions when writing tips, but then again, most guys won’t read them anyway.