I want him ! part one

askmeall

I was in my second year of 'doin' trees . I felt expierenced , and was eager to make the " Big Bucks " that are available in Tulsa ( Money grows on trees in Tulsa ya know ), was 23 years old and felt indestructable, Infalable, and able to tackle any task . I was well on my way to ...... nowhere , yes nowhere . How I survived those first two years without injury , is still beyond me . I went about 'doin' trees the only way I knew how .... , Figuring it out along the way . Poor planning on my part . Oh I would have liked the help , but I was fairly new to Tulsa and still hadn't made many friends , and the ones I had didn't know didly 'bout doin' trees . How did I get into trees ? I needed money ! My first day in Tulsa I was at a store getting a paper to look at want adds ,hoping someone would want me. No one did . How could they not ! I was smart , strong , could run most any kind of equipment , was cleancut ( Friends back home would need a triple take ), and felt I would be an asset to anyone willing to hire me. I mean come on , how many Me's could there possibly be ? Surely they could see that I was special . Surely there was companies in Tulsa that needed a good worker . I would just call a handful and pick the best one , hell I might just take two ! THEY WERE FREE WERN'T THEY ? You know..., jobs in a big city ? That was it ! I would take the best fulltime job and the best partime job and combine them into a true workaholic's dream ! Spent more than I could afford (Payphone), Trying to figure out why people wouldn't listen to me go on and on about how I was the employee they have all been dreaming of , and would show up at their door and all their troubles would disapear . What was wrong with these people ? A man approached me As I was checking my ego (Got it out of my holster , put it in my back pocket , where it belonged ), and getting off the phone , and asked if I needed work , I was shocked ! Oh , I get it , Dont get on the phone looking for a job ! Thats not how you do it , That's a waste of time . Just stand at a Quick-Trip and you will be approached for work . But hold on , This is the first guy doin his approachin' , what about the next approacher ? What if his approachin' is better than the first approacher ? Am I supposed to wait here all day and make a list of all the approaches ? And where are the other approachees ? am I too late ? Did they get the pick of the approachers ? He asked again , " need work ?" " Yes ! " I said before the words left his lips . He was a grizzled man wearing a long sleeve shirt . I could tell that he was a hard worker by the texture of the skin of his neck ( sun baked ), the manner that he walked ( steady and without hesitation ) . And his handshake (the grip of a Gorilla) . His name , Floyd . All 5ft 4 of him . I took a job and didn't ask what it was , didn't care . Followed him to the job. We drove into the neighborhood just behind the store until we came to a traffic jam . A TRAFFIC JAM ! right in the middle of a neighborhood . Cars were backed up both ways for a block , moving slowly , taking turns to pass something in the way . In the way was this old beat up one ton truck , and a half ton pickup in the same condition parked in the right lane , being loaded with brush . there was a guy on top of the one ton chopping the brush down with a machete and then stomping it . Another guy was throwing brush up to him . I thought , wonder what it would be like to work for those goobs ? Floyd pulled in behind them . I was now a tree man ..., kinda . Floyd asked me if I have ever run a chainsaw and I told him I had lots of cutting expierience , Which was true (Firewood , Lots and lots of firewood) "Climbed a tree before ?" , I knew in what manner he meant , and said "Not professionally" " Your getting a 'crash course' today ". I said "cool" , and we walked into the backyard . " My climber's been sick for the week and I cant reschedule this tree removal " , I told him I would do it . They handed me a belt (Put it on upsidedown and twisted at first) , and a pair of spurs ( Oh cool , Pole Stickers ) , and then they set up the tallest ladder I had ever seen . I put the tree on the ground for him ( after I threw down the 'pole stickers' ) , sloppy , unprofessional , and dangerous . After that ,we had to cut this huge tree into little pieces and pack it out . Worked my hardest day to that point in my life . At the end of the day Floyd said I have what it takes to do this ..., you listen well , have the right build for climbers ..., tall ,thin , and strong ( I knew I was built for something ). And you seem to be fearless . I asked him what he meant ,and he said , " We've been trying to keep you from getting killed all day ! I had hoped to get at least a hundred dollars for my efforts , but felt I probably owed him . He handed me two hundred . Asked Him how much the job was worth and he said he didn't get as much as he would have liked , and said that he had had to be low bidder to get the job ....,$ 2,800 . Binger Tree Service came to be the next day . wkb tulsa