This was the week when I expected my new cherry trees to be planted. Well, not just expected. There was a deal about this week, just not which day. But it was about to happen.
I don’t know the situation in other countries, but in Sweden (and Miami my cousin Pär who lives there just told me yesterday when I was a bit aggravated on this subject) hiring crafts people is an energy- and time consuming business.You got to find them, you got to make them promise to show up and nag on them when they don’t. So there is a terrible amount of time waiting for the thing, whatever it is, to get done. We are talking days, weeks, months and years. In other words, it’s the sellers market.
Now, I have a great electrician, plumber and carpenter. I am also blessed with people right here in my village who do ground work and have machinery for every need. Jonas, Leif, Bengt, Roland and Erik (yes, they are all men) also have a quality I absolutely require: they are very thorough and they have an eye for details in the way I do. They are my crafts men soul mates.
Nevertheless, except for Bengt the carpenter, they can all leave me hanging waiting forever.
And here is the thing, I am not a good waiter. I am patient, absolutely, but waiting as a condition is not a good place for me to be in. I don’t handle it very well. It’s like waiting is an occupation by itself. I am occupied with waiting. No, I’m sorry, I am not available at this time, I am waiting.
One week I might be waiting for the plumber - happens a lot. As I don’t know when he is going to show up, I can’t schedule the electrician for the same week as I don’t know when he is going to show up either. This might not seem like a big problem, but for me who can’t get out of bed myself and am having my meals when it works for my home care company, I can’t have too much going on at the same time.
As it might very well be that the plumber or electrician doesn’t show up that week (this is more the norm than the exception) he might or might not the week after either, and this just keeps going on.
Meanwhile I am, of course doing things. Such weeks I might take the opportunity making the calls on my to do list. Like insurance companies, my bank guy, IRS (Skatteverket), the doctor’s, my accountant etc. Quite often I find myself in a phone line. Or someone is gong to call me back. And in waiting for the one to call me back I can’t really be busy with some other authority on a different line. Also because these calls often requires focus. This while all the while having one ear directed towards the front door as the plumber hopefully will show up.
Days like this when lights are out in the evening I feel frustrated and disgruntled. Waiting-weeks I end up dissatisfied on Friday afternoon. The gratification crossing things out on my to do list does not appear. Check! No.
I think there are better ways to handle the waiting situations. It’s not really true that nothing is happening although it seems so. Things are happening, although slowly. This summer I have a brand new gutter on my house for example. It only took about two years.
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