That one guy at Totem who fixed my crooked fence in 10 minutes

I spent 2 hours struggling with a fence panel that just wouldn't hang straight last summer. A guy walked by from three houses down, saw me swearing, and asked if he could take a look. He pulled out a single 4 foot level and showed me I had the post 2 degrees off plumb at the base. I had to dig out the concrete and reset the whole thing, but he was dead right. Took him longer to explain it than it did to fix once I got it. Anyone else had a random neighbor drop some knowledge that saved your weekend?

2 comments

2 Comments

the_jenny5d ago

@blair_allen nailed it with that mechanic example. Nothing like watching someone who's already been through the mess just glance and solve it while you're still digging in the wrong spot. Having that one neighbor who actually knows what they're doing can save your whole weekend.

blair_allen5d ago

It's funny you mention that because I've noticed for years that the people who know one specific thing really well can spot what's wrong in seconds while the rest of us just flail around... it's like they have a special antenna or something. My buddy is a mechanic and he'll listen to my truck for two seconds and say "it's the alternator belt slipping" and of course he's right every time. I think it's because they've made the same mistake a hundred times themselves so they know exactly what to look for. You can struggle for hours because you're guessing, but they already know the answer because they've been there. It's kind of humbling honestly... makes you realize how much we all rely on each other without even knowing it.