No Man Is An Island

It was Tuesday, the day I scheduled repairmen to come help me. The microwave wouldn't heat, I couldn't get online with my PC, the upstairs toilet was constantly running, plus the faucet wouldn't turn off. Trimming the outside bushes had become too much of a job for me and there were some large pots to be replanted. It was time to call in the experts.

The experts were staggered to come from 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. It would be a full day of waiting, hopefully they would all show.

Promptly at 8:00 the doorbell rang, and the microwave expert was here to get the oven working again. It had simply stopped when I tried to bake four potatoes at a time. The oven was supposedly a good one and this shouldn't have happened, but the bottom line is that it did. The cost of repairing this item would have been close to what I paid for it a short two years ago. NO GO! I'll buy another after I write a letter to the company expressing my disappointment in their product.

Once again the doorbell. This time it was the computer support company, MakeitWork, I had called to work on the errant PC. I couldn’t get online. After a very short time, the technician, Justin, said he thought it was my virus protection that was keeping me off line. What kind of a deal is this? Norton is protecting me from a virus by keeping me offline? Great strategy! The program was removed, in its place a free program installed, and I was back in business. But wait!!! There is still time left on my expensive service call . . . what about getting my phone to synch with the PC ? What about getting me back on Outlook? As Justin worked we spent the time conversing about our families, and life in general. A very pleasant hour passed and soon my PC was back in business.

Where or where was the plumber? He had promised to be here between 9 and 10. It was now after 11 o’clock. A call to the company with the result; he was busy elsewhere, apparently so much that a call couldn’t be made to let me know. Didn’t they know or care that I had a life and expected the curtsey of a call if they weren’t going to show up?

On the flip side, an hour earlier than expected, the gardener was at my gate. He looked like a capable young man, and not only that, he had ideas of what to do with my yard, the strong back to do it, and best of all, his charges were reasonable. The bushes were trimmed, a couple of heavy potted plants replanted, the courtyard cleaned up and all in a short time. Juan is going to work out very well for me.

John Donne wrote, “No Man Is An Island”. I know he wasn't thinking of me when he wrote those famous words in the 17^th Century, or even if I have put the correct meaning to his words, but it’s true. We aren’t isolated, we need people to help us live a productive life and today I had the help of a few great people that will make my life more productive.