Need help! Quick impressions?

[MorningGlow]

Hello my friends!

As some of you might know, I've recently been motivated to finally hire some people to work on our tumbledown/in progress house and yard and get our living space in shape once and for all. I am glad to finally be taking action, but it's been quite a job finding people, meeting with them, and getting estimates.

I was fortunate to have a very clear choice for which landscaper I chose--one guy was head and shoulders above the rest--but it hasn't been so easy to find a contractor to fix the siding on our house and build some steps. However, it's a good kind of problem, because I've narrowed it down to two people who are equally good. I mean, it's a total toss-up--their estimates are about the same, and the descriptions of the work they would do are also very similar. They're both conscientious and both appear trustworthy.

So I'd love a little supernatural help picking which one would be the best for the jobs we need to have done. Anyone want to participate? All I'd ask is your quick impression of their energy based on their initials.* One is O.S. and the other is M.M. Cast your vote and share what you "see"!

* While I will take everyone's impressions seriously and consider them valid--because they are--I will blame no one if the contractor I eventually choose turns out to be disappointing. If the contractor turns out to be great, everyone gets cake!
:rofl:

[ayeshahaqqiqa]

1. OS

just an impression, as you requested. But I also got the impression that your supervision was needed to get the house the way you want it, perhaps to the point of being the contractor yourself.

[Cleita]

4. That's not a bad idea.

If you own the property, I believe the permit department let's you be the head contractor yourself. One thing you can do is find out where they worked before and ask the people if they were satisfied with the job getting references so to speak.

[rosesaylavee]

8. Ditto! Get references

And if these are wooden shingles, ask them to confirm that the nails will be countersunk and covered by each succeeding shingle. And get references going back a few years... not just this spring.

[MorningGlow]

9. Clarification

Should have said in the OP: This thread is NOT meant to be a replacement for references. I was just curious to see what the ASAH crowd could pick up! :hi:

[rosesaylavee]

10. Ok ... sorry...

Can it wait until after merc retro?

:hi:

[MorningGlow]

11. I intend to drag out my decision

till early June!
:rofl:

[rosesaylavee]

13. That is a GOOD idea

I have had so many things go wrong or backfire this last week alone - it's almost not funny. This is one POTENT merc retro.

[MorningGlow]

17. It is a vicious one, isn't it?

I had to chase every one of the contractors and landscapers to squeeze the estimates out of them. Phone tag was the rule of the day for the past several weeks. Plus I've caught myself sinking into a crappy mood, out of nowhere, a few times, and that's just NOT like me.

[northernlights]

2. I gotta go with MM

those are my initials...:blush:

[Why Syzygy]

14. I've got to pitch in with MM too..

but just because I get a big "no" on "OS". :shrug: We're in the minority.

[NuttyFluffers]

19. both are good, but i also agree w/ M.M.

somehow i'm getting O.S. will be flooded w/ work and may have to drop a few projects, with yours being one of those. whereas M.M. will do the work, but as strict professionals they don't go out of their way for finishing touches or flourishes (might have something to do with the dad, being older, work hazards, etc). either will be fine, but these are just probability patterns for their futures.

keep O.S.'s card, btw. in a few years might be who you need to talk to for another project. M.M. should have retired the dad by then, will be taking smaller jobs in the transition.

...huh. wonder where the hell all that came from? i should be doing school reports and domestic chores if i have all this energy and 'insight'.

[MorningGlow]

20. I do believe you're right, NF

I just saw O.S.'s sign go up outside a house on Main Street, and our nextdoor neighbor said he saw their signs up on a couple of places on the next street over from us. (He said they're good, and because they're local, lots of folks hire them instead of calling in contractors from "the city" several miles away.)

And I do expect to call O.S. for another job, whether or not I employ them for the immediate job, because they're experts at painting siding. They gave me a price for that, separately, on their estimate, and it's very reasonable. (Our siding is so old and faded--and stained in some places--that although we can't afford to put up new siding on the whole house, we need to do SOMEthing to get it looking more respectable.)

So...good job on that! Excellent work! :applause: (And hey, trolling DU is much more fun than doing school reports and domestic chores--take it from me! :rofl: )

On edit: I just had some insight of my own! The deciding factor may very well be the availability of both O.S. and M.M.--in other words, if one of them can start sooner than the other, we could pick that one, because we want this job DONE as soon as possible. Hmmm...!

[skye66]

3. OS

I'm new here, so take this with a grain of salt, but what I got was that OS is more committed and will follow through. MM has less stamina. But both are capable.

[BanzaiBonnie]

5. Before I saw what anyone else answered...

I got "be careful about MM. Not anything bad, but every i has to be dotted and every t crossed with that one. They will not be lenient if there is anything else that needs fixing once the contract is signed and they begin work.


OS is more open about adjustments to the job.

[stellanoir]

6. maybe try this . . .

http://www.angieslist.com/Angieslist/

:hi:

[MorningGlow]

7. Oh heck we've done Angie's List

:rofl:

We're beyond that at this point--now I need a tie-breaker from the Great Beyond!
:rofl: :rofl: :rofl:

[stellanoir]

12. Oh heck I haven't tried it. I'm just a sucker for Thom Hartmann and all he gets paid to advertize.

But I once dated a wise man who was quite curious.

Whenever he couldn't make a decision in 10 seconds, he'd flip a coin, and act on it.

Go figure.

[Delphinus]

15. O.S. for me.

Good luck!

[Callie McAllie]

16. for what it's worth

I claim no psychic insights on this, but as I read your message, I thought "pick the one who's easier to look at." He'll be working outside your house all summer, after all.

[MorningGlow]

18. LOLOLOL

I LOVE IT!
:rofl:

Unfortunately they both remain unseen so far. OS's wife is his partner--she does the estimates, so I met with her initially. Really nice woman, so I'd feel guilty ogling her husband if he ends up being the one doing the work. And MM's father, who helps him out, lives in my town, so he was the one to come out and do the estimate. He was also a nice guy.

See what I'm up against? :banghead:

[kentauros]

21. Cake or death?

Cake, please! :P

I'm going with M.M. since it sounds like "mmmm" for your ogling pleasure
And you can offer them cake

M.M. also came across as more grounded, down to earth, so that's my impression :)

[MorningGlow]

22. ROFL whatever works!

Sounds good to me! :hi:

How you feelin', baby? :hug:

[kentauros]

23. Still sleepin' during the day and up all night.

I have to turn that around, though, since I'm looking for work and have to make a few contacts per week for the unemployment pay. So, I better be awake by 8ayem for calls and such ;)

In the meantime, I'm watching Twin Peaks on my DVR, reliving that craziness!

How was that trip y'all took? I never heard anymore about it...

[MorningGlow]

24. That's to be expected

When I was in my coven, we had a rule about misfortune: Anyone who encounters misfortune may go ahead and wallow, because it was earned, and shouldn't be denied--as long as you don't stay stuck in the wallow and move on when it's time. (Sounds like you know when it's time to cease wallowing, so you're good!)

Twin Peaks is a great way to recover! (I just found out Reaper, with the wonderful Ray Wise, has been canceled, and I'm all :cry: )

Best of luck with the phone calls and such. You're going to do fine!

The trip was fine--heck, it was Orlando, which amounts to laying out mucho cash for a surreal amusement park experience. Jr. enjoyed it, though, which is all that matters. The ironic bit was that his favorite part of the trip was a *FREE* car show up the road from the hotel that we went to on the spur of the moment. Lots of Ferraris etc., but he went NUTS at the movie and TV cars, like the DeLorean from Back to the Future, the Monkeemobile, and the landspeeder from Star Wars. When Darth Vader, a bunch of stormtroopers, and a fully functional R2-D2 showed up, I thought he was going to spontaneously combust!