RE-Cycle: More Flies With Sugar Then Vinegar, Sir!

Friday, November 14, 2014

More Flies With Sugar Then Vinegar, Sir!

AMAZING!!
TWO DAYS IN A ROW!!
Once again, awoke this morning in an AMAZING mood! Angela and I had a rare treat last night! All the kids went down for bed, relatively early and WITHOUT incident, quickly falling asleep. She suggested we go in and relax and watch a movie, surprisingly recommending one of my favorites, "Pacific Rim". Well, apparently our hectic work schedules of the last week (not to mention her brief bout of food poising (DO NOT go to the Subway in South Beach!)) took it's toll, and once she curled up on my lap, we both passed out quickly! Rousing around 1.30 am, we stumbled off to bed, resulting in me NOT wanting to get up this morning! However, after a brief conflict with my conscience (and a battle of wills of not wanting to leave her) I got up.
Thankfully, I was able to retain my smile!
So OK, I HAVE to tell you of a deliciously satisfying (bordering on vindication) "ten minute rule" yesterday!
Later in the afternoon we had a gent come in, looking for a "cheaper" ride. I pointed out the 7 speed Schwinn I had, literally, JUST put out. He also was eyeing the 7 speed comfort cruiser we had. They were priced at $80 and $75, respectively. After several test drives of each, he kept pointing out minor glitches. By minor I mean, they were in fact NOT glitches. He sighted that the seat position was wrong (?) for him, and the brakes did not grip well. I had to point out that seat positions were adjustable and determined by the rider, and that we leave the brakes intentionally slack, as many folks will test ride them, and if we have the brakes TOO tight, they could inadvertently go over the handle bars if they unexpectantly broke to hard! Those were adjustments we made to the taste of the person who bought it. After adjusting them, he tried once more, then came back and sighted that one of the valve stems on the comfort cruiser was slightly askew. About 7 degrees off center! Again I stated, "not a problem" easy to adjust. He scoffed, said there was a lot of things that needed work, but he'd "do me a favor" and give me $50.00 for the Schwinn.
*ahem*
I politely declined his generous offer, and assured him, I would have no problem selling it for the very reasonable asking price. He went on to point out the few defects in the paint and the fact that the tires were not NEW, and in a very benevolent fashion, with a smile of saintly generosity, offered $55.00. To wit, I again politely declined, stating the fact that they were, in fact, USED bikes, and defects in paint and overall appearance were taken into account when we priced them. And were I to put NEW tires on it (discarding a perfectly sound pair, with still, very good tread) the bike would then have to be sold for $125.00 to cover the cost.
He scoffed, stated in a rather derogatory tone "Good luck trying to sell them" and huffed out.
....three minuets later...
A very wonderful couple, Douglas and Linda came in. Recently moved to the area, they were looking to join the throngs of folks taking in the Pinellas Trail. They were interested in something easy and comfortable to get around. After trying a couple others we had, they each took a turn on the Schwinn and Comfort cruiser, instantly falling in love, realizing they were perfect!
As I said we would have no problem finding our rides new homes!
Also, had a very satisfying relocation of the three wheeler we had. One of the local Pastors we work with came in and snagged it up for a gentleman in his church of special needs (although he did use the more socially incorrect term to describe him, which quite frankly, I still use myself! Hey, I'm from up North (which his accent clearly revealed!))
Managed to put out only three, yesterday. The aforementioned Schwinn, a ladies 26" "DAILY BANGER SPECIAL!!!" and a youngins' 20" converted MTB! See pic's below!
Today, aside from the normal deluge of repairs, I have still more newbies to work on, so I best get my keister in over drive!
See ya soon!!