I get numerous requests for small, simple jobs that I often pass on. Yard work, garbage cleanup, and pool service is not my thing and there are others who do it all the time. On the odd time, I will do something different, usually for one of my regular customers or as a favour for one of them
This was was one of those favours.
*****
I pulled into the driveway of the bungalow while it was still light out. This time of year, daylight was in short supply, getting dark before early evening, and I wanted to be able to get the exterior Christmas lights up before it was too dark. The small amount of snow so far and milder temperatures would make it easier as well, so I wasn’t expecting any problems.
Marsha opened the door before I could knock and invited me in. A short blonde in her forties wearing jeans and a loose-knit sweater smiled up at me.
“Hi J. I’m Marsha,” she announced with a smile. “I’m so glad you could do this today.”
The week before Christmas was a quiet time for me, and I usually booked a vacation somewhere hot and sunny for a week or two. This year the trip would be at New Year, so I had time to do a few small jobs. My old pal George had called and asked if I could help out his brother's ex-wife with her Christmas lights. They were still friendly and on good terms with her after the divorce last year.
“Happy to be of service,” I replied.
“The lights are in the garage, I’ll come show you,” she stated. “There is a ladder, too.”
She put on some boots and a coat before pressing the remote in her hand and we stepped outside. The garage door opened up and we went inside, stopping at a shelf unit along one wall. I took down the boxes she pointed to and spread the contents over the floor.
“My husband… uh, ex-husband… always did this for the last twenty-four years,” Marsha explained sheepishly. “He never let me help so I don’t know what to do.”
“Well, you can help me and learn if you want,” I offered. “It’s easy enough to do.”
She nodded in agreement while I sorted out the strings and rolls of lights.
“You have a lot of new lights here. They don’t all go on the house, obviously.”
“No, I bought those for the trees out front, but Jim would never put them up. He said it was too much work.”
“Well, then I guess we will have to put them up,” I offered. “You want to do that?”
“Sure! That would be great!”
I laid out the lights and plugged each string in to ensure that they worked before taking the step ladder out to the front of the house. I explained how the gutter clips worked and installed the first string, then had her install the second string while I kept the ladder steady. She gasped and then giggled when I shook it once, giving her a little scare, and soon they were all done.
I put the ladder away and brought out a small string of twinkling multi-colored lights.
“Oh, he never used those,” she shrugged.
“We will put them on the railing of the porch,” I explained. “It will look nice.”
She happily agreed and followed my instructions as she wrapped the railing and plugged them in with the others.
“This is fun,” she laughed. “He always made it seem like such a big job.”
I shrugged and went to the garage for the rolls of lights for the two trees in the yard. Marsha turned on the outside lights so we could see in the encroaching darkness and retrieved a few extension cords from the garage while I unrolled the lights and got the telescoping pole from the truck. She looked curiously at it until I attached the hook to the end and extended it out.
“Hey, that’s cool!” she exclaimed.
“You start at the top and work your way down and around the tree,” I explained. “Think you can do it?”
“No,” she laughed. “But I will give it a try.”
After a few attempts and a little help she had it figured out and soon both trees were finished. I had her plug the lights together with one cord and run the long cord to the exterior wall socket where the other lights were plugged in.
“See these little buttons?” I asked as I pointed to the outlet. “Those are GFI, they have a breaker inside in case moisture gets in. Only use an outlet like that for outdoor lights.”
She nodded in understanding. “Those are in the bathroom, so that makes sense.”
I returned to the garage and found a timer in the box, brought it out, and plugged it into the outlet. The light strings were attached to the timer and I showed her the settings and how to adjust it. She set it to run from dusk to dawn.
“I want them on as much as possible,” she said with a grin. “I have always wanted more lights.”
With the lights finished I led her out to the street to admire her handy work and enjoyed the big smile on her face.
“Oh, it looks so pretty! Thank you so much!” she exclaimed while hugging me with one arm around my waist.
“It was fun helping you,” I laughed. “I’m glad you’re happy with it.”
“Oh, yes,” she beamed.
I tossed the pole back into the truck and returned to the garage, packing up the boxes and putting them back on the shelf, while Marsha returned to the house. The garage door closed and she appeared at the interior door.
“Come in, I fixed us some hot chocolate,” she invited. “I hope you like a big shot of Baileys in it!"
I joined her in the kitchen after slipping off my boots and coat and was soon leaning against the counter while I sipped the steamy beverage.
“Would you mind helping me with something else while you’re here?” she asked coyly. “If you have some time?”
“Sure,” I nodded.
“Can you help me put up the Christmas tree? It’s in a box in the basement and a little too big for me to bring up.”
“Sure, we can do that,” I agreed. “Would you like me to help decorate it, too?”
“That would be great! I have tons of ornaments and stuff for it!” she replied excitedly.
We brought up the tree and numerous boxes, piling them in one corner of the living room, and Marsha fixed us drinks and turned on some Christmas music while I assembled the artificial tree branch by branch. We strung it with lights and ropes of tinsel, chatting, laughing, and drinking while the decorations piled on. Once done we toasted our accomplishment, packed up the boxes, and I returned them to the basement.
