Local grader operator

[waksupi]

Here's some service for you. I was just getting home, and a guy was grading the road. I stopped and asked him what it would take, to get about 50 yards of potholes graded in my driveway. Fourty bucks, says he, done, sez I.
So, he started in, and graded close to 200 yards, from the main road, right up to my cabin. He is currently making his EIGHTH pass, and I don't know when he will stop. But gosh, is it smoooooth! Best $40 I've spent in a long time!

[fatnhappy]

Should have told him, I don't have $40, all I have is a case of cold beer. He'd probably cut a turnaround for you too.

[waksupi]

Dang, Dean! And I could have used a loop! He'll still be in the area tomorrow, may have to scope it out. Up to pass #10 now. He must have been getting bored on the main road!

[fatnhappy]

asking for favors on a friday can be a crap shoot, especially in the afternoon, but the good news is the case of cold beer seems to be particularly attractive at that time.

[felix]

Ah, just double his asking price! Reward those who reward you! ... felix

[Four Fingers of Death]

Ah! Your tax dollar at work, don't you just love it.

My mate had a few acres and needed a lot of earthmoving done, roads, dams, etc.

He noticed that there was a lot of roadwork being done in the area and his place was near the junction of three dirt roads. He bought a set of 14' gates on the road paddock down the road from his driveway entrance and told the roadworkers they could park their equipment there, of course they would have to do a bit of raodwork to get in and out, etc. He now has roadway level entries, good roads throughout the property and a few extra dams.

[NVcurmudgeon]

My next door neighbor was having a new drain line installed, for $2000. When they dug it up one of the workers showed me that my drain, in the same trench, was almost clogged with roots. I asked him how much to fix it and he said, "for $50 I'll pull out the roots and concrete your drain closed." I nearly broke my arm pulling a President Grant out of my pocket! This was about 20 years ago when larorers spoke English.

[DLCTEX]

If that was your county , city, or whatever, gov. employee doing the grading then he comitted a felony by using gov. machine on private property. Please don't ask your gov. guys to do any work on your property, as you will be asking them to commit a crime. If he's a private contractor, ok. Just my dos centavos, DALE

[KCSO]

Here this winter a grader op. cleaned a drive way for a fellow who had to go to the hospital and they fired him. Yep the state said he had MIS APPROPRIATED 10 minutes of State time and equipment and gave him the ax after someone complimented him in the local newspaper. Meanwhile the sob who graded my lane closed 4 time in one storm got a raise. I sure hope the grader guys boss don't find out how nice he was.

[georgewxxx]

In South Dakota, if the maintainer has time they'll do some minimal work, if you ask the right people. The money goes to the township or county depending upon whose road your adjoining.

[357maximum]

Here this winter a grader op. cleaned a drive way for a fellow who had to go to the hospital and they fired him. Yep the state said he had MIS APPROPRIATED 10 minutes of State time and equipment and gave him the ax after someone complimented him in the local newspaper. Meanwhile the sob who graded my lane closed 4 time in one storm got a raise. I sure hope the grader guys boss don't find out how nice he was.

Kinda makes ones blood boil a bit when you hear stories like that.

I have been around heavy equipment for over 11 years or so.....I have done alot of things that would get my a$$ burned, someone a whole lot smarter than I once wrote :"Doing the right thing is never easy, but it is always right" and I firmly believe it, I would rather do a person the five minute favor like popping out a stump/moving a rock/ or something similar than see him have to pay someone several hundred bucks+ or so for a several minute job, I just do it if I am able to. Normally the hoe was in his yard we just destroyed or were about to destroy anyhow. I call it customer relations, and to me it just makes sense. The requests that are over the top or too involved get turned down, but the easy/quick ones I cannot turn away. Somehow the big companies simply do not see past the end of their feet I spose. Doing simple jobs like that can keep a customer from complaining to the utility company/MPSC and save a several man hour trip out ,because the cleanup crew did not plant enough grass seed or something crazy like that...they are also more apt to ignore a small imperfection to their curblawn or right of way, if they are happy or know their neighbor was happy with us. It also saves me or someone like me from having to explain to the person that they do not actually own their front lawn, they just pay taxes on it and have to maintain it......it is all just a win/win situation, until the due mass es up high in the sky hear about it, they just never seem to get it....maybe it is I that is the dumb one ,,who knows? I don't apparently. Yes I too have been punished for good deeds....in case you missed the fire in there.

and as far as a govmt. worker getting in trouble for helping the community he works for well that is just bull**** too.

[felix]

Amen. Reminds me the time I needed some concrete to fix my rock type steps. The rocks were always falling out/off, one at a time because of bad concrete. The city repaved our street with blacktop, but they put in new curbs. I let them fill two five gallon pails of concrete in a wheelborrow right out of the truck. That concrete has the proper mix for quick dry and has not shown any sign of wear in 20 years. The concrete you buy in a bag at Walmart is nothing but crap. ... felix

[waksupi]

Around here, if there is a medical emergency, the snow removal will be there, day or night, if a chopper can't get in.