Friday 10 February 2012

Waiting in

Well, we waited in all afternoon and evening for the gas man, and he never came (actually, we took it in turns, but it was still a bore). And John rang up the gas people, and it seems that the gas man is a gas woman, and John had to press lots of buttons, and was played horrible music, and was told over and over again about how wnoderful British Gas is, and if you need a bit of extra heating (read this carefully, because this tip is inspirational), turn on a fan heater! Now, who would have thought of that? British Gas, that's who.

I have long thought that it might be good (ie better paid than writing novels) to start a company: waitingin.com. You have lots of nice, honest, well-vetted people - retired, perhaps? - who will go round to people's houses and 'wait in' for the gas man, the groceries, the new fridge or whatever, and maybe (for a small bonus) do a little light housework of gardening or bath the dog while they're there.

What do you think?

11 comments:

  1. Great Idea! Just right for a writer. Put my name down once you've set up your company. I could take my laptop and write while I'm waiting. I get to see the inside of other people's house which I could use in my novel/short story plots... what a great job for a writer.

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  2. Brilliant idea - go for it! I can't count how many hours I've wasted waiting for folk who never turn up.

    That said I prefer that to waiting on the end of a telephone...

    Anna :o]

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  3. Waiting is awful. I can't bear it. Even if I tell myself I can get on with countless useful tasks during that time, I can't settle to anything.
    I also feel the same when someone is in the house doing a job. A lovely man comes to do work on our house, but he never stops talking. When he finally turns away to get on with the job in hand, I'm on pins waiting for him to pop up and restart the conversation. It's a similar kind of unsettling waiting game. I wish I could just ignore these hovering sorts of distractions!

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  4. Yes, a great idea for a company! And did you actually find out what happened, why she never turned up? Muddled up appointments or didn't find your road or something?

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  5. Sorry Frances but you've been beaten to it!

    http://www.maidforeverything.co.uk/services/key-holder-wait-in-service

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  6. Well you can't beat a bit of competition Frances, so go for it. You can have dog sitters, so why not house sitters. For those who don't like to leave their houses unattended, it's a brilliant idea.

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  7. Brilliant idea! So creative, in fact, that there's an award waiting for you over on my blog.

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  8. What a great idea! I'm sure someone has already thought of it, though...

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  9. Think you should get that company started pronto, Frances. Like Joanna, I can't stand waiting for workman or having them here when they need to fix something and eventually arrive.

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  10. I think it's a brilliant idea. Might offer to do it myself if I could find a lightweight laptop to carry around and work on.

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  11. Jarmara, I hadn't thought of the writing aspect!

    Hi Anna - yes. Waiting on the end of the phone is certainly worse.

    Joanna, I qutie agrre. Waiting - any waiting - is the pits.

    Librarian, she may well still be on her way here, lost in the outbacks of Devizes...

    Bernadette, I'm devastated!

    Thanks, Maggie!

    Thanks very much for the award, Gail!

    Pat, it seems you're right...

    Rosemary, if I had a business head I might just do it, but sadly, I haven't.

    Thanks, Jenny!

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