ThinkingSkull.com

Who needs cash or credit cards? On the day before I normally get my hair cut, I get a call from the shop owner asking me to bring my tools with me; the neon “open” sign I put up for them (and got a free hair cut for) needed to be moved. After a quick assessment once I arrived, I realized the real problem was that no one who worked there could really reach the on/off switch anywhere I put it, so I charged a remote switch to the shop and installed it so anyone can turn it on or off from anywhere in the store (cost for services rendered: one great hair cut).

Afterward, I met up with a buddy who drove us downstate to his folks’ house to help them install a top-of-the-line computer system and DSL connection. Sure, they could have just followed the instructions from the box, but my reputation for catching and fixing unforeseen problem had preceeded me. Sure enough, an undocumented BIOS isssue would have stopped the “easy setup” dead in their tracks had I not been there, the alternative being to ship the brandy-new system back for repairs. One edit later and all was well (cost for services rendered: one 12-ounce sirloin steak dinner with all the trimmings).

Of course, since my buddy drove, I didn’t spend anything for fuel, either, so I still retained the same five bucks in my wallet that I had left the house with that morning. Now, if I can just find someone who’ll barter my monthly rent to ensure their VCR doesn’t flash 12:00 all the time and I’ll be set for life.