So I sell firewood to my neighbor. I cut fine quality hardwood, split it for him and stack it exactly where he wants it. Been doing this for years, for he is a fool and at times and he seemed grateful and appreciative, even when over the years, things changed and he had issues and he got testy at times. I still took care of him. I cared that the family needed to heat for the winter and it was money for me to continue to cut firewood also…
* I am the only one in our small village that cuts firewood and stacks it and cuts to order. The other firewood you can get is either do it yourself and or order from a bigger company that dumps the firewood at your front gate and charges per mile to deliver. Very expensive to use them. *
He comes over one day acting the fool and starts hitting me with a stick he carried over with him. You see, it had started with insults over the fence line several years ago and I just put it down to pressures of life. Yet, I always found that he seemed to think he had a reason to act the fool and it was confusing, for I ignored him as he raved about this and that and those damn whatnot’s? I even ignored him when he put up a ten foot privacy fence and that was illegal according to fencing codes to do…
Would I keep selling him firewood?
It is a paradox…
When do you reach a point that you have to stop look around and even if they are fools? When do you take the stick away and beat his ass with that stick?
I contemplated: What about the children and his wife? They will freeze. They need heat and it is not their fault that he is the Fool?
Then I heard the wife pushing on the fool to kick my ass again. The children talked trash about me and how they were better than I am…
So the next day he comes ranting over to my yard and talking about how if I want his business? I better do this and that and do it right. None of it made sense, I have never ever even been in their house and only in the yard to stack the firewood I cut for them. This time the family was standing on the porch with arms crossed in front of them and all acting high and mighty…
He swung the stick at me as if he was gonna whip a slave and I guess that was the last straw?
I caught the stick and ripped it from his hands and snapped it in half. I was mad and decided that it was better to take out the anger on a piece of wood and not the fool…
He fell down and started to scream that I assaulted him, That I would go to jail and rot. That I was a bastard of evil!
I have a camera that records everything and it is a good thing. For here comes the police and the lies flowed from the family, about how I assaulted him, their loving daddy and attacked him as he tried to flee for his life, from my hate toward him. The angel he is is so innocent…
I played the video of what happened. The family ran off dragging the fool dad and hid in the home. The police said that he is a fool and that I must be more considerable to he issues. That he is a fool, meant that he needed to be treated more kindly and it was up to me to accept that I am the aggressor and need to tone it down…
I showed them the earlier video when he beat me physically with the cane!
Nothing changes, he is a fool and needs compassion…
So, “Would I keep selling him firewood?”
Yes, but I would not ever stack it for him in his yard, the price will double, it is cut the way I say it is to be cut, it will be split for my convenience and not theirs, I will cut whatever wood is convenient, it will be delivered (dumped in a pile) at his front gate and everything about the transaction will be recorded. I no longer care if they get the wood on time or not. I also have other customers who do not beat me and call me names…
His actions and his families actions lost them their preferential treatment. If I decide to find a couple more new customers? They could be told no more firewood, ever. It is tempting to tell them that now. I do not need the money that bad….I did it for the family and to be a nice neighbor…
After the look in the guys eyes and the fear that showed in them as I snapped his stick. I am hardened from hard work and he is soft. He will not try to attack me again. Yet, now they have resorted to nasty crap…
The kids throw rocks at the house. The wife tosses garbage over the fence at night and so on and so on. All recorded and all hate from that household. The police say, just ignore them. They are all fools…
So, “Would I keep selling him firewood?”
Yes, but I have already found some new customers and soon it will be winter….I hear him at the side fence screaming about needing firewood. They are almost out!!! His turn is now at the back of the list and will get done when I have time…
I am splitting logs as he screams at me to get my attention. The privacy fence is nice right now. Glad he put it up. He knows I am there and he also needs firewood very badly…
I ignore him, I have a load of fine cut, hardwood to deliver to a gentleman across town. He bought three cords of wood and was thankful to find someone to do it for him. This guy says he knows of several more who could use firewood…
When I am done taking care of the rest of my customers, I will see what scraps I have for the neighbors? Maybe I will have extra? Or maybe I will have sold it all?
Scream neighbor scream, it is going to be a cold winter!
WtR
EU the fool and Russia in a business paradox…