Respect, Dignity and Honour

Was called out 8 months ago to an "emergency" from an old family friends wife.

Asked her what was happening.

She exclaimed,

"The whole bloody fuse board has broken!...there are bare wires hanging out and Gerry* is out at the bowling club" !!!!!!

"OK, OK, Marie, stop the panic. Please stay the hell away from the area until I get there". "Tell the kids to steer clear "... hanging up; fetched the keys for the 20-minute drive to see what's happening.

Marie, bless her, is a "panic merchant" and has a habit of getting her blood boiling over little things.

On the way I get another call, "Oh god it's looking worse .."..then *click*...silence.

Arriving up the driveway I "don the toolbelt" and trundle the wheeled toolbox from the wagon and approach the front door.

It's a Saturday afternoon, about 2.30 and a stunningly warm and hot Christchurch day.

Answering the door was the older daughter Tiff,

A great kid, a first-year teacher in training and a great lady in the making.

Following her was Thomas,

Thomas is a pompous little twerp that's got zero time for anything but Playstation4 and his tablet. Aged 15.

He spotted me and said

" What are you doing here?... no one asked you to come here did they?"..

This was with his bedroom full of little nerds and silly twittering girls.

Thomas was on a "power trip" roll.

Ignoring all of his BS, I went to Marie and the Laundry room.

What I saw was not a good thing.

Someone had jammed a split up extension cord into a fuse carrier and added three more lopped off and pared back cables.

Opening the FB and attached them all to the Neutral and Earth Bar "like licorice on a plate of ice cream".

IN other words, OMFG!!!!

I Isolated the entire house and ripped the cords out of under the MCB carrier and opened the fuse board and reattached the neutrals.

On a step ladder mind you.

Thomas came storming up the kitchen to the laundry and kicking the ladder unbalancing me

"I didn't save my game you old *****, and you took the power away", he was red with rage.

Sister Tiff was mortified.

Mum damn near died of embarrassment.

Thomas thought for 2.2 milliseconds he had won.

Balancing the ladder I returned to the job and chuckled to myself,

"Tonky oh wow, been a while since you smacked a shithead, keep talking.." {to myself}.

Marie was apoplectic with rage, shame and said "I apologize, Brian," maybe a thousand times?

But as I reattached Thomases wiring attempt to get his mates all happy and Playstationy and Tablet Charging.

He came out again.

"Hey, you old c**t !!!...at that I flew at him, grabbed him by the scruff of his collar and seat of his pants and drove him out the backdoor and threw him on the outside balcony.

"Pardon? , Thommo or T Dog or whatever you dumb stupid foolish kids decide is cool?"

"You can't touch me, I have rights I am calling the cops" he threw back at me.

I said quietly and squaring eyeball to eyeball as he lay on the deck winded.

And scared to death.

This old Electrician dude is a former black belt in Tae Kwon Do back in the day,

Alas, poor young and dumb Thomas always the "Underestimator"

"Call the undertaker first T Dog as I am going to give you a lesson in respecting your families good name and showing off isn't the way to attack me, "

He saw I was not angry but had a stern, "let's do this " look.

A "Thousand Yard " stare kinda.

"What did you expect Thomas, your Dads going to nail you to the fence and he can, he is a builder. You thought you could bully Mum and Tiff while Dad was away?"

The daughter had got rid of the " friends" of the victim to be" and hapless Marie was in a quandary.

"The grumpy looking old Sparkie is going to bury my son, he is just going too," she thought.

Oh no, just teach some manners and what respect and dignity are and how to apologize to everyone in the neighborhood.

She had seen me years ago clean up punks that attacked nurses and hassled them offduty etc.

"Sit up little man, NOW!!!!...", I bellowed three centimeters off his face.

He sat up cringing, all the BS had evaporated

"I, I, I,.. didn't mean it" !!!!! he stammered, scared shitless.

Brian, told myself, take command and don't flinch.

Tonky, for god's sake, don't make him shit his pants. ( I can't stand that smell).!!!

"Heres the good news. your family can watch you beg for mercy or, (p[ause for dramatic effect) ...errrmm you get fed into my petrol engine powered woodchipper at my place...got it"?...

(I have not got nor need a woodchipper by the way)

I saw that style of disposal on the movie "Fargo" thought "damn, that's so damn gruesome

I'm sorry Mr. Tonkin" he was near tears and rightly chastised but I had nowhere near finished.Gotta be "a thing" for the parents and sister as well, that he can do against his will.

"Well done Thommo, there, there dry your eyes and blow your snot bubbles into a tissue that's a start, and now, apologize to your mother and by the way, chores Marie for a 2 month period? and I will take the PS$ and Tablet to my house for 3 weeks.

"OK, Thomas?.. Yes is the correct answer otherwise, ziiiiinnnngggggg kapow, no arms!"

"You ca..... , ". he tried to reply. Cutting him off I retorted

"Pardon,? Yes was the answer"Thommo The Talker", say yes Mr. Tonkin,

"NOW DAMMIT before I drag you to the van and feed you to the possums for dinner!!!!"

"Playing with electricity is illegal and I can and should report you and get you slammed into a juvenile facility, El Tommo the Magnificent!!!

Sarcasm is a free service as well.{yeah right, not a thing at all :)}

Packing up I winked back at Tiff and Mum, and they stayed cold and looked like death, and behind their backs, I gave them a "slap me 5".

"Tablet, Power packs and all that PlayStation Crap, games and controllers in a tub, now,"

"Tiff, could you please go to the van, there s huge plastic tub in the back, grab it out,"?

The reluctant smartarse Thomas was crestfallen but a "deals a deal".

"Three months," said Mum, "my hubby would have put his Estwing into all of it".

He's a "no tech" kinda guy. Took the contents, loaded the tub and took them to the van, and replied,

"Thanks, Marie all fixed and " tickedy boo"

"Well this has been a great afternoon for a murder possibly," {chuckle chuckle}

"See you in three months, Thomas, any word comes you are being a total "prick" to the family, well, sayonara PS4 and "Taaataaa" Tablet".

Youth and "lippy ness" is no match for age and treachery... !!!!

Resulted apparently in a "born again" well-behaved lad and a credit to the family.

Simple moral really "Old School Rules" make snowflakes melt.

Old age is helpful, never ever underestimate age and willingness to go the full distance,

./

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