AsktheBuilder.com Issue #1231 (I think)

April 30, 2023

Dear ,

You might be a new subscriber. Greetings and salutations! 

What's in This Issue

You're about to discover:

• A new newsletter - Don't Procrastinate!
• DIY Pergola - Tasty Bite Each Day
• Home Insurance WARNING
• New York State Insanity ALERT

Let's get started.

Epic Inspirational Quotes

"It's down there and I'm in here. I guess it comes down to a simple choice, really. Get busy livin' or get busy dyin'."

"How do I get back?"

"Easy. Go the same way you came, only backwards."

My Old Dictionary Request

Months ago I asked you if you had any old dictionaries you no longer wanted. I was stunned by the response and honored to be the new steward of some remarkable huge and tiny dictionaries.

I now have a new request. Do you have any old books? History books especially. Non-fiction books would be second. Any books that contain facts and not imaginary stories.

DO NOT THROW THEM AWAY - DO NOT GET RID OF THEM.

Do you know how easy it is for me to CHANGE the content on this page at my website?

I can do it in SECONDS. I can completely re-write the column and unless you happened to have printed it off or somehow saved an electronic copy, you'd have NO IDEA I had changed it.

Do I need to say anything else? If you do have OLD history books you no longer want, consider sending them to me. The media mail rate is dirt cheap and my birthday is just around the corner.

My New Newsletter - 1 Week Away

My new Adventures & Advice newsletter is now just one week away.

I'm not sure yet if I'm going to curate each issue on my TimCarter.com website. That website is ancient and my friend Steve is helping me do a major remodel. I think you're going to like what you see once we're finished.

If I don't stash them on that website, then you'll MISS OUT by not getting your own personal copy each time I publish.

I've decided on the theme of the newsletter and I think you'll be VERY surprised. I feel it's in your best interest to sign up. If you don't like it at any time, you can unsubscribe.

The first issue is just about finished. In it I share the story about how I discovered the pathway to true happiness each day.

GO HERE NOW to subscribe to this new fun newsletter. You're not going to believe how easy it is to live a life of bliss.

Golf & Me and You

You need to realize that prior to last summer I maybe would play golf two or three times a year. Some years I'd never play.

A new friend of mine, Bill, urged me to join a league last year. He's a golf-course ranger/starter (policeman) in Maine. He said, "If you want to get better, you must play each week and there's no better way to force this behavior than to play in a recreational league."

Bill's advice was spot on. I had a blast in the league, made new friends, and discovered a few tips to reduce my frustration. When the season ended in October, I decided to take some of the medicine I routinely recommend to you.

This past winter I INVESTED in myself. I signed up for ten lessons from the assistant pro, Kevin Goddu, at Lochmere Country Club here in New Hampshire.

Lo and behold, he taught me how to swing just as the pros do. DUH! What a difference it makes! My slice is long gone replaced with a handsome fade on quite a few of my drives. My iron shots are straight as an arrow now.

I've now played on four different days this season, three of them cold and windy. Two days ago was the first pleasant day with abundant sunshine as the temperature soared to 63F.

Drawing on what Kevin taught me, I achieved a personal goal two days ago. I had five pars! Never before have I done that in a round.

I realize you might not golf so what's the teaching moment for you?

It REALLY PAYS to have a coach and to INVEST in getting amazing advice when you need help with something.

A year ago I'd swing and HOPE the ball might get close to the area I was aiming. Now I know there's a very high probability the ball WILL land where I've aimed. The lessons have narrowed the funnel and it's making the game much more fulfilling.

Here's what happened two days ago. The 18th hole at Lochmere is a par 5. While in the tee box, I aimed a little left. That would allow my fade to send the tiny round ball to the middle of the fairway. Wouldn't you know it, but this time the ball went straight as an arrow.

My ball ended up in the rough on a bare piece of ground. I had a clear shot to the green but it was 245 yards away. A pesky pond was on the right about 200 yards out.

I got out my rescue hybrid 3 wood and hit the ball. It was a laser shot that soared through the air about 190 yards, hit the left side of the fairway just my side of the pond, and then bounced to the center of the fairway just past the murky abyss.

My third shot didn't make it to the green and I ended up two-putting for a bogey. A year ago that could have easily been a snowman (8) on my scorecard.

Bogey golf is my current mid-term goal. I hope to shoot a 90 by October 1st. 

BOTTOM LINE: Get help from a pro to get more enjoyment out of anything you do. 

Insanity in New York State

As you might imagine, I cover any and all breaking news about building new homes in all states, and even some European countries. In the past 48 hours, one story BLEW UP. It's my job to keep abreast of these developments so I can best help you.

Read this story and then ponder these rhetorical questions:

How much natural gas is used to create the electricity used by New York State residents each day?

Why would it be okay for New York to burn natural gas in their power plants but it's NOT OKAY for you to do it?

How many new power plants are being built in New York to support the new higher DEMAND for electricity?

Do you REALLY believe that a climate disaster is being caused by man? It's not. The proof that it's NOT man-made is here.

How many past Climate-Crisis predictions have come true? I'll answer that for you, NONE!!! NOT ONE!!! They're all manufactured to separate you from your MONEY.

WHY ARE THE POLITICIANS FORCING ELECTRICITY DOWN YOUR THROAT? Answer: It's all Game of Thrones - Money, Power & Sex

WAKE UP!!!!! 

STOP BEING PLAYED!!!!

If anything in this newsletter helps save you time, money, or makes you feel warm and fuzzy, maybe you want to reciprocate and buy me a popover & a cup of coffee? That would be appreciated!

Michael's Window

I did a coaching call this week with Michael. He wanted to hire me to help him install a new window at his home. Michael said air pours into the room in the winter like hot pasta water passes through a colander.

I decided the best use of his money was to have an initial fast orientation call. At my request, Michael sent me all sorts of photos of the window in question.

Within a minute I could tell the window was modern with excellent jamb liners that keep air infiltration to a minimum. I had a hunch the draft issue was inferior air sealing AROUND the frame of the window.

I instructed him to remove the interior trim. If there was crappy fiberglass or nothing, I told him to install the special window & door expanding foam to stop the air leaks.

As you might imagine, Michael was over the moon knowing the simple phone call probably saved him well over $700.

Eat a Pachyderm Pergola

Check out this pergola I sat under days ago with Willow the dog:

Go here to get a few tips on how to build this same pergola in your own backyard. You'll see a great photo of Willow too!

This pergola column caught the eye of my editor at the Epoch Times. She published it just yesterday. Look at the huge photo on their website.

My WORTHLESS Insurance Agent

Five weeks ago a mouse chewed a tiny hole in a PEX water line here at my home. It appears the final damage claim is going to be over $30,000.00.

The morning I discovered the leak, I called my local insurance agent's office. The receptionist immediately connected me to the claims department of the actual insurance company.

One would HOPE my local insurance agent's office has a standard procedure in place to NOTIFY agents that a customer has a problem and is in PAIN.

It's important to realize my local agent, and my guess yours too, is just a broker. They get paid a commission for signing us up and no doubt continue to get money so long as we pay our premiums.

Here's what DIDN'T happen. It's now been five weeks and I've never received one phone call from my local agent to see how things are going.

I NEVER RECEIVED a simple PDF file or written brochure of exactly what happens - and the all-important timeline - of the claim PROCESS.

Don't you think it's important to know what to expect, what to do, and how long each step will take BEFORE everything is all well and good again in my/your home?

In other words, my local insurance agent, in my opinion, is WORTHLESS.

One would THINK that since they get an ongoing commission each year as long as I continue to work with them, they'd be PROACTIVE and reach out to make sure all is well.

But that's not happening. Have you had a similar experience? Or, do you have a proactive insurance agent that CARES ABOUT YOU and wants to help get you back to normal?

I'd love to hear from you so I can see if my agent's behavior is par for the course - pun intended.

I'll add this, working with the insurance adjustor, a different company that works for the insurance carrier, has NOT been going well. He treats me like a mushroom.

There's a very good chance I'm going to write a national column about my experience to WARN OTHERS.

What's the teaching moment? CALL your agent and ask how they'll help when you have a claim. Or, if you're shopping for a new agent - as I probably will be doing - grill the agent about WHAT she/he will DO after they get you to buy the policy. Have she/he put it in WRITING all the services they provide.

That's enough for a Sunday wouldn't you agree?

Do you need to talk to me? You have two choices:

1. Call 603-867-5309 - if you get an odd message go to #2
2. Go here to set up the call.

Tim Carter - Founder of www.AsktheBuilder.com

My Pronouns: Told / You / So

Secret Messages: www.W3ATB.com

P.S. 

I can fix lots of things but not broken hearts or shattered egos.

"It is the world that has been pulled over your eyes, to blind you from the truth."

           "What truth?"

"That you are a slave, INSERT YOUR NAME."

Is it time for you to exit the Matrix? Just click the red pill just below.