Now Is the Time of Day...

Hick outdid himself Thursday evening. There wasn't enough time to discuss the most recent thing he'd done wrong! It didn't help that he spent three hours at the funeral home paying respects to a high school classmate, which seemed to be more of a class reunion that his actual reunions. Evan Val can't fault someone for giving an old friend a final send-off. So I'll let his lateness slide.

Before he left, Hick brought in the mail, and said that the only thing we owe on the Lowe's bill should be paint for Pony House. The rest of it was materials for Back-Creek Neighbor Bev's house, which Hick reimburses us for when I write the check for the Lowe's bill. He uses a Lowe's credit card to get a 5% discount.

Anyhoo... in reviewing the statement, I did not see any paint. The bill was for $680. When Hick returned, I was elbow deep in his supper, which was spaghetti, and required a skillet, a saucepan, a large pot, a spatula, ladle, pasta gripper dipper thingy, two spoons, a fork, a bowl, and a pizza pan for garlic toast. I did not have time to sit on the couch for our nightly session of This Is the Time of Day When We Discuss the Most Recent Thing You've Done Wrong. So strapped was I for time that I even ate spaghetti for supper! I do not like spaghetti, but it was better than making another meal for myself. Almost.

"Oh, I didn't see any paint on the Lowe's bill."

"Maybe it was on the last one. Did you see it on there?"

"No. But we DID pay something on that bill for Pony House. It came to about $140."

"Oh. That should be the paint cost. But I thought I just bought it to go on this bill."

"Maybe. You can look at this bill when you're done eating, and tell me where the paint is."

When Hick looked at the bill, I was eating my own spaghetti, trying not to choke as part of a noodle went down my throat before I was done chewing the other end.

"There it is. Right there! Valspar. The paint."

"How am I supposed to know that's paint? Look! It says:

VALSPAR DURAMAX, PEX STOP VALVES

FAUCET SUPPLY LINES

CAULK-KITCHEN AND BATH LATEX

PREFINISHED MOULDING-LP

$303.45

"Valspar. Everybody knows that's paint."

"Not me. Nowhere does it say PAINT. I thought it was those valves. Besides, where's the price? It doesn't itemize. It's everything you bought that day."

"Well. I lay down the receipts on the counter. So it should be on there."

"When I get done eating MY supper that I'm in the middle of, and put away the leftovers, and wash up the dishes, then I will look at the receipt."

"Okay. But that's about right. It was $160."

"WAIT! You just told me it was $140."

"That's when I thought it was on the other bill. Ask Pony. He was with me. It was $264."

"I'm eating my supper. That's not my job. You should be giving me the receipts for Pony House."

BZZZZ. A text from The Pony.

"House paint would have been around $237. That's what Lowe's lists on the site for the color and type we got in the 5 gallon bucket."

"Dad says $264, but the credit card bill didn't itemize. First he told me it was $140. Then $160."

"Yeah. I know. $237 should be right."

"So NOW you've got The Pony texting me while I'm trying to eat?"

"He agrees that it's $237. I'm fine with that."

After eating the rest of my cold spaghetti, and doing my kitchen chores, I looked for the receipt in the stack of Lowe's receipts on the kitchen counter. The most recent receipt was June 5. THIS IS OCTOBER! I have no idea what Hick has done with those receipts. Maybe he gave them to Bev. Maybe they're in a stack in SilverRedO. 

Hick is getting charged $237. He's lucky I'm not adding on pain and suffering.