Blitz Points

[Howard]

Gentlemen,
Once again I call on the CMP community for assistance. This time, not a technical or mechanical question; but, a question of ethics, organisation and marital harmony.
Here is our problem: I have just spent the best part of the weekend picking up crap from around the yard & shed & sorting into piles.
One pile is in preparation for the Wagga Wagga Swap Meet in 4 weeks. Another pile will be burned. A third pile for the garbage tip, and finally a lot of crap has gone onto the trailer destined for the scrappies. (Don't worry, If I'M throwing it out, you can be sure it's f****d).
But that is not the problem. This is the problem.
Jo (wife) is VERY grateful for (and surprised by) my efforts! However the obvious gratuity that would follow such an effort is unavailable for a few more days. SO, do I...
a) Hold off for a few more days before cashing in the points, and hope that they do not 'spoil' too soon.
b) Demand that the number of "Blitz Points" earned today be converted to Truck Time. The problem with this is, I will not have another spare weekend for another 5 weeks, and, Blitz Points seem to have a very short shelf life.
c) Take matters into my own hands.
What should I do? What do you do in this situation?
Yours in rust.
HH

[Howard]

Also, while you are discussing this with your significant others...
What is the going conversion rate?
ie. How much "Gratuity" does 10 hours in the yard equate to?
If I choose to forego "Gratuity" in favour for Blitz Time, do yard hours convert directly to truck time 1-for-one??
Just wondering.
HH

[aj.lec]

well you are allready one step ahead with Jo where my wife is concerned
At least Jo somewhat appreciates the old girls
No amount of work ,grovelling or extra activities equates to blitz time for me
At the end of the day you just have to make a stand and do what you like for a reasonable and shared timeframe per week and cover yourself (as best as you can)for the inevitable hail of flak and ear bashing
With Jo you could make it family time and get her to work on hers as well

[Keith Webb]

Howard, I suggest you revisit (or visit for the first time) a most wonderful series of articles on the subject at Vernco.

[aj.lec]

Originally Posted by Keith Webb

Howard, I suggest you revisit (or visit for the first time) a most wonderful series of articles on the subject at Vernco.

Does that translate to-Make a stand or Wear a permanent dent in the middle of your forehead roughly the same shape as your wifes thumb ???

[Keith Webb]

The rest of them are priceless too, but this one is most pertinent:

WillysPoints (WP for short) are part of a system our ever-patient wives use to allocate the time and money we can spend on our projects. The term was coined by members of the WillysTech Mailing List.

The key concept is that you have absolutely no control over your WillysPoints. If you think you have enough, you probably don't. It is almost impossible to earn them, but there are bazillions of ways to lose them. (Try forgetting her birthday...)

Numerical values are not used to keep track of WillysPoints. For instance, you can't say, "I have 3000 WillysPoints." That means absolutely nothing. Rather, relative terms are used. You could have amounts such as barely enough, almost enough, not even close or deep in the red when keeping track. An example of proper usage is: "I have barely enough WillysPoints for an overdrive." However, that is something of a delusional statement. The following is more likely, spoken in the past tense: "I had barely enough WillysPoints for an overdrive, but then our latest credit card statement arrived."

It is important to understand that WillysPoints will evaporate quickly. They have an incredibly short shelf life. Just because you have some today, doesn't mean you will have them tomorrow or even an hour from now. You might have a bucketful of WillysPoints one day after you mowed the lawn, did the dishes and even left your wife a little love note in her coat pocket. But the next day, she snags her pantyhose on some Jeep parts you've been meaning to put away for some time now. Poof, all of your WillysPoints are gone. You don't even have to cause the problem to lose your WillysPoints. You could be at the store buying a 15 cent cotter pin for the Jeep when the dishwasher floods the kitchen. Poof, all your WillysPoints are gone again.

The only sure fire way to earn WillysPoints is to look at a majorly decrepit project for sale, and then NOT buy it. She will be so relieved that collection of rust will not be moving to your driveway. You will have a very narrow window of opportunity. You must be prepared to act quickly before the dog throws up, the kids start fighting or checks start bouncing.

As a service to fellow Jeep owners, I'm suggesting that owners of derelict parts vehicles pretend to sell them. Naturally we'll have to drop by when seller's wife isn't home, or he will lose WillysPoints. We'll bring our family along, and then "decide" not to buy. We'll slip you a small check for your trouble. Flush with WillysPoints, we'll take the scenic way home and "stumble" across a barn-fresh FC170 for sale. Remember, this is not the time to haggle over price with the seller. You can always scrounge up more money somehow (Look under "Plasma Centers" in the Yellow Pages), but not so with WillysPoints.

If you can't hatch such an elaborate plan, you may have to run an occasional test to know your WillysPoint status. Sneak off to look at every old Jeep ad in the classifieds. After finding a promising one, rent some weepy romantic video. Build a fire (A fireplace would come in handy here) and try to make it through the movie while your wife empties a box of Kleenex. Right after the scene where the movie's heroine is diagnosed with a rare and fatal disease, make your move. Mention how the father of the doomed star reminds you of the kindly gentleman who is selling a garageful of Willys parts for "just a few hundred dollars." If she doesn't object too strenuously, you must hurry over in the morning. Your manhood is at stake. If you don't make the purchase, she will take that as a sign of weakness and you will be forever doomed.

If nothing else succeeds, take a tip from the kids. Try whining. It worked for me.

[Bob McNeill]

Geez I,m lucky, my cook not only allows me time BUT helps out when needed, Marg travelswith me, and as some of you know drove her little C15 in England and France in 94, she has learnt to drive all the vintage vehicles we own, but loves her 850 mini, won,t let me sell the HER little truck. Couldn,t ask for a better half, we is made for each other SHE cooks I eat [cooked just the way I,d better like it ] no complaints from me.

[Keith Webb]

Originally Posted by Bob McNeill

Geez I,m lucky, my cook not only allows me time BUT helps out when needed, Marg travelswith me, and as some of you know drove her little C15 in England and France in 94, she has learnt to drive all the vintage vehicles we own, but loves her 850 mini, won,t let me sell the HER little truck. Couldn,t ask for a better half, we is made for each other SHE cooks I eat [cooked just the way I,d better like it ] no complaints from me.

Great to see one of the fairer sex driving a CMP! Sounds like you have it all sorted Bob, congratulations!

[aj.lec]

Originally Posted by Keith Webb

Great to see one of the fairer sex driving a CMP! Sounds like you have it all sorted Bob, congratulations!

I'll second that
You are indeed lucky to find such a wife
And my kids thought Marg was a great sport playing netball with them to boot

[Howard]

Working on the yard Vs Playing with the truck...

The old girl made light work old the old timber fence posts, several of which were hollowed out by white ants. I don't have a photo of it but the large strainer post was also removed by using the truck winch. As my brakes don't work all that well I had it in 1st gear & moving forward at the same time as the winch winding up! About 100m of fencing removed by this method. Once all posts were on the ground, Sid drove back up the fence line & I threw the posts into the tray before unloading at the fire.
These "blitz points" have evaporated before I was able to cash them in.