Thursday, May 19, 2011

"My" awesome board and trespassers....

One of my favorite things I have put into this new build is this board. It is not a big deal, just a board that holds magnets and it will be painted with chalkboard paint, but I love how it is trimmed like the rest of the doors, etc in the house, and I love how it is HUGE!
When I came up with the idea, I wanted to test it out and make sure it worked. The boys and I went to Lowes, spent a few bucks, got a sample and tested the theory. It worked like a charm. Then, when I talked to Lloyd about it, we figured the magic size to still allow casing and to be at the same header height as the doors was 4' x 8' ..... yes, very large. They do not sell pieces like this at Lowe's. Being ever resourceful, Lloyd got me the exact size I wanted from his HVAC guys. Perfect. Then they put it up and Geronimo and Bronco did a fantastic job trimming it... see the little chalkboard tray at the bottom? Can you tell I am very excited about this? Anyway, I told Lloyd, that this was MINE, all mine, and not to put it in all his houses. He agreed, this is my special idea (although he did get another piece to take home for his little guy's room)! (Nany saw one of these chalkboard walls in a house a while ago, so I am willing to acknowledge that I might not own the nationwide patent, but at least the NC one is mine :-).

On with my rant / story.... Today I met thousand dollar Jack, the electrician, out at the house. We were going over things like dimmers and appliances, etc. I told him I wrote down my dimmer desires and stuck it up on my magnet board, along with my phone number in case he had any questions. Since he didn't know what I was talking about (how dare he not notice, by the way), I took him over to show him the list on my board, my awesome magnet board as I lovingly refer to it. He gave the obligatory compliment (knew I liked him), and I was on my way. Fast forward to my grocery store shopping trip. I'm in the checkout line when my cell phone rings. Thinking perhaps it might be a realtor prepared to drop off bags filled with gold for our "for sale house", I figured I should at least answer to see where to collect the money. But, no, it was Jack, and he is mumbling something about "my awesome board." I could barely make out what he was saying, so I suggested I call him right back, from outside. Just before hanging up he says, "call me back on this number and the homeowner will answer." HUH? I was confused, but went out to call him back. The phone rings, and a woman answers. She tells me that she lives in the area and has been walking through my house and just needs to know about my board. "What is it exactly, where did you get it, How did you get the idea, and most importantly, how much did it cost?" I was floored that she had the nerve on so many levels (I do not know this lady). She didn't seem to have any concerns that she is walking through our house and pestering our electrician and STEALING MY IDEAS! She ended the conversation by saying, "I've got to go, I need to call my husband and tell him him to bring me home a bunch of these to use all over my house." Well, OK, didn't mean to hold you up.... sorry.

Should I call her back and tell her about my patent?

2 comments:

  1. I think you're stretching it a bit to call her a lady. I think you should call her back and tell her that you are so glad to have her number in case anything goes missing in the house.

    We had a theft from the carpenter's tool trailer last weekend that has left us feeling rather vulnerable.

    Your board is awesome. I hope you'll get a lot of use out of it. Just be careful about chalk dust around computers. I used to be a technology consultant in a school. Computers do not like chalk dust. There's a reason for the move to white boards.

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  2. Your board should be patented! Great idea.

    You are inspiring me to go ahead and trim out an area in DD#1's room - it is her vestibule, and the perfect place for a cork board. It would be so cool to use some of the left over molding and create a custom area for her to use for photos and such. Thank you for the inspiration - without 'stealing' your patent!

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