Not a rant yet but maybe. As some have known I have been adding more to my plate in an effort to pad the nest egg and have some additional play money. As is normal when you step into these situations, there are some good and some bad points to all of it. So, let me break things down a bit and see what opinions you share with me and my random thoughts...
So, I was pre-paid money. That money has been exhausted and then some. During this time an unforeseen situation occurred for the client that required me to arrange the transport / have relocated via flatbed truck to his home location a motor vehicle he owns. So this is where we start having an issue.
I was already owed $150 in services at this point. Given that I used $150 of my own money for this move we are now into this for $300. Services still need to be completed but if I do so the total will rise to $450. The money for the move was funds that were / are real as in money that I acquired from working, etc. The remaining balance, while owed, is fictitious as it is "time" and "work" versus cash in hand. No less important but somewhat arbitrary.
This man is on the road for a minimum of 6 weeks at a time. He is a veteran. At 60, he puts in a multitude of hours on the road providing and paying for a woman that from what I can tell is only there with her hand out and nothing more. He financed a car for her. He keeps a house paid for as well as the "necessities" of life. Her family and friends are nothing but drug users / abusers and he seems to feel obligated to provide for her even though to me she is nothing but a user. In the past weeks I have been there, I have seen her once.
So, back to the money. I was due payment a week ago. That money was never received. He messaged me and said he had a major problem. Later he claimed his debit / credit card was lost at some point while on the road. This has turned into a mess. I actually think he is telling me the truth. He is having issues on the road as he can't pay for fuel and has been working with his company to get funds. Never mind trying to get him at a level where he can use paypal funding or the like. He just doesn't seem to understand how it works.
He offered to give me his banking details and account numbers to help him through things and I want to help but there is no way I would consider taking that information from him. To me, I know I am honest but in his desperation I think he is in a vulnerable position. Having said that, I do want to help him. In some ways I feel as though I should take the higher ground and just maintain the property as agreed on even though I am not seeing payment at this point. On the other hand, I feel as though I am being scammed at this point. His woman complained about a missing cart, that after speaking with him, he remembered that it had been moved. She also complained about the services not being provided yet she cannot be trusted to pay for those services even using his money. Thats why he pays me directly.
I have paid more than one bill or service or otherwise helped a veteran. I still remember speaking with a veteran wearing a Vietnam hat. I asked him about where his service took him, where he was stationed, and several other questions. All his answers were accurate based on the history I knew. We offered to and eventually paid his entire bill at the local warehouse store. He looked as though he would cry. I asked him if we could pay for his bill no questions asked. He was on a scooter. I will never know what ever happened to that man but the smile on his face was priceless. We didn't have to. We wanted to.
So, do I carry on and provide service once more as a service to him or do I call it and say no until I am fully paid? Yeah, its money but its only time and a bit of fuel and machine use at this point.
I guess my rant at this point is " I hate being in a position like this". If it came to a barter system; what might be the outcome?
