Ever had a creepy repair guy?

[LisaR]

I've been a SAHM for 17 years so I have had my fair share of repair people in my house. I have never had a bad vibe about any of them until today.

First off, he was suppose to be here yesterday and he was suppose to call two days before to give me a time window. I never heard from him until 9:30PM last night when he asked if he could come between 8 - 8:30am this morning. I needed to get my son to an activity and told him I was only free between 9:15am and noon or after 1pm. He said that works.

At 8am, the doorbell rings! I am about ready to leave so I tell him he needs to come back. He looked at me like I had four heads and like we never even had that conversation all of 10.5 hours ago. He did come back around 10am which was fine.

He was repairing a cushion on my sofa and he spent the whole time humming a really methodical beat. It truly gave me the creeps! In addition, he reeked of really cheap aftershave.

Of course, all was fine and I'm sure the guy was harmless. I left right after him, ran errands, and picked my son up, and the first thing I smelled when I walked in the house hours later was the aftershave. Yuck! A part of me wanted to look under the beds and behind the shower curtains and make sure he wasn't in the house.

I'm sure he was totally harmless but he did make me feel very uneasy while he was here and that is unusual for me. I never get the creeper vibe but this guy made me feel very uneasy. Not really sure why.

 

[ols386]

I've been a SAHM for 17 years so I have had my fair share of repair people in my house. I have never had a bad vibe about any of them until today.

First off, he was suppose to be here yesterday and he was suppose to call two days before to give me a time window. I never heard from him until 9:30PM last night when he asked if he could come between 8 - 8:30am this morning. I needed to get my son to an activity and told him I was only free between 9:15am and noon or after 1pm. He said that works.

At 8am, the doorbell rings! I am about ready to leave so I tell him he needs to come back. He looked at me like I had four heads and like we never even had that conversation all of 10.5 hours ago. He did comey back around 10am which was fine.

He was repairing a cushion on my sofa and he spent the whole time humming a really methodical beat. It truly gave me the creeps! In addition, he reeked of really cheap aftershave.

Of course, all was fine and I'm sure the guy was harmless. I left right after him, ran errands, and picked my son up, and the first thing I smelled when I walked in the house hours later was the aftershave. Yuck! A part of me wanted to look under the beds and behind the shower curtains and make sure he wasn't in the house.

I'm sure he was totally harmless but he did make me feel very uneasy while he was here and that is unusual for me. I never get the creeper vibe but this guy made me feel very uneasy. Not really sure why.

Well, if your gut was telling you something, then you may very well be right about the guy.

 

[BearcatsFan]

Yes. I had a washing machine repair guy in here a couple of years ago. He liked to stand THISCLOSE to me. Our lab, who was normally sweet as can be, kept getting between us and growling at him and baring his teeth. I guess he even made the dog uncomfortable. He wanted to stay and hang out and talk after the repair was over - I practically had to kick him out of the house.

I was very uneasy. I won't let repair people come when DH is not home if I can help it. Color me paranoid, but my experience with that one guy pretty much ruined my comfort level.

 

[RadioNate]

Stop trying to convince yourself that there wasn't something "off" about this guy.

If you feel THAT uncomfortable, there is usually a reason. I wouldn't have him back nor would I try to "be nice" to the guy if there is further contact.

Trust yourself!

 

[Bob NC]

I've been a SAHM for 17 years so I have had my fair share of repair people in my house. I have never had a bad vibe about any of them until today.

First off, he was suppose to be here yesterday and he was suppose to call two days before to give me a time window. I never heard from him until 9:30PM last night when he asked if he could come between 8 - 8:30am this morning. I needed to get my son to an activity and told him I was only free between 9:15am and noon or after 1pm. He said that works.

At 8am, the doorbell rings! I am about ready to leave so I tell him he needs to come back. He looked at me like I had four heads and like we never even had that conversation all of 10.5 hours ago. He did come back around 10am which was fine.

He was repairing a cushion on my sofa and he spent the whole time humming a really methodical beat. It truly gave me the creeps! In addition, he reeked of really cheap aftershave.

Of course, all was fine and I'm sure the guy was harmless. I left right after him, ran errands, and picked my son up, and the first thing I smelled when I walked in the house hours later was the aftershave. Yuck! A part of me wanted to look under the beds and behind the shower curtains and make sure he wasn't in the house.

I'm sure he was totally harmless but he did make me feel very uneasy while he was here and that is unusual for me. I never get the creeper vibe but this guy made me feel very uneasy. Not really sure why.

Dang, I got to the last line and I thought it said, "I'm sure he was totally hairless......"

LOL.

 

[LisaR]

Stop trying to convince yourself that there wasn't something "off" about this guy.

If you feel THAT uncomfortable, there is usually a reason. I wouldn't have him back nor would I try to "be nice" to the guy if there is further contact.

Trust yourself!

Definitely not inviting him back or anything but I hate thinking bad about a person when there was probably nothing wrong with him.

Dang, I got to the last line and I thought it said, "I'm sure he was totally hairless......"

LOL.

He actually had hair that was slicked back with what appeared to be Crisco. I've never seen that much grease on hair before. I was afraid he would drip on my sofa!

 

[crashbb]

Not a repairman I had, but a creepy repairman nonetheless.

When I was in high school, I lost my wallet. About seven years later, I get a call from the police that someone had turned in my wallet (no money in it, but it still had my ID). It turns out that a repairman had come to their house (the house of the person who returned the wallet) and two wallets (mine and another woman's) had dropped from his bag! So, this guy seems to have been carrying around my wallet for seven years

 

[poohfriend77]

Not a repairman, but when we were trying to sell our house 8 years ago, there was a guy who totally creeped me out!

I left my toddler in the family room watching Dora while I took a quick shower. When I got out, I had a voice mail. It was a guy saying he owned some rental properties in the neighborhood and wanted to see our house. OK, fine. But then he continued, "I know you're home, because I looked in the window and saw your kid. I'm guessing you're in the shower, so I'll just sit out here and wait for you to let me in. I already saw that there are toys on the floor, so don't bother picking up. I just want to see the layout of the house."

Ummm, sure creepy guy who was just peeping in my windows, come on in. I quickly packed a diaper bag and got in the van. After I backed out of the garage, I rolled down my window and yelled to him that we were late, but he could call back to set up an appointment.

 

[BearcatsFan]

Not a repairman, but when we were trying to sell our house 8 years ago, there was a guy who totally creeped me out!

I left my toddler in the family room watching Dora while I took a quick shower. When I got out, I had a voice mail. It was a guy saying he owned some rental properties in the neighborhood and wanted to see our house. OK, fine. But then he continued, "I know you're home, because I looked in the window and saw your kid. I'm guessing you're in the shower, so I'll just sit out here and wait for you to let me in. I already saw that there are toys on the floor, so don't bother picking up. I just want to see the layout of the house."

Ummm, sure creepy guy who was just peeping in my windows, come on in. I quickly packed a diaper bag and got in the van. After I backed out of the garage, I rolled down my window and yelled to him that we were late, but he could call back to set up an appointment.

That is more than creepy, that's downright scary!

 

[luvmarypoppins]

I think I would definetely win the creepy repairman with #1

At one of my jobs we had a guy who came to fix my computer on occasion. (it was many years ago)

One day he was there. He usually didnt talk too much. Quiet guy.

Two days later we read in the paper and heard on the news that this guy killed his handicapped, wheelchair bound wife and cut her into pieces

As a rule now, I make sure one of my older ds or my dh is home when the repair person comes.

Last time I was alone with one, I sat in a chair cutting coupons, making sure I had my scissors really handy

 

[kidshop]

Yep. We've had tons of remodeling done on our houses and 2 were 'off'. I couldn't put my finger on it, and with the first guy it was very strong and I didn't even want him in my house. And yes, I tried to be logical about it, but it was gut. He came with our usual guy (who I trusted and left alone in the home all the time) and I did not want him to leave me alone with this creeper! He never came back though. It' s funny how you try to talk yourself out of those feelings, but I do believe we should listen to that internal radar!

The second wasn't so obvious, but I had in the past really trusted all these guys, felt comfortable leaving them while I was out (even since, I do think I have a good radar for people) but not this one. He worked on a bathroom, got as far as gutting it, asked for money for supplies and disappeared. Then it made sense, why I always felt a little wary. I wish I had paid attention earlier. But that unfortunate experience led us to find an awesome person and contractor who I would let babysit my children ! So I'm kind of happy it happened. I don't think he would have done us physical harm, but that first one, there was something there and I was afraid.

Listen to it!

 

[BearcatsFan]

I think I would definetely win the creepy repairman with #1

At one of my jobs we had a guy who came to fix my computer on occasion. (it was many years ago)

One day he was there. He usually didnt talk too much. Quiet guy.

Two days later we read in the paper and heard on the news that this guy killed his handicapped, wheelchair bound wife and cut her into pieces

As a rule now, I make sure one of my older ds or my dh is home when the repair person comes.

Last time I was alone with one, I sat in a chair cutting coupons, making sure I had my scissors really handy

Yep. You win.

 

[LisaR]

Not a repairman, but when we were trying to sell our house 8 years ago, there was a guy who totally creeped me out!

I left my toddler in the family room watching Dora while I took a quick shower. When I got out, I had a voice mail. It was a guy saying he owned some rental properties in the neighborhood and wanted to see our house. OK, fine. But then he continued, "I know you're home, because I looked in the window and saw your kid. I'm guessing you're in the shower, so I'll just sit out here and wait for you to let me in. I already saw that there are toys on the floor, so don't bother picking up. I just want to see the layout of the house."

Ummm, sure creepy guy who was just peeping in my windows, come on in. I quickly packed a diaper bag and got in the van. After I backed out of the garage, I rolled down my window and yelled to him that we were late, but he could call back to set up an appointment.

Ewwwww!

I think I would definetely win the creepy repairman with #1

At one of my jobs we had a guy who came to fix my computer on occasion. (it was many years ago)

One day he was there. He usually didnt talk too much. Quiet guy.

Two days later we read in the paper and heard on the news that this guy killed his handicapped, wheelchair bound wife and cut her into pieces

As a rule now, I make sure one of my older ds or my dh is home when the repair person comes.

Last time I was alone with one, I sat in a chair cutting coupons, making sure I had my scissors really handy

Oh my!

 

[YO's Mom]

I left my toddler in the family room watching Dora while I took a quick shower. When I got out, I had a voice mail. It was a guy saying he owned some rental properties in the neighborhood and wanted to see our house. OK, fine. But then he continued, "I know you're home, because I looked in the window and saw your kid. I'm guessing you're in the shower, so I'll just sit out here and wait for you to let me in. I already saw that there are toys on the floor, so don't bother picking up. I just want to see the layout of the house."

I think instead of leaving, I would have called 911 to report a peeping Tom. Let him explain to the responding officers why he was peeping in your windows!

 

[Jenn]

We have a creepy exterminator. He services a whole section of our neighborhood and everyone thinks he's creepy. He never shuts up so you have to lie and say you need to go out to get him to leave. He is a close talker. Stands way too close. My sister lives 3 houses down and recently he asked her if she ever hangs out in a certain restaurant on Thursday nights. She said no. He said oh because there is a group of swingers from this neighborhood who hang out there! Was he inviting her? Wondering if they are swingers? Hitting on her? We aren't sure.

 

[Robinrs]

I've had more CREEPY than NOT CREEPY.

I'm a single mom so I get the kind who look around for the "man of the house" then come back with the lovely plan to STAY.

I had a lawn guy come back with his two cute little kids to show me what a GREAT FATHER he is...

The AC guy noticed I wasn't interested so he asked if I had any friends? All the while showing me the crack of his butt while fixing my AC.

Now my son is so big I keep him around when they show up. It's pathetic. I keep thinking that all they want is a "made nest".

 

[kate_wdw]

I generally don't like having repairmen in my home.

Here's an organization that advocates for better screening of employees sent out to peoples' homes and lists businesses that screen their employees: http://sueweavercause.org/

It was started by a woman (Sue Weaver) whose sister was raped and murdered by a contractor previously sent out to her home. Very sad!

 

[hereyago]

There have been 2. First guy was with the construction company he gave off the creepy guy I want to steal your stuff vibe. My dog who loved everyone except this guy. He ended up getting fired for stealing from his boss. About a year ago a guy came out to give me an estimate on grass cutting. He made feel really uncomfortable his price was good but. I just didn't feel comfortable qith him around. He then texted me a couple times wanting to know if I had changed my mind. He made a comment when he got here I needed to make it worth his while that he came so far um he was 10 minutes away.

 

[Disney Doll]

For those of you trying to talk yourselves out of your gut feeling, I recommend you read the book "The Gift of Fear" by Gavin DeBecker.

 

[Feralpeg]

Twenty-nine years ago, I was at home recovering from surgery. It was about 8pm when I heard a large boom and the house filled with smoke. The motor on my furnace had burnt out. Unfortunately, it was ten degrees outside.

I called a company that did after hour repair. They said they could send a repair person, but he wouldn't arrive until about 10pm. He finally arrived about 11pm. By then, it was getting a bit chilly in the house. No problem, I was curled up in a blanket watching television when he arrived.

He was a very strange looking guy. He only had about three teeth and very little hair. He wasn't dressed in a company outfit...just jeans and a shirt. His truck did have the company logo or I would not have let him in.

So, he goes down to work on the furnace. What am I watching on television...The Boston Strangler with Tony Curtis. Creepy! After about an hour, I heard another boom followed by more smoke. The replacement motor burnt out as well. He comes to tell me that he doesn't have another. He will have to come back the next day. While not what I wanted to hear, I was really tired and more than ready to have him out of the house.

Fortunately for me, I had a water-bed with a heater. I simply went to bed and cranked up the heater. My cat and I snuggled down and were fine for the night, although it was really brisk when I got up. The repair guy did not come back until 3pm that day. Mystery, my cat, and I had to go back to sitting on the water-bed to stay warm until he got the motor fixed.

What did I learn from this experience, do not watch The Boston Strangler when a repair person needs to come to your home in the middle of the night!