Meet Jeff

Some of you already know Jeff, some have heard of Jeff, or you are just going to meet him now.

He is a popular figure around our place. In fact, he comes every day. Most days he has a new idea. Some of those ideas are really good ones. Some days he brings donuts. Some days he sits and reads the paper. And a lot of days he just sleeps.

He has an old Ford into which we are going to put a motor for him, so that is how he originally found us a couple years ago. For some reason he decided that he really liked us and we hit it off, so we are a stop in his day under all normal circumstances.

 Some days he realizes that there is a birthday for one of us and he brings a chocolate cake. When he realized that we had been at our new shop for one year, he brought a cake for that too.

 You see, he feels quite responsible for us finding this place and he is rather pleased with that fact. He told us about this place. As I mentioned, he has lots of ideas and this one was a good one. He notices things that everyone else takes for granted. Like the For Sale sign that had been in this front yard for 10 years. Only difference was that he actually called the number and found out that the man who had had the sign here for ten years had recently passed away and the family actually needed to sell this now to pay the estate taxes. Jeff is cool like that.

He was the one who exhausted all options in trying to find a way for us to get a loan. We actually were able to get one with a bank that we had talked to, but he had a list for us of bankers with whom he had spoken and had strongly encouraged to give us a chance. He was the most excited of all of us when our loan actually went through.

He owns a business that builds timber frame barns. They have sent crews all over the country to build these high-dollar, high-class barns, often ones that are used as wedding barns. Timber framing is gorgeous and his buildings are no exception.

If we don't see him for a few days I actually worry about him and have even found excuses to call him. Just to check on him. I've invited him to family events or activities and he always appreciates the invite but says he's not a people person. I've introduced him to certain friends and he always keeps track of them and remembers to ask me about them. Even thinks of someone specific when he is at an estate sale and sees something that he thinks maybe my "sister with the baby" could use or my "missionary friends with the kids that might get eaten when they go overseas" might need.

So there. You too have met Jeff.