*ROFL*

[smokingboot]

Albeit mainly with embarrassment. Having just finished the previous arrrarrararah! I decided to make myself some food, thereby invoking the presence of the engineer. He was the only one who hadn't treated me like an idiot down the phone; now admittedly, I am an idiot, but I like to think that my accomplishments in this field are down to hard work and aptitude; I really don't like my supreme powers of stupidity being credited to my chromosomes.

He turned up on the hour as he said he would, stared up at the bell box, and asked to see the alarm system. He said there was no power; had there been a power cut, perhaps? I didn't know - the computers are working, so no, I guessed. He looked at the electricity panel and flicked a switch. Power came on, as did all the lights. He reset the alarm, the bellbox stopped screaming and everything worked.

Oops.

I apologised for bringing him out for something so silly, and how much did I owe him? He shrugged and said it seemed silly to charge at all...maybe a tenner if that. I gave him twenty and took his card. Prompt, honest, rip-off free and neither exasperated nor exasperating. I like him, and we'll use him again.

In the meantime I will have to spend the rest of the day hiding from my neighbours.