Issue link: http://read.uberflip.com/i/1380
feature 36 Houseboatmagazine.com Running On Empty There is a similar story about another stingy owner who kept complaining about a generator that wouldn't run. Described as a "cheap guy," he regularly filled his tanks from five-gallon cans he lugged on the dock so he wouldn't have to pay marina fuel prices. He got so disgusted with the genera- tor he removed it and replaced it with a much bigger one. Someone noticed the generator on the dock and bought it for $100. In his bullheadedness, what he had done was sell a perfectly good generator that would have run just fine if he would have kept the gas tank full enough to supply the pick- up line for the generator. And that is something he had been told about. Don't Ask Stories about houseboaters and their secondary crafts also brought mention from a couple of technicians. One house- boater and his wife rode their jet ski over to the fuel dock for gas and supplies, but then couldn't get the ski started again so he went to the shop for help. Without saying a word, the mechanic simply reached over the counter, grabbed the safety lanyard hanging from the man's vest and gave it a tug. When the man's wife asked if the mechanic was going to take care of them, the reply was "it's fixed…don't ask." Hitched? Although this story sounds too farfetched to be true, the mechanic involved swears it is. A ski boat, driven by a house- boater's wife and full of her girlfriends, was driven into a shop on the water. Their complaint was that they wanted to go ski- ing, but the boat wouldn't plane. The technician determined the engine started and ran well but when he checked for a rope around the prop he noticed a license plate and then saw trailer fenders and tires along the side of the boat. What they had done was back the boat down the ramp, unhook the trailer from the truck and head out for a day of fun with the trailer attached to the boat. Of course, we feel sure none of our readers would ever do anything like the folks mentioned in these examples. Regard- less though, a word of caution might be in order. The next time you feel yourself getting your feathers ruffled when working with your service provider, it might be a good idea to remember that "the customer is always right," except when he isn't. house boat magazine