Cleaning up and not being Adam

Every so often I invite complete strangers into my house. Its not often, and there is always a reason.

The latest reason being that I wanted my stairs carpet cleaning.

The guy arrived, later than he had anticipated, well into the afternoon, and had another couple of appointments to do after me. So, he was running late, and wasn't due to be finished with his days work for a long time after. I expected him to do the job as fast as he could, and leave with equal abruptness.

But it didn't work out that way......

After efficiently bringing all his cleaning stuff in, parking his van, and peering at my carpet with a quizzical eye. He looked up. Then looked at me and stated with full assertion "This is an artists house!!!!" and I nodded and grinned at him, glad it was so obvious to someone who doesn't know me from Adam. (Hi Adam, if you're reading this!). 

And then he started asking questions, and I started answering them, brimming with excited confidence, as I explained about various pictures hanging on my walls, the ones I had painted, the reasons behind them, the subject matter, the methods of painting them, places I had exhibited, the studio I paint in, the latest artwork and the favoured older ones. He heard it all.

And he loved it all. Which just added to my telling him more as he was obviously fascinated by it and what I had painted.

So by then, he was running a further hour later as he had delayed doing my job because he was more interested in hearing about my art and my life as an artist!

And he couldn't wait to go home to look on the internet at my website and all the work on there too, and tell his wife about it!

He arrived late, and left as a fan, with a big grin on his face as if he had found a fabulous treasure. But, as he explained to me, he goes in many many houses, and a lot of people say "Oh, I paint you know" and he looks at their artwork and doesn't know what to say, because he has an eye for art and knows when its poor amateurish rubbish. But, as he said "I can tell that YOU can paint, and have a talent for it!"

He arrived late, and left as a fan.

YAY!   What a result!!! :)