Alright, it’s been another quarter. Let’s talk about it.
Every contractor has walked into a supplier and had this conversation. And every single time, both guys walk away thinking the other one is an idiot.
You walk up to the counter.
“Yeah, I need 6 pieces of 2x6, 10 foot, spruce.”
The guy behind the counter looks at his screen.
“Spruce?”
“...Yeah. Spruce.”
“OK. What size?”
“2x6.”
“2x6 spruce. What length?”
“10 foot.”
“10 foot. How many?”
“...Six.”
“Six 2x6 10 foot spruce.”
“That’s... that’s what I said.”
“OK let me just confirm — spruce, 2x6, 10 foot, six pieces?”
“Are you writing a song?”
Because here’s the thing nobody tells you: you speak contractor. Quantity, size, length, species. That’s how your brain works. Six pieces, 2x6, 10 foot, spruce. Done.
But their system? Species first. Then width. Then length. Then quantity. So every order turns into two guys rearranging the same four words over and over like they’re shuffling a deck of cards.
And God help you if you need pressure treated. Now you’ve added a fifth word to the shuffle and neither of you is getting out of there alive.