On Sat, 12 May 2007 12:43:02 -0400, Jeff Wisnia wrote:

5. Never pay tradesmen in advance.

If a contractor is doing work that requires him to make significant
material purchases, paying half, or paying for the materials, is perfectly
reasonable.

--
As he backed away from Maryann, away from his rope, away from his
intentions to harm her, and, hopefully, away from his image of himself
as a big, bad dude who could have any "fun" he wanted with a woman,
he started muttering, "Bitches with guns. Bitches with guns. Bitches
with guns." He kept saying it over and over, as his own surprise gave
way to impotent anger, "Bitches with guns. Bitches with guns."
- Lyn Bates, "Bitches with Guns: A Lesson in Reality"