July Newsletter

Man, I swear I aged like 30 years this month. Lemme explain.

Full House Clean Out – Milligan Apartment

This was my biggest job up until this point. I got a call one morning about a full house cleanout. It had bed bugs previously, so I made sure it was sprayed before going in. The way it works is they leave a key lock at the door, and I go in, unlock it, and take photos for a quote. Honestly, it wasn’t too bad. It did take longer than expected (my dad and I stayed several hours longer just to make sure everything looked good), but overall it was super fun. I got to manage the team, which was strange because it was my first big job. Our friend Chris (the contractor who helped us with the shed job) came out and showed us how to rip up carpet. We finished in a day, which felt great. I’ve even done more jobs for the same lady since then… but that’s a story for another time. 🤫

Helping Michelina

Michelina is this awesome lady I worked for. It started with hauling trash bags and cleaning up a shed, but it snowballed into more jobs. For context—she was moving back to Florida from Tennessee, and after reading about me saving for a mission trip, she called me up to help out. She fed me, gave me tons of life advice (and crypto tips 😂), and was just an amazing person to work with. She even told me later she couldn’t have gotten it all done without me. Crazy to think about.

4th of July

Honestly? Kinda mid. Shoutout to Utah where fireworks are next-level, but here it just felt like a small-town thing. 😅

Learning How to Drive a Trailer

For the full house cleanout, my friend Levi drove the trailer because I had no idea how. But the next time I needed one, I didn’t have help—so my dad taught me in a random parking lot. At first, I was completely lost, but after 20 minutes I figured it out and drove it home. The next day I had to dump it, and somehow I did it perfectly. No mistakes. Now I feel super confident driving a trailer, which is huge!

Running Over the Road Thing in the Parking Lot

So embarrassing. I was driving around to different property management places and at one stop, I turned too close to the edge and totally pushed down part of the asphalt. To make it worse, the store owner’s dog saw the whole thing (traitor). Luckily, the owner said it was fine, but man… still embarrassing.

Shed Demo on Dad’s Birthday

For my dad’s birthday, what he wanted most was… to do a junk job with me. 😂 Crazy, right? Most dads just want to relax, but mine wanted to spend time working with me. We got a call from a sweet lady named Diane, and the next day we tore down her old shed. At the end, her neighbor Phil asked if we could haul off some of his wood for $15. We said sure, and he even threw in a couple Dr. Enufs (if you know, you know) plus an extra $5. Shoutout Phil.

Jim’s Junk Job (ft. Luke & a Corvette)

I worked another job with my friend Luke for Jim, who happens to be the fifth best dog trainer in the world. No big deal. We cleaned out a shed, but he also showed us his super-trained horses and his famous dogs. Then he opened his garage and there it was: a brand-new 2023 Chevy Corvette. He tossed us the keys and let us rev it. At a junk job. Unreal.

Junk Falling Out of the Truck at Zone Conference

Levi and I did an attic cleanout, and while loading, the tailgate popped off the truck. We managed to fix it, but I realized I’d done a terrible job tarping everything down. Luckily, nothing fell out. Close call.

Bandit Signs with Dad

My dad and I put up bandit signs—the “We Buy Houses” kind you see on the side of the road. Honestly, way more fun than I thought it’d be.

Fire Department with the Youth Group

I set up a trip for our church youth group to hang out with the fire department. The guys there were amazing and so welcoming. Definitely one of the highlights this month.

So yeah, July was pretty much nonstop jobs and lessons. And yeah, I kinda forgot to post this on time. So… onto August.

August Newsletter

Welcome back to another month of Michael yapping about junk jobs. Let’s go:

Linda’s Hoarder House Cleanout

This one came from Vanessa (same lady from the July cleanout job). She told me about her friend Linda, who needed help moving. Linda had been with her for 10+ years, and it was tough for Vanessa to see her go. So we stepped in. Six of us tackled the house in six hours. Honestly, it was kind of gross but super satisfying. We even found some random treasures like an old NES and an iPod Touch.

Mary’s Job (Underquoted Disaster)

I made the rookie mistake of quoting a job over the phone. Thought it’d be one truckload. It ended up taking four. 😬 So I had to tell her the price was going way up. Not fun, but she was cool about it. Lesson learned: no more quotes over the phone.

Locking In

This month I decided to really lock in. Started using Crest strips, creatine, protein powder, working out, and focusing more on my faith. Honestly, it feels like the right combo. I’ve gotten better physically, but also mentally—more confident running teams, scheduling jobs, and just pushing through hard stuff instead of dodging it.

Off-Roading with Levi

We went off-roading in the mountains. Since I was in the work truck, I couldn’t hit the trails too hard, but my buddy Ben let me hop in his truck. There’s even a clip of me forgetting to buckle up and just flying in the passenger seat on a crazy turn. Afterward, I did another junk job for a sweet old lady, and she ended up talking with me for 30 minutes about faith. Her perspective hit me hard.

Door Hangers

We printed up a bunch of flyers and put them all over neighborhoods. Levi and I crushed one area together, and I did an entire HOA by myself later. It was blazing hot, but honestly kind of fun.

Washer/Dryer/Fridge Job (aka Meltdown Day)

Levi and I hauled a fridge, washer, and dryer. Everything was fine until later that day when I had to unload the washer and dryer by myself in 100+ degree heat. Combine no AC, no water, and a slow air leak in my truck tire… and I just lost it. My dad came to help, but I was in such a bad mood. Looking back, I had no reason to be so rude. I really had to reflect afterward and remind myself not to act like that again.

Sneaking into the Football Game

I wanted to hang with my friends in the student section, but they were checking IDs. So I hopped the gate behind a security guard and pretended to be on the phone. Worked like a charm. Later, when lightning delayed the game, sneaking back in was harder, but somehow I made it. Pure luck.

Helping Out a Farmer

Levi stayed over one night, and the next day we ended up helping a farmer load hay bales into his barn. I thought it was a service project, but nope, the farmer was awesome and payed us(I would have been happy to do it for free. We stacked everything into the trailer, then up the conveyor belt into the loft. It was fun, but my biceps were dead the next day. It’s because I asked, “What’s the hardest job?” and definitely got my answer.

So yeah, that’s August. Lots of jobs, lots of lessons, and lots of sweat. Thanks for reading these back-to-back newsletters. Sorry July was late, but I’m glad I got to share both. Stick around for next month—I’m sure more chaos is coming.

Peace,
Michael