· 0 ·The Apprentice
✦
· 0 ·
The Apprentice
in the place of the fool
upright
New boots, clean hard hat, zero wrong habits yet.
reversed
The zero wrong habits part aged like fresh drywall in a flood.
· I ·The Journeyman
✦
· I ·
The Journeyman
in the place of the magician
upright
Every tool has a place; every wire finds its terminal.
reversed
The drill battery is dead and the charger is in the other truck.
· II ·The Old Timer
✦
· II ·
The Old Timer
in the place of the high priestess
upright
He knows the why behind every code that was ever written.
reversed
He will tell you — but only once, and not in front of the GC.
· III ·The Supply House
✦
· III ·
The Supply House
in the place of the empress
upright
Every fitting blooms here; the counter clerk knows your name.
reversed
She is out of that part and the next shipment is Thursday. Maybe.
· IV ·The General Contractor
✦
· IV ·
The General Contractor
in the place of the emperor
upright
The schedule is law; every trade bends to the master plan.
reversed
The schedule moved again; you found out from another sub.
· V ·The Code Book
✦
· V ·
The Code Book
in the place of the hierophant
upright
The answer is in here. Every answer. It always has been.
reversed
The answer changed in the 2023 edition. Surprise.
· VI ·The Good Crew
✦
· VI ·
The Good Crew
in the place of the lovers
upright
Two hands find the same rhythm before a word is spoken.
reversed
One of them called in. The other one knows why.
· VII ·The Service Truck
✦
· VII ·
The Service Truck
in the place of the chariot
upright
Organized, fully stocked, rolling toward the next job with purpose.
reversed
It is making a sound. A new sound. From the left side.
· VIII ·The Callback
✦
· VIII ·
The Callback
in the place of strength
upright
Calm hands and no excuses — the fitting gets done right this time.
reversed
The fitting is fine. The homeowner just needed someone to blame.
· IX ·The One-Man Shop
✦
· IX ·
The One-Man Shop
in the place of the hermit
upright
In the quiet garage, the work is exactly as good as it needs to be.
reversed
He has not checked his voicemail since the Obama administration.
· X ·The Dispatch Board
✦
· X ·
The Dispatch Board
in the place of wheel of fortune
upright
The wheel turns; today's route lands in your favor.
reversed
Three back-to-backs, the farthest one is forty minutes past rush hour.
· XI ·The Inspection
✦
· XI ·
The Inspection
in the place of justice
upright
Clean work speaks for itself; the stamp comes without argument.
reversed
Tagged. A knockout is in the wrong place by three-eighths of an inch.
· XII ·The Crawlspace
✦
· XII ·
The Crawlspace
in the place of the hanged man
upright
Flat on your back in the dark, you see the problem clearly now.
reversed
You see it clearly. You cannot reach it from this angle.
· XIII ·The Tear-Out
✦
· XIII ·
The Tear-Out
in the place of death
upright
The old work falls away; what replaces it will outlast the house.
reversed
Whoever did this last time used the wrong pipe and loved it.
· XIV ·The Estimate
✦
· XIV ·
The Estimate
in the place of temperance
upright
Materials and labor in perfect balance — a number you can stand behind.
reversed
You missed the drywall repair and the permit fee. Both of them.
· XV ·The Side Job
✦
· XV ·
The Side Job
in the place of the devil
upright
Fast cash, a favor, just this once — and you do good work.
reversed
Just this once turned into a Saturday, a Sunday, and a lawsuit.
· XVI ·I Watched a YouTube Video
✦
· XVI ·
I Watched a YouTube Video
in the place of the tower
upright
Sometimes the homeowner gets lucky and nothing explodes.
reversed
The pipe he glued is the wrong schedule and the house is wet.
· XVII ·The Clean Finished Job
✦
· XVII ·
The Clean Finished Job
in the place of the star
upright
Dead-straight, labeled, tight — this one you are proud to sign.
reversed
It is perfect. The drywall crew will destroy it by noon tomorrow.
· XVIII ·Quick Little Job
✦
· XVIII ·
Quick Little Job
in the place of the moon
upright
Quick little jobs are real; occasionally they stay that way.
reversed
Two hours in and the wall is open and there is something living in there.
· XIX ·The Mentor
✦
· XIX ·
The Mentor
in the place of the sun
upright
A patient hand guides yours to the torch; the joint sings silver.
reversed
He retired last spring and nobody wrote any of it down.
· XX ·The Apprentice Tops Out
✦
· XX ·
The Apprentice Tops Out
in the place of judgement
upright
Card in hand, crew behind you — you built this with your body.
reversed
The certification passed; the journeyman wage starts in ninety days.
· XXI ·The Customer Who Says Thank You
✦
· XXI ·
The Customer Who Says Thank You
in the place of the world
upright
Two words and a handshake — this is exactly why you do it.
reversed
They left a four-star review. One star off for the parking cone.