We have all been there. You think that you have got yourself totally organised. The work you have planned to take place on a certain date does not materialise. Plans need to be rearranged. Chaos ensues as your frustration grows. 

The lists of reasons why things will not be done dreckly are many and various. The latest excuse I had for the non-delivery of a dining room table and chairs was because it had not been scanned. When the delivery did not arrive as agreed there was no word from the company. Using their website I had to interact with an automated customer service system. In simple language what they really meant is they failed to get it sorted in time. 

Failure to get hold of the right materials is a frequent excuse. What that means is they failed to order in time. The most annoying issue is when  you are let down at the last minute. I would much rather be told things will not take place until a certain date in the future rather than be given false promises of an earlier promise of action that does not happen. 

Doing it dreckly is a lame excuse for poor workmanship. A kitchen refit recently took much longer than promised. Excuses were numerous. They included reasons such as the manufacturer sent the wrong item. Previous work has taken longer than expected hence the delay for the start of the work. Delays then set off problems for other tradesmen involved who had to change their start times. Fitting a unit by an untrained worker meant it had to be refitted. Such issues are probably very familiar to many readers.  My situation is not that unusual. Unfortunately my father was totally useless at any DIY jobs. Like me his secondary school years was devoid of any practical education. Household maintenance was not something he could do to any acceptable level. For me as a newly married young man money was in short supply. Thus buying tools to do simple household jobs was problematic. I had no skill and no tools. This led my father in law to call me “an educated fool”. My first venture in household DIY was to paper the lounge of our home. It was a semi basement flat in Stoke Newington. I was pleased with my efforts until my father-in-law told me it had a problem. I had put it up upside down. 

Today I am the proud owner of a smart tool box. It is very late in life to start doing basic jobs but  satisfying when it goes right. If only I had the skill and tools as a young man think of how much money I would have saved. What has not changed over the years is the demand from workmen for upfront payment in the form of hefty deposits. I wonder what the response would be if we were to say it would be paid dreckly.  The term doing it dreckly has been viewed as a rather humorous phrase. It is a term to cover up the fact that work will not be done any time soon. To be on the end of this remark is not as funny as the speaker would imply. It is in fact a right pain. Whilst the term might be seen as something typical of the Westcountry I am not sure that this is the case. In the wider context there seem to be endless delays for many projects. The cross London sewer system is well behind schedule. The proposed new rail network looks like it will never be finished. Charging points for electric cars are 10,000 short of requirements.  I wait for a government minister to proclaim:

“Never fear it will be done dreckly.”