Locked Out
June 24, 2022
On Wednesday night I was sick. Very sick. My head was hurting, I was sweating and could hardly move. My nose was blocked with not much breathing. I took a Covid test, I was clear. No Corona. I took another one just to be sure. No. Definitely no Corona.
Well, some people die of a normal flue I was thinking in a very grim mood. I was on the couch feeling sorry for myself when the phone rang. It’s 11pm and a call came in from a couple locked out. In our trade, every costumer count. Every customer is a world by itself. If a person calls an emergency locksmith amsterdam at a time like this, it is an emergency. So in our locksmith service company, we treat it like that.
So I picked up the phone. On the line was a young woman and her husband. “My name is Wendy Logan. We are locked out, how fast can you get here?” I quickly checked the address on my google maps. Tweede Jan Steenstraat. The Pijp. “No problem, 22 minutes away.” I said. And jumped in my car.
The adrenaline started to kick in and I started feeling a bit better. Less sickness, more alerted, sharper. When I arrived, the young couple were stressing a little bit. They were locked out for a while and were frustrated. The key did not work for them. The cylinder was broken. The situation was a bit complicated as it was a restricted cylinder and pretty secure.
Locked Out Service - The Pijp
I was able to get access to the handle and problem solved. As I was opening the door, we were having a short conversation and their mood improved a bit. It not always nice being locked out at the middle of the night. Not for everyone. I ended up replacing the cylinder as it was broken. I was quick to finish the job and the clients were very happy. The husband knew a lot about lock picking as it was some kind of hobby for him, so we spoke about that for a short while.
I was back in my car and still not feeling great
It was already midnight and still, pretty sick. As I was making my way back home, I was happy I helped another client in distress even when all I wanted is to stay in bed. I arrived home, tired, sick but happy. My car was parked and I was ready to get out and jump in bed. And the phone rings.. “hi, sorry to call that late but I am locked out.” A woman on the line. I could not believe it. However, we are an 24 hours locked out emergency service. For people having emergencies. “No problem. Please send me your address and I’ll be on my way.” I was not feeling my best. At all. Van Leijenberghlaan. I could not believe it. I could not. It was just around the corner from the job I just came back from.
Back driving in Amsterdam for another client. On arrival, I met this lovely woman. She went out to throw away the garbage and got locked out. Bad luck, but it happens. She was a little bit stressed and I could understand her. It was past 1am already.
Opened 4 doors for the same price
I did not have to unlock the building’s front door as another tenant came and was very nice to let us in the building. However, I had another glass door between the lobby and the lift, and two more glass doors on her floor to unlock before we even got to her front door. Not easy life to us locksmiths.
I started my work and very quickly was at her door. Here, another restricted cylinder. Restricted cylinders are very common in Amsterdam. A restricted cylinder will have all sorts of protection mechanisms to protect it from lock picking or other forms of break in. Therefore, they are tough to get into. I said to the lady that I will try first to unlock the door in a “clean” way but I might have to break the cylinder if unsuccessful. Restricted cylinders can be a pain.
Lucky enough I was able to unlock the door with no damage to the lock or cylinder. The lady was happy and so am I. I was back in my car after payment. It was past 2am already. I was feeling great. No sweating, no headache, no blocked nose. Good as new. Sometimes you just have to get out there. Sometimes helping others will end up in you helping yourself.
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