Last week, a friend of mine asked me to help her with a little carpentry project.

I drove over and began hauling my tools in the front door when I heard someone whistling.

I expected a little guy with a beard and a funny hat, but instead I found a big guy on a ladder with a brush, and he was a pretty good whistler as well.

I wondered why he was in such a good mood so I asked him.

"I like painting," he said.

Ok, that makes sense.

But over the course of the next few hours that I worked along side him, I learned that this wasn't just an ordinary painter.

This was Tim Doyle, of TD Painting, and while he's a jovial sort of guy, he's very serious about the quality of his work.

How long have you been doing this stuff, Tim?

"I've been in the painting business for over 20 years, started in high school...my grandfather was a painter!"

Tim concentrated on painting a fine line along the edge of the ceiling as he spoke. In between his brush strokes and my molding installation, Tim told me about how he's restoring a 102 year old house and how he loves bass fishing.

"There's some pretty nice largemouth in North Lake and Lake Geneva...but I'm all about catch and release...have to protect that resource the best we can."

I noticed how perfectly Tim ran his brush up along side the oak trim without smearing any paint on it.

How do you do that so well, Tim?

"Hey, anybody can do this, with enough time and patience."

I had to disagree, and he would have too if he saw how well I paint.

Do you do all kinds of painting, Tim?

"I prefer and specialize in high end custom interior repaints, I'm a brush and roller guy." So, are you keeping busy?

"I've got a good, local following in the summertime, but the phone doesn't ring quite as often in the winter."

Why's that, Tim?

"I think people are too busy getting ready for holidays like Thanksgiving and Christmas, but, you know, It's not WRONG to paint in the winter," he said with emphasis.

Do you advertise?

"I'm big on the importance of word of mouth, so I have to do good work, because, if it's good for you, it's good for me!"

Tim was getting animated as he went up and down his ladder. What you mean by that, Tim?

"I mean, because I'm local," he said. "I'm gonna see you at the grocery store. I don't want to have to hide behind the Entenmann's display."

Tim, if I wanted some top quality interior painting done, who would I call for references? "You can ask Mark at the Ace Hardware store in Brown's Point, I get lots of referrals from him."

I finished up my part of the job and made my way out to the van, and Tim followed me to get more paint, so I told I might mention his name in my column.

"Hey, that would be great, when you hire me, it's all handshakes and smiles...no horror stories!"

Do you always whistle while you work, Tim? He smiled and said, "I love what I do."

How many people can say that these days?