The Reasonable Contractor

Reasonable Tech Dad
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Real talk with Twin Cities contractors about running a service business. No corporate BS, just honest conversations with the people who actually do the work. I'm Ryan, the Reasonable Tech Dad, and I talk with carpenters, plumbers, electricians, roofers, HVAC techs, and other skilled trades about what it really takes to build a successful contracting business in Minnesota. Every week, hear from contractors who've figured out how to find good customers, grow their business, and navigate the challenges of running a service company. Whether you're just starting out or you've been swinging a hammer for 20 years, you'll get practical advice from people who've been where you are. This is contractor-to-contractor conversation that helps everyone in the trades succeed. New episodes every week. Real contractors. Real advice.

  1. 1 day ago

    Jason Rathe of Field Outdoor Spaces: Nobody Planned to Stay, So He Changed the Job

    Jason Rathe started Field Outdoor Spaces in 2005. Before that he had an English degree, a kinesiology degree, seven years in the tech industry and a short run in restaurants. He wanted a job he could keep learning in for the rest of his life, went back for a masters in horticulture at the University of Minnesota, and started the company right around the time he was getting married. His worst case was that it failed and he walked away with everything he learned running it. About eight years ago he asked his crew if they saw themselves at the company in five years. Everybody said no. So he asked what it would take. They wanted to work all year, stay healthy into their fifties, and buy a house and raise a family. Field hired a trainer, started treating landscaping as an athletic pursuit, and built a winter remodeling arm, Uplift by Field, so the crews keep working when the ground freezes. Two years ago they hired one person. This year they hired nobody. Now he is rebuilding a twenty five page Excel estimate with AI on top of the EOS system the company already runs on, aiming for estimates in half the time by spring 2027. What we get into: • Why the worst case of starting a business still beats never trying • A whiteboard calendar, then an Excel schedule still in use twelve years later • Running the company on EOS, and practicing the hard truth in every meeting • Why one person makes the call after the group weighs in • Building your own estimating and scheduling tools with AI instead of buying software • Giving crew leads only the information they need, when they need it • John Ruskin, Gothic architecture, and a job that uses your hands, head, heart and health • Hiring a trainer, and selling shares of the company to seven people 00:00 Welcome, and who Jason Rathe is 01:22 An English degree, a kinesiology degree and seven years in tech 03:50 A masters in horticulture, and the frustrated employee 05:19 Worst case, it fails and you learned a ton 06:27 Ryan's road from bartender to AI 11:58 Twenty one years of system limits, gone 14:11 A whiteboard calendar and a 25 page Excel estimate 16:10 Running the company on EOS 18:11 Saying the hard truth over and over 22:52 How an EOS integrator started building systems with AI 26:05 Why crew lead is the hardest job in landscaping 27:58 Only the information the crew needs, when they need it 30:18 Building a company brain 32:12 What changes for the designers and the estimator 36:48 Not about a bigger boat 37:19 John Ruskin and the best jobs 39:30 Nobody saw themselves here in five years 41:26 Hiring a trainer, landscaping as an athletic pursuit 45:27 Uplift by Field and winter remodeling 47:02 Selling shares to seven people 48:39 Wrapping up 🧠 FREE 15-MINUTE AI ASSESSMENT: I'll find the one spot AI can save your business the most time and point you at the exact tool to do it, no charge. Message me on Facebook or Instagram and we'll set it up. 📱 CONNECT WITH THE REASONABLE CONTRACTOR: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/reasonabletechdad/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61584817796278 Website: http://reasonabletechdad.com/ 👤 CONNECT WITH JASON RATHE: Field Outdoor Spaces: https://fieldoutdoorspaces.com/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/field_outdoor/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/p/Field-Outdoor-Spaces-Inc-100063457424065/

  2. 14 Oct

    Jordan Morell of MGC Remodeling: 24 Fewer Jobs and $500K More Revenue

    Jordan Morell spent fifteen years in banking before he walked out in December 2019 to sell for a buddy's glass company. Three months later he was at the home and garden show hearing the first rumble of COVID. His dad ran a drywall shop and made him do the demo and the grunt work, which was the point. MGC Remodeling is in its fourth year. Last year Jordan and his business partner ran ninety four jobs. This year they are doing seventy, and revenue is up by roughly five hundred thousand dollars. Asked whether the tools did that, his answer was one hundred percent. He scans a house with Rendr, the measurements land in JobTread, and a bid that used to eat ten to fifteen hours now takes under fifteen minutes. Getting there cost him sixty to a hundred and twenty hours of building templates, most of it at twelve hour days through a December. What it bought back was the ability to pick his jobs and be done at noon on a Friday. What we get into: • Ninety four jobs last year, seventy this year, revenue up about $500K • Scanning a kitchen and a bathroom, then having a bid inside four hours • A first Rendr job where the $16,400 cabinet allowance landed at $16,100 • Testing every subcontractor in his own house before putting them on a customer's job • Why he bids high on purpose, and cuts scope instead of his own cost • Bringing the whole crew to the walkthrough so the subs solve it on the spot • The number one gap he still has, capturing what gets said on site • No paid advertising at all, just Google Maps, SEO and referrals in year four 00:00 Welcome, and who Jordan Morell is 00:27 Fifteen years in banking, and a dad who made him do demo 02:51 Out of banking, into a glass company, then COVID hits 04:09 A GC asks him to sell, and ownership becomes the goal 06:09 Why he made Joe a partner instead of an employee 10:08 Ninety four jobs with two people 10:57 Testing every sub by punching holes in his own house 14:16 Subs, employees and customers as the shareholders 19:32 What makes a homeowner pick MGC 21:02 Scanning a kitchen and a bath, bid inside four hours 23:02 A $16,400 cabinet allowance that landed at $16,100 23:58 No paid ads, all Google Maps and SEO 27:49 Call me if you get a lower bid, I will not price match 30:50 Being blunt about the budget question 35:45 Why he bids high on purpose 38:16 From fifteen hours a bid to under fifteen minutes 41:41 Twelve hour days on JobTread, then finding Rendr 43:42 Rebuilding every quote around how Rendr outputs 46:36 Bringing the whole crew to the walkthrough 48:07 The number one gap, capturing notes on site 57:49 Why time is the real currency 58:47 Ninety four jobs down to seventy, revenue up five hundred thousand 62:27 Advice to the next generation 69:58 Where to find Jordan, and the five star question 🧠 FREE 15-MINUTE AI ASSESSMENT: I'll find the one spot AI can save your business the most time and point you at the exact tool to do it, no charge. Message me on Facebook or Instagram and we'll set it up. 📱 CONNECT WITH THE REASONABLE CONTRACTOR: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/reasonabletechdad/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61584817796278 Website: http://reasonabletechdad.com/ 👤 CONNECT WITH JORDAN MORELL: MGC Remodeling: https://www.mgcremodel.com/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mgc_remodeling/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/p/MGC-Remodeling-100094507518918/

  3. 3 Oct

    Gabe Wagner of Aqua Blast: From $42 in the Bank to Turning Work Away

    Gabe Wagner was a month from graduating Winona State with a business administration degree and a job waiting at his parents' title insurance company. He texted his brother from the bar instead. They bought a residential pressure washer at Menards, loaded it into a Jeep Patriot, and started cold calling family and friends to clean pool covers. Year one was 6 to 8 hours to wash a single house, chemicals batch mixed in a 55 gallon drum in the customer's driveway, and one family friend's house he failed so badly it still comes up. He went back to his high school pizza job with $42 left in his bank account. Year four his brother walked and Gabe bought him out. Five years in, 7 or 8 property management companies send him work without him marketing for it, he has one full time crew and a flatbed built so a job can run without him, and his answer to the growth question is that he wants to stay small and pack a punch. What we get into: • Graduating with a business degree and starting a pressure washing company anyway • Soft washing versus pressure washing, and why chemistry beats brute force • Failing on a family friend's house, and what that failure actually cost • Buying another company's book of business before paying back the first investment • Underground parking garages, HOAs, and getting in with property managers • Buying his brother out, and the year of 12 to 15 hour days that followed • Equipment and systems that let the crew run without the owner on the truck • Why he wants to stay small, keep the margin, and be present for a family he hasn't started yet Chapters: 00:28 A senior at Winona State, headed for the family title business 01:46 The COVID seed: home service videos on his feed 02:16 A month from graduating, the text to his brother 03:25 A Menards pressure washer and a Jeep Patriot 04:35 Burn the boats: his dad's ultimatum 06:52 Soft washing versus pressure washing, explained 08:03 Failing miserably on a family friend's house 09:06 The $200 setup, and 8 hours to wash one house 10:29 Did I really go to college to struggle to wash a house? 11:37 A family friend sells off their pressure washing division 12:51 Underground parking garages and property managers 19:42 HOAs: 200 units and a hundred bosses 22:18 Mid April to Thanksgiving, then gutters until it freezes 23:02 Machines show up every day, they don't call in sick 24:46 I've done it wrong five or six times 26:54 Year four: buying his brother out 27:45 10X it, plateau, or go bankrupt 30:47 Triple down: the flatbed that gets him off the truck 33:43 From desperation for leads to turning work away 35:46 Professionalism plus systems turns into trust 37:20 Small, but packing a punch 40:27 Would you go back to college? He would 44:35 Forty-two dollars left in the bank 49:04 Where to find Aqua Blast 🧠 FREE 15-MINUTE AI ASSESSMENT: I'll find the one spot AI can save your business the most time and point you at the exact tool to do it, no charge. Message me on Facebook or Instagram and we'll set it up. 📱 CONNECT WITH THE REASONABLE CONTRACTOR: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/reasonabletechdad/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61584817796278 Website: http://reasonabletechdad.com/ 👤 CONNECT WITH GABE WAGNER: Aqua Blast: https://www.aquablastmn.com/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/aquablast_mn/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/aquablast1/

  4. 27 Sept

    Tony Hyser of Twin Cities Premier Plumbing: Zero Hours, a Subaru, and Protecting His Sleep at Night

    Tony Hyser did his plumbing apprenticeship in Winona, worked new construction and service in Colorado, and came home to Minnesota for two weeks of side work he lined up with a Facebook post. The day after he got home, COVID shut the world down. Two weeks later his sister's best friend called about a leaking toilet and offered to sit in the other room. That call became Twin Cities Premier Plumbing. He built it out of a Subaru with hand tools and no license, because the boss who said he was registering his apprentice hours never did. Zero, right next to his name on the state website. Today a master plumber partner holds the license and runs the field, and Tony runs growth, admin and customer relations with an AI setup he calls his command center. It knows his goals, it flags what matters, and it tells him when he's about to burn a day on work that won't move the business. Then he delivers his hot take on private equity in home services, and why he protects his ability to sleep at night. What we get into: • Registering your apprentice hours is on you, and how common the zero-hours story is • Starting a plumbing company during COVID with a Subaru and hand tools • Getting legal: hiring a master plumber, and the partnership with Jason • The interview question that tells you who belongs in the trade • Tony's first AI moment with Jasper, and the command center he built in Claude • Ask Tony: an AI that answers the crew's questions while the owner is on vacation • Making the phone ring: the real struggle behind a shop that looks like it's cruising • Private equity's golden handcuffs, and competing on quality instead of price Chapters: 00:00 Crystal to Winona to Colorado 01:28 Two weeks of Facebook work, then COVID 02:17 The leaking toilet that started Twin Cities Premier Plumbing 02:48 Zero hours next to his name 04:36 Crisis, opportunity 07:33 Getting legal with a master plumber 08:35 Winona vs the Twin Cities: three brothers, three companies 11:09 Learn one of the top three trades 14:14 Mental toughness and the interview question 18:04 Jason, the master plumber partner 19:56 Does AI take jobs or create them? 21:14 Tools that think: Tony's first AI moment 23:03 Scatter brain, and AI as the priority filter 24:27 The command center 30:04 Brains in files and folders 33:41 Ask Tony: the AI that covers vacation 34:40 Burnout, and three years of untagged jobs 39:59 Making the phone ring 42:09 Google Business Profile after an address change 48:14 Hot take: get private equity out of home services 49:44 Golden handcuffs 52:29 Protecting my ability to sleep at night 52:52 You're the guest: quality over price 54:07 Where to find Tony 🧠 FREE 15-MINUTE AI ASSESSMENT: I'll find the one spot AI can save your business the most time and point you at the exact tool to do it, no charge. Message me on Facebook or Instagram and we'll set it up. 📱 CONNECT WITH THE REASONABLE CONTRACTOR: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/reasonabletechdad/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61584817796278 Website: http://reasonabletechdad.com/ 👤 CONNECT WITH TONY HYSER: Twin Cities Premier Plumbing: https://www.twincitiespremierplumbing.com/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/twincitiespremierplumbing/

  5. 22 Sept

    Morgan Molitor of construction2style: Your Client Avatar Should Be an Emotion

    Morgan Molitor met her husband Jamie at a bar in St. Paul while he was flipping an investment property. She went to school for fashion and marketing, started a website to document his work, and people assumed she was the designer. That turned into construction2style, a Twin Cities design-build company, and then four more companies, all of it grown through Instagram. What runs through all of it is intent. She writes her why down every day. She says your client avatar should be an emotion, built off the favorite client you ever had and how they made you feel in the home. And when red flags showed up on a big job last fall, she counted seven holidays left with her oldest and gave back every penny, after more than a year of pre-con and design. The systems side is what buys her the peace of mind to work that way. She has been around AI since programmatic ads in 2010, and today she runs Claude with agents, a knowledge base, and a finance setup where every penny gets tracked to a job. What we get into: • How construction2style grew from one flip house into five companies and two conferences • Community over competition: the open-book Contractor Coalition Summit and BuildHer Retreat • Why your client avatar should be an emotion, and the resale red flag • Giving a client's money back in full to protect the holidays • Sticker shock, open-book bids, and the lowball bid that's missing line items • Her AI stack: Claude, Claude Code, Claude Design, and agents that run daily and weekly workflows • Every penny tracked: Ressio for project management, Adaptive for company finances, and why QuickBooks won't die • Building a knowledge base so your business plugs into any AI tool, and why that makes a company sellable • Redesigning a kitchen with the client sitting next to her in the showroom • Do design tools have taste? Meet Stevie, her bot Chapters: 00:00 Introduction and how construction2style started 02:46 Five companies, all grown through Instagram 05:17 Open book: community over competition 06:28 Burnout, writing down your why, and soul-filled homes 07:21 The resale red flag 09:20 Your client avatar should be an emotion 09:58 Giving the money back to protect the holidays 14:43 Bidding with Claude inside Ressio 15:40 Sticker shock and the open-book bid 17:41 Morgan's AI journey, back to 2010 18:47 Her stack: Claude, Claude Design, and agents 20:00 Every penny tracked: Ressio, Adaptive, QuickBooks 22:00 Build a knowledge base, stay tool agnostic 23:42 Every construction company should be a sellable asset 28:35 Why does everybody still need QuickBooks? 31:47 Train your AI like a new employee 35:07 Redesigning a kitchen with the client in the showroom 37:02 Do the design tools have taste? Meet Stevie 39:42 Where to find Morgan 🧠 FREE 15-MINUTE AI ASSESSMENT: I'll find the one spot AI can save your business the most time and point you at the exact tool to do it, no charge. Message me on Facebook or Instagram and we'll set it up. 📱 CONNECT WITH THE REASONABLE CONTRACTOR: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/reasonabletechdad/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61584817796278 Website: http://reasonabletechdad.com/ 👤 CONNECT WITH MORGAN MOLITOR: construction2style: https://construction2style.com/ Morgan: https://morganmolitor.com/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/construction2style

  6. 9 Sept

    Farm Kid to MSP Tile & Floor: Zack Hofer on the ABCD of Winning Jobs

    Zack left a conservative Anabaptist community with a wife, four kids, and nothing else. No money, no credit history, no bank account, and no work experience outside of farming and livestock. This episode is the whole climb: an electrician apprenticeship that couldn't feed a family of six, door-knocking for handyman work, a concrete pour that went sideways and accidentally landed him with a custom home builder, losing it all when that builder went bankrupt during COVID, and the coaching program that helped him rebrand as MSP Tile & Floor. Today he's booked out weeks in advance on Google reviews and referrals alone. He hasn't paid for a lead in years, and he walked me through the exact sales system that got him there. What we get into: • Leaving with nothing and feeding a family of six on an apprentice wage • Farming to electrician to handyman to tile, and why he finally picked one trade • The concrete driveway disaster that turned into custom home work • Getting stiffed in a builder bankruptcy and starting the lead hunt over • The Google Business Profile playbook: reviews, replies, and years without paying for a lead • The ABCD of winning jobs: appearance, behavior, communication, digital footprint • Choice psychology on sales calls: show two options, never fifteen • Needs-based work: turning down vanity remodels, cutting prices for single moms Chapters: 00:00 Introduction and Zack's background 01:00 Transition from farming to construction 01:57 Pivoting into electrical work and hustling for leads 03:55 Building credit and business structure 04:56 Rebranding and marketing strategies 07:03 Handling setbacks and business challenges 09:53 Specializing in tile and flooring 13:48 Using digital marketing and Google reviews 18:07 The ABCD sales principles: appearance, behavior, communication, digital footprint 23:49 Psychology of decision-making and simplifying choices 32:00 The power of small gestures: mints and tips 35:58 Building trust and reputation through consistency 39:56 Challenges in the digital landscape and staying compliant 45:04 Advice for the next generation in trades 50:03 Patience, learning, and resilience in business 🧠 FREE 15-MINUTE AI ASSESSMENT: I'll find the one spot AI can save your business the most time and point you at the exact tool to do it, no charge. Message me on Facebook or Instagram and we'll set it up. 📱 CONNECT WITH THE REASONABLE CONTRACTOR: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/reasonabletechdad/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61584817796278 Website: http://reasonabletechdad.com/ 👤 CONNECT WITH ZACK: MSP Tile & Floor: https://msptileflooring.com/

  7. 29 Aug

    Transparent Pricing, Real Profit Numbers, and Design-Build with Denny Meints

    Denny Meints of Red Fox Remodeling (Minneapolis, MN) went from building tree houses and roofing houses in the summers to a double major at Bethel, five years of ministry work in Central America building alongside local craftsmen, and a sales job at a construction company that made him its general manager within a couple of years. Then a buddy called out of the blue with three massive second-story additions, and instead of taking the project manager job he countered: contract my brand-new company instead. That was 2022. Now Red Fox runs design in-house, signs guaranteed maximum price contracts instead of cost plus, and bids with 100% transparency: every line item, every hour, overhead, and profit right on the page. Denny gets into why he named the company after the thing people fear about contractors, how a corroded sewage stack behind a kitchen wall becomes an honest change order under a GMP contract, why he's pushing past his resistance to self-promotion, and where he's really at with AI. What we get into: - How a Bethel double major ended up back in the trades - Five years building alongside craftsmen in Central America - Countering a job offer into his first three luxury remodels - Why Red Fox brought design in-house - Guaranteed maximum price vs cost plus, and who carries the risk - 100% transparency bids: overhead and profit on the page - The corroded sewage stack story and how change orders should work - Getting over self-promotion, AI in construction, and advice for the next generation 00:00 Introduction to Denny and Red Fox Remodeling 01:05 Denny's journey from college to construction 02:26 Early experiences in Central America and lessons learned 03:48 Starting in sales and transitioning to general contracting 05:16 Securing large projects early in business 07:24 Scaling to luxury home remodels 09:09 The importance of in-house design 11:16 Streamlining projects for better outcomes 13:17 The value of transparency and risk transfer 15:16 Handling unforeseen issues during projects 18:29 Transparency in bids and pricing details 21:04 The philosophy behind transparent profit and costs 23:25 Complexity of large-scale remodels 24:30 Challenges and realities of running a business 25:30 Marketing, self-promotion, and social media 26:25 The role of AI and technology in construction 28:51 Advice to the next generation of tradespeople 🧠 FREE 15-MINUTE AI ASSESSMENT: I'll find the one spot AI can save your business the most time and point you at the exact tool to do it, no charge. Message me on Facebook or Instagram and we'll set it up. 📱 CONNECT WITH THE REASONABLE CONTRACTOR: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/reasonabletechdad/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61584817796278 Website: http://reasonabletechdad.com/ 👤 CONNECT WITH DENNY MEINTS: Red Fox Remodeling: https://www.redfoxremodeling.com/

  8. 20 Aug

    Andy Misiura - How a Window Cleaner Built to 45 Employees and Got Hooked on AI

    Andy Misiura started cleaning windows in high school as a way to make extra money, and 18 years later Kahuna Window Cleaning runs 45 full-time employees and does roughly 2.5 to 3 million a year out of one location in Minneapolis. The through-line he keeps coming back to is simple: he decided young that he was a window cleaner, this was his business, and he was going to become the best at it, instead of starting this and that and chasing the next thing. We get into how he grew it the slow, steady way, the brutal Minnesota seasonality, and keeping a crew together through the winter. Then the back half turns into one of the best AI conversations we have had on the show, from a guy who has only been dabbling about a year. What we get into: • Building a window cleaning business from a high school side hustle to 45 employees and one location • The one biggest secret to lasting: pick one thing and become the best at it, instead of chasing the next shiny thing • Doing 80 percent of the year's revenue in four months, and the real problem of keeping a crew through a Minnesota winter • Only wanting people around who are happy to be there, and building every decision around that • The window cleaning boom, TikTok, and buying a company just to get its door knockers • Getting hooked on AI, and why switching from ChatGPT to Claude was night and day • Asking Claude for a spreadsheet and getting a whole working website instead • Giving your AI a second brain so it actually knows your business, and why it is easy to set up 00:00 Introduction and Andy's background 00:21 From a high school side hustle to committing to the trade 01:14 Growing Kahuna to 45 employees, one location 01:51 The one biggest secret: pick one thing and become the best 03:34 Humility, comparison, and not chasing the next thing 05:32 Early to the web in 2007, and the TikTok window cleaning boom 07:38 Buying a company just for its door knockers 09:16 The water-fed pole boom and door-to-door saturation 11:46 Seasonality: 80 percent of revenue in four months 12:44 The off-season problem and keeping the crew year round 15:04 Building a culture people are happy to show up to 17:08 Getting into AI and the models turning a corner 18:28 Switching from ChatGPT to Claude 19:02 Asking AI for a spreadsheet and getting a whole website 24:17 Give your AI a second brain 29:23 AI for marketing, SEO, and high-rise prospecting with Fable 5 32:07 AI and jobs: we won't run out of problems to solve 34:23 Innovation, abundance, and the room to improve in the trades 🧠 FREE 15-MINUTE AI ASSESSMENT: I'll find the one spot AI can save your business the most time and point you at the exact tool to do it, no charge. Message me on Facebook or Instagram and we'll set it up. 📱 CONNECT WITH THE REASONABLE CONTRACTOR: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/reasonabletechdad/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61584817796278 Website: http://reasonabletechdad.com/ 👤 CONNECT WITH ANDY MISIURA: https://kahunawindowcleaning.com/

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Real talk with Twin Cities contractors about running a service business. No corporate BS, just honest conversations with the people who actually do the work. I'm Ryan, the Reasonable Tech Dad, and I talk with carpenters, plumbers, electricians, roofers, HVAC techs, and other skilled trades about what it really takes to build a successful contracting business in Minnesota. Every week, hear from contractors who've figured out how to find good customers, grow their business, and navigate the challenges of running a service company. Whether you're just starting out or you've been swinging a hammer for 20 years, you'll get practical advice from people who've been where you are. This is contractor-to-contractor conversation that helps everyone in the trades succeed. New episodes every week. Real contractors. Real advice.

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  • Creator
    Reasonable Tech Dad
  • Years Active
    2025 - 2026
  • Episodes
    26
  • Rating
    Explicit
  • Copyright
    © 2026 Reasonable Tech Dad