OR,
You can price a small job like basing one room high enough so that you can do the whole shebang in an hour and have the rest of the day off. This may sound weird, but I do this when someone wants a minimal amount of work done that I could care less about doing. I mean, really, it's not even worth it to drive over, set up, cut, nail, talk with the PITA HO for 20 minutes, wait for a check, clean up, etc.. for what we all know is actually a 10 minute job in front of the saw. If I can get full day labor rate for a 10 minute job, I'll take it. Otherwise, I see no value (IMO) of doing a job like that for less. Most guys won't do that job either, which means that they won't bid it, so the fact that even bid it, puts me in a postition to get the job for full price. Granted, most HO's will think it's crazy to spend $650 for base, but you would be suprised at how many don't care about the cost and just want it. I can't believe it myself most times.
NOTE: My cavalier attitude is dependent on how much work I have lined up!