ALMOST SETTLED... and happy too (Part 62i)

The meeting after the trophy presentation represented the last time I’d see most of the group until the following spring. There were still a few boats on the beach that had to be taken home and stored for the Winter including mine and Buddy’s and I figured I’d do it the next day. Elle and I were coming back to get the kids and also to celebrate our both of our fathers birthday anyway. I was somewhat sorry to see the season end even though I’d had some disappointments. I was pleased that I’d sailed that well with an eight year old boat with eight year old sails. Most of the boats I was racing against were new within the past three years and the technology used in sailmaking, as well as the material used for it, was far superior to when mine were made. My “wish” for the next year was to be able to buy a new set. At that moment in time the chances of that happening looked VERY slim.

The next day went very well. I picked up the boat and took it to my parents to store for the winter. While I was doing that Elle and the kids played on their beach with my mother finally getting to enjoy the kids. My mother, when Elle’s mother was baby sitting them, claimed she never got to see them. Since she was the one hosting the birthday party insisted that they “were hers” for the day. Everybody seemed to have a good time but I insisted that I wanted to be back to the trailer while it was still light out. It was a struggle though and we almost made it. It was dusk when we drove down our street and as we passed Andy’s trailer saw that there was a party going on. After unloading the car and helping Elle get the kids to bed I walked down to see what was going on. It was pretty much over with only a few guys still there along with Lil. Mac and Jim were also there and it seemed to me that I’d missed something good. I had a beer and then left with Jim. On the way down the street he filled me in with what I’d missed.

It started on Sunday when Andy and Mac discovered the lake that was only a few miles away. It was located on a lightly used road. They’d been looking for a good place to go hunting when the season opened when they stumbled upon it. When they got back to the park they mentioned it to their wives who then persuaded them to take them and their kids to see it. They got some beer and headed back. One thing led to another and Lil decided to go for a swim... in her underwear. Hearing that made me almost instantly hard but that was about all Jim knew. Then, at about noon on Labor Day, Mac came knocking on Jim’s door and asked if he was interested in a party that Andy and Lil were hosting. With nothing planned he said yes. It started at about mid afternoon and by the time they got around to cooking the food the guys and Lil were pretty drunk. He said that Mac and Lil got into an argument over something having to do with the space program and the planned moon landing. (A local aerospace contractor was very involved in the design and building of the lunar module and a few of the park residents were working at the plant. When Jim told me that Mac got into an argument it didn’t surprise me. Mac was a really bright guy who knew a little about a lot of things. I liked Mac but I quickly learned that when he was fueled by alcohol, in his mind, he thought he knew everything about anything and an argument was usually the result.) Lil had made a statement and Mac took umbrage with it. There were two people in the park who could settle the matter but neither was home at the time. Mac was so sure he was right that he stated that he’d walk down the street in his underwear if he was wrong. Andy egged Lil on and got her to agree to do the same. Jim and I were standing in front of my trailer as he told me most of this. As he walked away I remember thinking to myself that it would never happen regardless of who was right and then went inside.

To be continued...