ADAPTING... hanging on (Part 97i)

We were both in the cockpit sitting on the floorboards facing forward. I asked her to cleat the jib and turn around so I could talk with her. As she ooched around I got a couple of good peeks up the legs of her shorts. I’d always liked shorts with wide legs! In any case the panties were pink, just like her shorts. I started by thanking her for sailing with me and also apologizing for the dunking she’d endured the last time we sailed. I remember her smiling and telling me that she was OK with it. Then I started in with my plea for her to sail the next weekend. By the time we reached the starting area I felt I had gotten her to at least consider it.

The wind continued to be light which I felt gave us a distinct advantage. We were at least 25 pounds lighter, if not more, than any of the other racers. The biggest disadvantage to light air racing when it’s hot (and it was) was that you just baked in the sun. We won and, as I remember it, by a great distance. As soon as we crossed the finish line I jumped overboard to cool off. Norma went into a mini panic as the boat continued to sail. I knew she could sail it so just proceeded to swim around. She finally got the boat turned and came back for me. I climbed back in and encouraged her to jump in. I think that if she’d worn her bathing suit top she might’ve done it but wearing a white cotton blouse caused her reluctance.

I know we won the second race as well. The wind never picked up and by the time the race was over we’d been on the water for over four hours. I jokingly told her that there was an old racing custom that when you won two races in the same day the skipper got to toss the crew overboard. I let the sail go and made as if I was going to grab her to toss her into the water. She was sitting inside the cockpit on the floorboards and to get away from me she moved up so she was sitting on the deck. If she’d stayed inside the boat there was no way I could’ve gotten her up and into the water. However, sitting on the deck she was fair game. She was laughing as she resisted. When I got to her she put one leg up to try and push me away and for a half second I swear I saw that her crotch was wet. It only took a soft shove to get her into the water. When she popped back up she was laughing. I jumped in as well. The sails were just flapping so I didn’t have to worry about the boat sailing away. We swam around a bit but because it was so late we didn’t stay in the water very long.

It was a lot easier to get her back into the boat this time. She wasn’t in panic mode and did most of the work herself. However, (and I swear I hadn’t thought of it before pushing her overboard) she needed one last “push” to get her up on the deck far enough so she could pull herself in. I told her what I was going to do and that was to put my hands on her rear end and push her up. Even though it was for only a few seconds I swear I could feel the crotch line of her panties in the palm of my hands. My efforts were enough for her to grab hold of the inside part of the deck. It left her wet butt there for me to ogle... and ogle it I did!. With the wet material of her shorts now plastered to her fanny and with her straining to pull herself into the cockpit it was a panty connoisseur's  delight... so much so that I had to swim around a bit longer to even dare to try and get in myself.

I think the winning put her in a good mood as she wasn’t upset even though she was clearly concerned that her wet blouse was revealing. I won’t deny that I copped a few “looks” but I was happier with what I’d previously observed. Seeing that she was happy I made one last plea about the upcoming weekend. I was totally unprepared for her response. Calmly, she suggested that I might want to try the son of the guy who was looking for a boat to race. It took a minute for me to process her suggestion and when I did I remembered hearing the guy say that getting his son involved in racing was his main goal. From that point until we reached shore my focus was on that and not Norma because I really wanted to defend my championship.

As we approached the shore I could see a woman running along the shore line waving her arms. Closer, we could see it was Norma’s mother. Of course Norma went into her panic mode thinking that something had happened to her son. I tried to reason with her by saying that if that was true her mother wouldn’t be on the beach but she didn’t hear a word. As soon as I could turn the boat into the wind she jumped overboard and ran ashore. Then I watched the two of them ran up the beach to the parking lot. I was left to take care of the boat and wondering what had happened.

Unfortunately the guy, Hugh, and his son were gone by the time I got the boat set in place. Actually, other than those of us who had raced that day, the beach was deserted. In talking with JR’s father I was able to get a lead on how to contact Hugh and possibly line up his son as crew for the upcoming weekend races.

It was after 6pm by the time I got back to my parents house. The kids had gotten hungry so my mother cooked something up for them and Elle to eat. Of course, Elle was upset with me. In agreeing to go to my parents she hadn’t counted on so many other people being around. When she got me alone she said that she’d never been so embarrassed in all her life. I'd gone off with all her "supplies" and she was forced to just sit there in her soaked "package". She was positive that everybody who had been there saw her peeing. I doubted that but it was useless to argue. My mother “rescued” me by asking if Elle had told me about the new arrangement for getting Dolly to our place and back each day.

She hadn’t so I let my mother explain. Edith, the new nurse for my grandfather who had been on the beach when we arrived volunteered to drive Dolly both ways. She lived just up the road a ways and had insisted that it wasn’t a bother. I knew Dolly had to be pleased... and so was I. No longer would I have to struggle to be at the bus stop on time to pick her up mornings or to get home in the afternoon to get her back to make the bus before it left.

To be continued...    

ADAPTING... hanging on (Part 97h)

Things with Elle’s mother were still a bit off-putting and I pretty much knew that by going to my parents house and not hers was only going to make it worse. Elle had taken the position that the problem wasn’t hers and was strictly her mother’s. I stayed out of it.

When we got there the kids wanted to see Dolly. They knew that she’d play with them. When we went looking for her out on the beach I was a bit disturbed to see an umbrella with three people around it. I’ve previously mentioned that right next to my parents property there was a 25 foot right of way (ROW). People who lived up the road used it as their public beach. My father was always having to chase trespassers away. I thought that’s what I was looking at and not a good way to start the day. By that time my parents had caught up with us and I pointed to the lady and what appeared to be her two kids. He laughed and said it was Edith, my grandfather’s new day nurse. I could only see the back of her head so that was my excuse.

One thing about nurses in those days... they had to adhere to a fairly strict dress code; white uniforms with white shoes and stockings plus a cap that represented the nursing school where they had graduated from. It was a pretty harsh look. So, to see Edith in a bathing suit and her hair down was a bit of a shock.  Not really pretty or even cute, she still was more attractive dressed this way. Introductions were made of her kids and then mine. Her boy was tall for his age (I’d guess he was 12) and good looking. The girl was a year younger and she was showing signs of becoming pretty. The girl, Sally, took immediate interest in playing with my kids. Anne, the younger one, notoriously shy with people she didn’t know or recognize, fooled me by going right to Sally and started digging in the sand. She wasn’t dressed for the beach but I chose to let her stay figuring that it was better for her to stay and really get acquainted.

it didn’t take long for there to be a crowd. The next door neighbors all came over and it looked like a beach party after just a few minutes. When Norma showed up with her son the sandy part of the beach was filled. I liked what Norma had chosen to wear if she wasn’t wearing her bathing suit under her shorts. They were a pale pink with wide legs and cuffs, perfect for peeks if the wind stayed calm and she had to sit inside the cockpit. Dolly and my mother set up a chaise on the lawn for Elle to observe the goings on. It was when I went up to talk with her that I really got a chance to observe the neighbor women, especially Jeanette.


Jeannette liked tight short shorts... and so did I. She also liked to wear sleeveless blouses with the shirt tails tied so that a bit of midrift showed. I’d gotten one DP back right after they had originally arrived because of that combination and I was hoping for another before I left with Norma. But it didn’t happen. I had to be satisfied with a VPL. Norma’s little boy had brought one of his toys and Jeanette’s son had snatched it away from him. When Jeanette went to retrieve it and to scold him she bent over at the waist and that beautiful half moon was jumping right out at me. I only wished I was closer. The only thing that would’ve made it better was if there had been a little peek of her panties from her waist or leg openings. As Norma and I were leaving I had a brief thought about what it would be like living next to Jeannette for the Summer

When we got to the sailing club I took the sails and Norma grabbed the rudder, tiller and tool kit. As I approached the boat I saw that the tie down straps weren’t on. It took a few seconds for me to remember that I’d intended to return to attach them the last time I’d sailed but had forgotten. As I went to drop the sails into the cockpit I spied Norma’s missing clothes... at least her top. Norma was still a ways behind me so as I dumped the sails into the boat I made sure to cover it up. As soon as Norma got there I sent her back to get the rest of the gear while I reached under the sails and pulled out the top. As I unrolled it out popped her bra and panties. Jackpot!

I quickly remembered back to the last time we'd sailed and seeing her trying to hold on to the boat while her shorts slipped down to around her knees. So, I wasn’t surprised to find the panties were a cotton bikini nor was I surprised to find that they were Lollipops what with her Aunt selling them at her store. I made a quick decision not to tell Norma that I’d found her missing garments and stuffed them into the sail bag.

Things at the sailing club were still a bit contentious due to the addition of the new Windmill class sailboats. The Comet (my class) sailors gathered together in one group as did the Windmill sailors in another. Among our group was Herb, the fellow who I’d competed against the year before in the area sailing championships who had, many years before, been a member of our club. I'd seen him around a couple of Sundays earlier in the month. He was trying to find a boat he could race or, worst case, find a crewing job for his son. Timing, in life, is everything. As far as this Sunday went it wasn’t good. All seven Comets were racing and their owners were set to skipper complete with crews.

Because I was so desperate for a crew for the upcoming area championships I was  planning on pleading with Norma to sail with me the following weekend. I knew her husband would be back from his assignment and that she’d stated, right from the beginning, that she was only interested in sailing on Sundays and only locally at the sailing club. I didn’t really have a plan on when to do this. Since we had little wind there wasn’t much to do as we sailed out to the race area so I thought it was as good a time as ever.

To be continued...

ADAPTING... hanging on (Part 97g)

Mondays during the Summer were proving to be a little on the slow side at work. As I remember it, we had a fall off of about 1/3 from the number of applicants we’d been handling during the Winter and Spring. Because of that I got permission to come in a little late as it was felt that John could handle the situation. I had to get Dolly and get her back home to Elle. The neighbor “baby sat” Elle for the 20 or so minutes it took. I remember Dolly being somewhat nervous and not understanding why. However, at the end of the day everything had gone well and both Dolly and Elle seemed pleased. If they were pleased then so was I!

Removal of Elle’s catheter was really important to Elle in spite of the fact that the surgeon who had performed the procedure had warned her that it would take time for her to see a difference in her incontinence. In fact, her regular doctor who removed the catheter also reminded her about it. Somewhat stubborn, like her mother, she was sure she’d notice a difference right away. and somewhat disregarded the warning. I’d told her to bring a “package“ to wear home but she insisted that she’d be fine since it was only ten minutes from the doctor’s office and home. She didn’t make it to the front porch. (The doctor had his office in his home).

Other than that she was doing really well. The problem was that she had no muscle tone at all and since the surgery had also included removal of more of the scar tissue in her bladder she was just like the baby. To save a few dollars I’d purchased some cheap wash cloths that she used in place of the sanitary pads in her ”package“. Even though Dolly had been told of Elle’s problem and the corrective surgery she’d just experienced, Elle was still embarrassed when she’d have to change. She didn’t want her to see the wet panties and wash clothes so had me hide a pail under the sink for her. I thought she was being silly but... did it anyway.

By Friday she was up to walking ten or so minutes almost every hour. I’d left Dolly with only one instruction... Elle wasn’t to lift anything... at all and she assured me that she wasn’t. As far as the race car was concerned a couple of Rick’s crew members had stopped by to see if there was anything they could do to help me fix the car. I’ll admit that I was working on finding a way to get to work on it myself when they showed up. I’m sure Elle had an idea that they hadn’t just shown up ”out of the blue” but said that she’d call Marge from next door to see if she’d come over for a few hours to let me go with the guys. There were no lights to work by so whatever we were going to do had to be done in daylight so she knew I wouldn’t be gone all that long.

The damage that I’d done wasn’t all that serious. Technically, I should have replaced some parts but we managed to straighten all the damaged ones out. I wasn’t out any money other than the beer I bought for the guys while we worked on the car. Dolly was willing to spend Saturday night like she’d done the week before if I there was a way to get her to our place. That was the hard part or so I thought. Danny, one of the Summer neighbors next to my parents had gone to the races with me back when I’d first met him. Somehow Dolly managed to convince him that he should go that Saturday night... and... oh, by the way... drop her off at our place and then bring her back. I was glad that she did but was disappointed that she wasn’t going to spend the night again.

It was another forgettable race night for me. I managed to be in the wrong place, again, when the big wreck took place. The damage was minimal but I ended up finishing in the back. Danny was really excited to be part of a pit crew and, in my mind, that was doubly good for me... I needed willing hands and if he’d come every week he could bring Dolly with him. The only real question was how to pull off racing the sailboat on Sunday.

I had a crew... Norma, but the missing component was someone to look after Elle if I went off racing. Marge was out of the question as she had family visiting. I don’t remember about the other neighbors (Dora and Cal’s wife) but Elle wasn’t too keen on them anyway. Relief came from a totally unexpected area... my two older girls. They’d had such a good time at the beach at my parent’s house when we went there to observe Dolly that they’d been begging to go back. With all the things going on for the past few weeks there was no possible way. They were beating me up so much about it when I was feeding them breakfast I decided to send them down the hall to our bedroom and Elle. As I mentioned, Elle had been doing well and, after almost two weeks of being inside, was ready for a change of scenery. She surprised me by how quickly she agreed. After a call to my parents to see if they had visitors or not I started packing the station wagon up. I had to hustle a bit because if I was going to race I needed to be at the sailing club around noon. I called Norma to tell her we’d be racing and was then on the road. I told her that I'd pick her up wanting to have the opportunity to see what was on the family clothesline. However, she said she was bringing her son down to play with Jeanette and Danny's son and would already be there. Disappointed, I figured there was still one chance when the races were over. I could only hope.

To be continued...

ADAPTING... hanging on (Part 97f)

As I tried to go to sleep my thoughts were on the possibilities of seeing more panty peeks of Dolly in the morning. I was awakened by the sounds of childish laughter. Elle and I had strict instructions to the girls that they were not to get out of their beds in the morning without permission and the sounds I heard were coming from the patio room. Elle was still beside me so I got right up to go take a look. We always shut the door to the patio room when it wasn’t in use and there it was, wide open. I peered inside and there was Dolly sitting on the floor with her back to me with my two older girls sitting facing her. I could see a board game on the floor in front of them. Dolly had one of Elle’s light, filmy robes on over her shoulders and it was see through enough that I could discern her panties, skin and the T shirt she was still wearing. I remember wishing I was sitting where my kids were.

One of the girls saw me and called out causing Dolly to turn a bit to see me. She apologized for letting the kids make enough noise to wake me. I was sort of hiding in the hall as all I had on were boxer shorts. I told her it was OK and went back in the bedroom to get dressed. I wanted to be down the hall and in the dining room when she came up and out of the patio room. By then Elle was awake and asked what was going on and gave me the excuse I needed by asking for some juice to take her pills with. It was almost perfect. ”Almost“ because as she walked down the hall towards me Dolly held the front of the robe closed. The robe was filmy enough for me to see the outline of her panties and I watched very closely as she picked up her dress and bra from the chair. Very nice!

When the arrangements were made for Dolly to spend Saturday night my father said he’d pick her up on Sunday after he took my grandfather to the hospital for his visit. We were eating breakfast when the phone rang. It was my father asking if I could take my grandfather as there was a water leak at the house and he'd be late. As long as as Dolly was there to meet Elle’s needs it didn’t matter to me. When I got to my grandfather’s house I was greeted by the temporary nurse that my grandfather had told me he really liked.  Seeing her there sent me a message that my grandfather would be in a good mood. He was actually as upbeat as I’d seen him in a long, long time. The reason... he’d gotten his wish and this woman was going to be, in his words, ”regular” for the daytime. I asked what had happened to Cammy’s mother who’d been in the position. She had diabetes which had been under control for quite a while but over the past few months had started to cause enough problems for her to quit. It wasn’t that my grandfather disliked her but she just didn’t interact with him that much and this new lady did.

He made a formal introduction and I found out her name was Edith and she had two pre teen kids. Her husband was with the government and had just been transferred to the area from New Mexico. My “take” on the change was that it was all good, especially for my grandfather. I immediately thought back to when Jan had started to pay attention to him and how positively he’d responded to that. I looked forward to seeing him much happier.


It was a normal visit and I was back home by noon. My father had called and told Dolly he was on his way and he arrived soon after I did. I asked him to stay for a few minutes while I drove Dolly to where the bus stop I’d be picking her up in the morning. She was very appreciative of it as it wasn’t in the most obvious of places as I pointed it out. I could tell she wasn’t thrilled about riding the bus but it was the best we could come up with.

As far as sailing was concerned it wasn’t a problem as this was one of the three week ends that had multi day events. Norma had told me she wasn’t interested in racing any place else other that right out in the bay and, with Elle’s situation, I was satisfied to keep it that way. Finding a crew had been neigh unto impossible what with the new fleet of Windmill sailboats taking most of the junior sailors. I’d thought briefly of making an attempt to find one but the fact that I’d “survived” the fallout from racing the car made me quickly gave up on that. The one thing about sailing that did concern me was that I really wanted to defend my title(s) at the upcoming area sailing championships. Lurking in the back of my mind was to try and persuade Norma do it even though her husband would be back. I just had to figure out a way to do it.

I have to admit I wasn’t the best “nurse” and without Elle’s input I’m not sure what we would have done as far as eating was concerned other than peanut butter and jelly sandwiches that night. Elle was looking forward to Monday as it was the first day she was to get out of bed and to start walking short distances. She was also looking forward to Tuesday as that was when she was to go to her regular doctor to have her catheter removed. To her, both were major accomplishments. Her pain was now tolerable and she was comfortable with Dolly. By the time we went to bed I could see the change in her attitude was for the better. Even though it was still five weeks until she would be totally recovered it was like a light at the end of a tunnel.

To be continued...  

ADAPTING... hanging on (Part 97e)


I’ve previously written that I’d had no problems with Elle’s mother... that is until this point in time. When Elle and I were trying to decide if Dolly was a good fit to help out during Elle’s recovery time her mother voiced some mild disapproval. However, since she didn’t volunteer we went ahead and made the arrangements with Dolly. When I called her to explain that Elle wanted all the kids home when she returned and offered that Dolly could help her she blew up at me. Evidently, she and Dolly’s mother had a disagreement some years back. I quickly found out that she still held the grudge and was now passing it on to Dolly. Things got a little ”dicey“  on the phone as I didn’t have time for this sort of pettiness. There was no way for me to help her get the kids and all their stuff back to our place and still be at the hospital to get Elle when she was scheduled to be released. I remember yelling at her something along the lines of ”If you don’t want help then YOU figure out how to do it!“. Of course she didn’t like that. So, as I left to get Elle I didn’t know what I was going to find when we got back.

I debated as to weather I should tell Elle everything and risk getting her upset. Even though this was my first ”run-in“ with her mother I knew from being around her that she had a way to embellish and put her own ”spin“ on the things that she was a part of. I waited until we were almost home. That was a mistake. Somehow Elle took it to mean that there was some chance the kids wouldn’t be there. However... they were... but little of their belongings were with them. The most important missing items were the bottles and formula for the baby. She had also neglected to bring the spare diapers, diaper pail and the bassinet. She did bring the basket for the portable carriage and that’s what the baby was in for the trip. It was pure chaos. As expected, I was the bad guy to both Elle and her mother.

Her mother wanted to just drop the kids off and leave. She made it clear that she wasn’t going to make another trip to go and get the missing items which meant that I had to do it. BUT... I couldn’t leave Elle alone. Elle finally got through to her mother that she had to stay while I went to retrieve all the things she’d left behind. That kind of stress was the last thing that any of us needed, especially Elle. She’d wanted to see the kids so badly and was greeted instead by her irate mother. It was not a nice ”Welcome Home!“

My mother had called to see how Elle was doing while I made the trip. Elle’s mother had answered and my mother knew immediately that something was wrong. I found her waiting by the road with Dolly when I arrived and she wanted to know what was going on. I explained as best I could. Very calmly she suggested that my father could bring Dolly to our place on Saturday morning even though that wasn’t part of the arrangement. It would be a way for her to take some of the stress off me and also give her a chance to find where everything she might need and use was located. I thought that was a great idea!

Elle, I and the kids survived the night. I was really looking forward to Dolly’s arrival. I’d struggled a bit with the baby and I hoped that she would do better. The kids were a bit shy at first as Dolly had only been involved with them for a short time that one afternoon at my parents beach. One thing Elle and I had overlooked was food to feed her during the week. Elle had left a shopping list for me and it was only for food for the kids and us. With Dolly there it wasn’t a problem to go off and do the additional shopping. When I got back Dolly asked a very strange question of me... did I have a race car? I couldn’t imagine where that came from since I’d had very little contact with her since the whole idea of having her help Elle had come up. I questioned her and she laughed and said some guy had stopped by to ask if I was racing that night. I was able to deduce that it was Cal but it did raise the question of was I or wasn’t I racing.

I’d penciled in that I wasn’t and had spent some time hoping that the weather would cooperate and it would rain and the races cancelled. But it was sunny and no rain in the forecast. Dolly asked where the car was and Jean, upon hearing that, volunteered to take her up to where I stored the car. When they returned she was smiling and asked if I really got in and drove that ”piece of junk“. I said that I did and I explained some about the races to her. Then she asked if I was going to race that night. I told he ”No“ and that I was going to be home to care for Elle and the kids. She immediately shot right back that she could stay and I could go race. I liked what I heard... for a few seconds.

After the debacle of the previous day I knew that Elle would be really upset if I took off to race. When I told Dolly she said she’d talk to Elle and she just knew that she could persuade her to let me go. I figured it was worth a try. When Elle woke up she brought the baby to her to hold. While Elle was totally occupied with her Dolly proceeded to engage her in conversation and, in a manner that belied her young years, she managed to ”sell“ Elle on letting her to stay overnight. That was the first step. I’d told her that if I was to race I’d have to leave by 5pm at the latest. Just before that time she took the baby in to Elle so that she could feed her and very casually suggested that she’d like to have time with the kids without me around. Elle didn’t disagree but when my going racing came into the conversation she saw right through it. But Dolly was a good persuader and even though Elle wasn’t happy about it I left at 5pm.

I should’ve stayed home. I got into a skirmish in my qualifying heat and had to race in the Last Chance race with the same result. It was the first time I wasn’t in the feature race and had a busted up car as well. Nothing had gone right and I was glad to get home even as chaotic as that had been. Dolly was to sleep on the sofa bed in the living room and I’d shown her how to set it up before I left. When I walked in the door there was Dolly, asleep on her side with the sheet totally off her. I had to have stood there for at least a minute in the ambient light staring at her bikini pantied bottom no more than three feet away from me. That had my full attention (and something else as well).

Not planning on staying over she didn’t have anything to sleep in. Her preference during the day was a sundress (and short to boot). She could’ve slept in it but it would’ve been severely wrinkled if she did. As it turned out Elle had suggested one of my T shirts and when I walked in the door that’s what I was greeted with... Dolly in a T shirt and panties. (BTW: It's a nice memory!)


To be continued...

ADAPTING... hanging on (Part 97d)

It didn’t take long to get all the boats out of the water and up the beach to the storage area. However, our focus switched from our boats to the new Windmill sailboat that I’d seen turtled during our race. It had taken over an hour to get it shore and we all wanted to know what had happened. As it turned out the rescue boat found that the boat could not be towed upright when swamped unless two people stayed in the water and hung onto the back of it to keep it somewhat stable. I’ll only say that my negative thoughts about the boat had been added to.

By the time I got up to the club I saw Norma dressed in clothes that were obviously too large for her. She hadn’t been able to stop shivering and JR’s mother suggested that putting on dry clothes would help alleviate that so Denise had given Norma her clothes. Norma had brought dry clothes with her but, for some reason, had put them under the rear deck of my boat. With all the spray from the waves and chaos we’d experienced they’d gotten wet.

At that point I looked at my watch and saw that I was under some pressure to get the boat cleaned up and gear stowed away at my parents house. JR and his family had left so Norma bought her wet things over to my boat while I finished washing it. Normally I’d scrub it down but with the lateness of the hour I just sprayed it with water from the hose while Norma took the rudder and tiller to the car. It was obvious that Norma wanted to get home so I didn’t attach the tie down straps. I figured that I might be able to stop on my way home so we took off.

The trip home was the first time I’d really been able to speak to Norma where she appeared to be fairly calm since her ”incident“. I started by apologizing for yelling at her. Her response was somewhat funny because she didn’t remember being yelled at. That just proved she'd been in shock. I really wanted to ask if she’d sail with me again the following week but the look on her face told me to keep my mouth shut. I walked her into her house and tried to explain to her mother what had happened and promised to call later to check up on her.

It wasn’t until I was on my way down the driveway that my thoughts went back to, what else, panties. There were a few on the wash line behind her aunt Ali’s cottage but I’d gone too far to be able to focus on them without being obvious as to what I was doing. It reminded me that it would be a good idea to go and pick Norma up the next week rather that have her meet me at my parents house... if she was still willing to sail.

I wasn’t sure how I’d be received back at home having left that morning under less than ideal conditions. I was pleasantly surprised to find Elle relatively cordial. Taking advantage of that I asked if she’d decided what she wanted to do. Her answer was calm and firm and actually well thought out. She’d decided to wait and to take the kids and all their gear to her mother the next day. The main reason was that it’d give her another full day with them. I was happy to see her somewhat back to her normal self.

I told her about my day and while I was doing that Peggy, Norma’s mother, called to say that she appeared to be OK except for some bruises. I was still anxious to know how Norma felt about racing again but I could tell from the tone of Peggy’s voice that it was still not the time to do so. Before she hung up she asked if Norma had left her clothes in my car. I hadn’t remembered seeing anything like clothes when I unloaded my sailing gear at my parents but told her I’d go take a quick look. Finding nothing I told Peggy that I'd keep and eye out for them and that I’d check up on Norma during the week.

Even though I had to leave early for work because of the Clerk Typist exam I was able to get the heavy stuff loaded into the station wagon for Elle before leaving. I told her to make sure she was back and ready to leave for the hospital by 4:30pm, just to be sure. We’d both been in contact with Buddy and Carol (whose father was performing the procedure) and I’d been invited to stay with them that night. It was a nice gesture. That way I’d be close to the hospital the next morning.

Truthfully, I thought Elle would be a basket case on the trip to the hospital but she was still under control. We didn’t talk all that much while on the way and once she was settled into her room Buddy and Carol showed up which helped to ”lighten“ her mood. I was told that the operation was scheduled for 9am and I’d be able to see Elle in the morning prior to the operation but when I showed up she was already in the operating room as there had been a cancellation. I remember hoping that Elle didn’t think I forgot to come and see her.

She went into the recovery room around mid morning. The doctor came out to tell me that everything had gone well but more importantly to explain what Elle would be experiencing in the days to follow. She was to be released on Friday morning and other than being up to make the trip home she was to remain in bed until Monday and then she was to be limited in her walking about for another few days. He explained that a catheter had been inserted and it was to remain for a week and should be removed by her regular doctor. Then he got really serious. He explained that Elle would then experience incontinence just like it was prior to the operation for up to a week until she could get the muscle tone back to control her bladder. He wanted me to understand that so that I could support Elle's psyche if she started to get discouraged. He gave me some material with things in it that Elle could do to speed that process along. I thanked him and waited (impatiently) until they would let me see her.

”Out of it“ was a good description of her condition. She could barely stay awake but did recognize me. The nurse said she’d had a bit of a negative reaction to the anesthesia but that she was really OK. Back in those days (the 60’s) hospitals had very strict visiting hours and I had to leave until the next scheduled period. It was a long day! I’d planned on going to work on both Wednesday and Thursday returning at night for the evening visiting hours. I wanted to make sure Elle understood that before I left that night and when I finally did leave she appeared to comprehend.

When I arrived Wednesday night it was obvious that she hadn’t processed it. I ended up finding the nurse who had been on duty the night before to back me up and, even then, I wasn’t sure she believed it. In any case she was to be released around mid morning on Friday. The one thing that she was adamant about was that she wanted all the kids to be at home waiting for her. That became my next adventure.

To be continued...
   

ADAPTING... hanging on (Part 97c)


As soon as I realized what was happening I let the wind out of the mainsail (the big one) to slow the boat down. Norma had been holding on to the jib sheet (a rope attached to the small sail in the front) of the boat when she flipped off. For some reason (thankfully) she didn’t let it go. Because the sheet was attached to the sail when she ended up in the water her weight acted as an anchor slowing the boat even more. I turned to look at her and she was on her back being pulled through the water and very obviously swallowing some. Her feet were in front of her and when I tried to pull her back to the boat I reached out for her to grab my hand and arm. By that time she was in full panic mode and basically ignored me. Once I got her close to the boat I reached down and grabbed the waistband of her shorts and pulled her up so she could grab hold of the boat which she did. However, she was only 1/3 of the way back into the boat. When I pulled her up I felt the material give way but I’d gotten her going in the right direction. Now I had to get her all the way in.

The whole time this was going on the sails were flapping wildly just above us. By this time I’d say the wind was blowing around 15 mile per hour and I was not only worried about Norma but also about getting control of the boat. If I didn’t there was a good possibility that it could capsize and fill with water and then we’d both be in danger. With Norma hanging on but unable to pull herself into the cockpit I could only get partial control. It took a minute or so to stabilize the boat at which time I focused on Norma. I remember imploring her to help me by pulling herself into the boat but she said she couldn’t and was barely holding on to what she had. There was no way for me to lift her up but I figured I could grab the back of her shorts and sort of drag her further inboard. I got a handful of the back of her shorts and gave a yank. Before they ripped again it was enough to get most of her body into the boat.

She’d been coughing right from the time I got her part way into the boat and it was from having swallowed the salt water while she was being dragged along. I got her to acknowledge that other than that she was OK. I started heading for shore knowing from her look that she’d had enough sailing for the day. I remember hoping that the experience wouldn’t turn her away from sailing/racing in the future.

We were the first boat back to the beach which meant there wasn’t much, if any, help available to assist in getting my boat out of the water. However, before that I had to get the rudder off and the sails lowered. The tide was high and the waves were larger than usual which made our situation a little more grave than usual. When Elle (or anybody else) sailed with me she knew she’d have to jump overboard and then hold the boat while I removed the rudder. Under similar conditions she had a bit of a struggle. When I told Norma to jump over and then hold the bow (front) of the boat she gave me one of those looks of panic. But I didn’t have a choice. If she didn’t and boat drifted back towards the shore and the rudder hit bottom it could possibly damage the boat. I’ll admit that I yelled at her. She was still in shock from her ordeal but I did get her to go overboard. However, she was easily three or four inches shorter than Elle and the waves were washing over her and the boat continued to drift backwards towards the shore. I took a look and saw she was only holding onto the boat with one hand. Seeing that I yelled again. ”BOTH HANDS! BOTH HANDS!" She responded and it did slow the backward drift of the boat enough for me to get the rudder off.

By then some of the beach goers had seen that we were having trouble and had come down to the water’s edge. Among then I recognized JR’s mother and sister. (JR was the young lad who had done well the previous Summer in his first year of racing) Once I got the rudder off and stored inside the boat I went to take hold of the boat from Norma. When I was almost to her I could see between the waves that her ripped shorts were now down around her knees. Earlier, I’d thought that she had her bathing suit bottoms on since she was wearing the top. It was very obvious that she wasn’t.

Cotton, when dry, can be very opaque. When wet it has the opaqueness of tissue paper. There was no doubt about the fact that she was wearing cotton bikinis even though I only got a view between the waves. Once I took hold of the boat she attempted to pull what was left of her shorts up. As she made her way to the shore I could see the damage I’d done. I’d paid no attention to it on our trip back to shore but it was very obvious as she walked away from me.

They were a pair of fitted shorts with no belt and a side zipper. Evidently when I’d grabbed hold of her the first time I’d popped the zipper. With no button they were basically held up by her hips. When I’d grabbed the rear of the shorts to pull her all the way into the boat I ended up ripping them all the way down the side where the zipper was. It was interesting watching her leave the water with her holding the shorts up as best she could. There was a clear area of one butt cheek showing off her panties. Denise, JR’s sister, had already seen enough of Norma to recognize she needed help and had run up the beach to fetch her beach towel. She ran back and wrapped it around her and then walked her up to the clubhouse. I was left to hold the boat until the rest of the racers showed up.

To be continued...

ADAPTING... hanging on (Part 97b)


I was still asleep when Elle poked me to tell me that she had changed her mind about taking the kids and all their things to her mother that day. Not having to leave until Monday afternoon she wanted to spend most of Monday with the kids, especially the baby. It was probably the fact that I was still half asleep that I ”snapped”. That and all the other little changes that she’d interjected during the week. In any case I sat up and let her have it “big time“. Basically I told her that I didn’t care. I told her that the two facts that she needed to know from me was that, one: I was leaving to go race the sailboat at 11am and would be home around 6pm and, two: I’d be going to work on Monday at 7:45am and would be home to take her to the hospital before 5pm. If she wanted my help in getting the kids and all their things to her mother I could do it then or I could do it after I got home from sailing. If that didn’t fit her plans she was free to do it any way she could... and I took my clothes and walked out of the room.

My yelling had woken the kids but I walked right past their room. I got dressed and went outside for a walk to ”cool off”. I’m pretty sure that was the first time I’d ever “unloaded” on her like that and I felt a bit remorseful about it. But, I’d just plain had it with her inability to make a decision and to stick with it. I came back within the hour (about 8am) and dressed the older two kids and fed them breakfast. Elle was in our bedroom and feeding the baby. One part of me wanted to go down and apologize but the other part said to stand my ground and to let her tell me what she wanted to do. She didn’t. I left to go race without her or the kids.

Since I’d fully expected to be bringing the kids and their belongings I’d told Norma that it would save time if she’d meet me at my parents house. When I made the turn into the driveway I saw a group of people, including Norma, standing in the neighbor’s driveway. She was with not only her son but also her aunt (Ali) and they were talking to Jeanette and Karen (the Summer neighbors to my parents). I went over to join them and was told that both of them actually knew Ali. I couldn’t believe it. Their mother had been a customer of the store that Ali now owned and remembered seeing Ali there when they were younger. Ali piped up that Jeanette was one of her current customers and pointed out that the outfit her son had on had come from her store... and promptly “pushed” me to bring my family in as well. Typical Ali!

When Norma and I headed for the sailing club she told me that she had brought her son down to play with Jeannette’s son. They had gotten together during the week and played well with each other. Ali had tagged along to, what else, do a selling job on Jeanette, not knowing of the existing connection. I’m sure I made some sort of comment about Ali’s propensity for “selling”.

I could see Norma was excited (and nervous) about sailing that day. When she heard that there had been races the previous day she apologized. I told her I wasn’t able to either and for some reason I felt I needed to tell her that Elle was having an operation on Tuesday and that I had been making preparations for her stay in the hospital. As soon as I started I was afraid she would ask what Elle’s problem was but we were turning into the parking lot at the club so cut the conversation short.

It didn’t take long to discover that the “discussion” concerning adding the new class sailboat (Windmill) was continuing. There were now three of them on the beach and their proponents were very vocal. The dissidents (people who sailed the same class boat as I did) were in the process of readying their boats to race but were shooting “zingers” at the others. The father of JR (the young lad who had done so well in his first year of racing the previous Summer) spoke up and called everyone together. He was the president of a local bank and was well respected. Basically he called for a “truce“ reminding everyone that the purpose of the sailing club was to promote sailing and not one class of boat over another. That pretty much ended the discussion.

Norma didn’t have a clue as to what had been going on. On our way out to the starting area I proceeded to enlighten her pointing out some of what I thought were negatives points on a Windmill sailboat. It didn’t matter to her though. We had a nice moderate breeze for the first race and although we didn’t finish all that well I was pleased with how she handled her duties. The wind was ”freshening“ (getting stronger) between races and I spent some time working with Norma on how to get her feet and ankles under the hiking straps properly when we changed direction. It was imperative that she do it properly because if she missed it could cause us to tip over.

One of the things I’d pointed out to Norma about the Windmill was that the deck was a lot narrower that the one on our boat. That meant that when the boat was heeling (tipping) the waves could wash right into the cockpit. We’d rounded the course for the first time and then I saw this large dark green object floating just ahead of us. It was one of the new Windmill sailboats, turned turtle (totally up side down). Fortunately, the boats that follow the racers around the race course had picked up the two sailors who had been in the boat. I don’t remember just what i said to Norma at that time but I do know that my attitude was definitely in the ”I told you so“ mode.

I shouldn’t have been so smug because it was shortly after that when I had to take an evasive action to avoid hitting a competitor who had the right of way (Very strict rules in sailing!). We had to change direction and to do so Norma had to change sides. Because it was so fast and she was so new to the boat she didn’t get her feet connected to the strap properly. I distinctly remember seeing her feet fly by my eyes as she flipped overboard.

To be co

ADAPTING... hanging on (Part 97a)

The first week of July, to put it bluntly, was a “bear”, both at home and at work. I was somewhat expecting Elle to be difficult but it was a “blindside“ at work. John had put in for vacation and I was prepared for Vi, the female PT, to assist me with the Monday morning Clerk Typist exam. But Vi and her husband had been off on their vacation and, at the last minute, decided to extend. She did call Mrs K but not in time for her to let me know what was happening. I had to be on the road by 8am to have everything set up for the 9am opening of the doors. I waited at the County Center for a few minutes but figured it would be better for me to get to the site and then hope that Vi or someone would show up. The ONLY thing that went well was that I had the fewest applicants I’d ever had since assuming the job. No one from the office ever showed up and I didn’t get home until almost 7pm. As you can imagine I was not in a good mood and that, added to Elle’s state of mind, did not mix well.

Elle’s mood swings seemed to transfer to the kids as well. She was ”short“ with them and they responded by being ”difficult“. By the time I’d get home it was almost chaotic. I bent over backwards to meet her wishes but it didn’t seem (to her) that I was doing enough. My father interjected himself into the situation by calling to tell me I needed to get over to see my grandfather since I hadn’t been to see him or to take him to the hospital for a few weeks. If that wasn’t enough I got a call from the guy in charge of racing at the sailing club to inform me that despite what the printed racing schedule showed we were racing on the 4th of July (Saturday). When I’d asked Norma to sail with me I gave her the schedule which did not include racing on that day so she’d committed to a family event and wasn’t available. It also meant I’d have to tell Elle and I knew that wasn’t going to go over very well. Then, on Thursday, the hospital called to say that the operating room wouldn’t be available until Tuesday. By the end of the week I was going out of my mind. The one thing I was sure of was that I was racing the car Saturday night. I didn’t care what Elle’s frame of mind was. By then I needed to do something that I wanted to do.

Frustrated, I decided that I wouldn’t risk getting Elle any more upset and wouldn’t even bring up the sailing situation. What that meant by not racing was that I was giving up all chance of  winning a seasonal trophy. However, I also decided that I would race on Sunday, regardless.

I dedicated Saturday morning to getting as much done as possible for Elle’s absence. Elle was to be at the hospital the night before the procedure. The ”plan“ was for Elle’s mother to have the kids while she was in the hospital so we set aside the clothes the older girls would need and Elle made up a list of everything the baby would require. Once that was done I headed for my grandfather’s house. As I’d written earlier, my father had decided that my grandfather needed to have someone with him during the day as well as overnight. The mother of one of my grandmother’s nurses (Cammy) had agreed to do it but only weekdays. That meant a rotating group of caregivers covered the weekends. The last few times I’d been over to take my grandfather to the hospital there was a different person each time. On this Saturday there was another new lady. There were two things that caught my attention when introducing myself. The first was that she was, by comparison to the others, younger. The second was that she had a very upbeat personality. During the trip to the hospital and back my grandfather volunteered that he really liked her and wished that she could be his ”regular“. I told him that was out of my control but encouraged him to speak to my father.

By the time I got home it was almost time to get ready for the races. I think that my favorable showing the previous week stirred some increased interest in my efforts by the guys who had, from time to time, helped me out in the pits. Jim, my neighbor who hadn’t been in many weeks, came over as soon as I pulled in my parking space. He’d seen Cal earlier and told me that he had indicated that he’d be going as well. It was nice to hear but I knew I’d be facing a ”cool“ reception once I got inside. Actually, it was ice cold.

If Elle said anything it wasn’t very much. She did let me know that my racing the sailboat on Sunday wasn’t a good idea even though we’d agreed that we would leave the kids off with her mother. I looked at it as a time saver where I’d be racing and she’d be getting the girls settled in. I couldn’t get off work on Monday to do it during the day and since we had to be at the hospital by 7pm there wouldn’t be time to get everything done and her there in time. I’m not sure I wasn’t the one looking most forward to the end of this whole project.

It was pretty unrealistic for me to think I’d be able to replicate my finish from the previous week. The handicapping for starting positions was done based upon the money cumulatively won over the previous three starts. Having done well ($) the previous week I ended up starting more towards the rear and that’s pretty much where I finished. The best part of the night was catching Rick’s sister in a very compromising position in his pick up truck. It was parked right next to my car and when I went to get something from the trunk of my car I saw some movement. She was definitely bare assed and she definitely saw me looking at her. I thought it was pretty funny. I didn’t see who she was with and after the races were over she came over and pretty much pleaded with me not to say anything to Rick (or to Jim who was related to her). I swore to her that I wouldn’t but in my mind I was thinking ”you owe me!“.

To be continued...

MOVING AHEAD... changes (Part 96h)


It was getting late and I needed to get the boat back to the club to get enough help to get it out of the water and up the beach to the storage area. I hailed Karl and we headed out. As we sailed off I saw Elle, Jeannette and Norma all talking. I could only hope that they were talking about something other than me.

At the club I found what could best be described as a large (and loud) discussion taking place. There was a group up on the porch and another on the beach and Karl and I could hear some of it while still at the water’s edge. It only took a minute to know it concerned the new class boat that a faction of the membership wanted. I was able to get a few people to leave the group and help Karl and I with my boat. From them I was able to learn that the ”regular“ club members who normally sailed the same class boat as I did concluded after their ”test“ that it (the Windmill sailboat) was not a good choice, especially for younger, inexperienced sailors. Those who wanted the boat were yelling that the guys who were talking the new boat down didn’t know what they were talking about. I laughed when I heard that because two of the ”regulars“ who had done the test had been winning regattas way back when I first joined the racing part of the club. To me, it didn’t portend well for the club as a whole.

I introduced Karl to Frank and an instant friendship was created. The trouble was the two of them got talking about cameras, something I knew little to nothing about. I felt bad about breaking them up but I had to do it as I had to get back to my parents house, pack all the kids stuff up and get back home. Monday was a work day for me.

Monday was also the day Elle had to let the doctor know what she wanted to do. We’d been told that since the procedure was an elective we’d have to wait to get scheduled into the operating room. Actually, Elle had to decide if Dolly was capable of handling the baby and kids while she was recovering. We’d avoided discussing it while at my parents house even though Dolly was certainly  aware she was on a ”trial run“. From what I’d seen she was more than capable and, to me, more importantly, she wanted to do it.

I won’t go into the machinations of the decision making process but they did get rather ”warm” before Elle approved of Dolly. It was understood that she would be there daily, Monday through Friday, and I’d “take care of the weekends”. The last part is in quotes as it does become and item of discussion in the not too distant future. Elle was to call the doctor to schedule the procedure that Monday and once the date was set we’d make final plans. It seemed so simple. Simple it wasn’t!

When at the doctor’s office we’d been told that it would probably be the middle of July before she could be scheduled in. With approximately six weeks recovery time that date would still work for Elle because she’d be OK to go to work when school opened. We went to bed with that rough date in mind. Elle called that Monday morning to get a date and received a call back by noon. She was told because that Saturday was the 4th of July there were any number of openings during the week. That shook Elle up as her mind wasn’t quite prepared to do it that quickly and begged off. Then she got a tentative date for the following Monday and although that was still quicker than she wanted was afraid to turn it down.

The news put a lot of “wheels” in motion. Transportation was primary because Dolly didn’t have a car or license but all of a sudden it dawned on us (me) that someone had to do the cooking. A quick call to my mother confirmed that Dolly hadn’t even boiled water. Fortunately I remembered that the doctor had explained what Elle’s requirements were for her recovery period and one of the things was to get up and walk for five to ten minutes every hour after the first week had passed. In my mind, if I or Dolly was there to get what she needed, Elle should be able to do the cooking. The two things that she was definitely not to do were to bend over or to pick anything up. Elle wasn’t so sure so I called the doctor myself. I was right! (for a change...) Problem solved.


Planning on getting Dolly to our place and then back to my parents was a lot more difficult. After any number of phone conversations it was agreed that the bus was the best way to handle it. In the mornings the bus from out East arrived at the County Center a little after 8:30am. It would take me approximately 20 minutes to do the round trip. In the afternoon the departure time was 5:15pm. I was sure I could get off a little early to get home and pick Dolly up and then back in time to catch the bus. However, Elle was concerned about the 20 or so minutes on each end of the transfer. I recognized that it wasn’t my body that was being sliced open but I’d really hoped that Elle would recognize that certain compromises had to be made. But it wasn’t to be. She contacted Marge, our neighbor, and a few others to see if they could come over during those periods of time. I was a bit embarrassed when facing Marge but she assured me that if she could, she would. I had a strong feeling that the week would be a very long one.


To be continued...

MOVING AHEAD... changes (Part 96g)


By the time I made it back to my parent’s beach everyone had eaten. The wind was perfect for neophyte sailors to make their first voyage. The wind, at about 3 to 5 mph was from the North which meant the water was calm and I wouldn’t have to worry about my passengers fear of the boat tipping over. It was decided that Dolly was to get the first ride. In spite of spending each and every one of her seventeen Summers at the beach she had never been sailing. I would like to have had someone with experience go with us but they all were totally new to the experience. She was wearing the same bikini she’d worn the previous day. Now, putting the situation in the proper time frame, the bikinis of that day weren’t like what we’ve come to know today. They definitely had more material although to some they were ”shocking“. I warned her that the back of her thighs might get very warm from the sun beating on the deck without wearing shorts but she said she’d be OK. It didn’t take long for her to issue a pretty loud yelp. Actually, my most vivid memory of Dolly that day was in thinking that if she’d been more amply endowed ”on top“ it would’ve been quite an experience. I couldn’t help thinking that at 17 there was still the possibility of ”filling out“ and, if and when that happened... Wow!

Jeannette was next and she wanted her son to go with her. He was four and on the smallish side. Anne, my soon to be four year old was bigger all the way around. I was pleased for a couple of reasons to see that she was still wearing the shorts she’d been wearing in the morning. It would give me the opportunity to possibly get a close up of the DP I’d noticed earlier. The second was that she wouldn’t get ”burned“ on the hot deck. I hadn’t even gotten in the boat when I pretty much had my answer as to what make of panties she was wearing. The waist elastic told the story... Lollipop, for sure. Jeanette didn’t enjoy her trip as much as Dolly and I think it was because she was focusing on her son’s enjoyment and not her own.

Her sister, Karen, begged off completely but her husband, Karl was very eager to go. A professional photographer, he was fascinated with the whole dynamic of sailing and asked if he could do it again only he wanted to have his camera with him the next time. In the course of conversation I told him about Frank at the sailing club also being a professional photographer. I’d seen Frank earlier so suggested that Carl sail back to the club with me when I was finished with the rides so I could introduce them. He was all for it.

Danny, Jeanette’s husband also declined to go which surprised me. He’d gone to the stock car races with me the night before and, at least in my opinion, was pretty much up for any challenge. Elle and Jean, our oldest, were next. Elle had put on her bathing suit in the morning realizing that by wearing it she didn’t have to worry as much about her ”leaking“ as she could happily pee into the bay or the sand and not be embarrassed. By then the wind had changed and the afternoon ”Southerly“ had started in. With the wind from the South it meant we’d have some waves and waves meant getting splashed. Elle had placed Jean between the two of us to somewhat protect her from the splashing but it didn’t take long to figure out that she liked getting splashed. It was a good reaction to her first time out in a boat. Elle and I were both happy for it.

We were almost back to shore when I saw someone walking down the beach towards where everyone was gathered. As I jumped overboard to hold the boat for Elle and Jean to get out I recognized from the long hair that it was Norma. She had her son with her. As she climbed over the next to the last jetty I could see she was wearing what appeared to be the same short set that I’d bought (and loved!) for Elle the previous Summer. I liked seeing that but my thoughts immediately went to wondering how Elle would think of Norma. As I’ve previously written, there was no way to deny that she was a very pretty girl. I had my hands full holding onto the boat in the ever increasing waves so couldn’t see Elle’s reaction when Norma introduced herself.

Thankfully, Elle’s background as a teacher of young children came to the forefront. Norma’s son, as would be expected, was painfully shy and Elle addressed it immediately by focusing her attention on him. She took him over to introduce him to Danny (Jeannette’s son) and Jean who were playing nicely together. While she was doing that I asked if Norma wanted to go out for a quick sail. Initially she said no citing her son. I pointed out that he seemed to be happily joining in with the other kids. Then she said she wasn’t dressed for it and I countered that clothes get wet when they’re washed. That got a big smile and she waded out into the water and climbed aboard.

I never said a word to Elle. I don’t remember even looking back. I headed for the race course hoping that I could put us in a position to follow those who were racing and to try and simulate actually being in a race. Unfortunately, I couldn’t. The next best thing was to fall in behind the new class sailboats (Windmill) that were being tried out. I explained to Norma what I was doing and instructed her on what she had to do as crew. What I was also doing was observing how the new boats performed. Norma did a good job. The Windmills didn’t. (I won’t bore you with the details... say ‘Thank you!’)

Back at my parent’s beach I got way more than what I’d expected when Norma stepped out of the boat. The only part of her that had really gotten wet was the seat of her shorts. They were made of the newly popular cotton knit and, being white, they clearly showed a VPL. Actually, with the sun in the Western sky and shining right on her backside, it was one of the most vivid I’d ever seen. The double material of the panty crotch just seemed to jump out at me. Something else that jumped out was a portion of my lower anatomy. I quickly pressed my stomach up against the side of the boat to keep from embarrassing myself.

To be continued...

MOVING AHEAD... changes (Part 96f)


Throughout the turmoil of the past few days I’d never wavered in my plan to race Saturday night. BUT... I hadn’t mentioned it to Elle. I kept waiting for a good time to let her know and to make my ”break“ and head to the track. It was mid afternoon when Jeannette’s husband, Danny, called me over to the fence. The previous weekend, when he and his brother in law had helped me move my boat out of the garage, I’d casually mentioned that I had a race car. He, almost as casually, mentioned that he’d like to go at some time during the Summer. When he called me over it was to ask if I was racing that night. When I said yes he called out to his brother in law that he was going to the races with me that night. There was no way Elle wasn’t going to hear that. I guess you could say I was ”busted“.

After some rather ”warm“ dialog with Elle and a disapproving look from my mother Danny and I took off. As it was I didn’t know who, if anyone, was going to show up that night to help me. My brother had been showing up but had just started (finally) a job that week and I hadn’t heard from him. So, worst case, Danny would be my pit crew.

All the way to pick up the car to tow it to the track I had to keep rationalizing why I shouldn’t be criticized for racing. Elle and the kids were being cared for and racing was the only thing (at least up to then) that I had as an interest. It was hard to get the thought out of my mind.

Jay was waiting at the track which was a big boost for me. Knowledgeable about racing, he filled the role that Eric had held the previous year. My concerns pretty much vanished at that point. Again, I won’t bore you with details but it turned out to be quite a night for me. I’ll admit that luck played a big part but finishing third in the feature event was way beyond my expectations. On the way home I figured that my good results would negate some of Elle’s anger. WRONG!

As an aside, Rick had won his feature race and with me pitting close by I ended up in their celebration. Sunday morning told the story though as my head was really hurting when I woke up. When I made my way downstairs I could see Dolly had the kids out on the beach along with Jeanette and her two boys. I was surprised to see Dolly in a dress though. Jeanette was in her tight short shorts and a bandeaux on top. I watched them interact from the front porch and the first thing that got my attention was a strip of pink just above the waistband on her shorts. It was a DP (downpants) but I was way too far away to have any idea the type of waist elastic it was. I’d gotten pretty good at identifying the brands of any number of panties. It was now a game for me and I just wished I had a reason to walk out there but I knew I had to face Elle who was in the kitchen with my mother.

I walked in trying to be bright and cheerful but Elle didn’t really acknowledge me. My mother was only a bit more hospitable. I think the first words Elle spoke were in the form of a biting question asking if I was still planning on sailing in the tune up races at the club. It caught me by surprise for two reasons... the first being that with all the things going on during the week I’d forgotten to contact Norma about picking her up. The second was that the tone of her voice was telling me that I’d better think twice about it. They say discretion is the better part of valor and this was definitely the time for discretion.

I don’t remember the exact sequence that the conversation took but I ended up suggesting that instead of racing that I could go get the boat and give rides. Elle thought that would be a good idea especially since she’d wanted to get Jean, our oldest, out on the water. The only thing was that I had to let Norma know we wouldn’t be racing.

I felt doubly bad about Norma... the fact that I’d forgotten to call her and then to have to tell her she wouldn’t be sailing/racing. She’d been excited about sailing in a small boat again. Her father in law only had big boats (25 to 30 footers) and she said her only job on board when she did sail was ”to stay out of the way“. I decided to walk down to her house to tell her in person. I felt a phone call was too impersonal and I also wanted to assure her that I’d need her for the following weekend. I could tell Elle wasn’t happy with that but I ignored it.

I’m not a good one to pass on bad news. I ended up telling Norma pretty much the whole story including about Elle’s incontinence. When I got to that part I could see a definite change in Norma’s demeanor but I had no idea why and she didn’t say anything to explain. She seemed to understand and, as I was leaving, I told her of my plan to go get the boat and to bring it back to my parents beach and to give rides to Dolly and the neighbors. Half heartedly I suggested that she might want to walk down when she saw the boat there. If she responded I didn’t pick up on it.

While everybody was eating lunch I drove over to the sailing club. I knew there would be plenty of people to help me get the boat down the beach and launched at that time. I was shocked to find that only three of the regular sailors were racing. I’d mentioned that there was a faction of club members that was lobbying to add a new kind of boat. As I walked down the beach I saw three of that class boat (Windmill) on the beach and waiting to be launched. A sailing club up to the West had agreed to bring a few boats out so people could try them and two of our "regulars" had volunteered to do it along with the owner of one of the boats. I’d also mentioned that I didn’t like the design of the boat at all and now really wished that I’d been able to sail with the club that day so I could observe if my concerns were real. But it wasn’t to be.

To be continued...

MOVING AHEAD... changes (Part 96e)

The Doctor had told us that if her diagnosis was correct the best way to handle it was to have a surgical procedure in which a sort of sling would be inserted to hold up the bladder. That prospect scared Elle. As part of the discussion we were told that Elle, because of her young age, was a perfect candidate in that she should recover rapidly. As for me the concern was the length of the recovery (up to six weeks) because Elle would not be allowed to lift anything during that time. There was no way she could tend to the baby under those conditions so we were both fairly quiet on the trip home.

I knew I could handle the evenings and night but the daytime was the problem. Janice was no longer an option and based on what Marge had told Elle her availability would be sporadic, at best. The one thing for certain was that Elle could not go on with her current wetting situation. The call came from the Doctor on Friday and she had been right. Now the decision was up to Elle.

Elle’s mother, always fearful of Doctors, was no help but also recognized that something had to be done. I don’t remember how my mother got involved but when she did she had a very simple (at least to her) solution. Dolly. Neither Elle nor I reacted well to her suggestion.

As I’ve written, I really didn’t know that much about her. I (and Elle) had more knowledge of her older sister and brother and our feelings weren’t favorable. The sister, to use her own mother’s word was ”weird“ and the brother, using his father’s description was ”a boorish twat“. I also knew that my parents couldn’t stand either of them and it had somewhat puzzled me as to why my mother felt so favorably towards Dolly. I won’t bore you with the ”selling“ job my mother proposed concerning Dolly but she did convince Elle (and me) to come and stay for the weekend so that she (we) could get to know Dolly and to see how she handled the baby and the older kids. I felt it was worth the time and persuaded Elle. Elle’s mother was a bit incensed (and jealous) but she hadn’t stepped up to offer to help.

Please believe me when I say that the possibilities to get to see a nubile young girl up close never crossed my mind, at least initially. What did though was the two young women who had just moved in next door. That thought arose as soon as I pulled into my parents driveway. Jeannette, (the blond) was in the process of blowing up an inner tube for her kids to play with in the water. I’ve used the term ”tight little package“ to describe some of the other females I’ve written about and Jeannette was the epitome of just that. I had to concentrate on keeping my eyes off her as I unloaded the car.

Dolly, as I’d noticed the week before, had grown to be very tall girl and almost as tall as me. At our arrival she was nervous and seemed ill at ease during the introductions. The first attention grabbing incident happened when she bent over at the waist to say hello to the two older kids. I saw the same effect when Elle wore a tennis dress and bent over to pick up an errant ball. Dolly’s dress was longer than a tennis dress but she was so long waisted that the back hem of her dress just rode up a ways onto her back... and there was a bit of light green panties staring me in the face. Luckily for me Elle was talking with my mother so didn’t see me and my reaction. THAT was when the thought of what being in the same house as Dolly might mean.

We’d arrived just before lunch time and my mother was all prepared for us. My kids were still being shy so Dolly suggested that it would be fun to have a picnic outside rather than to eat with the ”grown ups“. That got their attention. When Dolly bent over to spread the beach towel on the grass a puff of wind got under the hem of her dress and blew it high enough for me to see that she was wearing bikini panties. It didn’t end there as when she sat down to eat with the kids she sat yoga style and to get that way it was truly a ”free show“. I was liking Dolly... a lot!

It was while they were having their picnic that Jeanette and her two boys came over to say hello. It was obvious that they were ready to go swimming. Jeanette was wearing a bikini and by so doing gave me the opportunity to see that she really didn’t have much ”on top“. But it was the lower half that was the attention getter. She’d looked good in her short shorts but in the bikini her ”bottom“ was something to behold. Elle, I and my mother were inside eating at the table and when Jeannette bent over to say hello to my girls I almost choked. Her butt cheeks were round and firm and it was all I could do to keep from embarrassing myself. Then she came inside to meet Elle and I was close enough to confirm the fact that she was, at best, a bra size A. 

After the picnic Dolly suggested that they go swimming as well. I won’t deny that I was anxious to see what Dolly looked like in a bathing suit. She came downstairs also waring a bikini. It was a bit more modest than the one Jeanette wore but it, too, showed that she was a bit lacking ”topside“. It still was a pretty good vision, especially since I’d not been exposed to all that many bikini clad women. There were a few at the sailing club but most of the women who sailed wore one piece suits. In any case in a matter of just a few minutes I’d been treated to a nice ”show“.

As she went outside with the kids I briefly entertained the idea of making a quick trip upstairs to do an "inspection". If I did Elle would've wanted to know why and I didn't have any reason since I'd already declared I wasn't going swimming. I remember thinking that if we did decide to have Dolly help out with the kids there would be ample opportunities. I just needed some patience.



To be continued...