Monday, November 25, 2013

MORE ON AND ON... June (Part 118d)

MORE ON AND ON... June (Part 118d)

The four of us made good use of the screened in porch, chatting as we ate lunch. Sandy was wearing a pair of light gray short shorts and a striped top. My eye had taken notice of the shorts as soon as she exited the car. To Johnny and Sandy it probably seemed like an inquisition. We found out that he was a “city boy“ who had spent summers a a camp for boys in New Hampshire. He ended up becoming a counselor there while going to college. Sandy was born and raised in the same area as the camp. Her mother worked as a cook at a ski lodge in the Winter and at the camp in the Summer. When a girls camp opened on the same lake, she got a similar job as her husband to be had. Somewhere along the way they met and fell in love. She was three years younger than Johnny and as they described how they met and married I was surprised at how closely their past paralleled Elle’s and mine.

Even though she said she was 21 I had a hard time believing it. She was so innocent and naive... and cute. As mush as I enjoyed the respite from the chores on my list I was hoping they would leave. In the driveway, Sandy asked Elle what her interests were other than sailing. I wasn’t surprised that her answer was tennis, although Elle hadn’t brought the subject up even once since we bought the house. The answer brought an instant response from both Sandy and Johnny. I was asked if I played and my reluctant answer was that I ”played at it“. By then Sandy was jumping up and down declaring that we should all go to the high school and hit some balls. It wasn’t what I wanted to hear knowing Elle would want to do it.

Reluctantly, I agreed, and while they went home to get their racquets I went to find ours. Elle gathered up the kids who were excited to go so they could use the school playground. I knew there were two courts at the school but had never seen them. They’d been uncared for and were in poor shape but there were usable nets. Sandy and Johnny were waiting for us and I was glad to see that she was still wearing the same shorts as I was sure that, if and when she stooped over to pick up some errant balls, I’d get a peek of her panties and, hopefully, a VPL.

It didn’t take long to see that Johnny was an athlete. Sandy and Elle were about evenly matched so when they suggested we try an actual game they played together and Johnny was stuck with me. I was up at the net when I got my first peek... a dash of white, on both cheeks, peeking out from under the bottom of her shorts. Her top was too long for a DP (downpants) but something was better than nothing. We hadn’t been there all that long when I saw Elle stop and squeeze her thighs together. I knew what had happened and what was soon to come. I don’t know or remember what excuse Elle used to leave the courts but she headed for the station wagon leaving me to apologize. They wanted to be sure that Elle was OK and I assured her that she was and that it wasn’t serious. We agreed to get together again in the not too distant future.

When I got to the station wagon Elle was standing with the door open but covering her. At her feet was a puddle about the size of a turkey platter. What had happened was in the rush to get to the courts Elle neglected to use the toilet and hadn’t thought to wear a partial package. Elle was as embarrassed as I could remember her being. The only thing that I clearly remember was that Elle would let me take advantage of her being wet and was quite perturbed that I would even think of going "there".

When I agreed to buy the new Sunfish I'd assumed (and you know how that id spelled!) that my parents would allow me (us) the leave the boat on their beach. That Sunday we took it to their house to go for a maiden voyage. The second thing I learned about the new boat was that it was too heavy for just Elle and I to carry by ourselves. (the first being that it was too big to fit in the station wagon,) After getting my father to help us carry it down to the beach we put the sails up and had an enjoyable afternoon of sail.lng. The comfort level in sailing this craft over the Sailfish was monumental. When I took the sails off and started loading the kids into the wagon my mother came running up asking why I wasn't taking the boat. When I told her I thought that it would be OK to leave it there I got an ear full. Clearly, it was not OK. In retrospect, I realized that by not asking permission I had crossed an invisible line. So... the boat got loaded back onto the trailer.

It was on my way home one night the following week when I remembered the house with the clothes line filled with panties. I'd wanted to drive past it after my discovery but had only remembered once. I made the right hand turn in time and was rewarded. It was an eye full. Panties, bras and slips, all segregated by type and size. The problem was that if I stopped it would have brought attention to me and my car so I drove slowly past, trying to take it all in. As I completed the short trip home from there I was trying to formulate a reason to walk over that way. The only thing I could come up with was to take my youngest for a stroller ride, something I hadn't done since moving into the house. Plus, I still had to fix the broken wheel on the stroller.

After supper I made a point of re-attaching the wheel that had fallen off. I told Elle that I wanted to test it out so got Kaye and went for a walk. My timing was off by about ten. minutes as the lady had just finished taking all the panties off the line. In seeing that I turned around hoping that she didn't see me. I figured that there might be another night I could try again. That clothes line certainly had my attention.

Back home I found Elle playing with the kids and Sophie in the back yard. As I walked up the driveway I saw her standing on her head, something that I'd seen her do many times when we were teens. Of course they wanted to try with Sophie the most vocal. Elle took one look at me  and shook her finger indicating that I wasn't allowed to watch. I took the stroller into the garage but was still in a position to see Elle holding Sophie's legs.. Her dress was down around her face and I could see her tummy and panties and, even knowing her disability, it was hard not to be a bit aroused. I knew better than to stay all that long so took Kaye into the house wishing that I'd been Elle holding Sophie's legs.

To be continued...

Friday, November 22, 2013

MORE ON AND ON... June (Part 118c)

MORE ON AND ON... June (Part 118c) 

At the bank, the Board of Trustees meeting for the month was very important to me. I’d only received a token raise on my actual anniversary date because, as I was told, the date of my promotion to officer had become the new one. Not having access to other officer salaries, I had no idea what my raise might be. Bret had been pressuring Hobie about his status. He’d worked at the bank for a year and a half and when he was hired he’d been told that he’d be in line to become an officer after a training period... then I was hired. I liked Bret and we worked well together but didn’t feel comfortable inserting myself into his situation. I just hoped that the meeting would bring forth positive results for both of us.

Needless to say time dragged for both of us on that Wednesday afternoon. No one was prepared for what ended up happening though. Cee, one of the tellers, managed to drop her cash box on the way into the vault. Even though it was locked, somehow the top popped off and the coins that were in it scattered across the floor. What ended up happening became somewhat of a comedy. Bret, Trish and I along with most of the tellers pitched in to try and round up the errant coins. For Bret and I, the sight of five young women on their haunches and crawling across the floor certainly took our minds off the Board meeting. My favorite memory was of Jerene who waddled around on her haunches giving me (and Bret) a nice DP (downpants) for at least five minutes. Katie, with her short skirt, was also a pretty sight because as she, also on her haunches, moved about she would open her legs and close them. Her split second “flashes” were arousing, to say the least. At one point I actually thought I was finally going to get a peek of Trish’s panties when she squatted down for a quick second to pick up a coin that had rolled under her chair but I wasn’t in the right position.

Liz, the auditor, had to do another cash “proof” of Cee’s cash box which also kept us occupied for a while. It was as we were closing the vault door when I saw Hobie leaving the elevator. My heart was racing as I headed for his desk. But, he called Bret over before I got there. It was obvious that Bret had gotten his wish and was now an officer. I congratulated him expecting Hobie to then tell me what my raise was... but he didn’t. I was confused as we’d had a recent conversation about it. I didn’t know what to do or say, not wanting to be “out of line”. Hobie proceeded to put the materials from the Board meeting away for the night, pretty much ignoring me. Then, as he was reaching for his brief case, he hit me with something like “Oh, by the way, they gave you a $750 raise.” and then smiled. Combined with the $250 I’d gotten earlier, it came to just less than $20 a week. A quick mental calculation told me I’d be seeing about $30 more each paycheck, almost enough to buy food for two weeks. I couldn’t wait to get home to tell Elle.(z)

I had to temper my excitement a bit as I drove up the driveway as there was a car I didn’t recognize parked next our station wagon. It turned out to be Rex, the guy I’d bought the Sunfish sailboat from. He was there to ask that I come and get the boat as he needed the space in his yard. I’d gotten the information on where to look for a trailer but still hadn’t done it. I told him I’d get it taken care of Saturday even though I wasn’t sure how. He also reminded me that the dues for the sailing club were due. Here I’d just gotten a raise and before I could even get a dollar of it in my hands I had more money going out. It just never seemed to end.

 Elle was excited but mine was a lot more tempered than when I made the turn into the driveway. I figured that it might be best if I followed up on the lead for a trailer right after supper. I ended up at a small marina near where both Elle’s and my parents lived. I’d never been in to the marina itself as my father had bitterly opposed it’s creation. It was small so it wasn’t hard to find the guy I was looking for... Dan. I gave him Big B’s name and his face lit up with a big smile. I told him what I needed and he led me over to a stack of new trailers and pointed at one. I was figuring it to be over $100 but he said that any friend of Big B’s was a friend of his so the price was $85. I had less than $50 and told him it would be a few weeks until I came up with the rest and he just shrugged. He told me to come back Friday night and it would be ready. I liked both Dan and the “deal” but I was still out $85 that I hadn’t planned on spending.

The road into and out of the marina was strange in that it wound around almost like a snake. As I made the last turn I was actually looking into the back yards of a few houses. The clothes line were in back of the garages which seemed somewhat strange to me. There was nothing on them but the thought of their strange location stayed in my mind as I drove home.

I got everybody “pumped up” about the new boat as we left that Saturday morning with the new trailer to pick it up. I wasn’t the only one at Rex’s place as there was another young couple also picking one up. As I got closer I recognized Sandy, Bob’s (the guy I’d sold my Sailfish to) neighbor. Rex introduced us telling me that they were new members of the club and would be racing. We started to chat and Sandy’s husband, Johnnie, asked Elle if she was a teacher. When she said she was he said he was too and had seen her a few times at school. By the time we left Rex’s yard it was like we were old friends and we ended up inviting them to our house for lunch.

To be continued...

Tuesday, November 19, 2013

MORE ON AND ON... June (Part 118b)

MORE ON AND ON... June (Part 118b)

The School Board election was scheduled for the following Tuesday. Up to the prior weekend it had been very quiet with Jon being the only on to do any electioneering. The incumbent hadn’t put out any flyers, posters or signs and those of us in Jon’s “camp” were feeling quite good about his chances... until that Saturday morning. I got an early phone call from Rob, Jon’s brother. The incumbent had waited until after 6pm the night before and then started a telephone blitz. He and his followers were saying that if Jon was elected taxes would go up and that in his twelve years on the Board taxes had only gone up three times. The message had been short and to the point. Ginger was out delivering milk while Jon had taken up a position in front of the post office to try and talk with as many people as he could. I suggested that the core group meet at Rob’s house to come up with a counter strategy.

The best we could agree on was to go to all our friends and try to get them out canvassing their neighbors. It was not what I wanted to spend my Saturday doing. I agreed to take all the houses from where I lived all the way into town. Being new to the neighborhood I didn’t know many of the people which made me really uncomfortable. I found it was far easier to talk with people who had kids in school. Those that didn’t just shut the door in my face. I found myself on the street where Elle had left the stroller when it broke down. Seeing the house that had had the panties on the wash line brightened my outlook somewhat. However, there were no panties on the line. What I did see was a very pretty girl hanging up sheets. I entered the gate and asked her if her mother was in. She pointed to the back door but I really wanted to take a closer look at her. She looked to be about 15 or so, thin with dirty blonde hair done in a pony tail. The shorts she was wearing were a very pale blue and as she bent over to gather another sheet from the wash basket I not only got a VPL but a quick peek at her white panties. As I knocked on the screen door I had to take a deep breath.

The lady who answered was the same one I’d seen the night I picked up the stroller. It was easy to see that the girl in the yard had gleaned her good looks from the mother. I introduced myself and gave her my “pitch”. What I was “selling” was that changes were drastically needed at the school. Text books were outdated and the classrooms were becoming over crowded. The only thing she asked was if Jon was elected would the taxes go up. I told her “No”, that it would take a majority of the Board to have that happen. By then the girl had finished and come inside. As she put the basket down I got another peek.

That was the highlight of my journey. The core group gathered at Jon and Ginger’s house that afternoon to assess the situation. Based upon the feedback we collected it didn’t look good. We all agreed that the incumbent had blindsided us and that with only two days there wasn’t much we could do except to "sell" Jon to anyone we came in contact with.

Elle got called in to teach both of the last two days of the school year. She told me that the teachers were 100% behind Jon. However, the tactics used by the incumbent were dirty and untrue and the subject of higher taxes (even then) was touchy. The polls were open from 4pm to 8pm and the core group was there in full force. I was surprised at how many people showed up. The 1960 census said there were 1100 adults in town and it seemed like they all showed up. It was about 9:30pm when the word came down that Jon had won by less than 20 votes. The core group went wild. Elle had taken the kids to her mother’s so she was also there to hear the news.

Jon had invited the core group to his house afterwards, regardless of winning or losing. By the time we got there it was around 10:30pm. Because the next day was a workday for me, we didn’t stay too long. Having the kids with Elle’s mother meant Elle would be a lot more “liberal” when we got home and I was looking forward to that. As I remember it, I got a good night “reward” as well as some “morning delight”. The next day Elle heard that the party went on until about 3am and that some never made it home. Hearing that, I was glad I’d left when I did.

Jon was so pleased with the results of the election that he wanted to have a more formal party and arranged for the use of the town park on Sunday afternoon to have a bar-b-que for everyone. I had mixed emotions about going but we did. The park was on the water but it wasn’t really warm enough for swimming in mid June so everybody showed up in casual clothes. Over the course of the afternoon about 30 people showed up. That was good in that Elle and I got to meet some more local people. One of them was my brother’s best friend. Elle and I both vaguely knew him from back before we went off to college. He was over 300 pounds and went by the name of “Big B”. We got to talking and I found out he was a salesman for a boating supply company. I took a chance and asked him about a trailer for the Sunfish I’d bought. He gave me the name and address of someone who, if I used his name, would sell me one at cost. That made my day, at least up to that point.

Some of the women were feeling “happy” and were trying to do a dance. The guys were egging them on. I went over to watch and it was pretty funny. They were trying to do a kick line like the Rockettes at Radio City Music Hall did. The operative word was “trying”. There were four of them and they couldn’t coordinate their kicks. It didn’t help that they ranged in height from about 5’10“ down to 5’4”. In any case one of them fell and that pulled all of them down. Ginger, as usual, was wearing a skirt and when she fell her legs went up in the air... and I got an extended view of her panties as she lay there on the ground, laughing. With that, Elle decided it was time to go get the kids.

To be continued... 

Sunday, November 17, 2013

MORE ON AND ON... June (Part 118a)

MORE ON AND ON... June (Part 118a)

By Monday morning I was ready to go back to work. However, I managed to get most  of  the “had to be done” things completed so felt good about it... and the fact that I finally had the money to pay Rex for the Sunfish. I decided to stop at his house on the way home. That was a real eye opener! Actually, it was a continuation of an oft repeated process by me... not doing enough research before making a decision. Much to my great displeasure I found out that the Sunfish was too wide to fit in the station wagon and that I would need to buy a trailer for it. I owned it but couldn’t move it. Rex agreed to move it down to the sailing club for me but that wasn’t where I wanted it. When Rex mentioned the sailing club he asked if I was ready to rejoin. That reminded me that I’d promised Bob that I’d propose him for membership and to do that I had to be a member. More money!

We picked up our mail at the post office and I’d stop to get it up on my way home. I’m pretty sure it was that week that I ran into Sandy there. She still looked like she was 16 and, surprisingly, she remembered me. The “curves” were still there and even though she was wearing different clothes, they all showed. For some reason I was taken aback when she spoke to me. The only thing I could think of to say was to ask if she’d gone sailing with Bob yet. She hadn’t and as I got in my car I couldn’t help but wishing that it was me that was going to go sailing with her.

I also think it was that week that the stroller broke when Elle was taking a walk with the baby. When I got home that night she told me where she’d left it and asked if I’d go retrieve it while she finished getting supper ready. It wasn’t that far away but it was on a street that I’d not yet been on since buying the house. I saw it leaning against a picket fence with a wheel missing. As I pulled up in front of it I looked into the back yard of the house that went with it... and almost couldn’t believe my eyes. There was the most beautiful sight I could’ve wished for... a clothes line with nothing but white panties on it. There were three different sizes but there wasn’t much difference in each group. Each of the different sizes was separated by a small gap on the line. It was magnificent. There were at least five pair for each size. I’m sure I sat in the car for at least a minute taking in the sight. When I finally got out to fetch the stroller I saw a fairly attractive woman coming out the back door and heading for the line. I’d never seen her before but, as I said, I’d not been down that street in the six months we lived there. As I loaded the broken stroller into the trunk I kept an eye on her as she took the clothes pins off the panties and then carefully folded them before putting them in the wash basket. I was sort of amazed. When Elle took her panties off the line she just dropped them into the basket and then, when it was time to put them away, she’d leave them in a pile on her chair for me because she knew I wanted them put away by maker and type. She just wasn't into panties all that much. That was my domain.

On my way back home I saw our neighbor, Kathleen, out in her yard, waving frantically at me. I stopped and she told me to tell Elle that we were free to go pick as many strawberries as we wanted in the field between the two houses. I thanked her and then we chatted for a few minutes. The house with the panties was still on my mind so I described the house to her and asked who lived there. She gave me the name of the people and, unasked, told me that they had two teen aged daughters. That explained the three different sizes of panties. In the few minutes it took me to get back home I found myself puzzling why there were only panties on the line and nothing else. I made a mental note to drive down that street more often.

The new switchboard operator at the bank, Netta, was working out well. The disconnect between she and Bret had started to affect his work. I’d “pushed” Trish about it but she’d said she wouldn’t discuss it and held true to her word. I finally took Bret aside and told him that acting the way he was acting was not very mature, especially for someone who might be made an officer in the upcoming Board meeting. That got his attention.  I told him that it wasn’t important that he tell me about the problem but that he had to work it out with Netta. I guess he was feeling guilty and decided to “unload” on me. Long story short; They had dated in their junior year in high school. Bret was the big hero athlete. He admitted that he didn’t look the part, being well over 200 pounds with a round belly and looking younger than his age. He decided to change his image and tried to grow a mustache. When he and Netta had a fight she started calling him Wimpy, like the character in the Popeye cartoons... and it stuck. For the rest of his high school years he had to endure that nickname and, he never forgave Netta for doing that to him. I sat there thinking that it was at least 10 years since then and puzzled as to why he was still mad at her so I asked. He shrugged and said that he was afraid that she start using the name again and embarrass him all over again. I wanted to laugh but I didn’t. I told him that if it were me I’d make a point of going to her and telling her that I’d forgiven her to see what she said. As we got up he told me that he’d think about it. As he walked out of the room I could definitely see his resemblance to Wimpy... and smiled.



                                
 To be continued...              

Thursday, November 14, 2013

ON AND ON... another month (Part 117i)

ON AND ON... another month (Part 117i)

Robby finished up a little after 6pm and Jaz started right in with posting transactions. I took the finished products and checked to see that they were correct. All I’d wanted was to know that when we opened the doors in the morning that the machine was up and running and doing it correctly. After checking a bunch of ledgers I told Robby and Jaz that everything was OK. When I did I walked up to Robby and shook his hand... with the $30 hidden in it. He smiled a big toothy grin without even knowing how much it was. Then I told Jaz she could go but she more than surprised me when she said she was willing to stay and complete posting all of the work from Tuesday. When I indicated that it wasn’t necessary she was openly disappointed. I was starving, not having eaten since around noon time. I took a deep breath and agreed if she’d go out and get me a few slices of pizza. I couldn’t leave with her alone in the building. She said she would and when she got up to get her coat I got my first look at her backside. There was a VPL but the crotch line wasn’t all that big. In my mind, the front side look I got was much better... but I wasn’t complaining. I called Elle while Jaz was gone and she wasn’t overly thrilled. We finished up around 9pm. What staying meant was that by the time the bank closed the next day we’d be almost caught up. I was more than pleased.

The schedule for the weekend at home had looked somewhat daunting even before Bob showed up. He had the rest of the cash for the Sailfish and, of course, wanted to go get it immediately. I'd just started mowing the lawn when he drove up. Happy to have the cash, I made like it was no trouble to get the boat from my father's garage but I knew it would be. I took my station wagon as I knew I could get the boat in the back of it, with help. About 2 1/2 hours later we were finally at Bob's house. I was desperate to get home but Bob insisted that I show him how to rig the boat, promising lunch. Reluctantly, I set the mast and hoisted the sail. All that was needed was common sense, but... I thought I was home free until he asked about the rudder. I couldn’t figure out why he wanted to put it on with the boat sitting on his lawn but I went ahead and did it... or tried to. The pin that attaches the rudder to the boat had somehow gotten bent and it wouldn’t engage. I got down on my hands and knees and had my head almost on the ground trying to guide the pin into place. I was at it for a bit with no success when I saw two bare feet right in front of my eyes. I looked up and saw an absolutely cute girl standing there. That got me to sit up on my haunches to get a good focal view of her whole being and I definitely liked what I saw.

After I said “Hi.” she said her name was Sandy and she was Bob’s neighbor. I looked at her face again and to me she looked like she was about 16 or so. She wanted to know what I was doing. As she did I looked around and Bob was no where to be seen. I told her that Bob had bought it and I was showing him how to rig it. She seemed excited and said that she hoped Bob would take her sailing. If I could’ve, I would surely have taken her. About 5’4“ with curly light brown hair, she had curves... lots of them. She was wearing a sweat shirt and flowered cut off pants that looked like they had been poured on her. She was very inquisitive and squatted down beside me to see exactly what I was doing. I pointed to the pin that was the problem and she leaned forward to get a closer look. Just as she did I got a beautiful DP (down pants). There was at least 5 inches of her panties showing and the elastic was encased, just like the VanRaalte panties I’d just gotten for Elle. That thought made me hope for a VPL as well. At that point I was glad I was down and all scrunched up because there was something else that was all scrunched up.

Bob returned with some sandwiches and a pitcher of iced tea. He seem happy to see Sandy and she immediately started in on him about taking her for a sail. Bob surprised me when he responded that he really didn’t know how. Sandy piped up that she and her husband had learned when they were camp counselors. Bob seemed delighted to hear that and told her that she was welcome to take him sailing any time. While they chatted I finally got the pin in place and, as much as I enjoyed looking at Sandy, I had to get home. Walking away, I still couldn’t get it in my mind that she was old enough to be married but I was hoping that I’d get to see her again.

Arriving home I found Elle, the kids and Sophie all playing in and around the play house. There were three small chairs and a table that were part on the furniture in the playhouse. They were all gathered around the table with Elle and Sophie seated on the ground. Elle was wearing slacks but Sophie was, as usual, wearing a dress. I know that Elle had told Sophie that it wasn’t ”ladylike“ to let others see her underwear any number of times but she continued to sit or to get into positions that allowed it to be seen. This was one of those times. Elle couldn’t see what I could see as I walked up and to my eye her panties looked wet. As I’ve mentioned before, it was hard to look at a full grown person and have to recognize that she had a child like mind. I let it pass as best I could but made a point to ask Elle about it later and tried to get back to mowing the lawn.

When I took a break to get something to drink Elle had just finished up playing with the kids and sent Sophie home. I mentioned what I’d observed about Sophie and she gave me one of ”those” looks that told me that I shouldn’t have brought the subject up. However, I persisted. Yes, she was aware that she’d wet herself but explained that getting Sophie to do something when she was “involved” (and they’d all been involved) was impossible without her throwing a tantrum... and when she was “involved” she would ignore her need for the bathroom. So... it was easier to just let her go and to ignore it. She added that Celia had warned her and one of Celia’s “rules” for Elle was that Sophie was not to come into our house because she didn’t want her to make a mess. I found that to be interesting and wondered what life in her house was like.
To be continued...

Saturday, November 02, 2013

ON AND ON... another month (Part117h)

ON AND ON... another month (Part 117h)

When we went back downstairs Bret was talking to Trish and from the look on her face I just knew she was enjoying the moment. Trish took care of getting all the paperwork handled on Netta so that she could go join Pauline and start her training. As soon as Bret saw us exit the elevator her turned and walked back into the work area. He stayed there until Netta went back upstairs. The only way I can describe him was ”rattled“. When he sat down at his desk he turned to me and said something along the lines of ”You don’t know how hard hiring her is going to be on me.“ and then turned away. I really couldn’t help but smile... but not visibly.

With a ”handle“ on two out of the three problems I focused on the broken bookkeeping machine. I called the service office to confirm that the part had arrived and was told it had and that Robby, the service mechanic would be arriving mid afternoon. The bank’s contract with the company provided service from 8am to 5pm with an hour at each end reserved for travel time. That meant we could only expect the service mechanic on site from 9am to 4pm with an hour out for lunch. That concerned me because we already had 2 1/2 days of transactions to process. I’d hoped to have the machine up and running that day and it didn’t look good.

A first look at Robby wouldn’t fill one with confidence. A tall (about 6’4”), extremely thin man in his late 20’s with a shock of unkempt red hair. However, over time I learned that not only was he a good technician but was also a good guy. He could see that I was stressed when he walked in and I told him of my problem. He explained (again) the rules of the contract but, with a sly smile on his face along with a wink, told me that he could make “arrangements” to stay later than 4pm. I didn’t care what it took but I needed the machine to be operational before he left. He explained that he would have to do a test after the installation of the new part but that if we would be willing to process real transactions as the test it would count. Lorie, the primary operator, was the lone hold out of the Polish Mafia who still hadn’t fully accepted me. When I went to her to ask her to stay late she issued a curt “No!”. By then I was in no mood for her attitude towards me and called her out on it. I knew it was wrong to do it out in the work place so told her to go up the back stairs to the Board room. I started to follow her when Jaz, Lorie’s assistant, grabbed me by the arm. I was a bit annoyed but before I could say anything she told me that she was willing to stay. I thanked her and told her I’d get back to her and continued up the stairs.

I’d tried, time and time again, to win Lorie over and it seemed like when things were going well between us she’d revert back to when I’d first started. She’d put up a “wall” when it came to me. Once in the room I told her that it had to stop. I’ll not bore you with all the dialog but told her she had until the next morning to decide if she was going to stay or go and that if her decision was to stay I’d have to see a change in attitude almost immediately. I told her she could leave to go home to think about it as we exited the room.

Jaz was waiting for me when I returned and I told her that I’d really appreciate it if she would stay. Robby overheard my comment and volunteered that she might want to get something to eat because the machine wouldn’t be ready until around 6pm. She lived only a few streets away and agreed to return at 6pm. As she left I told her that she could dress comfortably and I remember her smiling as I did.

Robby and I chatted as he worked and I asked about the so called “arrangements“ he’d mentioned. Basically, he was going to change some of the hours in his log book to mask the extra time he was spending with this problem. He didn’t come right out and say it but what was also inferred was that he’d appreciate a little ”recognition“. We had a discretionary petty cash box that Hobie and I could use from time to time. I’d only used it once and there was about $40 in it as best I could tell. I was sure he was looking for money rather than a letter of recognition so went back to retrieve the box. I didn’t know how much he was looking for but took out $30 thinking that it would be enough for two hours of work.

When Jaz returned I almost didn’t recognize her. She was a big girl in more than one way at about 5’10” tall and big boned like a lot of Polish women seemed to be built. However, she was not fat although could’ve probably lost 5 to 10 pounds. She had dirty blonde hair that I’d only seen her wear down to her shoulders. It was now in a pony tail so that her ears were showing. It was a completely different look. She was also wearing a pair of cream colored knit pants and she filled them out very well. My first thought was that I wanted to see what kind of VPL they exhibited. It was better than that. She chose to sit in one of the secretarial chairs that were on casters and pushed herself back against the wall to stay out of Robby’s way. Then she sort of slumped down in the chair with her feet out in front of her, almost straight. I stood there looking at her and I saw my first frontal VPL... and a “camel toe” to boot. I’d never seen a frontal crotch line and I had to be careful not to stare. Thankfully, she was chatting with Robby and not looking at me. I had to put a hand in my pocket and had to be careful not to get too “frisky”.

To be continued...

Friday, November 01, 2013

ON AND ON... another month (Part 117g)

ON AND ON... another month (Part 117g)

When I walked in to work on Tuesday morning I saw a group gathered around Trish’s desk. I had to wait a minute to get someone to tell me what was up. Cara was in the hospital, supposedly beaten up by her husband. When the bank doors opened the group had to disperse to go wait on the customers which gave me a chance to talk with Trish. She wasn’t in the mood to talk much but did add that it was bad enough that Cara didn’t want visitors, including Trish herself who was her best friend. By 9:15am the ”word“ was out to all the employees who, in turn, showed up at Trish’s desk for more information. I’d not known anyone who’d gone through something like that and was at a loss as to what to say or do. Hobie wasn’t much better. The only insight to the situation came from Bret, who had known Cara’s husband when he played football in high school, and said he knew he had a temper.

As if that wasn’t enough of a shock, Pauline, the switchboard operator stopped by my desk a little later to hand in her resignation, effective Friday. This was another ”out of the blue“ situation. I knew that her husband was in some sort of difficulty in his line of work but I’d chatted with her just before the weekend and she seemed upbeat. I tried to get the reason but she declined to give a direct answer. Now I had to find a replacement. Lynne, J J’s secretary, was the fill in for Pauline for lunch, breaks and vacation so it wasn’t a desperate situation. I knew from past experience that J J would complain but I could handle that. What was important was just how seriously hurt Cara was. The first news Trisha got was that Cara wouldn’t need an operation. That pretty much gave us the magnitude of her beating and was a mix of good and bad news. Being a believer in omens, I started wondering what the third piece of bad news would be. I didn’t have long to wait.

The bookkeeping machine that had laughingly been called a computer by the first bank I worked for decided to stop working... again. Robby, the service technician, gave me the bad news that he had to order the same part from the factory that he’d replaced the last time the machine went down. (There was a ”message“ there but, as you can imagine, it was ignored.) We’d be without it for at least two days. The timing wasn’t quite as bad as the last time as this was the slowest time for lobby traffic during the year. All I could think of was Murphy’ Law... if something could go wrong, it would... and it had. By the time I left for home I had a migraine.

Trish pulled the applications file for me the first thing the next morning and I picked out a couple who seemed to have some promise with one actually having experience with a PBX system. Later she got word that Cara had been released from the hospital and was staying with her parents. Along that same line, when Hobie heard what had happened to her he contacted the Board member who was an attorney and arranged for her to have whatever legal assistance that was necessary. Both those items made me feel a lot better about her situation.

Thursday had me set to do the interviews for Pauline’s replacement. I don’t know what happened to have both show up at the same time but Trish came over to tell me. She had one of her smirky smiles on her face as she did. She apologized for the mix up but then she bent down and whispered something in my ear. I wasn’t expecting it and didn’t get the full meaning but did hear Bret’s name mentioned. He was back by the drive up window so I was a bit confused. She repeated it and what she told me was that one of the applicants had been Bret’s girlfriend when they were in high school. She told me to watch for his reaction when he discovered that she was here and applying for a job. For some reason Trish thought that was funny. I didn’t care as long as whoever I hired could do the job.

It turned out that she wasn’t the first woman I talked with. In truth, that lady didn’t ”light my fire“ although she had, at one time, worked as a switchboard operator for the telephone company. It had been before she was married and was quite a few years in the past. I told her that I had more interviews and would be calling her in a few days. By the time I was done with her Bret had come back to his desk. When Trish called for the other applicant to come over she noticed Bret and started laughing. As Trish led her to my desk she called out his name. The look on his face was one of total shock. It had been worth witnessing. I was glad there was finally something happening worth smiling about.

She sat down at my desk and proceeded to explain what had just transpired. Bret was looking at the two of us, still in disbelief, but didn’t say anything. She went by the name of Netta and was from an old line local family. After high school she’d gone to college for a year in the city and had stayed there for a few years. Her mother had gotten very sick and she returned home to be with her. After her mother’s passing she decided to stay and not return to the city. Even though she’d never operated a PBX, she’d worked for a couple of years as a receptionist and handling phone calls for a large city based distribution company. That’s what got my attention because statistics showed that over 40% of bank customers made their first contact over the phone. It was my thought that she’d handled a lot of calls and would be just what we needed to replace Pauline. Not particularly good looking, she obviously knew how to dress and how to make a good impression... because she did. I took her upstairs to show her the PBX and let her watch how it worked. When I asked if she thought she could handle it she just smiled. I liked that. I hired her pretty much on the spot. When I asked when she could start she told me ”immediately“. I was pleased with that answer because it meant she’d have at least a day and a half to work with Pauline.

To be continued...