SETTLING IN... or down, or something like that (Part 116c)

SETTLING IN... or down, or something (Part 116c)

The first chore I had that morning was to build and set Elle's clothes line. She wanted to be able to use it right away but I’d set the posts in concrete and it needed to set. Being the middle of April the grass had already started to grow. It was obvious that the previous owner, being a farmer, had put lots of fertilizer on the lawn. I walked the property imagining what it was going to be like when I mowed it. I was actually concerned with the slope of the hill where the cut for the driveway was. To be truthful, I wasn’t looking forward to it. As I did my walk I noticed someone on the neighbors property. I’d still not seen the man and only seen his wife, from a distance, a few times. I walked over to the hedge, which was way overgrown, to get a better look. There were some parts of it that had died and if I stood in one of those empty spots I could see a fair amount of their property. When I first peered through the opening I didn’t see anyone. I wondered how whoever it was had managed to disappear so quickly. For the first time since I’d bought the place I stepped through the hedge and saw a young woman hanging clothes on on a rather unique clothes line. I’m not sure I wasn’t as interested in the design of it as much as I was in the person.

It was attached to the side of the garage and had no vertical poles to hold it up. From where I was standing it looked like there were extensions to a couple of the roof rafters which were attached to two boards that protruded and were attached to the side of the garage. The lines were attached to them. I don’t know why it caught my attention. In any case the female didn’t see me as I peered at her. I knew they had a daughter that had some mental/intelligence problems and assumed that it was her. As she finished up I stepped back so that the hedge shielded me. As she walked back towards the house I took a close look at her. In spite of what I’d been told she looked normal to me. She was wearing what appeared to be a cotton dress and an oversized wrap around sweater. Once she was inside I stepped back through the hedge to peer at the clothes on the line. There wasn’t much, mostly sheets. I was hoping to see some panties but there didn’t appear to be any. Back on my own property I got the idea to walk along my side of the hedge back to where their garage was. Because it hadn’t been trimmed in such a long time the lower part didn’t have much in the way of greenery. It was mostly on top. I found a place where I could see the clothes line and, although the angle was poor, I could see some smallish white things hanging behind the sheets. Unfortunately, there weren’t any dead areas that would let me through. However, I was really curious so walked all the way to the back of my property and around the end of the hedge. From there I couldn’t see the neighbors house as the garage was in the way. So I slowly walked towards it. I had a bit of a problem with the junk piled up behind it but finally got to where I could see the clothes. Those closest to me were mens T shirts and I wasn’t sure what was next to them. At first I was afraid to come out from behind the garage but I was so close I decided to take a few steps. There was a bit of wind so the things were waving back and forth which made it a bit difficult to get an exact read on what was hanging further on down the line. Then I saw something lying on the ground. I hesitated for a second and then took the necessary step to be able to reach it. Wet, I stuffed it in my jacket pocket anyway and made it back to my property as quickly as I could.

Even though it was probably only 50 something degrees out, by the time I made the turn at the end of the hedge I was perspiring profusely. Before I could calm down Elle appeared from behind our garage looking for me. The kids were still at her parents house and she wanted me to go get them. She was in the process of doing cleaning and didn’t like to leave it once she started. Elle had actually startled me which added to my discomfort. She handed me the keys to the station wagon which told me she wanted it done now. That upset me a bit and, believe it or not, I completely forgot about what was in my pocket.

As I mentioned I was perspiring so when I got in the wagon I took off my coat. By the time I’d gotten the kids, all their stuff and back home it was lunch time. It had warmed up considerably and I never gave a thought to my jacket. After lunch I went to purchase the power lawn mower. I’d done research and knew exactly what I wanted. Because of the slopes on the hill I’d decided on a fairly small mower so I took my car to get it. I’d forgotten all about my jacket still in the station wagon... and what was in the pocket.

Returning home, I put the mower together and was set to start mowing. Then I remembered... I needed both oil and gas... and a can to put the gas in. Aside from being upset for forgetting about that stuff I was also upset that I had to go spend more money. It just didn’t seem to end... a dollar or two here and a dollar or two there. It was mid afternoon before I finally started to mow. I remember it like it was yesterday. The slopes were brutal and by the time I was done I was exhausted. I think if Elle had been in just her panties and bra when I walked in it wouldn’t have revived me. I headed for the recliner and took a nap.

To be continued...

SETTLING IN.. or down, or something like that (Part 116b)

SETTLING IN... or down, or something like it (Part 116b)

She was waiting at the back door when I arrived on Tuesday. A big girl with a shy smile she introduced herself as Jaz. That was a short version of her last name. As you could probably guess, she was Polish. I knew that would go over well with Lori, the bookkeeping machine operator who was the unofficial leader of the ”Polish Mafia“ and who she’d be working with. I decided to short circuit the process and invited Lori to sit in on the interview. Jaz had graduated from high school almost three years earlier and had worked at various jobs that she considered ”dead end“ and was hoping to find something that would lead to a career. To me, she appeared to say all the right things but in Lori’s case I thought the Polish connection was her primary focus. In any case she was hired on the spot.

When I told Hobie about hiring Jaz he commented that we’d been lucky that Mala had made it through the ”busy period' before having her baby. He want on to say  that if Lori had had to train a new employee during that time it wouldn’t have been good. Bret and I had only known her for a year but Hobie had worked with her for five years and evidently had been a party to some bad times with her. I could only hope that my “read” on the new girl was the right one.

I took off work early on Wednesday. I wanted to personally deliver the checks to the people who’d worked with me over the previous few months. I got a good reaction from them so it was worth the time. I’d taken the station wagon since Elle had not been called to work because when I paid off the lumber yard I also wanted to get the wood for Elle’s clothes line. I’d been thinking ahead and pretty much knew that Elle would be in a real good mood when she saw what I’d brought home. I was right. I had her come out to see the wood and as mundane as it sounds it did excite her. I took advantage of it and pulled her into the garage and put my hand up her skirt. It took a bit of waiting but the warm wetness that I felt on my fingers was worth the wait. Needless to say it was early to bed that night.

The main reason for wanting to go to the party at Bob and Phyl’s house wasn’t to see panty peeks and VPL’s. It was to see how serious Bob had been about taking up sailing. After paying Rex the first money on the new (to us) Sunfish I was really excited to get the Sailfish sold. When we pulled up in front of their house both Elle and I started laughing. Right next to the driveway was a very unique tree. From one base there were three trunks. Why it was so funny was thier building lot was located exactly where Elle and I had gone to “park” so many times when we were dating. It was a creek front lot and back when we’d been going there it was a new development with only a dirt road carved out of the woods. That tree was much smaller then but it had served as our marker to get to the water. Walking in towards the house we reminisced about those times. They brought back a lot of good memories, at least for me.

The party was pretty tame even with Jon’s brother Rob there. Both Jon and Rob’s wife kept close tabs on him as far as drinking was concerned. Actually, he was a pretty funny guy even without the alcohol. As had been the norm for the two previous parties the males gathered in the kitchen while the females gabbed in the living room. I couldn’t get Rob aside to pursue the possibility of him buying the Sailfish which didn’t make me very happy. When the women finally summoned us in to join them I figured we were in for another round of charades. It was worse.

Bob and Phyl had only been in their house since September. Bob had taken slide pictures during the construction and the women had wanted to see them. Of course, Bob was very happy to oblige. Although the living room was fairly large they didn’t have very much furniture, at least enough to have twelve people sitting. That meant some had to sit on the floor. Being hostess, Phyl volunteered to give up her seat and settled in against the coffee table. I’d decided to wait to pick a spot and as Phyl settled in someone from the sofa called to her. As she turned to look at the speaker she lifted her right leg. Wearing a dark skirt made the white I saw even brighter. Not particularly attractive, it didn’t matter when it came to panty peeks. That... was the highlight of the night... at least as far as the party was concerned.

We’d been a little late getting there so didn’t get a chance to have the “tour” of the property. As we were saying our good nights I asked Bob if we could take a walk around to see the creek and the water. He said it was OK but decided to join us. That wasn’t what I had in mind when I’d asked him. I was hoping to add to the old memories that Elle and I had from our dating days. But how could I stop him since he owned the place. He’d started to build a little dock and while showing it to us he mentioned how it would be nice to have a boat to go with it. BINGO!

By the time we left Bob had committed to buying the Sailfish but he had one favor to ask, He wanted me to be a reference for him in his application to the sailing club. For one thing, to be able to do that I would have to be a member of the club and, secondly, I’d only seen him twice and really knew very little about him. Elle had filled me in a bit but that was, to me, sort of like hearsay. Driving home I was contemplating the whole situation.

I’d mentioned that I had something in mind for Elle and I when I’d asked if we could take a walk out to see the creek. As it turned out Elle had not used the bathroom before we left their house wanting to save it for me when we got home. The conversation that Bob and I had had taken a bit of time and it was too long for Elle. She knew she wouldn’t make it back into the house so, as Bob and I talked she went over by the lawn furniture and hiked up her skirt in the back and had peed right there while she watched Bob and I talk. She never mentioned it to me. At home, when we were approaching our back door, I reached under her skirt and was shocked to find a wet bottom. However, she wasn’t upset and I was the beneficiary of that. In fact, in the morning with the kids at her mother’s house and it being a Saturday I even had some “morning delight.”

To be continued...

SETTLING IN... or down, or something (Part 116a)

SETTLING DOWN... a bit (Part 116a)

I was half way home when I realized that I couldn’t have Elle wear the new panties. They were white as snow and all of hers were dingy and stained. For sure, she’d want to know where I got them and I knew couldn’t come up with a reasonable answer. Elated at having the panties, I was disappointed that I couldn’t do anything with them. I had to console myself knowing that if I got to the city I’d have a source from which to buy more.

However, that disappointment didn't deter me from doing a close up study of the old style Spanky Pants with the new. While Elle was cleaning up after supper and the kids were occupied with playing a game I went upstairs and checked them both out. My observation of the new style proved correct and the crotch was definitely longer. I really wanted to have Elle try them on but... reason prevailed and I tucked the new ones away for the future.

The old style Spanky Pants

The new style Spanky Pants

My birthday was on Thursday and, in anticipation of it, I’d signed all the loan paperwork so I could borrow against my Trust and sent them off. The bank officer who oversaw my Trust had promised that the check, which I’d calculated at a little over $1,100, would be mailed on my birthday. Elle’s mother had baked me a cake as Elle had been called in to teach. That served as my only recognizable present. With no money I’d told Elle “No presents!” and held her to it. When we sold the mobile home I didn’t let the kids playhouse that Jay and I had built go with it. I worked out an arrangement for it to remain until I could get it moved. The buyers had agreed provided I had it out of the yard by May first. With no money it had remained at the mobile home. So... my parents stepped in and found someone to move it and that was my present. I know my kids sure appreciated it.

The “busy period” at work ended that Friday. Once past that, things settled down. Jerene, after my stern talk with her, didn’t do anything untoward... until we walked in together about mid week. As I held the door for her and she walked past I heard her whisper “Guess what I’m wearing?”. At least she didn’t turn around to look back up at me as she walked across the floor. I was a bit upset right after she said it but a little later on I had to smile to myself. At least she was one female that I knew exactly what type of panties she was wearing every day.

Elle was getting more calls to come in to the local school to teach and as she did she got to meet more people from the community. It became clear to her that the people who had been to our party and to the one hosted by Ginger and Jon were well connected within the younger element of the community and were hell bent on making some changes within the school system. When she discussed this with me I wasn’t surprised but I did wonder how they had drawn us into their group. I really didn’t want anything to do with school politics but it seemed like I wasn’t going to be able to avoid it. Elle had become really friendly with Pat, the PTA lady and Ginger, the milkman’s wife. The other women she’d met at the parties, Phyl, Nancy and Lisa were a part of the group as well. Elle found out that monthly, although not “set in stone”, one of that group would host a party and that Bob and Phyl were holding one on Friday night, April 15th, to celebrate income tax day. I thought it was weird but Elle wrote it down on the calendar.

The check with the money from the loan arrived on Saturday. Banks weren’t open so I had to wait until Monday to deposit it. Elle’s and my need/want list had grown to two pages and I’d started to prioritize in anticipation of the money. By then we owed around $300 and I’d promised Rex $300 as a down payment on the Sunfish sailboat. Even with money as tight as it was we’d both agreed to go ahead with the purchase of it. We both missed sailing and it had become clear to us that our two older girls loved it. Of course we rationalized it by assuming that we’d be able to sell the Sailfish we owned. In any case, with those expenditures accounting for a little more than half the money represented by the check, the prioritizing our list was essential. To give myself an idea I’d started pricing things out by using the Spring Sears catalog.

Number one was a power lawn mower. The property was a little over a half acre and there was a lot of lawn. Next was to do a slight modification to the kitchen so we could have a dining area. Eating our meals in the dining room had proved very inconvenient. That item started out as a “want” but after three plus months it was shifted to the “need” category. So did Elle’s desire for a an outside wash line. I’d managed to hold her off on that by the fact the ground had been frozen and I couldn’t dig the necessary holes for it... plus I already owed the lumber yard a fair amount of money. By the time I got done not only was the money all gone but we needed about $150 more just to finish off the “need” column.

As I left for work that Monday Elle was told to get the check to the bank and to find out how long it would be until it was available for us to use. Back in those days banks had varying “hold“ periods they used to verify the funds were real. Since the check was from another bank and within the state I hoped the money would be available by Wednesday, the day I’d promised Rex the money. Arriving at work I was greeted by an excited group of employees. Mala had given birth to a girl. She was over a month early but they said that she and the baby were doing well. She’d planned on working until the end of April and I was about to run a want ad in the local newspaper for a replacement. However, Cee, the other young teller came to me saying that she had a friend who needed a job. Like they say, any port in a storm, so I told her to have her contact me.

To be continued...

LIFE GOES ON... at home and work (Part 115j)

LIFE GOES ON... at home and work (Part 115j)

Jerene took a step out so she was now in front of the mirror and then... pulled the hem of her skirt up and stood there sort of admiring herself. From my vantage point I could now see about half her front side including a part of the nylon pantie crotch. Shock was only part of it for me and panic was the other. On many nights J J had would stop by to chat on his way out. I was frozen in place... half looking at Jerene and half looking for a body to appear from around the corner. The truth of the matter was that Jerene only took a few seconds and then was back along side my desk. The first words out of her mouth were to ask how much they cost. I didn't have an answer. I’d never given any thought to asking for money when I’d offered them to her so, dumbstruck from what I’d just witnessed  so just stood there. I can only imagine the look on my face.

It took a few seconds for me to speak but in the delay before I did I realized that she’d given me an “out”. With me giving her the panties it could’ve been perceived as me getting something in return for them. That wasn’t it at all but after I’d started the whole process I realized I’d put myself in a potentially bad situation. If she were to pay me for them it at least removed part of the awkwardness should anyone find out. The immediate problem was that I didn’t know how much they cost. I’d sent a money order to Willy when he’d sent them along with some other things for Peggy and I never broke out what each individual item cost. I stammered out that I didn’t really know but I did have the catalog at home. She wasn’t all that concerned and just passed it off saying I could tell her the next day. As we walked across the lobby towards the door I had an incredible feeling of relief.

I’d hidden the catalog in the space under the middle drawer of the desk that the previous owner of the house had left behind. Elle caught me removing the drawer and wanted to know what I was doing. I think I told her the drawer kept jamming and was trying to find out why. I'd dodged another bullet! When I got a chance I looked the panties up they were sold in wholesale lots and priced by the box. As I remember it the box was somewhere around $4.50 or so for six pair. I quickly did the math and made a mental note of it.

Jerene was there when I arrived the next morning. I smiled when I saw her smiling face looking at me but went right to my desk. After sitting down I looked down the teller line and there she was, looking right at me and pointing to an area between her hip and her groin. I couldn’t believe it. I knew exactly what she was doing... telling me she had on the nylon panties. But, she was oblivious to the thought that others could see her and with her looking straight at me... I just couldn’t believe she was so naive. I was sweating bullets. It was about an hour later when she had to bring a check for me to countersign. Fortunately, Bret was away from his desk. I saw the check in her hand but the words out of her mouth were asking me for the price of the panties. It was hard for me to reconcile how good she was as a teller and how little common sense she showed when not working. I kind of hissed “Later!” at her and shook my head in disbelief as she walked away.


I managed to avoid her for most of the day but when everyone had gone she cornered me. Now, even though I was upset with her there was still one thing that kept going through my mind... were the Carter’s panties she’d worn on Saturday a newer style than the old ones that Elle had. There were even a few moments that I lapsed into fantasy land and wondered what would’ve happened if I’d offered to trade the panties she’d been wearing for the nylon ones. Wearing her ever present big smile she sidled up to me and just raised her eyes at me, almost as if she were flirting. I knew what she wanted but first I wanted to explain to her that all of what we’d discussed and done was strictly between the two of us. I wouldn’t let her speak until I was done. As I spoke I saw the smile slowly fade. Then she surprised me again when she said she’d found out where her mother had bought the Carter’s panties. That got my attention, real quick. The she reached in her handbag and pulled out a package and I recognized it immediately. Every Carter’s product came in an individually wrapped plastic package and with distinctive graphics. She held it up and pointed to the little white price tag in the upper right hand corner. I could see the price... 89 cents and some really small print above it. I peered at the writing and could make out the word “Bloomingdale’s”. I knew of it from my mother. It was a large city based department store and I remember my mother commenting when looking at ads in the newspaper that their things were “pricey”. But the 89 cents wasn’t much more than I’d paid the last time I’d bought any for Elle. My immediate thought was that at least now I had a source for them even if I had no plans to go to the city. I was thanking Jerene for bringing them in to show me when all of a sudden my fantasy thought for trading panties came to mind.

She was still looking up at me when I asked her if she would give them to me in lieu of paying for the nylon ones. There was no shocked look on her face. I don’t think her expression changed at all. Then, in a matter of fact way said “Sure”. Now I was now holding the package of her panties and felt a little weird. I think I said “Thank you” but to shift the emphasis back to her I do remember then asking if she liked the nylon panties. Her eyes lit up and the smile widened and I got an emphatic “Yes!” The catalog was right there in my briefcase and to get out of the situation I asked if she wanted to see it. Another wide eyed and emphatic “Yes!” came forth.

As I handed it to her I reminded her not to mention any of this to anyone. I was fairly stern with her and I, again, remember her smile slowly disappearing. I then told her how to read the catalog, especially the fact that the different products were boxed differently, and, if she wanted anything she’d have to buy the whole box. She was back to being wide eyed. I think if I’d let her she would’ve perused it right then and there but I picked up my briefcase and headed for the back door with her following. By then I was thinking of the package of Carter’s Spanky Pants in my coat pocket and desperately wanting to get a look at them.

Not the same package but similar

To be continued...   

LIFE GOES ON... at home and work (Part 115i)

LIFE GOES ON... at home and work (Part 115i)

I have to interject here that even though Bret and I had the perception that Jerene was an “opportunist”, it was based upon her actions at work. My perception of her outside of work was that she was very naive. So, when asked the question about nylon panties she just turned towards me and had a one word answer... “No” and didn’t seem ill at ease in giving me that answer. Emboldened, I then asked if she’d like to try a pair. Now, if she was more “worldly“ she probably would have been concerned with a question of that nature coming from her ”boss... but she wasn’t and immediately answered with a very innocent ”Yes“. I didn’t expect her answer to be that quick and certainly not a positive one. I’d already formulated something to say to allay her possible concerns... so I went ahead with it anyway. I told her about my friend Willy and that he owned a lingerie company and had sent me samples. It wasn’t completely true but it was true enough that I wasn’t uncomfortable saying it. As I explained it to her she stood there somewhat wide eyed. I told her I’d bring her a pair in on Monday. In spite of the excitement of her willing responses the ”real world“ was right there facing me as well and I knew I had to leave. I put the key in the door and we both exited, Jerene to the left and me to the right.

The reality of what I’d just done hit me on the way home. You’ve heard of ”buyers or sellers remorse“ and what I was experiencing was remorse of a different kind. It was like a bit of paranoia hit me and all the things I shouldn’t have said came to mind. But, they’d been spoken and all the things I should’ve said to ”cover“ myself were also there to contemplate. The main one was in not making sure to tell/remind her not to mention our conversation with anyone. The primary one I was concerned about was the new girl, Laura, as she and Jerene had become somewhat close. Taking that thought a bit further, Trish and Laura, as cousins, were very close and as I pulled into the driveway my mind was conjuring up all kinds of potential problems if it got back to her.

However, over the weekend I did pull out a pair of the Evette, size 4, panties and put them in my briefcase. I have no memory of the rest of it at all what with the fear of repercussions kind of hanging over my head. Jerene was there before me Monday morning. I saw her wearing a ”knowing“ smile as I walked across the lobby over to my desk. During the morning when I tried sneaking a look at her I found her already looking at me and with the same kind of smile. I didn’t want to walk up to her without having a reason but I desperately wanted to tell her to stop looking over at me. Finally, she needed a check to be countersigned by me and came to my desk. That finally gave me the chance to tell her and to ask that she hang around a bit after the others left at 5pm. Talk about a ”knowing smile”!

The routine at 5pm was that Hank, the messenger/custodian would man the back door and let the employees out. He’d stay there until 10 minutes after and then would go upstairs and give out a “last call” meaning that he was on his way home and it would be up to anyone still there had to find their own way out. Then he’d come back down, walk across the lobby, and do the same thing. I was usually the last to leave and that was usually around 5:30pm or so. So, once Hank made his last call I motioned to Jerene to come on over to my desk. She had her coat and handbag with her and set them on the side chair. The look on her face was more of anticipation than anything else. I’d come up with a scenario in which I thought she’d take the envelope with the panties in it, thank me and then go home. It didn’t happen that way.(z)

She took the envelope, ripped it open and held the panties up in front of her. I was so shocked that I didn’t say anything for a few seconds and then I remembered that there were probably still some people on the second floor. I don’t remember exactly what I said but it was along the lines of taking them home and looking at them there.

At this point I need to describe the area we were in. It was called the “platform” where Hobie, Bret and I had our desks and waited on customers. They were all in a line along the outside wall and we all faced the work area behind the tellers counter. Trish also had a desk and hers faced the lobby so she could fulfill her role as receptionist. On the wall to our immediate left was the men’s restroom along with three chairs for customers to sit in while waiting. We’d made it a habit to leave the door to the room open but it could only go about 90 degrees from the wall as it stopped against one of the chairs. It was somewhat like a partition. On the back of the door was a full length mirror. From behind my desk I had to turn about 120 degrees to partially see into the room.

No sooner had I made my suggestion to Jerene than, without saying a word, she turned and walked towards the open door. My first thought was that she was going to try them on inside. But, as I turned to follow her path I was shocked to see her stop about halfway into the room and then start to step into the panties. I could only see a part of her right side as she did and I watched her pull them up while her skirt sort of draped over her the hand I could see. I’d seen Elle do this many times but this was different... it wasn’t Elle. As shocked as I was for what I’d just seen Jerene do I was totally unprepared for what happened next.

To be continued...

LIFE GOES ON... at home and work (Part 115h)

LIFE GOES ON... at home and work (Part 115h)

When Jerene realized someone was standing behind her she, reflexively, put her right hand behind her back to pull down her blouse... only it didn’t come down all that much. She was wearing a tailored blouse that wasn’t meant to be tucked in but to be worn out. Elle had one that my mother had gotten her for Christmas and it only went a few inches below her waist line and this one appeared to be about the same. When Jerene realized how big the gap was she imediately rolled over on her right side so that she was now sitting on the floor with her legs out and facing me. It was obvious she was a bit embarrassed. Looking up at me with an innocent smile she said something like “You didn’t see anything you shouldn’t have, did you?” Totally surprised with her question, I now found myself embarrassed. I didn’t know what to say so, for a few seconds, just stood there before saying something inane about the progress she was making and then headed for the other two girls working on the floor just in front of her.

It was about 3pm when all this transpired. After seeing that they were making good progress I headed for Elena who I knew was struggling. I also knew that if I went near her that I would make her nervous and that would only slow her down even more. But, and it was a big but, I needed to make sure that she was doing the job properly. A rough guess was that the three girls on the floor were more than half way through their bins as was Katie who was working on the table behind Elena. Elena wasn’t even half way through her bin. I stopped to ask if she had any problems and when she shook her head indicating "no" I told her she was doing a good job and headed for my desk and hoped she'd pick up some speed. I could see almost the whole lobby from there and the first thing I noticed was that Jerene had moved so that her back was now facing the outside wall. With that discovery I smiled to myself.

Jerene was the first to finish and as she did I went over and picked up her bin and took it to the fire safe. I told her that she was free to go but she said she’d wait around for the others. Katie was next and soon Cee and Corrinne finished up. It was a little before the target of 5pm and I could see Elena was upset at being last. She clearly concerned, she apologized and then asked if someone would finish up for her. It was no surprise that Jerene offered because, as I’ve written before, she was very much an opportunist when it came to looking good in the eyes of management.

Selfishly, I was glad. Kaye, my youngest had her 2nd birthday on Thursday but the whole family was celebrating it that night. Elle’s mother was hosting a dinner party at 6pm and I’d started to get worried that I’d be late. Being late for a meal at her house was trouble. Jerene dove right in and after about 20 minutes called out that she was on the last of the ledgers. I’d spent a good deal of time that afternoon thinking about the panties that she was wearing and wondering about that large and noticeable crotch panty line that I’d seen. While she worked at the counter I’d walked behind her and as I did I could see the crotch line even while she was standing. There’s no other way to describe my mindset... excited and intrigued.

After locking up the fire safe I went back to my desk to get my coat and brief case. I was a bit surprised that Jerene followed me. When I realized it and turned to look at her she had what I’d call an impish look on her face. I’d seen it a few times before, usually when she was going to question a policy or procedure. I knew there would be a question... and there was... only the topic really shocked me.

She asked why I'd been so embarrassed when, back when I’d walked up behind her in the lobby, she’d asked me if I saw something that I shouldn’t have. She had her head cocked and the smile, now more of a smirk, was growing. I didn’t know what to say so I stood there, knowing that I was blushing, and said nothing. I remember her raising her eyes a bit as she waited for me to answer which put even more pressure on me. I think I took a deep breath before I started and then told her that I’d recognized the label that was showing on her panties and it had surprised me. I wasn’t lying but I knew that I had to keep going before she had a chance to ask a question and totally turn the situation around. So, I told her that the reason I recognized it was that they were the exact same kind that my wife wore and, continuing, that she couldn’t find them anymore ever since the local store that had carried them had closed. The expression on her face quickly changed. She now had a questioning look as much as if to say, without words, that she didn’t believe me. Not giving her a chance to “re-group” I forged ahead and asked her where she’d bought them.

Now, with a frown on her face, she blurted out that she didn’t know because her mother bought all her underwear. I’d not put a lot of thought into the question before I asked it so didn’t have a preconceived answer in mind but, if I had, that wouldn’t have been one of the possibilities. At that point I, again, didn’t know what to say. I think she was a bit perplexed as well but finally said something along the lines that since she was little she’d always worn the same kind. I could see the clock on the wall and I knew I was going to be late for dinner so picked up my coat and brief case. She was standing by my desk holding her coat and handbag and sort of followed my lead as we headed for the back door.

Honestly, I don’t know where I came up with the next thing I said to her. It was totally “off the cuff”. I started by asking if I could ask her a personal question. By then she had her normal half smile on her face. She looked over at me and replied something along the lines of “as long as it’s not TOO personal” and gave off a little laugh. By then we were in the vestibule at the back door. My question was “Have you ever worn nylon panties?” 

To be continued...

LIFE GOES ON... at home and work (Part 115g)

LIFE GOES ON... at home and work (Part 115g)

We used a filing system called terminal digit. The last number of a bank account was the primary one. Starting with zero and on up to nine there were ten bins of ledgers. I knew a lot of space was needed to spread out the ledgers but when I arrived I was actually surprised to find three of the women crawling around on the lobby floor. When they tried to use the tellers work area they found it wasn’t deep enough. There was one work counter that was able to accommodate the cards from one bin and Bret had put two tables together to make another. It was around 11am when I got there and it looked like they were making good progress.

The one thing that really jumped out at me was it was the first time I’d seen any of them “dressed down”. Lorie had to be the most noticeable of the group. She was the most attractive of the first floor workers and always dressed well. She had shoulder length auburn hair and on this day she had it pinned back showing her ears. I almost didn’t recognize her. She was also wearing slacks that fit her really well. It was also the first time I’d seen Trish in pants... and both were working on the floor. It didn’t take long for my voyeuristic mind to go into overdrive.

The first VPL was from Trish. Because of how they had to crawl around to put the cards in the proper piles they had their butts up in the air. Trish was wearing a pair of pale green what appeared to be cotton pants. I was a bit disappointed in that they were a bit baggy and when I got a good view of her backside the crotch line of her panties wasn’t all that big. However, it was the first real sign of panties that I’d see on her in the year I’d worked there. For Lorie, the crotch line was much more pronounced but it still wasn’t all that big. I remember that her pants were about the color of a deer and may have been gaberdine. I do know that when she crawled about I could see the outline of both leg elastics as well as the crotch line. I’ll tell you this... as I walked about I had my hand in my pocket.

I purchased the pizzas and had them back at the bank just after mid day. Some of the afternoon group were there when I arrived. The working group was just finishing up which told me that the four hours we’d allotted was about right. That gave me encouragement about how long it would be until I got home. I miscalculated on just how much pizza I needed and had to go back for more. When I got back I was pleased to see the girls who’d worked in the morning giving their replacements tips on how to speed up the process. I even got to thinking we’d get out early. While eating I took a close look at what my crew was wearing and saw a definite VPL possibility with Jerene. She was wearing a pair of light grey knit pants. Today, they’d be called workout pants as they were semi fitted all the way to her ankles. She was wearing a cardigan sweater over a light blue blouse and looked quite nice for a "dress down" day.

I don’t really know how to describe what Cee was wearing for pants but I do remember they had a print on them. I knew that would made it difficult to see a panty line. Corrine, the colored girl, was wearing a pair of charcoal grey pants that might’ve been wool. I knew from Elle’s wool pants that they were probably too thick for me to see much, if anything.

They had all been told to wear “comfortable” clothes but, for whatever reason, Katie showed up in a skirt and Elena in a dress. When Katie saw the group working on the floor she immediately asked to work at the table. Knowing that Elena wasn’t familiar with the terminal digit filing system I knew I’d have to work with her so set her up at the one decent size work counter we had. What I hadn’t counted on was how hard it was going to be to educate Elena on what had to be done.


The other three, Cee, Corrine and Jerene took places on the lobby floor. I carried three bins out to them and, just to make sure that they all understood, took a batch of ledgers and spread them on the floor. They all had some comments about having to work on the floor but I told them it was the best place to do the job. I was about to go back to where Elena was going to be working but, stopped to watch Jerene bend over her bin and pull out a batch of ledgers. I was pretty sure I’d get a good VPL what with the knit pants she was wearing but I got a real surprise. The first thing I noticed was where the leg elastics would show... only it wasn’t elastics I was seeing. It was band legs like on the cotton panties that Elle wore. But there was more. The crotch line was very prominent. It actually had me wanting to go closer to get a better look but I knew I had to get Elena started so I turned away and told myself I had a few hours to get back around to her.

After about a half hour or so I still didn’t have a good feeling that Elena fully understood what it was that she was to do. I had to watch what I said as she wasn’t an employee under my direct supervision plus she had volunteered without being asked. Frustrated, I decided to walk over to see how Katie was doing.  In the months she'd been working she'd turned out to be capable employee and on this project seemed to have a handle on it. Then I walked back out into the lobby to check on the progress of the others.

As I said, Jerene had worn a cardigan sweater over a light blue blouse but, crawling around for a bit, she’d gotten warm enough to take the sweater off. As I approached her I saw something I didn’t really expect to see... a DP (downpants)... and it was VERY noticable. From about ten feet away I could see about four inches (across her back) of white panty and right down her spine there was at least an inch of them showing. I know I took a deep breath as I got closer. She was sitting on her knees but bent over one of the piles of ledgers, and, luckily for me, didn't see me approaching. I ended up standing right over her and as I looked down I couldn't believe my eyes. I immediately recognized her panties as being Carter's Spanky Pants, just like so many of Elle's. Somehow, the waist elastic had rolled over exposing the label and I recognized it immediately. Carter's was the only panty manufacturer who placed the label right in the back and right in the middle where the elastic ends were sewed together.

Basically, this is what I saw with her grey pants covering the area right below the waist elastic.

 I would've recognized them without seeing the label as their waist elastic was unique to Carter's panties. That they were Carter's, for sure, explained the band legs I’d observed on Jerene’s bottom earlier. But what had me really intrigued, though was the very prominent crotch line I’d seen earlier. In all the years Elle had been wearing them I never saw one as prominent. I needed to know more

To be continued... 

LIFE GOES ON... at home and work (Part 115f)

LIFE GOES ON... at home and work (Part 115f)

I’d calculated that it would be almost a month until I was able to take out a loan against my trust account. I’d really been hoping for a decent raise but, in reality, knew that even if I’d gotten what I’d hoped for it wouldn’t put much of a dent into what I owed. No matter what, I was going to have to wait until April.

One positive at work was the budding relationship between Jerene and Laura. Trish had come up with some clothes for Laura that were better suited for work than what she had but, because of a size difference between the two, they were ill fitting. Jerene, before starting at the bank, had worked in her family upholstering business and her primary job was to sew the material. In the course of getting to know each other Jerene volunteered to alter the skirts that Trish had given her. I wasn’t a party to any of this until, as I remember it, the first day Laura wanted to wear one of them to work. Her mother saw how short it was and had a “hissy fit”, according to Trish. I could see Laura was upset just by looking at her with her eyes all red and puffy. I asked Trish about it and she explained. She also said that she was going to take Laura home that afternoon and try to reason with her aunt about it. After Trish told me I took a look at Jerene and the hem of her skirt wasn’t the shortest of all the tellers with Cee and Katie holding that honor. It was about three inches above her knee and I felt that she probably wouldn’t have gone above that for Laura. I didn’t dwell on it as I had more serious things to consider with the interest period (or busy period, the term that the tellers used derisively among themselves) coming up quickly.

I wasn’t all that surprised to see Laura arrive in one of her cotton dresses the next morning. What was a surprise to me (and just about everybody else) was to see her about ten minutes later. There she was wearing one of Trish’s tweed skirts and it was about three inches above her knees. She also had on a frilly blouse and the combination on her was stunning. I looked down the teller line to where Jerene was standing and she had a great big smile on her face. I liked it! As soon as I could I asked Trish what was going on. She had a half smile on her face, almost a Cheshire cat grin. She hadn’t made out well with her aunt, being told it wasn’t any of her business and, in fact was given the skirt back. Trish was almost laughing at this point. When Laura had walked in that morning she intercepted her and gave her the skirt and one of her blouses and told her to go change in the ladies room. It was obvious that Trish was quite pleased with herself.

By the end of the day quite a few of the others had complimented Laura on how nice she looked and she responded by wearing a smile for most of the day. In a deal orchestrated by Trish and with the help of Jerena, that became the norm for
Laura. Arrive wearing one of her out of style and out place dresses and then, almost instantaneously, transform herself into an attractive, in style young woman. Jerena’s part became expanded when she realized that Laura could wear some of her clothes as well. I definitely remember both Bret’s and Hobie’s reaction. Neither had paid much attention, if any at all, to Laura’s hiring but, with the change in looks, they both became very aware of her presence.

The “busy period” started the following Tuesday and it was pure chaos. We had a number of teller machine breakdowns which slowed things down appreciably. There were still many people in the teller lines when 3pm came and the doors were locked for customers wanting to come in. I don’t remember what time it was when the last of them left but I do remember it was well after 6pm before I left. To me it was a bad omen. By 9am the next morning all the teller machines had been repaired but it was now the bookkeeping machine (the one that I’d been led to believe was a computer at the first bank I worked for) that was acting up. It would take way to long to explain the system we used for posting transactions to ledger cards. Suffice it to say, the chaos continued.

There was no way to explain the long lines to the customers. All we could do was to wait for the repairs to be made and listen to their grief. The machine was fixed on Thursday but the hangover from the loss of it for that time was tremendous. Lorie and Mala stayed late and came in early on Friday to try and get the postings up to date. But, what turned out to be the real problem was that so many ledger cards had been pulled from the file bins and, in the hurry to get them back in place, a lot of them were misfiled and that became our next problem. The complaints were numerous enough that Bert (the president) met with Hobie and I about it, telling us that we had to get it fixed before we opened the doors on Monday. The only solution we could come up with was to completely refile all the ledger cards. I remember shaking my head when asked what I thought about it. Since I didn’t have any ideas I felt it best to keep my mouth shut.

After a strategy meeting, with Bret included, Hobie felt it best that he be the one to tell the tellers, one on one, that they would have to come in on Saturday. Because of the short notice, to be fair, we’d decided that there would be two four hour shifts with the first from 8am to noon and the second from 1pm to 5pm. I suggested that the bank buy pizza for lunch with both groups able to partake. The women got to chose which shift they wanted based on seniority. After the expected grumbling it was explained they they would get paid as if they worked a whole day. That changed things, dramatically. We only had seven tellers but Elena, the mortgage teller, volunteered to help and then both Lorie, the bookkeeping machine operator, and Trish did also. As expected, the “old timers” elected the morning shift. Bret said he’d come in to supervise that group and I volunteered to buy the pizza and be in before noon and then take the afternoon shift. I can’t say anybody was really happy about it.

To be continued...

LIFE GOES ON... at home and work (Part 115e)

LIFE GOES ON... at home and work (Part 115e)

I can’t say I was overly enthusiastic about going to the party. Elle had gotten the directions and we were both surprised that we knew exactly where Jon and Ginger lived. Each of us had been past it hundreds and hundreds of times but neither of us could remember what the house looked like. When we drove up the reason was immediately evident. You could barely see it from the road. It was set back quite a ways and was set on a slight hill going away from the road. When we walked up to the door it looked quite small. Once inside our first impression was right... it was very small. Jon explained to us that it had been built as a Summer bungalow. He and Ginger bought it right after they were married with the idea of moving to a larger house after they started a family. However, they both fell in love with it because of it’s location... 300+ feet frontage on a small lake. As Jon was explaining it and I was looking around I wondered how they fit four kids into it. Even though it was a house it was almost the same space as we had when living in the mobile home. To make it work they employed the same tactic we'd used... bunk beds. They one improvement was to enclose the front porch to make a larger living room. Even with that it was still tiny.

They, like us, had parents to baby sit their kids so they weren't home. We were in the process of seeing the rest of the house when the next guests arrived so never did see the whole thing. Ginger had invited another couple that we hadn’t yet met... Phyl and Bob. She was a rather tall, plain women, a few years older than we were. Bob was an engineer with the local aerospace company. The other guests were Pat (the PTA lady) and her husband and Fritz and his wife, Nancy. Fritz upon seeing me, started talking about sailing again. It was certainly better than debating about the school board.
 
The men, as usual, gathered in the kitchen. Jon acted as bartender for everyone which was a lesson learned for me and for our next party. I certainly didn't want a repeat of Jon's brother's excesses. I did notice that Jon fixed his wife a few gin and tonics and by the time the women dragged us into the living room I could see she was a lot more ”relaxed“ than when we arrived. The women had decided that it was ”game time“ and we were going to play charades. Pat seemed to be the leader and she set up the teams. I ended up on Ginger’s team and Elle ended up on Jon’s team. I’d never played so I was at a loss as to what was going on. It was decided that each person would get a chance to perform a charade. It was obvious that the women took great glee in seeing the men make fools of themselves. Almost the last to go was Ginger and by then she was really relaxed. She was wearing a short (mid thigh) skirt that was a bit tight. Of course the men had no idea what her pantomime was about but I took great interest in watching her getting down on the floor. To say it was less than graceful is being kind. My problem was I was facing her side and didn’t get to see anything ”interesting“. But my disappointment was short lived. She was sitting on the floor with her legs straight out in front of her. She started by putting her arms out in front of her and then pulling them back towards her chest a number of times. I didn’t have a clue and neither did the other guys. She did some other motions that I still wasn’t in tune to. With time running out she then pulled her legs up towards her chest when she pulled her arms back like she’d done when she first started. Each time she did it was a fantastic view. Because her skirt was so tight she'd pulled it up around her hips and I (and everybody else) could see her panties, at least part of them. Then, almost as if she was playing to me as her audience, she turned so that I was looking straight at her. With each lift of her legs she would spread her knees a bit and I remember having to swallow. Time was soon up and it was ”row row row your boat“ that we were trying to figure out. I didn’t care that the team lost. I knew that at least I was a winner!

Elle had seen me looking at Ginger during her ”performance“ and, just before getting into our station wagon, made a negative comment about it. There wasn’t much I could say but I was smiling inside. Just after getting behind the wheel, Bob, the fellow we’d just met at the party, came up and asked me if he needed a boat to join the sailing club. It only took me a second or two to remember I had to sell my Sailfish, and soon. I didn’t lie but I didn’t give him the whole truth when I told him that it wasn’t a requirement but it would make his membership request more legitimate. He then asked if I knew of any cheap sailboats available. Bulls eye! So, between Ginger’s very generous panty peeks and Bob’s interest in my Sailfish, attending the party had some value, Elle’s unhappiness with me notwithstanding.

The monthly Board of Trustees meeting was that Wednesday and I knew my annual review should be included. I waited at my desk until almost 6pm to see Hobie and get the ”word”. I was hoping for at least a $1,000 raise and when he told me it was $260 I know I said something I shouldn’t have... but I don’t remember what it was. Hobie told me to calm down and explained that when the Board had made me an officer (and given me a raise) my anniversary date was changed to coincide with that. However, it hadn’t been explained to me. He told me that the token amount I was given was due to the efforts of the Board member who had spearheaded the adjustments for the employees. It did appease me, somewhat, but I was still disappointed. Five dollars a week wasn’t going to pay much of my outstanding bills.

To be continued... 

LIFE GOES ON...at home and work (Part 115d)

LIFE GOES ON... at home and work (Part 115d)

As silly as it may sound I was nervous driving in to work the next morning. Even though I was my usual 15 minutes early I was surprised to see Trish at her desk and a blonde female sitting by my desk. I’d hoped that Trish would get up and introduce us but she wouldn’t look at me as I walked past. I could see the girl was wearing a cotton flowered dress and a white cardigan sweater that was too big for her as I walked around her to face her. I think I said ”Hi“ as I introduced myself. I could barely hear her response as she had her head down looking at her hands which were folded in her lap. I remember trying to start a conversation more so to get a look at her face but without much success. I finally got Trish to look at me and, with my eyes, let her know I needed help.

When Trish came over Laura looked up at her and I could finally see her face... and it was a pretty face. She had shoulder length hair with bangs. Trish had told me she was 18 but she looked more like 14 to me. When she spoke to Trish I saw that her top two front teeth were slightly pushed back. However, it didn’t diminish her cuteness all that much. I had Trish get a chair and join us and then I started getting somewhere with Laura.

Trish had been right when she had warned me about Laura’s shyness. However, with Trish asking the questions she was much more at ease. I was actually impressed with how Trish handled the interview and I pretty much became a fly on the wall. I found out that Laura liked working with numbers and after having the job explained to her she stated that she thought she'd like to give it a try. At first I was taken aback by the casualness of her comment. However, when I considered the fact that it really wasn’t her idea to apply at the bank I dismissed the lack of enthusiasm. I had Trish take her over to see Liz. As they walked away I couldn’t help thinking of Laura as a waif what with her wearing the obviously out of season and out of style dress. She was also wearing penny loafers, without stockings, not what would be expected for a job interview.

After a while Liz brought her back over to my desk and she was wearing a smile. All she said to me was that she was ready for Laura as soon as Laura was. They said their good byes and then Laura sat back down with me. By then she was comfortable enough to look at me as she spoke. I remember thinking to myself about what a shame it was that her parents hadn’t done something about her front teeth. While Laura and Liz had been talking Trish told me that Laura had no way home and would have to wait around until the end of the day. I asked how she’d get to work and was told there was bus that she could take. At that point, with Liz willing to accept her and me being satisfied, I asked her if she wanted to start right then and there. I’ll never forget the look on her face.

I got Trish to get all her paperwork taken care of. Then she led her over to Liz who’s smile almost equaled Laura’s. Later on that day I had a chance to talk with Trish and took up the subject of Laura’s dress and shoes. I asked if there wasn’t some way she could help her out. I remember the sort of embarrassed smile she had on her face when she said she’d try. She was bigger than Laura so I wondered how she’d manage that. At least Laura wouldn’t be seen by the public but I was a bit worried about how she’d be accepted by the other employees, especially the younger ones.

I was pleasantly surprised to find Jerena talking with Laura at the end of the day. Trish was finishing up a letter for me and Laura was waiting for her. Even though I knew Laura had graduated the previous year, I’d forgotten that Jerena had too. That was what put them together. On the way home that night I had a good feeling about Laura and I hoped that she and Jerena would become friends as it would be good for both of them. Over the next few days I recognized some of Tricia’s clothes on Laura. It was an improvement but because Trish was easily three inches taller and obviously bigger the skirts really didn’t look all that good. The blouses were also hanging on her. I did feel sorry for her from that standpoint. I hoped that after she got her first paycheck that her parents would allow her to get some appropriate clothes.

On a personal note, my one year anniversary was coming up soon and I was hoping (a lot!) that I’d get a decent raise. With all the things I’d been involved in over the year I felt I’d more than proved myself. Bret hadn’t told me what his raise had been but it was easy to tell that he was pleased. I hoped that would be an indicator for me. I knew that I had at least one board member on my side and that was the one who had me work up all the projections on the salary adjustments for the employees.

On that weekend we were invited to a party at Ginger and Jon’s house. Knowing that Jon’s brother Rob would probably be there and having seen him embarrass himself at our party I hadn’t been too keen on it. Elle had to go to the school to straighten out some paperwork on one of our kids and ran into Pat (the PTA lady) who asked if we were going to Ginger’s party. Elle was non committal but Pat told her that Rob and his wife wouldn’t be there. When Elle told me that I told her why not. We were still trying to come up with a core of friends. I’d liked Jon from the first time I’d met him and even if his wife was a bit frumpy she’d given me a really good panty peek at our party and there was always the possibility for another.

To be continued...    

LIFE GOES ON... at home and work (Part 115c)

LIFE GOES ON... at home and work (Part 115c)

I already had my hands full with most of my time taken up by being interrogated by the examiners. Now I had to go find a replacement for Joanne. Before we left for the day I asked Trish to give me the folder with the recent applications in it so I could review them at home. I wasn’t thrilled with what I saw but there were a couple that warranted being interviewed. The next morning, before I was even seated at my desk, Trish came up to me and it was plain to see there was something on her mind. As I’ve previously written, Trish and I were working well together. She’d been very helpful in being the intermediary between the "Polish Mafia" and management. However, there were times I couldn’t figure her out but I chalked it up to the fact that she was a female. On this occasion I wasn’t sure what was coming. She made a few abortive attempts to start but backed off each time. I finally told her to “spit it out”. With that, she relaxed a bit and sat down in the side chair next to my desk. She started out by asking me for a favor. That was a definite “first”. I had no idea where her “favor” was heading.

She asked if I could interview her 18 year old cousin before contacting any of the applicants. It wasn’t totally out of line because I’d been made aware of the fact that there were a number of employees who’d gotten their jobs by being recommended by an already employed relative. There were two sets of sisters and plus an aunt and her niece. It would mean a day’s delay before contacting the applicants but Trish had asked for a favor and I thought I knew her well enough by the to trust her judgement. I had a bunch of questions for her but customers were waiting so I told her we’d discuss it after 3pm.

The one thing I couldn’t put off was Bret. I made a half hearted attempt to get him to acknowledge that as “exciting” as it had been to see Joanne that way the end result wasn’t worth it. That pretty much ended any reference to the situation, at least between us. However, it did confirm to me that he was definitely a “panty man“. I also remember wondering what he’d think of me if he knew of my past panty involvement with his wife.

As soon as the last customer left the bank Trish was back at my desk. Basically, I asked about her cousin’s background. Her mother was Trish’s aunt who had married into a farm family. Her cousin’s given name was Laureen but she liked to be called Laura. She was the oldest of five children and, at least to Trish, that was a problem. I got another ”lesson“ on the Polish way of thinking as she explained the home situation for Laura. She’d graduated from school the previous June and had done fairly well as far as grades. But, she hadn’t gotten a job because her father expected her to stay at home and care for her siblings while her mother worked on the farm. I sat there somewhat dumbfounded as Trish told me that Laura hadn’t been allowed to be involved in extra curricular activities while attending school and that she’d never been on a date of had a boyfriend. Her father had forbidden it and demanding that she come right home and take care of the kids, clean the house, do the wash and prepare supper. At this point Trish offered up that if the law hadn’t required it, Laura wouldn’t have attended school after she turned twelve. There wasn’t much I could say because it was all laid out for me.

I took a few seconds to reflect on what I’d just learned and the big question for me was how was Laura going to escape the grasp of her somewhat (at least to me) tyrannical father. Trish told me that her mother and father had what we now call ”an intervention“ with him. He’d agreed to allow her the freedom to get a job but that she’d have to give most of her pay to him for room and board. Laura had agreed just to be able to have some freedom. But Trish warned me that when I interviewed her the next day to be expecting a very shy and somewhat introverted girl. She said that she felt that Laura would be a good fit with Liz, the auditor, a very laid back, mature woman who would be patient with her. When she finished telling me about Laura I couldn’t wait to meet her. Just to be fair to Liz I told her about the upcoming interview and promised that she would be the one to make the final decision. I remember her looking right at me and saying that she wanted another Joanne.

At home, even with the austerity, things were going well. When Elle went in to teach at the local school for the first time she was welcomed by some of the teachers who had taught her. That made her feel really good and the principal even went out of his way to welcome her back saying that he was sure he’d be seeing her again, and soon. For me, it couldn’t be soon enough. I hated owing money. James, Peggy’s father, was owed the most (over $50) but didn’t seem concerned. I know that should’ve been a plus but it actually made me more uncomfortable. I hadn’t seen Peggy since we’d moved. Not living in the same town anymore I didn’t go to his gas station on weekends when she did the ”books“. When I saw him I usually asked about her and when James told me that she had a boyfriend I could tell he wasn’t all that happy. The boy had graduated the previous year and was going to join one of the armed services. Jim volunteered that his main concern was that he’d go off and forget about her. All I could do was hope that it worked out for both Peggy and her father. I really liked both of them.

To be continued...

LIFE GOES ON... at home and work (Part 115b)

LIFE GOES ON... at home and work (part 115b)

The opening in the wall for the door was seven feet high. I’m guessing but we had under 3 feet between the top of the opening and the floor of the car. To get Joanne out she was told that she had to pretty much lie on the floor on her stomach then ooch her way, backwards, towards the opening. However, she was so upset that she didn't move. Hobie finally got her calmed enough to get her to acknowledge that we were doing our best to help her. I could hear her ask if she could just get on her hands and knees and back out that way. Just to get her to do anything he agreed. He told her that he would stand on the ladder and then guide her feet to the steps of the ladder. Then, step by step, he'd guide her on down. Bret and I were assigned to hold each side of the ladder to keep it from wobbling.

I’m not sure how much time it took to get her even started towards the door but it seemed like an eternity. From where Bret and I were standing we could see her feet slowly moving out. I continued to watch as Hobie, who had one of her ankles, guided her foot to the top step of the ladder. Then the second one came out... and then I saw a white pantied butt protruding from the opening right above me. OH MY HEART! On her hands and knees and in moving backward she’d lifted her back (and butt) enough so that the hem of her skirt got caught on the opening and was being pulled towards her head. With her in panic mode I just knew she had no idea of what we all were seeing. In any case, her upper body was still inside the car as Hobie guided her feet to the next step. As I stared up at her I saw something else... her panties and the back of her thighs were wet. Her panties appeared to be pasted to her bottom. I was holding on to the ladder as tight as I could and even though I knew it was a very serious situation, I also knew I had a very large bulge in my pants. I was trying to press it against the leg of the ladder to hide it with my eyes still glued to her backside.

It wasn’t until she got her head out of the car and had both hands on the top of the ladder that the hem of her skirt dropped back down and it, too, was visibly wet. However, even with that her panties were still visible to both Bret, I and Hobie (and probably to some of those gathered in the lobby) who was still guiding her feet to each step on the ladder. When she was finally on the floor she turned around to hear (and see) people clapping her successful escape. she let out a cry of distress and ran off towards the ladies room. When she did that I know I felt embarrassed for her. Thankfully, Hobie told us to go get tables to put across the openings on both floors to keep anyone from falling in. When we’d finished Trish told us that Joanne had gone home. It wasn’t a surprise especially having seen just how wet she was.

Because it was so late in the day and the elevator service people were located in the city we had to wait until the next day for the repair. Liz, the auditor with whom Joanne worked, was concerned about the files that she’d been carrying when the incident happened. She asked Bret to climb up to the car and see if he could reach them. Bret was afraid of heights so he turned to me. I was trying to get things back to normal so wasn’t exactly thrilled with the timing of the request. I won’t deny that I shot him a ”look” but, with the ladder still available, I headed towards the opening. After moving the table I climbed up and peered in on the floor of the car. The jumbled files were in reach, just off to my right. I sort of swept them towards me and gathered them up as best I could. As I started back down I scanned the whole floor to make sure I had everything. As I did I saw the puddle that Joanne had left. When we had finally gotten the door open we saw that she was huddled on the floor in the back and that was where it was located. Seeing it started another bulge. Now, as I started down, the eyes were turned on me. Even though it was nothing like Joanne had been exposed to, it was still an uncomfortable situation for me.

Bret wanted to talk to me and I knew it was about Joanne and what had happened to her. Even though I’d thoroughly enjoyed my vantage point I did feel sorry for her so made like I had someplace to go to avoid him. In spite of a whole lot of things waiting for me to handle sitting on my desk I stayed away until after I knew Bret had gone for the day. I was way late getting home and when Elle asked why, my excuse was the arrival of the bank examiners. For some reason I just didn’t want to discuss Joanne with anyone.

I couldn’t avoid it the next day because Joanne’s mother called in to say she wouldn’t be in. When Liz told me Bret was right there. As soon as she turned away he came over with a sly smile on his face. I still didn’t want to have a conversation with him about it and when he walked away I know he was puzzled. I didn’t care.

Without help Liz was being run ragged by the examiners. I asked if there was some way I could help and she declined. I tried to make her feel better assuring her that Joanne would be back the next day. However, none of us ever saw her again. Her mother came in to the bank that afternoon and met with Liz explaining that Joanne had been so embarrassed that she just couldn’t face all the people who’d seen her in distress. Liz got Hobie to talk with the woman but when she left he was convinced that it was a done deal and Joanne was no longer an employee.

To be continued...

LIFE GOES ON... at home and work (Part 115a)

LIFE GOES ON... at home and work (Part 115a)

Elle and I had a serious talk about finances after the oil “situation”. I basically told her that no matter how much she wanted something for the house it would have to wait until after my birthday when I’d be able to borrow some money against the trust account. I didn’t give her a chance to even put in a “but”. I’d done a tally of just what I owed to various merchants and came up with what I could offer in the way of partial payments to each until then. I wasn’t looking forward to actually asking them. To me it felt like begging and I didn’t like that thought one bit.

Elle finally got a call from the local school for substitute teaching which certainly raised our morale a bit. The problem was that it would be almost three weeks until she actually received her pay. However, she did find out that it was the direct result of Pat (the PTA lady at our party) asking her friend, the school secretary, to do her a favor and to call Elle. We both felt good about that.

When I got my next paycheck, after taking out for food, electricity and insurance, I divided the remainder up up fairly equally between the local merchants and Sears. Sears already had a provision for partial payments so I didn’t have to ask about that one. I got a good reception from all but one and he was the one person I felt would be the most receptive since he had known my family since before I was born . I couldn’t believe it when he told me, straight out, to go borrow some money from “my old man because he had plenty". I looked at him and wanted to cuss him out right there but didn’t say a word. In my mind I knew that other than to pay him in full (it was about $30 as I remember it) after I got the loan that I’d never go in his store again. Even though I’d met mostly with success with the others I still didn’t feel good about it.

Work was going smoothly and I was especially pleased with Jerena. The customers loved her even to the extent that a few had written to the bank president praising the service they’d received. The one concern I had, and it wasn’t major, was that she seemed aloof to the other tellers. Even though she was still stationed next to Cara, the one who’d trained he,r she’d come to me or Bret when she had a question. On that I’d noticed, in most cases, she was questioning an actual policy. She’d phrase in such a way that she didn’t challenge it head on but would take a  round about way, asking how did it come about. One day, after he’d experienced a few of them, Bret turned to me and called her a ”pita“ (pain in the ass). I'd had somewhat the same feeling but on a couple of her questions I actually could see her point. I decided not to speak to her about it and to give some actual thought to the points she raised.

A necessary evil in all businesses in the audit done by an outside accounting firm. In banking you have to add two more to the annual tally... the State banking department  and the Federal examiners. Even though I’d only been in the banking field a short time I knew how much of a disruption their arrival could cause. For some reason the State examiners hadn’t made it in over a year. To make up for it they assigned a senior examiner to run the audit and he was a real ”PITA“, in capital letters. Fortunately, Hobie interacted with him freeing me up to concentrate on the customers. I had to feel sorry for Joanne as this was her first experience with this type of audit. She, as the audit clerk, and Liz, the auditor were put upon to provide the examiner staff with the documents they requested. There were nine of them in total and the only room large enough to hold them was the Board room. It was in the most out of the way place imaginable, on the second floor and way in the back. Joanne seemed to be going back and forth with different files and folders all that first day. It was approaching 3pm when we would close the doors to the customers when I heard a sound I’d never heard before.

It sounded like a bell but off key. It was very loud and was coming from the lobby in the area of the elevator. I looked at Trish and she put her hands up as if to say she didn’t know what it was either. Bret and I ran out into the lobby and, sure enough, it was coming from behind the closed door of the elevator. It only lasted for about 30 seconds and then we could hear a female screaming for help from behind the door. It took some screaming on out part to get her to stop. It was Joanne and it was obvious she was in panic mode. J J had come part way down the stairs to tell us that it, indeed, was Joanne. Hobie appeared a few minutes later and told us to get the emergency key and pointed to a little hole in the upper portion of the door. Bret and I looked at each other and had no idea where it might be or what it looked like if we were to try and find it. After a few seconds Hobie told us to go find Hank, the messenger/custodian as he was the keeper of the key. From the stairs, J J piped up that he was out on a messenger run.

In the meantime we could hear Joanne crying and pleading for help. I ran to the basement and brought up a ladder so we could get closer to the door to try and calm her down. We’d pretty much figured out the the car had stopped between floors. Hobie climbed the ladder and got Joanne to listen to him. Im not sure how long it was before Hank showed up but, by then, there were at least 20 people, including some examiners and customers, gathered around in the lobby. It didn’t take long for Hank to fetch the key. After he inserted it it took both Bret and I to manually move the door back. We could see about 1/3 of the interior of the car and that Joanne was hunkered down in a corner, on the floor, crying and wimpering. J J suggested that we open the door on the second floor to see if that wasn’t a better option to getting her out so Hank and Bret went upstairs with J J. It was quickly determined that our only option was to get her out down on the first floor.

To be continued...