ANOTHER NEW YEAR... high hopes (Part 125f)
It didn’t take long
for the ”troops“ to get their things and to head out the door. They
were all told to call in to let us know they made it home safely. Bret,
Cara and I were on the banking floor and Lynne was on the second floor,
alone. Bret and I talked sports for a while and then Cara suggested that
one of us go upstairs to keep Lynne company. Bret and Cara had gotten
into one of those ”do you remember“ conversations about when they were
in high school together so I volunteered to go upstairs. The switchboard
was located at the top of the stairs and from there you could get a
straight on view down Main Street looking to the East. It was a mess. It
had been snowing for three hours and still it hadn’t been plowed.
Before I got a chance to ”visit“ with Lynne the switchboard started to
light up like a Christmas tree. (Remember, it was an old PBX board with
wires that had to be manually plugged in.) It was the employees calling
in that they’d made it home. I took the call from Jerena who reported no
real problems but it was just slow going. The calls kept right on
coming and it was the same message form all. I also took the call from J
J, since we both lived in the same town, about 11 miles to the East. It
had taken him almost an hour (normally 20 to 25 minutes) because there
were a few accidents along the Main road. He warned me to take it slow.
Every time he’d hit the brakes the car would just slide forward. By
1:30pm we’d heard from all but one person. I had Lynne call their home
number and got one of the kids. He told me that his mother had ”car
trouble“ and his dad had gone to ”rescue“ her. I was immediately
concerned and asked what kind of ”car trouble“ it was and he laughed and
said that she’d run out of gas.
Cara and Bret kept track of how
many people came into the lobby from the time the others had left until
3pm... exactly four... one customer with a deposit and two store owners
who’d seen the lights on and came in to see if we were really open and
one man who was just cold. Lynne had about a dozen calls with most
asking if we were going to be open the next day. To say it was a waste
of time to stay open is hitting the nail on the head. At exactly 3pm
Bret and I locked the doors and by 3:05pm all four of us were in the
back vestibule preparing to go out into the storm. I remember watching
the snow blowing by the door at about a 45 degree angle. Once outside
Bret asked if I wanted a hand getting the snow off my car. Never one to
refuse help, especially in a snow storm, I said ”OK” and we headed for
the back parking lot. As we made our way to my car it was obvious that
the parking lot had been plowed. However, as we made the turn into the
back lot I couldn’t believe my eyes. The idiot snow plow operator had
pretty much plowed me in.
Bret and I looked at each other not
knowing what to say or do. We were both in our business suits and fairly
light overcoats, not exactly the clothes one would wear to do a sizable
amount of shoveling... plus there was only one shovel in the vestibule.
Bret started walking back toward the bank waving for me to follow. When
we got to the street he told me to come on home with him and we’d
figure it out later. By then I was pretty cold so didn’t complain. Even
with having to make our way through unshoveleled snow that was easily
six plus inches we were at his house in about twenty minutes.
I
hadn’t seen his wife, Jan, in quite a while and was looking forward to
it. She was back working full time at the hospital. They were still
living with Bret’s parents and the last time I’d been there the house
didn’t seem quite as small. That was because they hadn’t had their baby
yet. I had to stop and think back to Elle’s and my first child and all
the paraphernalia that went with it. Bret’s mother didn’t work so she
was able to care for the child on a full time basis. She greeted us with
a big smile and said she’d just made up some cocoa and cookies. It
sounded good to me. Bret asked if she’d heard from Jan and she said that
someone with a four wheel drive truck was bringing her home at 4pm,
when her shift was over.
Bret’s father was the manager of the
local office of a large regional commercial bank and he was due home at
any minute. When he did he joined us for the cocoa and cookies and we
proceeded to tell him of my woes. Without hesitation he strongly
suggested that I spend the night with them. I remember taking a quick
glance at Bret’s mother to see her reaction. The best way to describe
the look on her face was to say it was one of resignation... her husband
had committed to something with out a discussion... again. I
immediately protested and said I had to get going but he was adamant,
saying that it was foolish to go back out into the storm. Just about
then Jan walked in. She was a little heavier than when she lived at my
grandfather’s house but was still cute in a plain sort of way. She
proceeded to tell us what an ordeal the trip from the hospital had been.
(I won’t bore you with it.) That pretty much sealed my fate. She then
disappeared and was soon back in regular clothes. After she was filled
in about the “accidental guest” proceeded to ask just where was I going
to sleep. It was a good question.
It really was a small house
even though it had three bedrooms. There were two on the first floor and
one upstairs. There was only one bathroom and that was right between
the two bedrooms. Bret’s parents had moved upstairs when Bret and Jan’s
daughter went into a full size crib. It didn’t take long to figure out I
was sleeping on the sofa. I’d called Elle a few times to see how she
was making out and was doing well. She told me that John (the farmer
neighbor) had cleared the driveway twice before dark so that I wouldn’t
have any problem. Supper was ready when I got off the phone. I don’t
remember what it was but I do remember Bret’s mother baking an apple pie
for dessert in honor of their guest... me.
We watched TV after
we’d eaten and on the news it was reported the storm had been much more
severe than had been predicted. I immediately remembered my father’s
warning the night before. As usual, he was right on the money. It was
decided that we’d all get up early to get a head start on the shoveling.
To make things easier on the bathroom, Jan volunteered to take her
shower before going to bed. Hearing that got my attention.
To be continued...
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