APRIL... More of the same (Part 128e)

APRIL... More of the same (Part 128e)

While all this was going on I noticed that Donna kept looking my way. It was almost a ”which came first, the chicken or the egg?“ situation. I couldn’t make up my mind weather to first ask if Donna had made a decision on the move or to just tell her that was the way it was going to be. Before I could decide Trish told me that Gina was on the phone wanting to know when to come in.  I told her to have her come in at 1pm and that way if I decided to hire Gina then Donna would have the choice of making the move or leaving.

Bret had heard Trish tell me about Gina’s call and immediately turned to me. I knew from the call the night before what he was looking for so decided to have a little fun with him. I asked if he knew her from the past and he blushed straight away. I didn’t let up and asked if he and his wife were having problems. He fell all over his tongue telling me there wasn’t. It was fun seeing straight laced Bret ”turning in the wind”. He finally blurted out that he thought she was the best looking girl he’d seen in a very long time. I couldn’t disagree and finished up our conversation by asking him if I should start hiring by looks alone. He laughed and turned back towards his desk.

Normally, Donna would go to lunch by leaving from the back door but on this day she made a very slow and deliberate stroll up through the platform area and past my desk. I decided to challenge her a bit and boldly and with a big smile on my face told her to have a good lunch. That caught her by surprise and she then moved towards the door at a much quicker pace.

I’ll admit I was nervous as Gina sat down next to my desk. She was very calm and yet “bubbly” at the same time. Wearing what could loosely have been described as business attire... a long sleeved white blouse and a navy blue skirt that was just above her knees, she sat back in the side chair and crossed her legs much like she might’ve done in a waiting room to keep an appointment. I didn’t waste time so, point blank, asked why she wanted to work at the bank. I added that she had to know that a teller’s salary couldn’t compete with the wages paid by the County. Still “bubbly” she said she just wanted to be able to deal with people. To me that was admirable but unrealistic so I asked her why she’d left the job at the County Treasurer’s office. I thought that might change her demeanor but it didn’t. Her first words were “It was just time” and that was when she finally leaned forward. With a more serious look on her face she quietly said that she’d had a baby. That caught me by surprise and I wasn’t prepared for it. I know I must’ve mumbled something inane at that point. I do remember asking who was taking care of it and she said her mother was and quickly added that she’d continue to do so when she got back to work. I was the one who was now sweating.

We “danced” around that for a minute or two but Gina got us back on track when she asked that if she was hired wasn’t there some way she could get credit for her years of experience handling money. I definitely remember shaking my head from side to side. At that point she leaned back and sort of looked up at the ceiling. That gave me a chance to ask if she’d applied to any other banks and that’s when I got my next surprise. Slowly, she stated that she’d wanted to get the job on her own... by just walking in and being accepted. Then she went on to say that one of her grandfather’s had been a Trustee and that her father had told her to apply. Talk about a blindside!

At that point I knew what the ultimate outcome was going to be but wanted to take as much control of the situation as I could. As I looked at her she almost looked apologetic as if to say she understood the situation she’d put me in. I had a whole bunch of thoughts spinning around in my head and the only one I could verbalize was to ask/plead with her not to tell anyone about her grandfather’s relationship to the bank. That got her to the edge of the chair and when she answered it was the first time I saw a really serious side to her. She promised that it would be a secret between the two of us and went on to say that I wouldn’t be sorry for hiring her. I definitely remember taking a deep breath at that time. I went on to explain the situation with Donna to her and that I’d need a day or two to get it sorted out. I was fairly confident that by the close of business the next day it would be resolved. By then Gina was back to the “bubbly” person who’d walked in at 1pm.

She was barely out of the door when Bret turned to me and asked if I’d hired her. I nodded affirmatively and then he asked what she was going to be doing. As far a I knew the only person to know about the situation with Donna was J J. Since it hadn’t been resolved up to then I jokingly told him that she was going to replace him. You would have to have known Bret... he took everything seriously. I couldn’t keep a straight face so told him I would certainly find a place for her and that brought a big smile to his face.

As I’ve mentioned before, Donna was very smart and also very aware of what went on around her. When I went to her and told her to meet me upstairs she pretty much knew her fate. I got J J and we all went into the Board room. J J was as cocky and happy as a pig in s__t. His Irish blarney was what actually saved the day because he had a “sales pitch” prepared for Donna. As I listened I was mentally shaking my head at just what a BSer he was. The meeting took less than 15 minutes and when we walked out the door Donna was designated as the new mortgage satisfaction clerk and had a raise to boot. The Cheshire cat grin on her face could be seen a mile away and I knew that she, in some perverse way, felt that she’d won.

I’m going move forward to Wednesday when Gina showed up for work. As luck would have it J J showed up right after she’d taken her coat off at my desk. I saw him stop and do a “double take” as he looked at her. I’ll bet he stood there in the middle of the lobby for well over 30 seconds with his eyes never leaving her. Then, it was only a few minutes later when my phone rang and it was J J saying that I’d just pulled a “fast one” on him. It was so typical of him! I'd joked with Bret about hiring based on looks but if J J were in charge that would've been the norm.

To be continued... 
  

APRIL... More of the same (Part 128d)

APRIL... More of the same (Part 128d)

Naturally, my first question of Elle after all the guests had left was what she had given to Ginger after she’d run upstairs. I knew it was going to “cost” me to find out so I was prepared. I’ve stated that we’d moved getting a new refrigerator to the head of our want/need list but I hadn’t made the commitment as to when we'd do it. That was what she wanted... to know when we’d get a new one. To have full access to the funds in the trust fund I knew I’d have to get and sign a bunch of papers but with being so busy hadn't made the effort. I told Elle I’d do it first thing on Monday and that was enough for Elle to open up.

Elle had gotten the “dribble panties” to Ginger right after we’d made them up and she'd liked them. They’d been pretty much perfect for her needs but, there were still times where Ginger had more than a dribble... and that evening had been one. When Elle spoke to her when she’d gone into the bathroom she’d offered to get her a pair of her own. When she ran upstairs she saw a pair of sanitary panties on her dresser and decided to let Ginger use them in stead. That was it. I was pretty sure I’d been right when I’d gotten my upskirt look at Ginger. I asked Elle if she’d gotten any response from Ginger and she shook her head negatively saying there had been no time to chat.

I didn’t find the information to be worth the cost of a new refrigerator so started “negotiating” for some pictures. She’d already agreed to one as a birthday present but I saw the opportunity for more. Elle tried holding me to the original arrangement but I knew I had the upper hand (and the money) so we bantered back and forth and she finally agreed to allow me six over a period of time. We’d pretty much cleaned up the residue from the party by that time and headed upstairs. With the kids at Elle’s mother’s house I was looking for some extended “amour”. Before turning out the last lights on the first floor I grabbed the camera and the tripod. I’d hoped that Elle hadn’t seen it but she did. When she did she reminded me it just the one as my birthday present.

I wanted something special so I set the camera up so I could get a picture of the two of us. I knew I was pushing her to her limit and didn’t want it to interfere with the “prize” for the evening so was willing to accept a somewhat less sexy picture than I'd conjured up. I stripped to my T shirt and lay down on the bed and Elle was down to her nightie and panties. I’d set the timer on the camera and told Elle to push the shutter button and then hurry over and straddle me. She clearly wasn’t too happy with the idea but I pleaded my case about it being my only real birthday present. Reluctantly, she complied.
                                   

Although what followed the picture was pleasurable it probably would have been better without it. What salvaged it, surprisingly, was that we both fell asleep. Elle had not put on her “package“ and woke up to find, what else, a wet bed. Before she could get too upset I was on top of her and this time it was much better. In the morning we both laughed about it as we stripped the bed sheets and made it up fresh.

Big ”B“ came Sunday afternoon to wish me a happy birthday and we spent some time formulating a plan of action for the racecar. The racetrack had a meeting scheduled Wednesday evening to go over the season’s schedule and rules changes. ”B“ would be on the road making calls so I said I’d attend. We looked at the car stored in my garage and with all my ”stuff“ stored on, around and in it we concluded we had to find a better place to be able to work on it. ”B“ said he had some ideas and we left it at that.

That evening I got a call from Bret. We were good friends and worked together well but it was rare for him to call me. He hemmed and hawed a bit before getting to the point. He wanted to know what I thought of the woman who’d showed up looking for a job on Friday night. That sort of shocked me. Other than knowing he had a fairly keen interest about panties we’d never even had one conversation about ”chicks“. He tried to back out of it but initially, wouldn’t let him. I let him off the hook when he said his wife had just come into the room. I knew I was going to have some fun with him the next day. But, the call did get me to thinking again about doing a background check on Gina the next day.

The first thing I did on Monday was to call Jay, my friend in the Data Processing department, to see if he could help to fill in the gap in Gina’s application. He seemed glad to hear from me at first but when I mentioned Gina’s name I could hear a change in the tone of his voice. He immediately wanted to know why I was asking. I simply told him that she’d applied for a job and it was almost a year since she’d worked. He seemed troubled with what he was saying or at least trying to say. The only specific thing he did give me was that it had been about a year since she’d worked at the County Center. I already knew that and needed more so asked one last question. I asked if she was fired and he said he didn’t think so. At least that was bit of positive news.

Still puzzled by Jay’s reaction to my call I went ahead and called Mrs K at the Civil Service office. She, absolutely, was excited to hear from me. We’d gotten along well when I worked for her and she was the one who told me I was capable of doing more than the Civil Service job could provide and sort of pushed me to leave when I had the chance. We chatted about where I was and what I was doing before I asked about Gina. I didn’t waste much time before asking if she’d left on ”good terms“. There was a silence before Mrs K, very slowly, replied that the answer would depend upon just who you were to ask. Knowing that she worked with money I specifically asked if there had been any problems in that area. To that she had an emphatic ”No“ and went on to add that the person(s) who had taken her position had been a source of trouble for the Treasurer's office ever since she left. I was trying to digest what I’d been hearing so, point blank, asked if she thought I should hire her.

Mrs K was always to the point so when she said that as far as her work was concerned she’d be fine... and went no further. By then I could sense she wanted to end the call and we did with her wishing me continued success. The results of the two calls had left me totally confused. I studied the application again and concluded that from an experience standpoint Gina would be a perfect fit for our teller line. The only thing to do at that point was to ask her why she left the County Center and hadn’t worked in about a year.

To be continued...

APRIL... More of the same (Part 128c)

APRIL... More of the same (Part 128c)

I didn’t dwell on thoughts of Gina on my way home but I won’t deny they weren’t that far away. As I went about the errands I had to do on Saturday in preparation for the party that night I was puzzled by the gap in her employment. I finally came up with the idea to contact Mrs. K, my old boss at the County Civil Service office. Then, that thought triggered another and that was to also call my friend Jay who I’d worked with in the Data Processing department. In the short time I’d been involved with the hiring of people I’d learned that was one item to focus on regardless of how impressive the application appeared to be.

To reinforce that it was a party Elle greeted the guests herself and told each that there was to be no discussion about the school, the school board or the upcoming election and that they were there to have fun. The only one to sort of complain was Nanci. To me, that was a bit of a surprise. She seldom said much and was always in the background of what was taking place. Elle took her aside to ask what was wrong. After the last couple arrived Elle got everybody’s attention and said that she was going to break her own rule about not mentioning school. Then she proceeded to announce that Nanci had gotten a job at the school as secretary for the principal. It didn’t take much for the group  to understand the ramifications of that. It meant that the “group” would be somewhat privy to what was really going on inside the school and wouldn’t have to deal with rumors as much.

We were all still in the kitchen when this took place and after a few minutes Elle told everybody that it was time for fun and games and herded us into the living room. After a brief discussion it was decided to let Auriela, the newest member of the group, come up with a game for all to play. She called it “Telephone” or “Party Line” and asked that Elle and I get seven chairs and line them up down the middle of the room. She then asked all the men to take a seat and proceeded to explain the game. She handed Johnny, who had taken the first chair, a piece of paper and told him that when she gave him the “word” he would have thirty seconds to read and study it and then he had to discard it under his chair. Then he had to whisper into the ear of the person next to him what he’d just read. That person had to do the same and on down the line until the last person was told what was on the original paper. We were all facing the women with three of them sitting on the sofa. Going back to the original “group” parties I described the sofa as being one that sort of “swallowed up” the people sitting on it as the cushions were filled with down. Ginger had always taken a seat on the right hand side as you faced it and I just loved it. Wearing a short skirt there was no way for her to get up without showing her panties. I, unfortunately, was the last person in the row so I was the farthest from her and could only hope I’d get a peek at some time during the evening. Being the last one had another drawback as I had to be the one to stand up and tell everyone what had been passed on to me. What none of the guys knew was that Aurelia had given a copy of the original paper to each of the other women. I remember standing up and not saying more that a dozen words. I wasn’t even finished before the women were laughing almost uncontrollably. Neither I nor the other guys knew what was going on. I stood there feeling like a fool until Aurelia stood up and read from her paper.

The words on the paper were supposed to be from a man to his wife explaining why he wasn’t home because he’d been invited to go fishing. Somehow, between Johnny and I there were a lot of omissions and some additions. The one thing I do remember was saying something about a boat and a boat had never been mentioned in the original. In any case, after we realized what had transpired it was funny to us as well. As the women calmed down I noticed Ginger struggling to get off the sofa and looked down at Johnny. I was thinking that he was probably totally unaware of what was transpiring before him. I rationalized it by thinking that I knew what she was wearing anyway so it didn’t really matter.

Someone finally gave her a hand and pulled her up. I watched her make her way to the doorway and saw what appeared to be a small spot on the seat of her skirt. I quickly got Elle’s attention and told her what I’d seen and told her Ginger was in the bathroom. By then the other guys were clamoring for the women to play. Aurelia, since she’d made up the messages, to be fair took the first seat. The others quickly took seats with the exception of Elle and Ginger. Our house had something that I’d never seen before we bought it and that was cut-out at one end of the living room wall that allowed you to see when anyone went up or down the stairs. I saw Elle run up the stairs and come right back down. It was a few minutes before she returned and took a seat with Ginger following a minute or so later, apologizing as she took the last seat. I knew what was going on and I had a hard time keeping my “excitement” covered.

Patience is a virtue and with Ginger in the last seat I found myself in the perfect position to see the “magic triangle” as I was sitting on the floor only a foot away from her. I knew that Elle had probably run upstairs to get her a dry pair of panties and my guess was that they were “dribble panties”. Just before Aurelia started I made a comment to the guys that when Ginger got up to tell us the message that it would be longer than the original one that Aurelia had in her hand. I got some positive reinforcement from them as the women scoffed at the idea. As the message got passed on down the line the women who were waiting their turn to hear it would lean forward in their seats as if they might get to overhear something in passing. In Ginger’s case she did it in such a way as to give me a pretty wide look between her legs but I didn’t see what I’d expected to see. It took me a few seconds to realize that she was wearing a pair of sanitary panties with the plastic crotch.

The results of the game were the same with the added satisfaction that I’d been right. Ginger got up and told a short story. We all had a good laugh though. By then it was time for more refreshments and that’s when Elle bought out my birthday cake. She’d not told anybody about it at my request so it was a surprise to everybody. I’d been hoping for another game or two but it ended up with people telling about some of the absurd and strange things that they’d received over the years as birthday gifts. All in all it was a good evening of fun.

To be continued...           

APRIL... More of the same (Part 128b)

APRIL... More of the same (Part128b)

In thinking about what to say to Donna while driving in to work, the one thing that kept popping into my thoughts was what she’d said in an off-hand way the previous morning... “if there was a job where I could operate on my own”. There was no doubt that she was bright and willing but it came with the price of her always wanting to be right and yet unable to take correction gracefully. I think I was walking up to the back door when I saw Mary just ahead of me. I’d been at the bank for two years and hadn’t known anything about her until the previous day. It was like she had existed in a bubble. And then it came to me... Donna might be the perfect replacement for her. Walking to my desk I decided to take the idea to J J. He had made a comment to me Right after Donna was hired he made a comment to me saying I’d picked a “winner“. I’d learned that J J only made comments on females that he found to be attractive so I knew I had a bit of an opening with him. The problem was finding a time to talk to him. During the “busy period” Bret, Hobie and I had a constant flow of customers at our desks so I knew I had to time my move perfectly.

Donna was as feisty and defensive as I’d expected and it was obvious the delay of a day in talking to her didn’t work like it had with Jacqui. However, I didn’t let her lead me into a “debate” so the outcome was a “draw”. I pretty much knew she wouldn’t quit so told her to have patience and I was working on a solution. I finally got upstairs to J J’s office before lunch and told him I thought I might have a replacement for Mary. When I told him it was Donna the look on his face was actually humorous. He didn’t believe me at first. I sort of glossed over the underlying reasons and sold him on her accuracy and work ethic. I don’t think he heard a word of it. His first words were “When can she start?”. The next step was in telling Donna what I had in mind for her. Initially, I thought she’d be pleased but there was a definite hesitation in her voice. I told her she had time to think on it and the earliest the switch would take place was the following week. At least the wheels were in motion.

With all the recent “action” at the bank I’d not really had time to focus on the fact that I’d be 30 the next day and the trust fund my grandfather had set up for me would legally be mine. I had a rough idea of the value but didn’t know for sure. As I’ve said, Elle and I wanted to keep the majority of it as sort of an “insurance policy”. However, we’d recently made a change in our want/need list. The refrigerator that came with the house didn’t have a freezer in it as the people had a freezer chest in the basement. It had been a sore spot with Elle but never an issue... until just a few weeks prior. She’d found that some of the items weren’t really frozen so I had a neighbor who was an appliance repair man check it out. The chest had been part of a frozen food delivery system that was popular in the late 50’s and when the house was sold the service had been discontinued. It was a “cheap charlie” one and the manufacturer had gone out of business so there was nothing that could be done... except get a new refrigerator with a freezer. Elle had suggested that the new refrigerator could be my birthday present. Not what I had in mind but what could I say.

As had been hoped the steady outflow of funds had slowed and the number of customers diminished by mid-week. The weekly mortgage committee meeting stayed pretty much on topic with the only minimal references to the loss of deposits. There was a reminder that there would be some serious discussion on a number of topics at the next full board meeting and for them to be prepared for a long session.

Since it was my birthday I was happy to get out on time. Elle had planned a family party with a birthday cake with both her folks and mine in attendance. The only gift I remember was a patchwork shirt (which I still have) from my mother. After our families left Elle told me she’d invited most of the “group” over to really celebrate on Saturday night. She quickly added that Pat (the PTA lady) and Rob had not been invited. Without those two I actually looked forward to it.

The “crush” of customers was over by Friday. I’d let Trish in on my idea for Donna and she pretty much agreed with it. Ironically, right after telling her a job applicant walked in off the street. It was still pretty hectic when she did so Trish gave her an application and told her to drop by at the end of the week. It was close to 6pm that Friday  when this very attractive young woman walked up to the gate to the platform where Bret, Hobie and I worked. It was Bret who saw her first and I saw him jump to his feet and head to the entry gate. My eyes followed him over and I saw this trim, short dark haired woman wearing a tight khaki skirt with a matching CPO jacket. I saw her hand Bret some papers and when he saw them he turned to me and pointed her in my direction.

After a very rough week all I really wanted to do was get out of the building. However, the easy smile on her very pretty face made me forget all about that. She introduced herself as Gina and handed me the application. I quickly scanned it for her whole name and recognized it at once. I’d never met her but already knew a lot about her. Going back to my days working for the County she’d been the “talk” of the County Center. Considered to be very bright by the Treasurer’s office, she’d been their “face” for all public monetary transactions. The last time I’d seen her her hair was a dirty blond color and she wore it in a modified pony tail. All the men at the Center ogled her when she showed up in the cafeteria (and that included me). After leaving County employment I’d completely forgotten about her. But here she was with a different look and looking for work. I was smiling too.

“Where do I know you from?” were the first words she spoke with a sparkle in her eyes. I know I was smiling too when I answered. With her standing there right in front of me I quickly scanned the application looking to see if she’d worked anywhere else. The application told me she’d not been employed for almost a year but I didn’t say anything. Common sense was telling me that a person with as much experience as she had wouldn’t accept the beginning level salary for a teller. However, with her cash handling experience she’d fit right into the teller line and I’d have an immediate and experienced replacement for Donna. But, it was now after 6pm and I really wanted to get out of there. I remember asking if she could come back Monday afternoon wanting time to sort out the whole situation. With the smile still on her face she said “Sure!” and turned and walked towards the back door. I stood there thinking this was too good to be true.

To be continued...       

APRIL... More of the same (Part 128a)

APRIL... More of the same (Part 128a)

There was a LOT on my mind as I drove to work that Monday morning. Would Jacqui show up as she’d promised... I had to have a talk with Donna about the incident with Jacqui on Friday... I had to get the retirement papers together for Mary, the lady who worked in the mortgage department... how much money would leave the bank that day and, what new “surprise” would spring forth from the Trustees.

If there was one positive thing I saw as I made my way to my desk it was more pants suits than I’d seen since the new dress code was implemented. Donna was wearing her blue velour suit and Trish had one on that was new to me. I saw that Lorie, the bookkeeping machine (computer) operator, had a nice tailored one but the surprise was Katy, the drive-up teller. She didn’t wear the shortest skirts but they were pretty short and I would never have expected her to show up wearing a suit. I was about to call Jacqui to my desk for our talk when I saw Netta, the switchboard operator, walking across the lobby floor. She had on a polished cotton suit in sort of a goldenrod color. It was stunning. A tall, well proportioned girl, the suit looked like it was made just for her. What really got my attention was that even from the distance I was at I could see the indents of the leg elastics of her panties. I really had no reason to go over to her but I headed in that direction anyway. I called out her name and she stopped. As I approached I knew I had to say something so complimented her on being brave enough to wear a suit. I quickly pointed out the others who were similarly dressed. She was, obviously, a bit embarrassed. I think I finished by saying something about having her encourage some of the women she saw upstairs to do the same. Then she turned to walk up the stairs. I started back to my desk but changed direction and headed for the customer check writing desk which was at the foot of the stairs. I made like I was straightening the deposit tickets out and then turned to watch her make her way up the stairs. I will say this about the view... it was spectacular. The VPL was vivid. The crotch area wasn’t all that big but the ridges that her panties made on the seat of her pants was enough for me to start a bulge even though I was out in the lobby. WHEW!

Jacqui had calmed down from Friday as I’d hoped and she was good to go back to work. Donna was next to meet with me and she was a bit defensive which was what I expected. I told her she had been technically correct in that situation but there were better ways to handle it than to embarrass Jacqui and, ultimately, the bank. As she walked away she said that she wished there was a job at the bank where she could “operate” on her own. I remember hoping I’d see a VPL from her as she had on the same suit as Elle and Laura and I’d seen one on both of them. But, because she was shorter than they were the jacket covered her bottom. In looking at her I couldn’t help but think that the Trustees that had originally wanted all women’s jackets to be that long would’ve certainly approved.

The doors were about to open for the public when I spoke to Trish about gathering the papers that had to be filed for Mary’s retirement. She was surprised at the news. I didn’t know too much about Mary other than she’d done the same job for many, many years. Trish asked if I knew that Mary had two very interesting things in her past. I didn’t so Trish filled me in. Mary was born on January 1, 1900 and was the first baby born in the city that year. A picture of her with her mother had made the front page of a couple of the city newspapers. The other was that Mary’s first day at the bank was the day the stock market crashed in 1928. I found that to be interesting and did a quick calculation. It meant she’d been at the bank for almost 38 years, longer than anybody else. All of a sudden I realized that with Mary leaving it would mean having to find a replacement for her. Not what I need at that time!

Other than the continuing outflow of money it was a relatively calm day. All the customers were out of the bank around 3:15pm or so. As soon as the last one left I watched Donna peel off her suit jacket. Trish saw her do it and immediately looked to me as if to say “Can we do that?”. During all the discussions in the Board room it had been my interpretation that the members were only concerned with how the customers felt about women wearing pants so I just flipped my hands up and smiled. Her jacket was off in a nanosecond. A few minutes later I saw Lorie slipping hers over the back of her work chair.

When it seemed like there was a delay with the general “proof” for the day I went to see what was wrong. Donna had a problem and it appeared that a withdrawal ticket was missing. Liz, the auditor, asked if she’d checked her waste basket. Immediately Donna bent over at the waist and started rummaging through the scraps of paper. The long awaited VPL from her was now before my eyes. Not as interesting as Netta’s back in the morning, it was still “refreshing”.

The missing withdrawal slip was located and Liz, in her inimitable way, chastised her for it. I knew what was coming as soon as Liz opened her mouth. One would’ve thought Donna had been accused of actually stealing money with her defensive reaction. It was another situation that I figured was best to let time take care of. It had been a busy day and it was late so I told Donna that we’d get together early the next morning. It wasn’t what she wanted but I told her I had a meeting to go to. I didn’t really but went upstairs anyway. I wasn’t thinking about Netta when I started up the stairs. However, she was just picking up her handbag from the floor and I got a reprise of my earlier view of her backside. I had no idea of who made her panties but the seam for the crotch was a lot thicker than most I’d ever noticed in a VPL situation. It was a nice way to end a long day. If there was one thing I took away from it was that if and when more of the women started wearing pants I was going to be very pleased.

To be continued...

SPRINGING AHEAD... A busy time (Part 127q)

SPRINGING AHEAD... A busy time (Part 127q)

For reasons that I certainly wasn’t going to pursue, Elle was particularly ”amorous“  when she came back from tucking the kids into bed. She’d peed through her ”dribble panties“  before coming downstairs and proceeded to climb up on me. I enjoyed the ”play time“ but I wanted to take advantage of her current state of mind and wasted no time in getting down to some serious lovemaking. We moved over to the couch and, although I didn’t last all that long, enjoyed myself. It had been a while.

I wanted to be at work early for the first day of the ”busy time“. Elle persuaded her mother to get to the house early so we left at basically the same time. Walking into the lobby I felt confident that the bank was in good shape to handle the expected crowds. Even though Donna was relatively new, I felt her maturity and her ability to handle difficult customers would hold her in good stead. Bret and I’d made sure we had adequate supplies and I’d talked with Robby, the equipment service man, about being available for ”extra“ help if the bookkeeping machine (computer) broke down.

When 9am arrived I couldn’t believe my eyes. The lobby was absolutely filled with people in just ten minutes. By 9:30am I’d signed at least a half dozen checks (Tellers were authorized to sign checks for withdrawals of up to $1,000. At that amount or above an officer had to countersign.) for what seemed to be more money than usual. Right from the time I’d started at the bank two years prior I tracked daily deposit flows. On the first day of each busy period in that two years we’d experienced net deposit outflows with the trend reversing with each following day. However, I couldn’t remember having to sign so many checks especially that early in the day. Cara came to my desk with a check for a sizeable sum. Her teller station was right in my sight line and I recognized her customer as being one of her friends so asked Cara to gently inquire what the check was to be used for. A few minutes later Cara returned with the words that would change the way we did business as we moved forward. The money was going to the new bank that had opened up to the West of us. But that wan’t the bad news. It was that they were giving away gifts for each new account that was opened for $1,000 or more.

I made a quick check of each teller station and found they were all experiencing the same thing. I let Hobie know and he, in turn, called Bert, the president. I won’t call it panic but within minutes the three of us were meeting to try and find out how they had advertised the gift campaign without using the local weekly paper. It took a while but found that they’d used the daily papers that were geared more for residents much closer to the city. When I heard that I remember having asked our ad agency how much it cost to put ads in them and was told we’d blow our whole yearly budget in a week. I was also aware that we were operating on a very thin margin what with paying 5% for deposits and only making 6% on the mortgage loans we made. It just didn’t make sense but it was happening.

When the Trustees got there for the weekly mortgage committee meeting the word was out. I wouldn’t call it a ”run“ on the bank but it wasn’t far from it. The tally at the end of the day was that more than $200,000 in checks had been written. By 4pm a special meeting of the Trustees was convened. They were upset that we hadn’t been prepared for the situation. I’d contacted the three other like banks and they found themselves in the same situation. I’d been vaguely aware that some banks located in the heart of the city had used gifts to lure depositors in at the end of the previous year but we never considered them to be competitors being located some 85 miles to the West of us. By the time the meeting was over (7pm) a couple of new committees had been formed with one being directed to go find some property to the West to establish a branch. I was asked to stay at the meeting to answer specific questions about  the deposit traffic for the day and what we could do to combat the other bank. I don’t remember who brought it up but the subject of having a service bureau process our deposits and withdrawals came up with the talk about having a branch office. For me that was worth the wait to go home because I was told to be prepared to make my recommendation on Friday. I could have done it in about five minutes as my report was in my desk downstairs.

As you can probably surmise, the next two days were basically the same with far more money going out than coming in.There was one incident when Donna overheard Jacqui, the teller who’d been hired just prior to her, give out some misinformation. She inserted herself into the situation which upset Jacqui. If it hadn’t been for it being late on a Friday, I’m almost sure Jacqui would’ve quit. I told her to go home and to think about it and elicited a promise she’d be back to talk with me Monday morning. I spoke to Donna before she left and she wasn’t too pleased with me for having done it. I remember it being one of the few times she didn’t try to flirt with me when at my desk.


Earlier, I'd made my report to the Trustees and recommended we use the commercial bank I'd visited to do our servicing. It started another vigorous discussion and no decision was made but yet another committee was created to do an "independent" study. It made me feel like nothing I'd presented mattered. Actually, it just added to my negative feeling about the men who were responsible for overseeing the health of the bank. As I left the meeting I got to wondering just how much knowledge a shoe store owner, a hardware store owner, a lumberyard owner, a farmer, a real estate agent, two attorneys, a new truck dealer and two other retired retail store owners actually knew about running a bank. The only thing I saw was a group of men who created more and more committees so that they could collect attendance fees. To finish off an absolutely terrible beginning to the ”busy period”, J J (the mortgage officer from upstairs) paid me a visit before he left for the night. He’d been informed two weeks prior that the the lady who handled the mortgage loan payoffs for the bank wanted to retire and she wanted to know where her paperwork was. I wanted to hit him upside his head. There was no way for me to gather all the forms up for her to take with her that night because Trish kept them in her files and she was long gone. I felt badly for her but there was just no way. Needless to say I was not in a good mood when I left.

To be continued...    
 

SPRINGING AHEAD... A busy time (Part 127p)

SPRINGING AHEAD... A busy time (Part 127p)

As Laura and I walked across the lobby I was thinking of just what would transpire should Donna and Laura end up wearing their outfits on the same day. Locking the door I made the suggestion that she talk to Donna about it and to see if she couldn’t work out some sort of agreement where they would communicate their plans for wearing the suit. Laura seemed to grasp the concept but I don’t remember her saying anything.

It was on the drive home that I began to worry a bit about my comments on providing a couple of slips and more new panties to Laura. When I’d tried to give her some back in January she insisted that she pay for them. Once I asked her she seemed to have ”clammed up“ and didn’t give me an answer. I tried to think back on when I’d provided her with the panties and what her reaction had been at that time. I couldn’t remember anything negative so tried to relax since the next day would be stressful enough as it was the first day of the "busy period".

Actually, there was another major thing on my mind... I’d be 30 years old in a week and the trust fund that my grandfather had established for me would be completely mine. Every three months I’d been allowed to ”borrow“ against it but I'd made an honest effort not to buy frivolous things so the majority of it was still there. Elle and I’d talked many times about what we’d do when the money was totally under my control and we both agreed that we weren’t going to change our ways. We'd agreed  that it was like a living insurance policy. One thing we'd seriously discussed was in taking a real vacation since we'd never had a honeymoon. We'd be celebrating our 10th anniversary the next year and we wanted something nice but not too exotic. It was something to look forward to.

Another thing on both of our minds was that Kaye would be 3 years old on Friday. Elle’s teaching every day had put a crimp in having her party on her birthday so it was to be on Saturday. Kaye’s friends were really the siblings of the friends of our older two girls. Ginger had a girl a year older and a year younger than Kaye that might’ve been considered ”friends“ but she didn’t have anyone special to invite. What it was going to turn out to be was a party with her grandparents and her older sister’s friends... not too exciting.

I got home to find Elle about to leave for a meeting of Girl Scout and Brownie leaders. I was late so she was doubly upset and barely spoke a word as she headed out the door. She did indicate that the girls had been fed and my dinner was drying out in the oven. After changing my clothes and eating I was going to play games with them but Jean said she was doing something for school. Anne wanted to play a game but we needed three and Kaye was too young for that. I came up with the idea of a coloring contest for them both with the ”winner“ getting a bedtime cookie, something Elle never allowed. They were more than happy with that.

Knowing that I’d be really tired when I arrived home for the next few nights I decided to finish up perusing Peggy's tax material that James had given me. I’d already made it through one box and had a good idea of just what would be in the other one. It wasn’t an exciting project, for sure! It took about a half hour to get to the bottom of the second box. Up to then all I’d seen was slips of paper, invoices, pay stubs and receipts. At the very bottom of this second box was a white, sealed envelope with no markings on it. At first I was going to ignore it but remembered that James had told me that everything I’d need to prepare Peggy's tax forms was contained in the two boxes. I finally sliced open the envelope and was surprised to find it contained pictures. The one right on top was head shot of a young man with a ”buzz cut“, grinning sort of foolishly. I didn’t recognize him or the locale in the background. I recognized Peggy in the next one and it came to me that the guy was probably her husband. I fanned out the next few and they were more individual shots of each of them goofing around. I wondered what they were doing in the box along with all the receipts. I was just about to return them to the envelope when I happened to see something showing at the edge of the last one in the group. I pulled it out to take a better look and I thought I was going to choke when I did.  

                                       

I couldn't believe my eyes. It was an incredible candid shot of Peggy. I sat there staring at it for the longest time wondering how I'd gotten so lucky. The instantaneous bulge in my pants was hurting so I stood up but continued to just stare at the picture. I heard Anne and Kaye starting to argue over crayons and that brought me back to reality. I went into the living room and quickly settled their disagreement. Then I went back to closely look at all the pictures. There were probably eight in all and after the closer look it seemed like they were all taken the same day. I figured that if Peggy was pregnant when they eloped then based on Peggy's "shape" in these pictures they were probably taken on their way to North Carolina where her husband was stationed. I was still agonizing over what to do with them when Elle arrived home. I stuffed them under one pile of the receipts and went to see if she was in a better mood. She was slipping her coat off and I, as usual, visually checked between her legs. There was some discoloration but I determined that it was my "trained eye" that had picked it out and that probably no one had noticed. She caught the direction of my eyes and readily admitted it had more than a dribble. I was still slightly aroused from Peggy's picture and started towards her to, hopefully, get a feel of her dampness. She stopped me in my tracks but, showing that she really wasn't mad at me for being late for supper, told me to wait until the kids were in bed. For what had started out to be a bad day it was certainly turning out to be a somewhat memorable one.

To be continued...

SPRINGING AHEAD... A busy time (Part 127o)

SPRINGING AHEAD... A busy time (Part 127o)

Waking up early, my main thoughts were on how to tell Laura that I’d been able to find the velour pants suit she so much wanted. That and how to make sure she wouldn’t obsess about paying for it. I was halfway to work when I remembered Ginger’s panties that I’d hidden in the linen cabinet. I was upset with my self because, as it had turned out, I would’ve had plenty of time to get them up to the attic and into my ”stash“. The rest of the way to work I spent  convincing myself that Elle would have no reason to go rummaging in there when she got home from school... or at least hoped she wouldn’t.

The days immediately prior to the start of a ”busy period“ were almost painfully slow. Depositors would hold off making withdrawals of even the smallest amount just to avoid losing the interest earned on over the prior three months. I’d learned that it was a good time to do ”maintenance“ on the signature card file to make sure they were alphabetically correct. As I headed behind the teller line I couldn’t help but notice the outfit Donna was wearing... the same velour out fit that Elle had and was to also be Laura’s. I don’t remember the exact reaction I had but ”shock“ would probably fit. I went down the line to compliment her but before I could say a word she was already asking what I thought of it. She went on to tell me that after I’d told her where Elle had gotten hers she used her lunch hour to go get one for herself. I don’t remember saying anything but I know my thoughts were on what to do with the one I’d arranged for Laura.

It took a few minutes to recover from that and while I was Cara came up and asked if she could get out of the signature card project. She pleaded that there had to be something more ”exciting“ than flipping through cards. The report on the discrepancies in the passbook loan files was sitting right on top of my desk so I gave it to her to tackle knowing that she’d get it done and done right. One potential problem solved... until the phone rang.

It was the manager at the department store letting me know that he had the suit. After hanging up my first thought was to just forget the whole idea. I made up a story to tell him during the lunch break. But, as I walked into the store I changed my mind. My grandfather had a saying that went something like this... ”If you don’t knock you’ll never know if anyone’s home.“ I figured why not get the suit and give Laura the opportunity to make the decision on weather to keep it or not. There was no way she hadn’t seen Donna that morning but I had no idea what her reaction to it had been. Neatly boxed up I carried it back to work.

The next obstacle was being able to tell Laura about it. The timing of my meeting with her on Friday had been perfect but that was more luck than planning. I decided to keep an open mind and stop stressing about it. The box was safely between my desk and the wall so I didn’t have to do it that afternoon. The signature card project had gone without any major problems and would definitely be finished by the time we all went home the next night. I’d pretty much forgotten about Cara and the passbook loan project. Knowing that the whole crew would be working late for the next three days I decided to let them all go a bit early. When Cara walked by to say ”good night” she put a folder on my desk and said she was done. I asked how she finished so quickly she laughed and said Laura must have gotten “confused” during her audit because most of the missing papers were there but misfiled and proceeded to show me. Cara had the advantage of knowing about many of the loans and was able to successfully sort through them.

Laura didn’t report to me so she was still there as I looked at the material Cara had left on my desk. I saw her headed for her work area and called her over to show what Cara had done. I was well into it when I looked at my watch and saw it was after 5pm. I mentioned it to Laura and she said she didn’t mind if we finished it up. With those few words I had my “opening“ to get into the matter of the pants suit.

It was a little awkward at first because I asked if she noticed Donna’s outfit. Immediately, there was a look of disappointment on her face. I remember asking that if she’d been able to find one the previous Friday how would she have reacted to seeing Donna wearing the exact same one. I remember her sort of looking off into space for a few seconds and then turning to me and saying she would still wear it. With that I reached over to the side of my desk and pull out the box.

By then there was no one left on the main bankiing floor. I knew the only people, if any, left on the second floor were officers as Hank, the messenger/custodian, had left. The officers all had keys and he knew not to leave with any regular employee still there. Laura sat there with the box sitting on her lap not knowing what to do so I told her to open it. All the anxiety I’d experienced was worth it just to see the look on her face. All she did was to just rub the material. I finally had to prod her to take the jacket out. She was cradling it when the look on her face changed and she sort of mumbled ”How am I going to pay for it?“ With all the thoughts I’d gone over in my mind I was ready for this one. ”The same way you paid for the clothes that Trish and I helped you with last year.“ By then she wasn’t looking at me but at the things in her lap. For a second I thought she was going to cry but she, still mumbling, said that she now had to pay rent and she barely had enough to get by.

Her one year anniversary was coming up and I didn’t feel like I was out of line when I told her she was due for a nice raise. I went on to say that I was in no rush to get the money back as long as she made an effort, be it just a dollar or two each payday. She opened her eyes really wide and then the tears followed. I’m at a total loss for words when a female cries, regardless of who they are or their age. I got her attention when I told her she was getting her new suit wet. As she gatheered up her composure she asked if there wasn’t something she could do for me. Initially, I wasn’t going to give her an answer but then looked at her and said it would be nice if she’d model the outfit for me. That way I’d be the very first person to see her in it. She jumped (literally) at the idea.

The small restroom that Hobie, Bret and I used was right there. She took the pants and went inside. It didn’t take her long before she was back and grabbing for the jacket. I stood up and took a few steps back to get a good look. She really was a very cute girl and the suit looked like it was made for her to model. I asked her to do a slow turn for me and when she was facing away from me I got my second ”payment“ in the form of a very clear VPL. But, seeing it reminded me of the flaw in the seam of the pants. I told her about what the manager had told me and about how Elle had to sew a bit of one of her side seams. She was trying to look down at her hips turning first one way and then the other. On the second look she found it and pointed it out to me spreading it just a little. As she did I could see just a little of her white panties. I asked if she thought that would be a problem for her and she shook her head from side to side. There was no way she was going to give that outfit up at that point.

It was getting late by then so I suggested that she wear it home. She agreed but had to go get her coat and while she did I folded her skirt and slip and placed them into the box. When she returned I made a comment on the fact that it looked like she could use a new slip or two. I could see her face start to flush a bit and told her I had some that she was welcome to just like the panties I’d given to her. She didn’t say anything and I , ”pushing the envelope“ asked her as innocently as I could if she was still wearing those panties knowing full well she was based on the diamond shaped VPL I’d just seen. By then her cheeks were bright pink and, figuring I had nothing to lose, told her I'd give her a couple of slips and a few more of the panties for her upcoming birthday. Nothing more was said as we walked out the back door.

To be continued...  
  

SPRINGING AHEAD... A busy time (Part 127n)

SPRINGING AHEAD... A busy time... (Part 127n)

One of the bank Trustees was also a member of the church but unless I went to the 8am service I never saw him. Other than a cursory (and brief) ”Hello“  I’d never spoken to him. I did business with his company but had only seen him on premesis a time of two. So, it was another shock when he walked up to me, all friendly like he was a close friend that he hadn’t seen in a while, and asked me to follow him outside. When he came to the bank for meetings he never even acknowledged me so it was with concern that I followed him outside. He didn’t waste any time... he told me that he wanted me to be on the Vestry, the group of parishoners that oversaw the business side of the church. To me it was like an order. Technically, he was one of my bosses. I remember standing there not knowing what to say. He told me that the whole situation with the minister had gotten so out of hand that the Bishop for our area had removed three members of the Vestry. I was actually afraid of the man because I’d heard (and seen) how powerful he was in the community. I don’t think I ever said a word. He put his hand on my shoulder and told me the next Vestry meeting was on Tuesday night and walked away.

By the time we got home it was close to 1pm and the kids were really hungry. I wasn’t as my mind was consumed by the events of the morning. When I opened the storm door there was a paper bag between it and the regular door. When I picked it up there was a note attached to it from Ginger. It said that she’d thought about the ”trade“ and decided she wanted Elle to use some of her old panties since she didn’t know if she was going to like the ”dribble panties“ or not. Elle asked what it was and I handed her the bag and note and went inside.

She didn’t dwell on it as the kids were clamoring for something to eat. However, I was curious so took the bag into the dining room where the sewing machine and material for the crotch inserts were. I dumped out the bag and I saw not only the Evette panties that I’d selected for her but a bunch of obviously used panties as well. The sight of them took my mind off everything else. I’m not sure just how many there were but there was a whole bunch. I sort of spread them out to take a quick glance and saw some with obvious staining in the crotch area. That really got my attention. Even though I didn’t ”inspect“ any of them I recognized some from the waist elastic. I immediately deemed a few as too far gone to consider as the elastics were either stretched or were partially detached from the body of the pant. Elle called in to me asking what I was doing which clearly put me on the ”spot“. I don’t remember what, if anything, I said but quickly returned to the kitchen with a red face.

Leaving church I had completely forgotten about our plan to make up Ginger’s ”dribble panties“. But now, while eating, I couldn’t wait. I told Elle I’d go into the dining room and get things organized while she cleaned up from lunch. Originally, Ginger had brought over five pair so I set out to find at least that many that were serviceable. By the time Elle came into the room I’d had a chance to check out the labels and I remember recognizing three or four of them. When Elle came into the room she read Ginger’s note (for the first time) and told me that Ginger wanted her to pick out the best of them to work with and to throw the rest away. I heard that and couldn’t believe my ears.

As we went about the process i had a soft bulge just from seeing another woman’s panties and with obvious staining to boot. We got four made and Elle said she’d had enough as she had to start preparing dinner and had to get started on making her lesson plans for the upcoming week. There were still two decent looking panties left to go but Elle told me to pick everything up as she didn’t want to look at all week like the one that just passed. I got everything back in the proper place and had stuffed the unwanted panties back into the paper bag to go into the trash. I knew where they were (eventually) going but there was still the two others that we hadn’t finished. I decided to put them on top of the sewing machine in the hall closet as a reminder to Elle but, as I did, it came to me that, in conversation, she had mentioned making up five of them and had done so more than once. I was bending over the sewing machine when a voice in the back of my head told me to put a pair in my pocket.

The kids were happily playing in the basement so I went into the den. Right there on top of my desk were the two boxes I’d gotten from James. I had no idea what I’d find inside but a quick look at the calendar told me I had three weeks to prepare the tax form. Doing one for a deceased person was going to be a first so I took the top off one and started sifting through the material. For whatever reason, Peggy (or her husband) had also put things in there for the current year which didn’t make me all that happy. I spent the time up until dinner was ready on just one box. When Elle called I remember shaking my head wondering why I’d gotten into this whole tax thing in the first place.

Not wanting to face any more of it I spent time after eating with the kids. After they were in bed Elle wanted to watch TV (Ed Sullivan was a staple). When she sat down she had the pants to her new velour suit with her. I asked her what she was doing and she said that a side seam had parted and she was just sewing it back together. Hearing that got me off on another tangent... Laura’s pantsuit... and how I was going to manage that whole scene. Stop The World, I Want to Get Off was a movie that had played about a year prior and it fit the way I felt right about then.

When I got up to go to the bathroom I realized I still Had the pair of Ginger’s panties in my pocket. I immediately knew I had to fine a ”home“ for them and quickly. I saw the linen cabinet ajar and just stuffed them in behind a pile of towels, relieved that I didn’t have to fabricate some story as to why I went to the basement. I also figured I could get them out the next morning when I took my shower.  

  
                                             

Ginger's Shadowline panties from 47 years ago.

To be continued...

SPRINGING AHEAD... A busy time (Part 127m)

SPRINGING AHEAD... A busy time (Part 127m)

Not that I didn’t already have enough ”on my plate“, I got a call from Jon (the milkman) right after lunch telling me that his father wanted the racecar and all our tools, especially the pot bellied stove, out of his garage by Sunday. There wasn’t much I could say except that I’d do my best. I knew ”Big B“ was on the road with sales calls and didn’t know when he’d be back. The biggest concern was where to put the car. That thought pretty much dominated my free time, such as it was the rest of the afternoon. I had late duty (until 6pm) and with the busy period due to start the following week I was pretty sure there wouldn’t be that much business. At around 5pm I started making a few calls trying to locate a place for the racecar. I was just finishing one up when I saw Laura stop by the gate to the service area. I asked her if everything was OK and she said she was on her way to go look at the velour outfit that she’d seen on Elle. I warned her again about the price and as she went out the door I made a decision to try and help her if she found one that fit.

She was back in less than half an hour. I’d given up on my calls and was a bit frustrated when she made her entry. I couldn’t tell if she was happy or sad but since she was headed my way I knew I’d soon find out. She was absolutely ecstatic about the suit but there was one problem... there were none left in her size. The clerk told her that she was half a day late. I didn’t have any ideas right at that time so tried to downplay that particular suit saying that I was sure if she looked around she'd find one just as nice. After a few minutes she half smiled and said ”Good night.“

On weekdays the stores closed at 5pm, all except the new department store. They stayed open until 6pm. On Fridays, the other stores stayed open until 6pm but the new one stayed open until 8pm. The other merchants weren’t very happy about it but as I drove past I saw people going in and out the front doors. I remembered that this was a satellite store and the main one was in a town about 25 miles to the West. It came to me that the main store just might have the suit in Laura’s size so found a parking place and went in. At 6:30pm on a Friday night I certainly didn’t expect to find the manager there but as I headed downstairs he was headed up. He was kind enough to listen to my somewhat fabricated story of needing to know if the other store had the blue velour suit in a size 12. He turned right around and, with me following, opened up his locked office and made a call. I could see he’d had some success by his body language but when he hung the phone up his look changed a bit. They had one but it had been returned because there was a flaw in the side seam of the pants. I stood there but for a brief few seconds before telling him that I’d take it.

By the time I walked out of the store he’d offered it at a 25% discount to compensate for the flaw. Then I had the special customer discount on top of that meaning I’d be paying less than $30 for it. Walking back to the car I felt confident that Laura, who was so excited about the suit, would be willing to accept it even with the problem with the seam. Now, all I had to do was to figure out how to tell Laura in a place and way that she wouldn't embarass herself (or me) and to work out a repayment for it.

I was left with no other choice but to put the racecar in my garage. It meant finding a home for all the junk that was stored in the left hand bay of it. I worked out in the garage until 9pm when ”B“ showed up. I’d left a message with his mother and he showed up with a pizza in hand. While eating it ”B“ came up with the idea of storing a lot of my stuff inside the racecar just to have a place for it. That made a lot of sense and took some of the pressure off me. By dark on Saturday afternoon we had the car in place and had found a home for everything else.

Late in that afternoon Jon had come over to his father's garage to see how we were progressing and was all apologetic about the situation. He’d been the one to offer the garage to us and had never thought his father would object. In the course of conversation he ended up inviting us both to come over to his house that evening as a mea culpa. ”B“ declined immediately saying he already had plans. I tried my best to get out of it but Jon indicated that Ginger had already talked with Elle and he thought that she’d said ”yes“.

With that in mind I began wondering if Elle had made the offer to trade the Evette panties for the Shadowline ones. As soon as I went in the huouse Elle told me that she’d made arrangements with Susan (the girl from the ”panty house“) to babysit. She would come over around 8pm, right after she finished work. I hadn’t sen her in a while so looked forward to seeing her once again.           

We let the girls stay up to visit with Susan for a while. When she asked if we could be home by 10pm I wanted to kiss her. I was physically beat and Jon wasn’t the most entertaining host I knew. I was also aware that I’d have to concentrate on not paying too much attention to Ginger. As it turned out, Jon was the interesting one telling about some of the ”in-fighting“ at the school board meetings. Another thing was that he was wondering how the existing board would be able to get anything done if Wally (the plumber) was elected. As I mentioned earlier, he was the most negative person I’d ever met. However, JON added that Wally would probably go for some of the changes that Pat (the PTA lady) and the ”group“ were trying to promote.

As 10pm approached I whispered to Elle asking if she’d made to offer to trade the panties. She’d brought all of them with her and left them in her coat. When she went to retrieve them Ginger followed her and I got my first peek of her panties. She hardly ever let me down. Knowing what the women were talking about and not wanting them to be interrupted I engaged Jon in some banal talk of local politics. Boring! Once outside Elle said the trade was OK but Ginger wanted to know when the ”dribble panties” would be done. With Elle now teaching full time and having to do lesson plans plus care for the kids there wasn’t much time available. I was pretty much in the same situation, especially right at that period in time. I remember us looking at each other and not saying anything.


My preference for church was the 8am service. I’d be home by 9am and have the rest of the day. However, we went to the 10am service so the kids could be exposed to Sunday school. By the time the “meet and greet” after the service was over it would be noon. Sitting in the pew trying not to fall asleep during the sermon I figured that we could probably get the panties done in a few hours so we might as well just go ahead and do it that afternoon. I certainly wasn’t going to be working on the racecar. I was in full thought when I heard the minister say that the sermon he’d just given was his last for this parish. I knew about his struggles with some of the older parishioners (and wrote about them a while back) but this was a complete shock. I’d had discussions with him about the situation and thought he was going to “tough it out”.       

To be continued...    

SPRINGING AHEAD... a busy time (Part 127l)

SPRINGING AHEAD... A Busy Time (Part 127l)

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Some additional background... When Elle and I moved back to the area after I quit racing horses, we lived in a mobile home park. There were quite a few ”Golden Agers“ (over 50) who were retired and getting on in age. When it came time to file income taxes, my next door neighbor (a Golden Ager)  asked if I could help him. Since I was working as a staff accountant in the office of the County Audit and Control office it sort of made sense. I did and he, in turn, told friends. I did a review of his taxes and he, in turn, told friends. The next thing I new I was checking over a bunch of tax forms. By the time we bought our house I was doing taxes for a couple of dozen people. Somehow, James knew about it.
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Almost immediately he produced two shoe boxes. He put them on the table and then motioned for me to sit down. They contained all the financial papers for Peggy and her deceased husband and James wanted me to sort through them and to prepare Peggy’s taxes. He said Peggy’s state of mind was so fragile that she’d never  be able to do it without breaking down. I sat there thinking about it for a bit and wondered why the tax preparer for James couldn’t do it... but didn’t say anything. When we went to get up James told me that he thought Peggy would be pleased that I was going to help her out. That made me feel good but all I could do was wonder was when I’d find the time to sort through the boxes.

We’d stayed far later than intended so Elle called home to tell Sandy. She told Elle not to worry as her husband, Johnnie, was attending some sort of meeting and she didn’t have to be home at a set time. We had to go back to the bank for me to get my car which made our arrival home even latter so Elle invited Sandy to stay for supper. She was a ‘fun” person and the kids had taken to her in a big way so they (and I) were pleased. When we finished Elle had me take the kids to the basement to play. That was a rare treat for them. Elle wanted some private time with Sandy to find out how her pregnancy was going. I wasn’t all that pleased with that but I hadn’t spent very much time with the kids since Christmas so I couldn’t really complain.

Going to bed, to make conversation, I asked how Sandy was doing. At first Elle was a bit reluctant to say much but that had become the “norm” for Elle when I asked about any of her freinds. However, she said that Sandy had told her something that she found to be very interesting. Sandy, in the course of being in the house all day, had seen the panties and sewing machine in the dining room and asked about them. Elle told her that Ginger had brought them over. Then Sandy told her that she’d just gone to a new doctor for her pregnancy and that in her examination the doctor had noticed she was wearing a pair of sanitary panties. Knowing that if she was pregnant she wouldn’t be needing them asked about it. Sandy then explained her dribble problem and showed the doctor the “dribble panties“ she was wearing. Initially, the doctor was concerned about the cause of her problem but then commented on the idea behind the panties and said she thought it was a good one. Before Sandy left the doctor told her the panties would be even better if the plastic panel from the sanitary panties was attached to them so she wouldn’t need to wear two pair of panties.

I was sitting on the side of the bed when Elle was telling me all of this. Even before she finished I went to the drawer where Elle kept her sanitary panties and pulled a pair out. I looked at the crotch for a bit and then headed downstairs. Elle had gotten the sewing kit out as well as all the supplies we’d used including the pattern for the crotch inserts and had then next to the sewing machine. I turned on the lights and then proceeded to take the french terry cloth material we’d been using and cut out a few inserts and laid them into the sanitary panty. Elle had followed me down a few minutes later and was watching as I worked. After I’d put the cut-outs into the crotch I had her take off the panties she was wearing and put the sanitary ones on. I asked her what she thought and she shook her head in a negative way saying that, at least for her, she didn’t like the feel of the plastic against her skin. By then it had gotten really late and we both had to work the next day so we headed back upstairs.  Once there I couldn’t sleep so, naturally, my thoughts went back to how to remedy Elle’s complaint about the sanitary panties we'd been working on. I came up with a few ideas but the problem was where to find the time to work on them what with all my other “projects”.

The first thing I did at work the next day was to call Donna to my desk. I’d had it in mind for a while but managed to put it off. She was true to form as she approached... flirty blinks of her eyelashes and the almost condescending smile. When she sat down in the side chair she sat way forward with only a part of her backside on the seat trying to get as close as she could. I remember her almost “gushing” with things to say about how nice Elle had looked when she’d stopped by the day before. Before I could say a word she asked where Elle had gotten her outfit. I really didn’t want to go there but told her it was at the new department store in town.

The primary reason for the meeting was to warn her about the upcoming “busy period“ and that she’d be waiting on almost as many people in a day as she had in a week. I didn’t want her to be overwhelmed. Other than making comments or ”asides“ about the policies of the bank and a haughty attitude towards the other tellers, she’d been accepted well by the depositors even garnering some positive feedback. A number of the Trustees had commented about how nice she was. Before she left my desk I told her I was concerned about that ”icy“ relationship with her co-workers and reminded her she was still in a probationary period. I really wasn’t surprised when I got more of the flowery talk and batted eyelashes as she walked away.

Later that morning Laura appeared at my desk. She had matured a lot from the super shy girl she'd been when she started. She'd adapted well to her role in the audit department and learned to be somewhat assertive when addressing other employees and officers when she was there on ”official business“. She was there to tell me that her audit of passbook loans had turned up the fact that some tellers hadn’t filled out all the necessary paperwork. There was no shyness or hesitation as she told me of the problem. I told her I'd get it corrected but as she was getting up from the chair she reverted back to the shy girl she’d been when she was hired. But, that’s what she did whenever she wanted to talk about anything other than official bank business.

I think I laughed when she asked where Elle had gotten the light blue pants suit. I could see that she took the laughter as being directed at her but I explained how Donna had just asked about the same thing only a short time before.  I got that misunderstanding squared away and gave her the information and I also told her that it was fairly expensive. I also remembered that Trish, after moving Laura to her new place, had commented that she really needed some new and updated clothes. Even as busy as I was I had the thought to possibly try to help her out as I’d done almost a year ago. However, this was not the time or place.

To be continued...        

SPRINGING AHEAD... A busy time (Part 127k)

SPRINGING AHEAD... A busy time (Part 127k)

I didn’t get to see very much as Robbie, the printer’s apprentice had come out to see if I needed assistance. I’m pretty sure I got the panties stuffed back into the bag without him seeing them but if he’d been paying attention he would’ve noticed that I was flushed from embarrassment. Back in the bank parking lot I was finally able to take a better look. There were four pair of noticeably new Shadowline panties and they were ”fancy panties“ with lace appliques to boot. My first reaction was they were too pretty to mutilate to make up ”dribble panties“. I wanted to see what size they were knowing that Ginger had lost weight. However, I was somewhat taken aback when I saw that they were a size five. I knew they were cut a bit smaller than the Modern Globe ones we’d used to make Elle’s ”dribble panties“ so that added to my concern. By then it was getting to be mid morning and I needed to get inside so I put them all back in the bag with a plan to get back to them later.

Walking around inside the bank I was curious to see if any of the women had worn pants. The final count was but three with one being Lena, the president’s secretary. As I made my way back to my desk I couldn’t help but smile to myself... all the turmoil that the pants issue had created and yet there was no immediate acceptance of the new policy. In my mind the best thing that happened was in getting the two old geezer Board members to resign. Late in the afternoon I overheard Hobie talking with Trish and telling her to make preparations for a special Board of Trustee’s meeting the next day. I asked her when she was leaving what the reason was and all she did was to shrug her shoulders. More mystery.

I could tell Elle had had a much better day at school as soon as I walked in the house. I had the bag with the panties with me when I walked in and gave it to her. She looked puzzled at first but when I told her Ginger had given it to me she kind of wrinkled up her nose at me. I think she even asked if I’d looked inside. I didn’t have to answer. As she opened the bag I pointed out the fact that they were fancy panties. Holding a pair up she made the same judgement as I’d made... they were too nice (and expensive) to be cut up. Before she could say anything more I told her that she should offer to trade for them. That comment elicited another wrinkled up look. I reminded her that we (I) still had some of the Evette panties that my sailing friend Willy had sent and they would actually be better to use as the crotch was bigger. She didn’t ”bite” but did say that we could talk about it later.

After we ate and while she was cleaning up the kitchen I got out the sewing machine and set it up on the dining room table. I also rounded up five pair of the Evette panties and put them with the machine. I knew she’d find them and then we’d be sure to have a discussion. It took a while but when she was taking the kids upstairs to bed she saw them and I heard her laugh. When she came back down  she called me into the dining room and asked where the other (Evette) panties had come from. Elle had no idea of just how many new panties I’d hidden away and, at first, thought I’d really screwed up. But my mind was up to the challenge and told her I’d set them aside for “replacements” for when the ones she was wearing wore out. I got a “look” but nothing more was said about them other than for me to suggest, again, that she offer to exchange the five of them for the four that Ginger had brought over. She said she’d think about it.

The special Board meeting turned out to be about the fall-out concerning the resignations by the two Trustee’s. They were both considered to be “pillars of the community” and there had been some “talk” around town about what had happened to cause them to do so. The term “spin” hadn’t been created back them but that’s what the meeting was about... to try and mitigate the rumors. I’d hoped they would address the service bureau issue but that subject was clearly on the “back burner”.

Before leaving that night I got a call from James to say that Elle and I could come over to see Peggy the next afternoon. That next morning Elle decided she’d wear her new velour outfit because she was going to be “observed” by the principal for the first time. I didn’t think it was a good idea because she already had an “accident“ earlier in the week. She assured me that she had the bathroom situation under control and showed me that she was wearing a pair of her ”dribble panties“ with a pair of sanitary panties with the large plastic crotch over them. I really didn’t have much of a say about it but after she was dressed I had to agree she really looked nice. The plan was for her to come to the bank when she was through for the day and we’d go see Peggy together.

Sandy had agreed to come to our house to watch Kaye. She arrived a few minutes after Elle left so I gave a quick tour around the house to show her where things she might need would be found. Kaye was being shy and was still upstairs in her bed. She wouldn’t come down so I suggested that Sandy take one of her favorite toys up to her and to try and entice her that way. I didn’t want to do it knowing that she’d want to cling to me and then end up crying as I walked out the door. I stayed at the bottom of the stairs as Sandy made her way to the top. As I watched I got a great VPL and knew immediately that Sandy was wearing her own ”dribble panties“. I waited for a few minutes and when I didn’t hear any crying I took off.

Elle showed up at the bank around 4pm. I’d made arrangements to leave early so it didn’t take long for me to clear my desk. Elle had walked across the lobby without her coat knowing she’d only be outside for a minute or two. She really looked good in that outfit as I watched her approach. I happened to notice a couple of the tellers follow her with their eyes as she made her way to my desk. One of them was the new teller, Donna and it reminded me that I needed to talk with her before the ”busy period“ started.

The situation was a little awkward when we got to Peggy’s house. It had been nine months since either of us had seen her and I know that she saw the look of surprise on my face. She’d gained a lot of weight with the baby and, to me it looked like she hadn’t lost much, if any, of it. I still remembered the athletic and good looking girl that had baby sat for us. At that moment she was anything but. Elle, of course, made straight for the baby. We’d discussed the possibility of having another but had decided against it. Elle had done enough teaching to know she really wanted to get into it full time as soon as Kaye was in school. But, seeing an infant always tugged at her heart.

I pretty much just stood there making small talk with Peggy’s mother. James was due to arrive at any minute and I couldn’t wait. I just wasn’t comfortable. I was thankful when he finally arrived. He and his wife then told me all about the plans for the christening on Sunday. I really, really didn’t want to go but I could see how important it was to them. When Peggy’s mother went back to see how Peggy, Elle and the baby were making out James motioned for me to follow him into another room. He didn’t waste any time when he came right out and asked if I could do him an immense favor. At that point in our friendship, I probably owed him about a dozen so I, naturally, said ”Yes“.

To be continued...