TRANSITIONING... into Autumn (Part 141c)

TRANSITIONING... into Autumn (Part 141c)

It was hard for me to concentrate when we got to the processing center as I couldn’t stop thinking about the possibility of Gracie finding a pair of her panties missing when she did her wash. I actually reached a point where I was trying to figure a way to go back to her house. But, realistically, that wasn’t going to happen. When we took a break for coffee I made an excuse to go to my car. There, I put the panties under the seat in with the spare panties I always kept for Elle in case of an ‘emergency’. Once back inside I felt relieved... at least slightly.

After our break it was George, the man who produced all the print out reports of transaction activity, who took over and I said good-bye to Gracie. I probably breathed a sigh of relief as I walked down the hall to his area. All the practice material I’d entered the day before with Gracie was now before me on printed pages. I was amazed that the same data could be formatted in so many ways. We worked together until about noon when Albie showed up and said it was time for lunch. The previous day I'd eaten in the cafeteria right there at the center but today I was being treated to a ‘real’ lunch. We went to the same restaurant that the banking association that my bank belonged to held their monthly meetings from September through June. I really liked their food and knew exactly what I’d order without seeing a menu. It turned out to be a ‘working lunch’ and not all that social. Albie wanted to go over the rough outline of the conversion process with me so that there would be plenty of time to address concerns before we began the actual process.

He had a printed calendar of events to review with me. I remember looking at it and thinking that it was going to be daunting. It would take place during our ”busy period“ right after the first of the new year and where we would be handling the most customers. However, I didn’t say anything. There was one point he made that took some of the pressure off both me and our staff and that was the service bureau would provide three of their employees to assist us with one being Gracie. He spent a lot of time emphasizing the importance of running a dual system and it would take at least three days where both systems matched until we could shut our old equipment down. I honestly don’t know why hearing the words ”shut down“ triggered a very negative thought... the IRS form 1099R that we had to provide both the government and the depositor the information on how much interest was earned on each and every account.

In the two years I'd been involved it had been a slow and tedious process using our bookkeeping machine (computer?) and took the whole month of January to get it done. I (and everybody else) had forgotten all about them when we were in negotiations with the service bureau. When the thought came to me I went into a mini panic. I remember interrupting Albie to ask if there was some way to do the conversion before the end of the year thinking that with all the automatic reports their system was capable of the 1088;s would be a 'snap'. Albie was one of those perpetually positive people and in the short time I’d known him he exuded what could almost be described as obnoxious confidence. However, the look on his face after I asked that question was anything but. There were quite a few  ”umm’s“ coming from his mouth as he tried to process the question.

Long story short... after quickly finishing lunch we headed back to the center to meet with Albie’s boss, Bruce. For over and hour there was a parade of people coming in and out of the room. I called Hobie to bring him up to date and he readily accepted the fact that he’d forgotten about the 1099’s. I could tell he felt badly... as did I even though I’d not been a part of the negotiations. All I could do at that point was sit and listen. At about 4pm or so they told me there was no point in staying and that as soon as they could come up with a plan they’d be in touch.

One of the things floating around in the back of my mind had been to find out why the cotton Lollipop panties that Barbara wore had a full double panel across the back. Elle and I had bought all three of our girls their Lollipop underwear from a store in the general area of the center that was owned by a woman (Addy) who had Summered just down the beach from where my parents lived. It was primarily a children’s clothing store. Being close I’d been hoping to find a few minutes to stop there, say ”hello“ and see if she could explain the extra layer of cloth. Being excused early gave me the opportunity I’d hoped for.

Addy was surprised to see me. It’d been quite a while since I’d last seen her. Elle had commented in passing that she could use a few more undershirts and panties for the older girls. Anne, the middle daughter, had caught up to her older sister in size. They both were wearing the same size panties and undershirts and when Elle couldn’t do the wash because of weather she was running short. So, when I walked in to the store that was my reason. Addy, the penultimate salesperson, suggested that I buy some the next size larger as well, ”to be prepared“. I knew from experience that she wouldn’t let up until I gave in so agreed. While she was getting them together I casually asked about the double back panel. I clearly remember her stopping and looking over at me as if I was crazy. That told me I had to come up with the reason for asking.

I’m usually pretty good at coming up with a quick answer but on this I was a bit vulnerable. Addy knew I had bought Elle some of the ladies Lollipop panties for Elle in the past without her but Elle had made an original purchase so I figured that didn’t seem untoward. Addy’s question was where had I seen them. I stayed pretty much to the truth and told her that we had new neighbors and Elle had let them use our washing machine and clothes line until they got settled. I told her that one day it started raining with their clothes still on the line and Elle had taken them in. When she did she saw the panties with the full back panel. I remember Addy having a bit of a doubting look on her face as she said that she was unaware of any Lollipop panties like that and even stopped putting my order together to go get the catalog. After a quick flip through the pages she gave me a look that said she couldn’t find anything like what I’d described. The mystery continued.

To be continued...