AUTUMN... now the chages (Part 143i)

AUTUMN... now the changes (Part143i)

Heading into Tuesday Bret and I had the messenger runs figured out and were managing to get all the little things done as well. Maybe not as timely as Hank had done them but there had been no major snafus. I took care of the back entry door that morning and didn’t take near as much ribbing as Bret had taken the day before. When I saw Laura arrive without Joanie tagging along I had a brief few seconds to ask how the “package” had worked out. She just smiled back which made me wonder why. Joanie walked in just a few seconds later so it meant I’d have to track Laura down later. By the time I got to my desk Trish had taken a message from one of the companies that the applicant for Hank’s job, Mike, had worked for. She had spoken to the office manager who told her that they (the company) missed Mike and wanted to know how he was doing. I took that as a positive and hoped the other call I’d made in checking with his past employers would answer soon.

The first call I made was to Bruce, one of the brothers who owned and ran the mobile home parks in town. Of the two I liked him less but knew he’d give me straight answers. We chatted a bit about old times as it had been over a year since I’d last seen him. I asked if he knew of any units in his older park that might be for rent. He said he didn’t get involved in any of that and only cared that the rent was paid for the pad. Typical Bruce. I asked about the number of vacancies in the park and he didn’t seem concerned but did confirm that the park might be going up for sale. I’d gotten an idea the night before and decided to put it forth to Bruce. If he was going to be selling the place then he should want to fill the vacant pads and why not do it with the used mobile homes located out front on the sales lot. I fully expected to have the thought shot down immediately but all I got was silence. I had to ask if he was still on the line. When he came back I could tell there was some interest. I went further and suggested that he could then rent those units out and be bringing in some cash. There was more silence. He finally said he’d talk it over with his brother which gave me a glimmer of hope. I told him that if they were going to pursue it I had someone who was looking for a rental unit. He said he’d get back to me.

After I did the bank and post office runs I was ready for a break. Normally not a coffee drinker I decided I needed a jolt of caffeine. I didn’t even get a chance to sit down when Laura walked in looking for me and it was plainly obvious it wasn’t a social visit. She had the teller’s proof sheets from the day before and told me there had been an error when Letitia did the master proof. When she said it was $54 I knew it was a transposition (divisible by 9) error. The problem was that all the tellers were already working in their cash boxes so there was no way to trace it by recounting the cash. It just made me mad because Letitia just wasn’t capable of handling the job of head teller but no one wanted to listen to me. When Gina appeared in the doorway it was like salt had been rubbed in a wound. She was perfect for the job but she’d soon be doing it for another bank because senior management put loyalty (Letita had been there over 25 years) ahead of performance.

Bret had identified where the new teller machines were to go so the data packs from the telephone company could be installed when they showed up. I scribbled out a very rough schedule for getting started with the training on how to use the new machines and who would go first. I had to keep in mind that we had to continue to wait on customers while the staff was being trained so planned accordingly. With things now starting to come together I was getting excited. Having just seeing Gina reminded me that I’d have to schedule her in for training as well so as to not “blow her cover”. I remember thinking of how much I was going to miss her. It also triggered the thought that I had to set up an interview with Peggy... but when?

Right after lunch I set about to replenish the deposit and withdrawal slips in the check writing desks while Bret made sure there was toilet paper, soap and paper towels in the public restroom. I was finishing up when I saw Bret waving for me to come over by the door to the room. He had a sly smile on his face and pointed into the room. There was a puddle with a yellowish tint to it right in front of the toilet. But that wasn’t what he was pointing to. It was a pair of panties half in and half out of the waste basket. I waited for Bret to say something but he just stood there with the same silly smile. After a bit he said that he’d “flip” to see who’d clean it up. I had no desire to do the clean up but I did want to get a look at the panties so I told him that he owed me one.

I pretty much knew where Hank had a mop and pail for emergencies, usually for snowy days to take care of melted snow in the vestibules. In a way I was surprised that Bret hadn’t volunteered since I knew he was a “panty man’ as well. But I was pretty sure that wet panties weren’t his thing so I had clear sailing. I got the puddle mopped up in no time and to take care of the panties I decided to take the waste basket to the cellar to empty it. I pushed the panties down into the damp paper towels so they wouldn’t be seen. I was actually carrying a bit of a bulge as I walked across the lobby with the basket.

There were two large barrels in what used to be the coal room when they had a coal fired furnace for heat. The light in there was far from good but there was enough to be able to read the label. I quickly found the panties and could see they were pretty soaked. Full briefs, they had a pinkish look to them as I held them up but wasn’t sure if it was because of the poor light or that they actually were pink. I fully expected them to be large but they didn’t appear to be. As I turned them around to look at the rear I recognized them to be a pair of one of my favorite brands... VanRaalte. I didn’t care what size they were but I knew they were going home with me. When I found the label it had a 4 printed on it. It was a real treasure and I was excited.
 
To be continued...