MARRIED... Spring(ing) into the future (Part 50g)

I was in weekly contact with my grandfather. I remember getting a few brief letters from him and always a $20 bill enclosed. It was very much needed. Driving back and forth to school each day was adding to the gas bill and the fact that I now had to pay for my food seven days a week was really putting the ”hurt” on us. As we got into the early part of May Dr John would have me come over a few days a week to clean up his yard. I don’t remember how much I made but anything was better than nothing. I’d also been in contact with AJ and he was racing some of his horses in Delaware. The local track was going to open the stable area around the 1st of May and racing was to start in mid month. His plan was to ship the horses that weren’t ready to race the first week in May. He wanted to know when I’d be ready to work full time and even though I didn’t know my exam schedule I did know that all exams would be over on the 29th. I told him that I’d be willing to give him all my free time prior to that. He said he could work with that.

Harry shipped all the horses he planned to race to the track on May 1st. He was way behind in training due to the poor conditions at the fairgrounds track which he used. The only horses he wouldn’t ship were the 2 year olds. Clyde would be in charge and Harry would go up whenever he could. I was to continue to go to Harry’s on Saturdays to work with the two year olds. Once I knew AJ’s and Harry’s plans I became very anxious to get classes over with and to really start with my career.

April had actually finished up pretty calmly for us. Elle’s pregnancy continued without much in the way of problems. Actually, my life was boring. The first “excitement” for May came on a Friday night. Elle had gone to bed and I was finishing up the draft of my Public Finance term paper when the phone rang. It was around 10pm or so and it was one of Elle’s sorority sisters. There was a group of girls from the sorority who went by the nickname of the “PG’s” which stood for party girls. They were all seniors and, as such, had some privileges that the others didn’t. They were allowed to skip the Friday night dinner meal and were also allowed to stay out until midnight, even though it was still considered to be a weeknight. Their usual routine was to go to a little bar called the Old Tavern which had pizza. Usually, the girls would have some beers, eat and then go to the movies. Then, some might go back and have a few more beers before returning to the sorority house. On this particular night they changed their routine and made it a real party night. They skipped the movie and just stayed at the bar. Instead of beer they decided to make it a real Italian night and were drinking cheap red chiante wine. One of the girls got really drunk and ended up throwing up all over herself. The call was to see if they could bring her over to get her cleaned up and to get some dry clothes before they returned to the sorority. I wouldn’t say yes but did go get Elle up for her to make the decision since they were her friends. Of course she said “yes”.

A little while later there was a knock on the door. I thought it would probably be a group of the girls but there was only one, Maddie, at the door. She asked me to help her get the drunk girl, Mary Elizabeth, into the trailer. As soon as I opened the car door I could smell the vomit. I’ll tell you this... there is nothing I hate more than that smell. But, what could I do. Mary Elizabeth was semi conscious because she kept asking where she was. I dragged her out of the car and propped her up against the car. She had a long dark coat on but it was unbuttoned and I could see the “damage” all down the front of her blouse and basically what would be have been her lap. The smell was bad but there was some wind to help keep it down.

Once we got her in the trailer it was straight to the bathroom. The way the trailer was laid out the kitchen and bathroom were split right down the middle which meant the width of the bathroom was only 5 feet. Maddie had helped me get her to the bathroom door and then it was up to me. Mary Elizabeth wasn’t all that big but she, as drunk as she was, was a handful. I had to sit her down on the toilet. Elle had taken her coat when we came through the door and immediately started to take off her blouse. She told me to leave and to get Maddie. That was fine with me as the smell was getting to me. When I walked back into the living room Maddie was gone. When I told Elle she said she needed help.

By then she had the blouse off. The next step was to get her pants off. Elle undid the button and zipper but I had to pick Mary Elizabeth up so Elle could pull them down. Basically, I was front to front with her and her breath really reeked of vomit. I wondered just how I got into this situation. I had to turn her around so Elle could get behind her and pull her pants down. As soon as she did I heard her give off a big sigh. I asked what was wrong and she sort of laughed and told me that Mary Elizabeth had wet herself while sitting on the toilet. She said her pants were still warm. Now, as much as I liked wetting, I was in no mood for it on that night. I was fighting to keep myself from throwing up and even when I sat Mary Elizabeth back down on the toilet I had no interest in seeing her panties. I just walked back into the living room.

Somehow Elle got her to stand up so she could get her panties off and could wash her up. Elle called to me to come into the bathroom from our bedroom and to wash the soiled clothes out. I remember taking a deep breath before I did and held it as long as I could. I let the water run on them and would duck back into the bedroom to get some fresh air and do it again. I had no interest, at all, in looking at a naked Mary Elizabeth. I ended up wringing the clothes out by hand and then just opening the door and dropping everything outside the door. As I did a car pulled up and it was Maddie. She’d gone back to the sorority and gotten clean clothes for Mary Elizabeth.

By then it was around 11pm. Maddie thought it would help if we got some coffee into Mary Elizabeth. By then she was somewhat coherent. By the time they left to go back to the sorority I think we had three cups of coffee into her. She was wobbly on her feet and Maddie said that there would be some girls waiting to help get her into her room without getting caught as being drunk. I hoped so what with all the work we put into getting her cleaned up and somewhat sober.

To be continued...

MARRIED... Spring(ing) into the future (Part 50f)

Coming home to Elle every night was both good and bad. It was good in that I loved being with her and that she was totally focused on her studies. The latter part made me do the same. However, that part was boring. Living with the T’s there was always conversation with someone but after we ate supper and finished the chores then it was right to the books. What saved me was in reading An American Tragedy. I found myself so engrossed in it that I’d still be reading at 2am even though I had to be up at 6am and on the road by 6:30am. As promised I called Babs when I reached what I considered a critical point.

In my minds eye there were three critical parts to the book. The first was when the main character was introduced and then his assimilation into society. After I’d finished that part I called Babs and Elle and I were invited over to the house. Babs had told me to bring the book with me and after some chit chat she took the book and found a few passages that she read to us. The first was a description of a house that figured prominently in the book. After reading it she asked if it sounded familiar. It certainly didn’t to me but Elle’s face had one of those “maybe” looks to it. She then announced that it was now one of the prominent fraternities on campus. She flipped a few more pages and then read some more. The description was of one of the sororities. She did the same thing a third time and it was of another fraternity. I was amazed as was Elle. I vaguely remembered reading about the houses but now wanted to take Elle down town to see them and to see if we could find some more. When we left I could see that Babs was pleased.

After getting through the next critical part (a murder) I again contacted Babs. She was tied up at the time but gave me one very interesting tidbit... on my way both to and from school each day I would go right past the house where the murdered girl had been raised in.

We were baby sitting at Dr Johns when I was reading the third critical part. Before Dr John and Babs left she promised that when they returned that she’d have something really special for me. That third part was the murder trial itself. I remember Elle and I were eating lunch with the boys when Babs returned. She was carrying this approximately 2’x2’ scrapbook. We finished up and then she put the book on the kitchen table. She explained that her mother loved to clip and save things from the newspaper and that the trial had been the most sensational thing that had happened in this town in her life. The scrapbook held every article that had been written on subject from start to finish.

Babs then told us that after the book had been published that there had been some vague charges that some of the book had been plagiarized. She pointed to the scrapbook and told me that I could borrow it and that I should do some careful study of what was written in the newspaper and what was written in the book. I tried to press her for more but all she did was smile.

That night, back at the trailer, I stayed up until around 3am. I couldn’t believe what I found. There were pages and pages where the book had the exact same words as the newspaper. I couldn’t wait to get to class the next day.

The class was right after chapel break and I, as usual, skipped chapel but didn’t go to the “coop“ for coffee with my friends either. I headed right for the ”Hook’s“ office. He was one of those people who rarely smiled and often had the look of someone who was totally bored with what he was doing. I went in and was greeted with one word... ”What?“ I refused to be intimidated and walked over to his desk with the scrap book. I’d put markers in it to mark the passages that I wanted to show him in both the book as well as the scrapbook. I quickly flipped to them and stood back as he poured over the material. It didn’t take long for him to look up at me and ask where I’d gotten the newspaper clippings. I told him and he responded with a comment that I’d never expected from him. ”Good job!“

In class he had them turn to a page in the book and then he had me read from the scrap book. I only read for a few minutes when I could hear a ”buzz“ and the guys were shaking their heads when they realized what they were seeing. Long story short... Over the next week the class discussion took on a whole new direction and the ”Hook“ looked at me with a whole new perspective. I couldn’t wait to finish the book and to see if I could find any more examples of possible plagiarism. It was actually exciting.

I continued to work for Harry on Saturdays. His nephew, Levi, and I became good friends especially after Harry allowed him to work with the horses. His mother, Stephanie, was doing more and more work for Harry and Vi including being the one to pay me. I’d go to her trailer before I left to get my money. On one Saturday she’d stopped by the barn to tell me that my money was on the kitchen counter and if she wasn’t back by the time I was ready to leave I was to just walk in and take it. I really didn’t like the idea but she’d given me permission. I actually hoped that Levi would be at the trailer but he wasn’t. When I walked in I saw her laundry basket on the counter but didn’t see my money. I picked the basket up and saw the money right under it. As I manipulated the basket and tried to put it under my arm I managed to knock some of the laundry onto the floor. When I put the basket back and bent over to pick the stuff up I saw a pair of rosy pink panties. I can’t tell you how tempted I was to just stick them in my pocket but, because I respected her so much I didn’t. I'm pretty sure I felt that if she missed them that she'd know where they were. On my trip home, I was kicking myself for not checking the label. I actually couldn’t believe that I hadn’t done that as it was usually the first thing I did when I’d get my hands on a pair of panties.

To be continued...

MARRIED... Spring(ing) into the future (Part 50e)

When I arrived back at the trailer on Friday afternoon I found it empty. There was a note on the table telling me that Dr John’s wife, Babs, had picked Elle up in the early afternoon and for me to go over to their house. Dr John had been asked to fill in for a colleague at an equine disease conference on very short notice. In spite of that she had been able to have almost everything in order for us (read that as Elle) to make it as easy for us as possible. She had enough food in the refrigerator, with cooking instructions, to take us through to Sunday afternoon when they would be back. The only thing that didn’t get done before they left was to take the laundry out of the washing machine and to put most of it in the dryer. Elle had waited for me to do that as their laundry facilities were in the basement. Elle didn’t like going down a flight of stairs since she really couldn’t see the steps because of her protruding tummy. So, I was assigned the duty.

I’d say that by that time we’d been there to baby sit at least five times. On one of the first times there I’d given some thought to going “exploring”. The problem with that was the house was a ranch type with the master bedroom just off the living room. That, and their bathroom, were the only rooms at that end of the house. There was never a reason for me to go in that area and with the feeling that Elle was watching me every time I got up from a chair, decided it was best not to pursue any thought of “exploring”.

Babs was a tall, trim woman with somewhat wide hips. I didn’t find her particularly attractive but really liked her as a person. When I headed down into the cellar Elle told me that Babs had left a list of the things that shouldn’t go into the dryer. As I read the list I saw a word that made my heart start to pound... underwear. I reached into the machine and pulled out a wad of white cloth. It was a mix of sheets, pillow cases and underwear. I quickly rooted through it looking for the “prize” and it didn’t take long to find what I was looking for. I felt the soft nylon and guessed that it was a pair of panties. When I did I gently separated it from the rest of the pile of cloth. I spread them out on the top of the dryer and the first thing I noticed was how much larger they were than Elle’s. They were plain white with no embellishments. The next step was to look at the label. It read Munsingwear. The name was not foreign to me as I had, at one time, had some T shirts made by them. But this was the first time I’d ever seen the name in lingerie. What really had my attention though was the feel of the wet material. I knew that I’d felt something very similar to it but couldn’t come up with what or where it had been.

I knew I couldn’t take too much time as Elle would be calling down to me before long. As I finished sorting it all out and distributing it between the dryer and a drying rack that stood right next to it I found one other pair. It was exactly the same as the first. I did take the time to look at the size and found it was a 7. As a trudged back upstairs I was trying to remember where I was when I’d felt that almost sensuous material. I couldn’t.

I spent the rest of the weekend trying to figure a way to slip into the master bedroom but the only time I felt I had a chance was when Elle was taking a shower on Sunday morning. I made it out to the living room and was trying to summon the courage to make my foray into the bedroom when the kids came flying out of their room. It seemed like an omen that it just wasn’t going to happen.

For some reason Elle got along with the boys better than I did. Even though she wanted to spend time studying she did give attention to the kids. I had a ton of reading to do for my literature class and, surprisingly, found myself engrossed in the tale. I was reading when Babs walked into the house and, to make conversation, asked what I was reading. I told her it was Dreiser’s An American Tragedy. The look on her face was worth a picture. With her coat still on she rushed over to the chair I was in and sat on the ottoman in front of me. She was all excited. Of course I had no idea why. She started to talk, rapidly, and since I had no idea of where she was coming from, sat there and stared at her. She calmed down when Dr John walked in and when she started talking to him I got the drift of why she was so excited.

The “Hook” had told the class very little of the background on the book other than to say it was loosely based upon something that had actually happened. That was it. In class our discussions had focused on Dreiser’s writing style as compared to the other authors that we’d previously read. Listening to Babs was truly a fascinating experience. Not only had the story actually happened but a good bit of it had taken place in the town we were in. That excited me and I started asking questions. Initially, she answered them. But then she realized that it wasn’t a good idea to get ahead of where I was in the book. When that happened she made me promise to come over and to visit with her as I progressed through the book. I willingly said I would. That discovery gave me even more impetus to read the book.

To be continued...

MARRIED... Spring(ing) into the future (Part 50d)

The guy at the body shop had promised that he’d have my car finished so that I’d have it to drive back to school on Monday. After Dee and Art left I spent the afternoon reading the assignment that “The Hook” had given the Contemporary Literature course to read over the break. I was upset at the amount of reading but more upset that he’d threatened a quiz at Monday’s class. It was hard to concentrate on the material as I was worried about getting the car back. It was just before Elle was going to start cooking (it was her turn with Josh and Beth due over around 6pm) when the phone rang. The car was finished and I quickly ran over to ask Josh to give me a ride to go pick it up. When we pulled into the place there was the car right out in front looking all spic and span. The door looked perfect. It wasn’t until I got out of Josh's car that the realization came to me that I’d delivered the car to him without taking my tools and, almost more importantly, my panty “stash” including the new Gotham Gold Stripe ones I’d bought only a few weeks earlier. If Josh had been studying my face at that moment he would have seen it as red as a stop light. I couldn’t believe that I’d been that stupid. As much as I wanted to check the trunk of the car I didn’t want to do it in front of the body shop guy or Josh and, reluctantly, had to wait until I got home. The body shop guy opened the drivers door to show that it did work and that the window went up and down. I thanked him and took off, wondering what I’d find, if anything at all when I got to look in the trunk.

I was holding my breath when I put the key in the trunk lock. As the trunk lid opened I could see the tool box was not where it usually was. My heart dropped because the panties had been stuffed in the left rear corner and were hidden by the tool box. Josh, thankfully, had gone to get Beth for dinner as I almost dove into the trunk itself. I reached in and found both my “stash” box as well as the bag with the new panties. As I relaxed and started to breathe normally again I saw Josh and Beth headed my way. I shut the trunk and went inside with them, relieved.

With all that had been going on I had pretty much forgotten that it was my birthday. As we all walked into the trailer I could see that Elle had made some decorations and that I was in store for a party. I thought It was a nice end for the week and weekend. But, I had one more thing to deal with. Elle had been after me to start thinking about coming home each night. Even though she had a relatively easy pregnancy it had been a long lonely Winter with me gone four nights each week. She just wanted company as well as to have someone right there in case of a problem. She was quite persuasive and I told her that this would be my last week staying with the T’s. I wanted to give them some advance notice and not just walk out on them. She agreed and that made her quite happy. Happy enough that she let me have some “fun” that night.

I can’t say that Mrs T was all that surprised when I told her my plans. What it did do was put some added pressure on all of them as Joanne was spending all her free time getting her seedling plants started for her business. As much of a “greenhorn” as I’d been at the start I’d adapted fairly well even though I didn’t really like what I was doing. When I told Joanne it was a lot different. I don’t think she was ready to cry but she was obviously surprised. It wasn’t that I wouldn’t see her anymore because I’d still see her at the mentoring program I was involved in as part of Dr F’s educable program. That made her feel a bit better and I told Mrs T that I’d still drive her home after class and that way I’d be able to see her as well. It didn’t take long for me to start feeling bad as well. These people had taken me in and made me a part of their family and I was going to miss them... a lot!

The last night I stayed there they had a combination birthday/good bye party. I was the one who should have been giving them, especially Mrs T, a gift but I got a shirt that Joanne had picked out at the B’s store. (The B’s were the people who went to the races each and every night during the season and with whom I’d visit in the grandstands whenever I could) There was a cake and even ice cream (home made) but the best part was that after all the chores were done we all ended up in the living room and reminisced about the preceding months. Mr T conceded that even though it had taken a bit longer than it should’ve that I was now a competent “hand” and would be welcome at just about any dairy farm. From him that was glowing praise. It was way past the time that Mr and Mrs T would head for bed before they went upstairs. Joannne stayed with me but didn’t say much. She tried to say something but had trouble getting the words out. She soon followed them and I remained just wanting to relax before going to bed.

I could see the hall lights go out and figured that Joanne was now in her room. I turned out the table lamp beside me and just sat there telling myself to get up. My eyes had become accustomed to the almost darkness (there was always a low wattage light on in the kitchen that drifted into the living room) when I saw something in the opening at the foot of the stairs. There was no mistaking that it was Joanne with her long blond hair. She had on a long bathrobe and when I called to her she responded with a “Shhhhhsh” and started towards me. She made it about halfway from the foot of the stairs to where I was when she stopped. Of course I had no idea what she had on her mind so just sat there looking at her visage.

I was about to speak when she, ever so slowly, took hold of each side of the front of her bathrobe and, continuing to move her arms slowly, spread them out exposing her body clad in just a bra and panties. I didn’t know what to expect but I knew that it wasn’t right, especially with her parents upstairs. Again, I was about to speak when she quickly closed her arms across her chest covering her body with the robe and turning and headed back upstairs. The shock of what had just happened didn’t allow me to really enjoy the sight that I’d been allowed to see. In all honesty I was thinking of all the good things that the T’s had given to me and I didn’t want to do anything, in thought or deed, to go against the trust that they had shown in me. When I finally went upstairs I couldn’t sleep.

The next morning I was told by Mrs T that Joanne didn’t feel well and wouldn’t be going to school that day. I was relieved, to say the least. I still hadn’t come up with even the faintest idea of what Joanne had in mind the night before. As curious as I was I also knew that it wouldn’t be smart to pursue it with her. I chalked it up as another mystery of life.

To be continued...

MARRIED... Spring(ing) into the future (Part 50c)

At John’s house I found out just what he’d done to soften at least my grandfather up to allow the meeting. As I’ve previously written, there was mutual respect between the two in spite of a major age disparity. In my grandfather’s eyes, John was very respected in any number of professional fields and was willing to listen to him when he spoke. What John had done was to challenge my grandfather and asked him if he judged people before actually meeting them. Of course he said “no”. John then proceed to “scold” him saying that was exactly what he and my grandmother had been doing with Elle. He asked my grandfather if he’d ever even met Elle and when he said he hadn’t John had him where he wanted him. All I can say is that it worked. At least at that point in time it appeared that it had. But, there still was the hurdle of my parents to overcome.

When we left John’s house he told me that he’d call after he’d talked with my father. To be truthful, I was more afraid of that meeting than I was with my grandfather. In my grandfather’s case there had never been a confrontation but with my parents there had been. John couldn’t guarantee anything but encouraged me to make the effort. He said that the situation with my parents was a little tougher than the one with my grandparents. He did suggest that Elle accompany me.

Elle will admit that she was more frightened over meeting my grandparents than the one with my parents. She’d only ever seen my grandparents from a distance and heard nothing but bad things about them, especially my grandmother, from her mother for her whole life. As we walked across the street to my house she was encouraging me. It didn’t hurt.

It was like deja-vu. My parents were in the exact same places in the kitchen as they were the night I told them we were married. The biggest difference this time was that there was a frown on my father’s face and a look of disgust on my mother’s face as we walked in. They were aware of our meeting with my grandparents and, according to John, pleased with the outcome. But, they had their own agenda. The long and the short of their current problem was that I’d gotten Elle pregnant and were greatly disappointed in me... and Elle. That was it. There wasn’t much to say so we left. I hadn’t expected much and didn’t get much.

We left to go back early Monday morning. The trip was brutal as we had rush hour traffic around the city and once past it Elle had me stopping fairly often. Once back and having a chance to go through the mail I found the check from the insurance company. I headed right down to the body shop and set it up to have the repair done that weekend. At least I’d get in three days work.

During the week Elle got a phone call from one of her former roommates, Dee. Her fiance was home on leave and she wanted to spend some “alone” time with him before he went back to his base. Staying at home her mother had been keeping close tabs on her complete with curfews. She wanted to know if we could put her up that Friday and Saturday. It would give her a lot more freedom than living at home. Elle knew what she was really asking for and how could we say “no” what with Elle being pregnant before marriage. Dee had insisted that Art would fend for himself and that she'd be sleeping with us. I had doubts.

Dee and her fiance, Art, arrived early Friday morning. I’d dropped my car off at the body shop and was back at the trailer by the time they arrived. I got an idea and asked if Art could drive me the 20 miles down to Harry’s so I could at least earn some money. Dee thought it would be a good idea because it would give her some time alone with Elle to get caught up. Art was a good guy and I know he was a bit embarrassed about the situation. I remember him assuring me that Dee would be sleeping at the trailer each night. I really didn’t want to get into it and don’t remember saying much, if anything. All I knew was that I was going to make some money on a day I thought I wouldn’t make anything.

Saturday was another beautiful Spring day and after Art gave me a ride to work Harry, Clyde and I got to train almost all of the horses in the stable. Harry was way behind because of bad weather (too much snow) making the track unusable on too many days. When we were done Clyde volunteered to drive me home. I was exhausted and happy to find that Dee and Art weren't there. I remember going to bed early. Early the next morning I heard someone in the bathroom and since Elle was still beside me figured it must be Dee. Elle had said that she and Art were going to early church as Art had to be on his way to his base by noon. I was up as soon as I heard Dee leave the trailer. Even though Dee was nothing really to look at she had a pretty trim body and I have to admit that I had noticed a nice panty line on her Friday night. I was hoping that her bags were still in the bedroom. A quick peek showed me more than I was expecting.

She had two bags with her and the smaller one was lying open on the bed. What really caught my eye was what was sort of draped over the front edge... a pair of panties. But before I touched them I made a quick trip back to my bedroom to make sure that Elle was still asleep. Finding her cutting Z's I returned to the front bedroom. I made sure I noted just how the panties were lying and picked them up. My first interest was to see who made them so I looked for the label. They were inside out so that part was easy and I saw a familiar name... Kayser. But I noticed something in the crotch... dried cum... and a lot of it! The panties were an off white and the cum stain was really evident. I remember standing there laughing to myself because Elle had made a big thing of how Dee was such a "proper girl".

Dee's bag was one of the hard sided Samsonite kind that was popular at the time. On the bottom half, all around the sides, there were pockets. Knowing this I decided to fish around in them hoping to find the panties she had worn on Friday. It didn't take long before I came up with them. White, with some lace, the waist band told me they were also made by Kayser. The first thing I looked at was the crotch and although not stained like the other pair it was obvious that there was some dried cum around the leg elastic. Finding it brought forth another smile.

I heard water running in the bathroom so quickly stuffed the panties back into the little pocket and carefully put the other panties back the way I'd found them. Then I quickly stepped back into the living room and grabbed a book and sat on the couch, just before Elle appeared. I remember her asking why I had a smile on my face and I also remember not telling her.

To be continued...

MARRIED... Spring(ing) into the future (Part 50b)

We left bright and early on a bright sunny Saturday morning. Traffic around the city wasn’t as bad as I usually experienced on Friday nights even though it was Easter weekend. Elle was miserable because, even with more stops than usual, it was almost impossible for her to be dry. Even with plastic pants she would leak through. I had her sitting on multiple bath towels trying to keep the car seat relatively dry. When we arrived at her parents house it was just about dark and she was of no mind to go visiting, especially to see people who had a hostile opinion of her. That meant going on Sunday... Easter Sunday.

I called John and explained the situation. He said he’d take care of it and when he called back it had been decided that we’d do it about mid afternoon after my grandparents had had their Easter dinner. One of the reasons for the lateness was that my parents were eating with them. John, although very close with my parents, didn’t want my parents around when the meeting took place. In fact, he told me that he didn’t think my parents even knew about the projected meeting. All I could do was hope that was so and wait for the time to arrive.

Elle and I went to church and then had a nice Easter dinner with her parents. I can tell you that they, especially her mother, weren’t behind us as far as the meeting was concerned. We arrived at John’s house around 2pm or so and he briefed us on what he had scripted for the meeting. All Elle and I could do was sit and listen... and hope that it worked.

When we walked into the “sitting room” (what they called the living room) my grandfather was at his desk and my grandmother was in her usual place on the sofa. She was pretty much crippled with leg problems so she spent most of her time knitting while sitting on the sofa. John, with his wife following, walked in first. They greeted my grandparents with Elle and I standing in the doorway. After a minute or two John’s wife stepped back and he proceeded to introduce Elle with me standing right behind her. I had her right hand and I could feel it shaking. John then proceeded to tell my grandparents about Elle, stressing that she was an outstanding young woman. He told of her school awards both in high school and in college. He told them that she was in line to get her teaching degree, with honors. He told them about her extra curricular activities and how she’d worked each and every Summer to help pay for her education. He then took her by the hand and led her over to my grandmother.

I dearly loved my grandmother but she had her “moments". She was very stubborn and it was hard to get her to change her mind. She looked up at Elle and if she said anything at all it was mumbled. Next, John led her back to my grandfather. He was exactly the opposite. He took her hand in both of his and then proceeded to tell her that she not only had an impressive ”resume“ but that she was pretty as well. I couldn’t see her face but I know she had to be blushing mightily. Then, even more surprisingly, he proceeded to ask about the pregnancy and how she was handling it. It was during this part that my grandmother finally looked up from her knitting. John, picking up on the interest that my grandfather was showing Elle by asking about the pregnancy, piped up that the baby would make them great grandparents. I’m not sure that my grandmother had ever taken the time to think the situation through to realize that the baby would make her a great grandmother but she was obviously interested in that. The first words I heard from her were to tell Elle that both her mother and grandmother had been great grandmothers. That seemed to please her.

With things going well, John and his wife took leave and, as he left he was able to tell me to stop at their house on our way back to Elle’s parents. I wasn’t surprised when Elle asked where the bathroom was. I led her to it and asked if she was OK. She smiled so that told me everything was going well.

By the time she returned my grandfather had already started in with me. It was like I was being ”grilled“ as he wanted to know how I was doing in school. When I’d come home to go to Summer school he wasn’t pleased at all. When I’d first left for college he had made what I had considered a ”bribe“ in that if I graduated in four years that he would buy me a new car like he’d done for my father upon his graduation. I can’t tell you why but I never really took that as a promise. In fact, I think this was the first time he’d brought it up since my going away ”pep talk“. I know I’d long forgotten about it. So, when he heard that I was doing well (better than any other semester) and he reminded me about it I was really taken back.

That's when Elle walked back into the room and he wanted to hear more about what she wanted to do with her education. He wanted her to sit down but I was sure that Elle was at least somewhat wet. The furniture in my grandparents house was old... very old. It was also very uncomfortable. The last thing I wanted was for her to put stains on it and undo all the good that been accomplished. I jumped in and said I’d get one of the kitchen chairs (wooden) for her. My grandmother asked why and I told her that with the pregnancy Elle really needed a straight back chair after she’d been standing for a while. With no objection, I proceed to get one of the painted ones for her. That eliminated a potential problem. We spent almost an hour with my grandfather really involved with both Elle and I as we talked about the future. I told him I was committed to going into the harness racing business and that as far as I knew I’d be working for AJ starting in May. I remember him smiling when I told him that. He was also surprised and impressed when I told him that I’d kept my fingers in the business by working for Harry on Saturdays.

We stayed until I saw that it was getting dark. My grandmother took Elle’s hand and, looking her straight in the eyes, told her to take good care of herself and the baby. My grandfather went one better, insisting that he give her a hug and a kiss on her cheek. I got a hug and a handshake... but there was a $20 bill in his hand when we did that. As we walked down the hill to the car I remember wondering why we had to go though all those years of ”dancing” around my grandparents.

To be continued...

MARRIED... Spring(ing) into the future (Part 50a)

That Saturday was the first day of Spring. I remember it being an absolutely beautiful day. We’d had a week with much melting of snow and without rain so that Harry had been able to get the training track into shape. When I told him that I would be missing a few days to go home I thought he’d be a little upset. However, he fully agreed with the thought that it was time to end the standoff. He was very supportive and I appreciated that. In talking with him I was able to convince him to relent on prohibiting his nephew, Levi, from working with the horses until he graduated from high school. From what Levi had told me he was in no danger of not graduating and he’d already been promised a job by Harry for the Summer. It made no sense to me to turn him away especially when Harry was short handed anyway. I was the one to tell Levi and when I did I found out that it was his birthday. He couldn’t have been happier.

When I made my trash collection later that day I got my fill of washline panty peeks. There was one trailer that I’d singled out after seeing the woman going between her car and the trailer during the Winter. The woman was in her 30’s with long blonde hair and appeared to be attractive from the few times I’d seen her getting in and out of her car. Each and every Saturday I’d checked her clothesline with absolutely nothing to see. But, on this Saturday my patience was rewarded. Even though the whole line was filled with wash, her panties were on the side facing the path in the back. That meant that I could get a nice close look without it being so obvious. They were mostly what I would call “common” with nothing to make them stand out. But there were at least six pair and they looked so nice just blowing gently in the breeze. After seeing them I now wanted to see just what she looked like without being all bundled up in a Winter coat.

When I got back home and stopped at the trailer I saw Mac (the guy who had been in the head on crash a few weeks earlier) cutting through the yard. I hadn’t seen him to talk to since the accident and after exchanging pleasantries he asked about the big dent in the car door. I told him what happened and then he asked what I was going to do about repairing it. I told him about the deductible part of the insurance and told him there was no way I could come up with $100 right before the baby was due. He then told me that he’d bought a car to replace his wrecked one from an auto body shop and he told me he thought the guy would “work with me“ and that I should stop in. Since I was back at my school during weekdays the only time I had was on Saturdays. Mac seemed anxious for me to talk with the guy so I asked him if he thought the guy was still there. He suggested that we take ride down there. I told Elle where I was going and headed downtown.

Mac did all the talking (thank goodness!) and told him my plight. The guy looked over the damage and told me, point blank, that I needed a new door and that he really couldn’t do much to help me. We were about to leave when he stopped me and said that if I was willing to waive a guarantee on the work that he thought he could jury rig something to repair the door frame (which he assured me was broken in two) and just put a new ”skin” over it that he’d do the work for what the insurance would pay for. It took me a bit of time to realize what he was going to do was to write up the estimate for a new door but then just fix the broken one and accept whatever the insurance paid. When I agreed he told me that It would be advisable to continue to use the passenger door to get in and out of the car as he didn’t know how long the repair to the frame would hold up. At that point I didn’t care. We had a deal.

The problem was going to be actually getting the car fixed. The only available time would be during the week of Spring Break and I was already going to be losing a few days work at Harry’s with our trip home. It was just something else I had to deal with.

To be continued...