WORKING... and the reality of it (Part 52f)

As August came to a close most trainers were making plans as to where they would race when the track closed. Even though it was open until the end of September some trainers wanted to move on to tracks that would be open later into the season to guarantee stall space. Andy was one of them. Tentatively, he had targeted leaving right after Labor Day. I knew AJ was planning on moving on to New Hampshire to appease a few of his owners who were from New England but not until the latter part of September. I was sad to hear Andy’s plans for any number of reasons. He was more of a mentor to me than AJ was and I’d learned a lot from him. One thing I was happy about though was that he (and Carol) would still be there for the track picnic on the Sunday right before Labor Day. I’d missed the last one when I had gone home and raced the sailboat. I was really looking forward to going again.

On the morning of the picnic I was at the barn overseeing the morning chores when I recognized Harry’s pick up truck parked in front of my trailer. I knew that Harry and Vi were planning on attending the picnic but it was way too early to go. I quickly ran over and saw Levi struggling to get a fairly large box out of the bed of the truck. As soon as I got to the truck I knew just what it was... the washing machine. The timing couldn’t have been better as the diaper service ended the day before. But there was another big cardboard box in the truck. While I was cutting the cardboard off the washer, Levi brought the other box in. Since I had no idea what it was I started opening it. It was a portable crib/play pen. I remember Elle letting out a muffled sound of excitement. You didn’t have to know much about furniture to know it was a quality piece. It was made of solid maple and had fully adjustable legs. I asked Levi about it and he said all he knew was that Harry told him to deliver it to us. All I could do was wonder what it was going to cost. My "piggy bank" was empty.

Elle was looking forward to the picnic if for no other reason than to get away from the trailer and the track. I told her that conditions were pretty primitive so that it might be a good idea to wear a ”package“, just to be safe. She’d been doing all the things that the Doctor had suggested and was pleased with her results. I remember her not really wanting to put one on. I finally persuaded her to do it and as she did I also remember her complaining. To me it was sort of funny because she’d worn one almost constantly during most of her pregnancy and without complaining (at least to me). I’ve mentioned before that she had lost all the weight from the pregnancy and about 10 pounds more. All her old clothes were now baggy and one day she was complaining to Gert, the neighbor to the South of us about it. Gert offered to loan her her sewing machine so she could make some alterations and Elle had chosen to wear a pair of bermuda shorts that she worked on. As she pulled them up I was pleased to see that they were tight enough to see a VPL. Because she wore a sanitary panty over the others it was higher than one would normally see. It was something that always gave me thrill to see with any female but when it was Elle it was even better.

Our neighbor to the North, Jackson, had not been the problem like I’d expected. As the Summer wore on, on my way to the barn first thing in the morning, I’d noticed the red Studebaker that belonged to the clubhouse manager parked in front of his trailer more and more. I’d never seen her but Elle said that she’d usually leave late in the morning. But, on this day, I saw her getting into her car as I was loading the carriage into ours. I’d never formally met her but had seen her up in the clubhouse many times. I didn’t think she was especially pretty but she had a nice body. On this day she was wearing short shorts that matched the color of her car. Short shorts were just coming into vogue at the time and this was a closest I’d ever been to someone wearing them. I remember thinking that I’d sure like to see her bend over.

As we drove down the road we had to pass Andy’s trailer and I saw that Carol’s car was still there. I remember hoping that they hadn’t changed their minds and would still be coming. I thought we were on time but there were so many cars in the designated parking field that I was afraid there wouldn’t be a place. It was a long walk pushing the carriage through the rough cut rye grass. The first people we recognized were Clyde and Jane and she was very obviously pregnant. They made space for us and, immediately, the baby became the center of attraction for the ladies. The guys made a quick exit and headed for the beer. I hadn’t had even one the whole Summer and after just two I could really feel it.

To be continued...