A LOT OF WORK... & play too (Part 158i)

A LOT OF WORK… & play too (Part 158i)

To say my mind was occupied by the monetary windfall is putting it mildly. It wasn’t until I got to my desk and Trish told me Lillian wasn’t coming in that my focus changed. In all the commotion on Friday night I’d never given a thought to letting anyone at the bank know what had happened. Of course Alice and Jaz, the two tellers who were there when Lillian’s fell, knew but Trish, Bret and Jerry didn’t. I asked Trish what Lillian had given as a reason and her answer was that she said she just wasn’t up to it. I quickly brought Trish and Bret up to date with what I knew when I left the hospital and immediately called Lillian. I apologized for not having followed up with her or her mother over the weekend and asked how she was feeling. She seemed cheerful enough saying she was doing “OK”. I asked when she thought she’d be ready to come back to work and she laughed. She went on that no customer would want to be waited on by her looking the way she did (stated as only a female could!). She described her face saying it looked like someone had punched her in the eye. I was able to elicit from her that other than the stitches and black eye she had no physical problems. Being a slow period with lobby traffic her absence was not a problem but told her to hurry back.

I had some explaining to do as far as Hobie and Bert (the president) were concerned. Hobie, Bret, Jerry and I inspected the stools the tellers used and determined that they really weren’t designed for what we were using them for. Before we modified the teller’s counter for the new teller machines adjustable seats had been part of it, attached and could be folded out of the way. When I purchased the stools it was to get us through the conversion period of having the depositors accounts serviced outside the bank. They were lightweight, wooden and without seats that swiveled. Their low cost and availability had appealed to me at the time. But, with Lillian’s accident it was a clear message we had to do better. Just another project on my “to do” list.

With that out of the way my mind reverted back to the money I'd found. One of the thoughts I’d had on the way in to work was to contact Gertrude, she of the travel agency, to see just what she meant when she’d offered me a ‘deal’ should I want it. On the few occasions I’d thought about a place for Elle and I to go, Bermuda had been one place that seemed fitting. After all, we hadn’t had a real honeymoon and Bermuda was a place that a lot of honeymooners went. With nothing much happening on the banking floor I gave her a call. She sounded excited to hear from me and promised that by Wednesday she’d have some “interesting reading material” put together for me to share with Elle. I couldn’t wait.

The proposal from the telephone company was also due on Wednesday. Ever since the telephone people had been there to do their survey it seemed like everyone was complaining about their phone. It was certainly a topic of conversation among the employees. I’d been told that if the bank made a quick decision it would be possible to have the new service in operation by July 1. I was all for that so was probably more anxious than anyone else to see the proposal.

The appointment had been set for 10am. I’d cleared my desk (a rarity) so the plans could be spread on my desk. I couldn’t use the Board room as there were a number of Board sub committee meetings scheduled. Ten o’clock came, and then 10:30am… and no word from the telephone company. At 11am I called the business office and asked for my contact person. I was told he was “en route”. Since their office was less than ten minutes (walking) from the bank I questioned that little tidbit.

It was a little before the noon siren went off that the guy showed up. I’d written that he reminded me of a vulture awaiting to descend on his prey. He had a big smile on his face and started by saying we should go to lunch. I didn’t have time for that sort of BS and reminded him that he was two hours late. Being chastised didn’t deter him at all. Full of bluster, he proceeded to spread the  plans on my desk. There were multiple colored lines running all over the them which meant nothing to me. He started babbling about this would be the most sophisticated system in the county. Hearing that stated was a big ‘red flag’ to me. I cut him short and demanded to see the cost. He tried to defer showing it to me but I wasn’t having it. He finally pulled the written proposal out of his briefcase and laid it on the plans. I rifled though it and found the ‘bottom line’… $36,000.

I’m not sure anymore but I think I might’ve laughed. I had no idea at all what a phone system for 26 to 28 phones might cost to compare that to (my fault) but right from the start I knew I wasn’t paying more than a thousand dollars a phone for ANY system, sophisticated or not… and I told him so. As I started folding the plans up he tried to stop me. That made me even madder. He protested that he’d not had a chance to tell me all that we’d be getting. I told him I didn’t care and that what he had wasn’t going to be installed at this bank.

I’d love to know what my blood pressure was as he walked through the gate to leave. I wished that Bret had been there as he was the one who walked both he and the engineer though the bank. I’d given Bret instructions as to just what we were looking for… replace what we had with equivalent coverage plus five more phones. I knew Bret well enough that he’d not go against my instructions. The rep thought he had an easy sale... but he didn't. Frustrated was the way I felt. Now I'd wasted a week and didn’t even have an alternative to turn to.

To be continued...