FROM BAD TO WORSE... life in Hades (Part 56a)

Some background on Dan... He was primarily a potato farmer and the horse racing had started out as a hobby. He and his brother-in-law had purchased a “black-land” farm in New York and in spite of being told that potatoes wouldn’t grow there, went ahead anyway and were very successful. They did this for a few years and then sold the farm for a humongous profit. At the same time Dan had achieved much success racing horses. He decided he wanted to buy another farm and, besides raising potatoes, turn it into a training and breeding center for harness horses. He found a 175 acre dairy farm where the owner had died and he and his brother in law bought for a “song“ at an estate auction. They cleared about 60 acres of rocks and stones and then planted potatoes. In the first year they set a state record for yield per acre for potatoes. Dan also graded out an area for a half mile training track. While that was going on he created 16 stalls under the main barn. He still needed another 8 stalls but the existing dairy barns weren’t able to be converted for horses. About a month before I started lightning struck the silo next to one of the dairy barns and burned the barn down. Fully insured, he was able to take that money and build what he needed without using any of his own money. He hired the Amish to build it and it was just about finished when I arrived.
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Feeling grubby and still half asleep I followed Dan down the hill toward this big barn. We actually walked past it and there in front of us was his training track. I could see from the look on his face that he was really proud of it. From there he took me into the stable area. I recognized some of the name plates on the stalls and there were some good horses there. He went over to a door and opened it and yelled something. It was where the grooms lived and it was a wake up call for them. It was Sunday and here he was waking them at the same time as on a regular work day. I was a bit puzzled but didn’t say anything. I was used to having a sort of "lazy day" on Sundays. He told me about the breeding on some of the yearlings he’d bought at the recent auctions and he bragged about how he’d got most of them ”on the cheap“. Then this wizened old man came out from behind the door. He introduced me to ”Chit“. I thought he said Chet but he insisted that it was Chit. Dan introduced us and then told Chit to get me started. My first reaction was ”started on what?“ but I didn’t say anything. I hadn’t had anything to eat, not that there was much in the trailer. He then disappeared and Chit took me over to three stalls and told me they were mine. I didn’t pick up on it at first. I honestly thought that he meant that they were mine to break to bridle and harness but he quickly made it clear that they were mine to take care of. I just knew there was some mistake so went looking for Dan. I walked all the way back up the hill to his house but no one answered the door. I went over to the trailer to see what I could find to eat and after finding some crackers made my way back to the barn. I tried telling myself that Dan was short help and this was just temporary. Chit quickly came across as being a tight lipped individual. His favorite answer was ”I don’t know.“

I proceeded to clean the three stalls and horses, giving them each a nice walk. When I was finished I was absolutely famished. I needed food. Back up the hill to the house and this time a large, pleasant faced woman answered. It was Dan’s wife, Jeanne. I introduced myself and she made me feel welcome saying she recognized my voice from the calls I’d made to Dan. I asked where Dan was and she said she didn’t really know. Her two sons were running around behind her trying to get a look at me. I told her I needed to park the trailer but didn’t know where. She just smiled and said I’d have to wait for Dan. I asked how to get to town and she gave me the directions. I moved the trailer from the driveway and headed to town. It wasn’t much. Not quite the size of my grandparents town. What I did notice was a big ”Grand Opening” sign and a fairly large parking lot with but one building. The sign read “Acme”. Curious, I pulled in. It was what we would now call a Super Market“ but it was closed (Sunday Blue laws were still in effect at the time) I knew I would be back. I did find a General Store that was open and they had block ice which I needed for my ice box. I got some staples and headed back to the farm.

Dan was looking at the trailer when I got there. His brother-in-law, Bert, was there as well. Dan knew that I had a house trailer and, trying to be funny, said it’d be hard to fit four people in this one. I’d not made arrangements to move the trailer from North Carolina for a couple of reasons. The main one was I wasn’t sure I’d end up working for Dan. The other was I didn’t have the money to move it. I explained that to Dan and he said he’d take care of it for me. I should’ve asked him how... but I didn’t. I knew I couldn’t bring Elle and the babies down until the trailer was in place so I happily thanked him.

He’d already run power and water out to the spot the house trailer would be located in so I pulled the little one in there. I was going to try and sort out all the stuff in it but Dan had other ideas. I got a tour of the whole farm... on the back of the tractor. One thing I specifically remember him pointing out was the field where the horse manure was spread. He said it a few times but I didn’t know why. When we finished he reminded me that it was time to feed and water the horses. I didn’t ask him about Chit’s comment about me taking care of the three horses. I think it was because of the way he spoke. It was always with authority and coupled with the look on his face he was intimidating.

To be continued...

HARD TIMES... change, not for the better (Part 55i)

After a long Sunday where I still couldn’t come up with a “plan” I woke up to more bad weather. The weather added to my misery as the remnants of a coastal storm were battering us. I wished I had someone to talk to who could give me some direction. I was utterly discouraged which certainly didn’t help when I was racing. By mid week Mrs AJ had left a message that AJ had been released from the hospital and they would be back by the weekend. Having to put the entries in three days in advance and not knowing, for sure, if AJ would be able to drive left me in another quandary. At that point I was determined to leave, at the latest, Saturday if I got my pay so didn’t enter any horses for Saturday night. I was of the mind that no matter what I did it would be wrong.

Mrs AJ showed up with AJ Friday night. I was shocked when I saw him. His eyes were sunken into his head and he’d lost weight. I didn’t know what he’d say so I was a bit nervous. It went well as could be expected. He still wasn’t feeling well so he wanted to make it quick. I told him what I'd done and then he paid me. When I tried to thank him for being my mentor he just walked away. It wasn't the way I wanted it to end. I had my grandfather’s horse entered to race that night which would be my last one for AJ. It didn’t go well...again. This was a horse that seldom went off stride and, for whatever reason, he did. It certainly wasn’t the way I wanted to remember my last race for AJ or my grandfather. In the two weeks I been filling in for AJ all I had to show for it was one third place finish out of eleven starts. Not good!

Basically I was all packed and ready to leave the first thing in the morning. I stopped by the barn to say my goodbyes to Ed and the other men and was on my way. I figured it would take about seven to eight hours and was “hyper” once on the road. I was in Connecticut before the first problem arose. I heard a “thumping” sound and when I stopped to check on it I found a bulge in one of the tires on the trailer. I had no spare. It was right around midday and, back in those days, many businesses were only open for part of the day on Saturdays. It took almost two hours before I was able to find a tire place open who had the size tire that the trailer needed. That was only the half of it. The tire cost around $20 as I remember it which was about 1/3 of the cash I had.

I made it onto the New Jersey turnpike right around dark. I’d driven for about a half hour when I saw flashing lights behind me. I pulled over and a State Trooper walked up to the door and told me I had no lights on the trailer. I knew I’d hooked them up and checked them before leaving. He was very nice and with his flashlight we found the problem. I’d neglected to secure the wires to the hitch and they’d been dragging on the road surface and worn through. Neither of us had tools to do the repair so he “escorted” me to the nearest service area. By the time I got on the road again it was close to 10pm. I called Dan and told him where I was and I could tell he wasn’t happy. I pulled into his driveway around 1am. All the lights were out and I was exhausted so just opened the door to the trailer, pushed some boxes around and flopped on the sofa.

The next thing I knew there was some pounding on the side of the trailer. I was sound asleep and it scared me. I opened the door and found it was barely light out. Dan was standing there and, seeing I was dressed, told me to follow him. I didn't know it then but it was something I was going to be doing for the next six months.

To be continued...

HARD TIMES... change, not for the better Part 55h)

The Harrisburg auction started on Monday, October 3 and AJ and the owner drove down on Sunday. I was scheduled to drive Crestwyn that Monday night and I couldn’t wait. I planned to do the same thing I’d done the night that Hank had driven him and won the race. The only concern was that the New Hampshire track was only a half mile which meant the turns were “tighter”. As most of the races were one mile in length it meant two times around the track. Crestwyn was a big horse and AJ had warned me that he’d have trouble with the turns. Eddie seemed to think he’d be OK. I wished that I’d had a chance to train him at least once before I raced him.

It didn’t go well at all. As AJ had predicted, the turns were a problem for him. Over the past five years he’d only raced on a half mile track a handful of times. I think I might’ve finished last. It wasn’t the start that I’d been counting on and it didn’t get any better. The next night, in the one race that I thought I really had a chance to win, a local driver, who was drunk, hit my horse when he tried to pass us. I ended up third and when I went to protest him, the judges said there was no contact even though I showed the paddock judge the blood on my horse. It was a valuable lesson. Locals rule. The man was obviously drunk as he staggered away from the horse after dismounting from the sulky. I was really mad but I was just a “kid” with no credentials or standing so it didn’t matter to them.

The next morning everyone at the cook house was talking about the plane crash at the Boston airport. It had crashed into the harbor just to the West of the apartment that I'd shared with Eugene and Faith. For some reason that news really bothered me. That night, while on the track warming up a horse, a call came in for me. Because of rules promulgated to keep betting honest no phones were allowed in the paddock or grandstands. It was from my father but there was no message other than to call home as soon as possible. I had no idea if it was about Elle or one of my grandparents who at that time were both in ill health. I don’t even remember which horse I was racing but I know my mind wasn’t on the race. It was after midnight when I finally got to a phone. I was a father for the second time as Elle had given birth to a healthy girl. I remember being happy but totally perplexed as to what to do. Here I was, up in New Hampshire, responsible for nine valuable race horses with no one to turn them over to and my wife had just given birth to my baby. I knew I just couldn’t go off and leave the horses but I also had a responsibility to my family. I was in for another long night.

I tried to reach AJ the next morning but was unsuccessful. I left messages at the hotel he was supposedly staying at but didn’t get a response. I fully expected him back on Friday night and had listed him to drive two horses on Saturday. I wasn’t able to talk with Elle so explained my situation to my father and asked him to pass it on to her. The way I left it with him was that I’d be home on Saturday

I got a call late Friday afternoon from Mrs AJ and it wasn’t the one that I wanted to get. AJ had pneumonia and was in the hospital in Harrisburg. She didn’t know when he’d be released and she wanted to know that I’d stay with the horses until he got back. Talk about a blow to the mind! And, as far as I was concerned I was already gone.

The bad news didn’t stop there. We always got paid, in cash, on Saturday. Mrs AJ was in Harrisburg and had no way to get money to us. I couldn’t have gone home anyway because I was broke. Of the four men working for AJ, only “Pop” and Eddie had any cash at all. I explained the situation to them and they, reluctantly, agreed to lend food money to the others. Eating wasn’t my big problem... getting in touch with Dan and telling him about my situation was.

Fortunately he wasn’t home and I talked to his wife. She sounded sympathetic which gave me some hope. By the time I got off the phone it was time to get out onto the track. I’d never raced either of the horses I was scheduled on that night and that was a different concern. In retrospect, I was truly overwhelmed.

I didn’t do well with either of the horses and I have no idea where I finished with either of them. I’d gotten everything ready with the trailer so I could leave first thing in the morning. I'd put loose stuff in boxes and on the bed. I didn’t really have a place to sleep. I also didn't have even the faintest idea of what I was going to do the next day. I ended up falling asleep in my clothes in a place I managed to clear off the couch.

Even though I had horses to train that next morning I needed to get the situation with the money taken care of. It was mid morning when I finally got in touch with Mrs AJ. There was no news with AJ’s condition so she couldn’t give me any guidance as to how long I’d be needed. As far as the money, she’d contacted a relative of AJ’s who lived in Massachusetts who was going to drive to the track with some, but not all, of the money owed to us. That was the only positive I was able to garner. At least I had some good news for the men when I got back.

Before I was able to start training the horses that were scheduled there was a call over the loudspeakers for me to come to the office. It could’ve only been Elle or Dan and I had no information to share with them. It was probably going to be a plea from Elle and an ultimatum from Dan. In my mind I just couldn’t leave there at that time. It turned out to be Dan... and I was right. He was really upset with me and I thought I was going to hear him say to forget about the job. I do remember my legs shaking as I listened to him. Just when I was at my lowest point I heard him say something along the lines of “be there next Saturday or don’t bother showing up”. I also remember standing there by the phone for quite a while before I was able to move.

Elle was a different story. Tears and sobs was about all I heard. It ended up being a long, long day, especially after adding in another bad performance with the horses I drove that night. AJ’s relative showed up in time for all of us to be able to eat that evening. It was the first real meal I’d had in over two days. Back at the trailer I gave some serious thought to just quitting the horses altogether when AJ showed up. I'd performed poorly with the horses and had some doubts about my ability as a driver. I remember thinking about what I might be able do about getting a job with my college degree. I also remember not being able to come up with an idea.

To be continued...

HARD TIMES... change, not for the better (Part 55g)

I stayed in there for a while before coming out. My heart was still beating fast when I did. There was nothing happening but I was reluctant to venture back into their bedroom. When I calmed down I realized that my back was really hurting so I went into my bedroom to lie down. I was asleep when Eugene and Faith returned. It was time to go to the track and check on the horses. I was glad that it was Sunday because I knew AJ wouldn’t be there. Even though I was almost certain that I’d go to work for Dan I dreaded telling AJ. I also dreaded telling Eddie. We were really close and I knew it would make him sad. I spent as little time as I could before returning to the apartment.

Between my back bothering me and trying to come up with some way to tell AJ that wouldn’t make him mad I didn’t get much sleep. I remember that there was a storm blowing in off the ocean as Eugene and I drove to the track. It was raining so hard that we didn’t take the horses out of the barn to even jog them a bit. It meant that we spent a lot of time just standing around and, as we did, I summoned up the nerve to approach AJ. I fully expected to get a “lecture” from him and had even imagined what he might say. When I told him there was hardly a change in his expression. He was very calm. He did make me feel bad when he asked if I'd told my grandfather. I told him that I’d stay until the racing ended on October 1st which was a full two weeks away. I stood there waiting for a reaction but the only thing I remember him saying was that he’d like it if I’d stay until end of the first week in October as he and the owner were headed to the Harrisburg auctions. His friend, Hank, was moving on to race in the city so AJ needed someone to train and race the horses while he was gone. At first I didn’t pick up on the last part... “and race the horses”. I told him that my arrangement with Dan was contingent with me being able to start around the first of the month. He didn’t plead but did ask if I‘d at least ask Dan for the extra week. I said I would.

It was over the next hour that remorse set in. I started questioning myself, focusing on what he’d said “and race the horses”. Had I made my “move” too soon? The owner had already bought five horses and was obviously committed to buying more. Was I going to miss out on something good? I was a mess. Standing around on a cold day, in the rain, wasn’t helping my back. We had a couple of horses racing that night so even though I didn’t want to come back I knew I had to. I also had to try and get in touch with Dan. Nothing was going right.

When I finally got through to Dan I told him that I would accept the offer but that I couldn’t start until the 10th of October. I told him that I just couldn’t leave AJ “hanging”. He didn’t like hearing that but, reluctantly, said “OK”. Now I had to break the news to Eddie. More discomfort.

One of the horses that Eddie was caring for was racing that night which made it a bit easier. I can still see the look on his face when I told him. It honestly made me sad. He tried “selling” the concept of the new horses and the potential they offered. I was aware of that but it was the offer of more money and having horses to race on my own that were the big items for me. When I told him I’d be around until AJ got back from Harrisburg and that he’d indicated that I’d get to drive the stable’s horses in his absence it seemed to cheer him up.

Between my back and the events of the day it was another pretty much sleepless night. On top of that Eugene’s baby was sick and she spent a good bit of the night crying. Because I was awake I got up and washed and dressed early the next morning. When I walked into what served as the living room I saw Faith curled up asleep on the couch with the baby nestled into her arms. But I also got a peek at her panties, It was nothing special but it made me smile for a few seconds.

We were down to just nine horses that were capable of racing and that meant that I had some nights off. As I mentioned earlier, the apartment was located between the Atlantic Ocean and Boston Harbor. Right across the harbor was the Boston airport and one of the flight paths to it was right over the apartment building. Over time, I’d gotten used to the droning sound of the engines. (Jet service was still fairly new at that time) On my first night off I went up on the roof to watch some planes while landing. I don’t remember how long I was up there but I do remember that I was about to leave when I looked out to the East. It seemed like there was this small orange ball moving towards me. After a few minutes it became obvious that it was a plane with an engine on fire. I stood there watching it come closer and closer. I was frozen in place. I watched as it flew right over the apartment and then I ran to the other end of the roof and watched as it proceeded to land. I truly expected to see a crash.

The picture of the flaming engine stayed with me all night. I couldn’t get comfortable what with my back and that image clouding my mind made for another bad night. As far as the racing was concerned I couldn’t wait for us to move to New Hampshire. I was looking so forward to getting to drive some of the “good” horses. Eugene’s lease for the apartment was up on September 30th so he planned on leaving on that date. AJ decided to ship five of the horses on up early and I went with them. I never really got to see more than a couple of VPL’s during the rest of the time I spent with Eugene and Faith. I had hoped to get a picture of them (especially Faith) but didn’t have a camera and neither did they. When I left we said that we’d get together over the Winter. Dan’s farm was less than two hours away from their’s so it seemed reasonable. At least I hoped that it did.

To be continued...

HARD TIMES...change, not for the better (Part 55f)

The last thing I was thinking about was Faith’s panties when I picked Eugene up to go back to the apartment. I told Eugene about the offer and was looking for some validation from him. Because he’d only worked with his father he really didn’t have much experience in the way of what was or wasn't a fair offer. Back at the apartment I was concentrating on how to ”sell“ the offer to Elle and not thinking about Faith and Eugene leaving the apartment for the afternoon. I knew the hang up for Elle would be the lack of people at the farm to socialize with. I was actually worried that she’d say no.

It was about 1pm when Eugene’s friends arrived. Faith fixed us all a bite to eat and then they left. I should’ve been beside myself with excitement when they left but my thoughts were on my upcoming talk with Elle. I came up with all kinds of sales pitches and really didn’t like any of them. I’d told Elle that I’d call around 3pm and knew she’d be waiting for my call. I really didn’t want to talk with her... but I had to.

It went better that I thought it would. I really ”pushed“ the extra money that I’d be making and, with the new baby, how much we needed it. Basically, she was quiet on the other end of the line. I took that as a positive. I’d shown up at the phone booth with almost $5 in change and was about out when I flat out asked her what she was thinking. At first there was more silence and then she said something like ”do what you think is best“. I had no more money so took that as a ”yes“. I don’t remember what my immediate thoughts were but I was soon thinking about how to tell AJ.

I was back at the apartment before the thought of Faith’s panties crossed my mind. When it did I could feel my heart start to pound. In all the time I’d been staying there I’d never really had a look inside their bedroom. Every time I’d go into the bathroom I’d check just about everywhere looking for something faith might’ve left behind but had never found anything. I made a note of the angle of the bedroom door as I pushed it open enough for me to enter. There were two things I wanted a peek at and one was the dirty clothes basket. It was half hidden behind a chair and, again, I made note of the positioning of it as I picked it up and was disappointed to see very little in it. I’d forgotten that she’d done all the wash the day before and I was somewhat mad at myself for not remembering... since she’d used my car to go to the laundromat. One of Eugene’s shirts was right on top. I lifted it up and saw exactly what I was looking for... a pair of Faith’s white nylon panties. I made a mental note of how both the shirt and panties had been laying as I picked them up. As soon as I touched them I had a bulge. As I held them up there were a number of noticeable things about them. The one thing that struck me was the treatment of the leg openings. It wasn’t lace but it appeared to be lace like. I found the leg elastic and then about 1/2 inch of the same material as the panties only it was ”gathered“ which gave them the look of lace. It just seemed strange to me. I looked closely at the crotch area and it was definitely wider than most of the nylon panties that Elle had. It was also longer, from front to back, than Elle’s. I don’t remember any stains which indicated they were fairly new. Turning them inside out I looked at the label which read ”Seam Pruf”, a name I’d not seen before. The waist elastic was the tunnel type, enclosed by the same material as the panties. I'd seen that before in some of the nicer made ones. I, for sure, liked them!

After putting them and the wash basket back I headed for the dresser. I remember finding that she shared her lingerie drawer with Eugene’s underwear. There wasn't all that much on her side but I saw a pile of 4 or 5 panties right on top. I assumed that they were the panties that she’d just washed. I took the whole pile out and spread them out on the rug. There were two that caught my eye right away. They both had floral designs on them but were each very different. The first one was basically white with little rosebuds scattered throughout. As soon as I picked them up I noticed the feel of them was definitely different. They weren’t nylon or rayon and they weren’t cotton like any that I’d seen or felt. I held them up and when I turned to look at the back I saw something totally foreign to any panties I’d ever seen. I saw that the crotch panel started in the normal place on the front but, following it to the back, saw it didn’t end like all the other panties I’d seen before with a “half moon”. The panel continued on up to the waist elastic tapering as it went on up to a single point right in the middle of the back. That point was also the place the waist elastic started and ended and the label was placed. It read "BeFree". As I held them up it looked like an inverted “V”. The crotch fabric was doubled as with all other “normal” panties. When I went to stretch them I found that I couldn’t. I was truly puzzled. A close inspection of the middle of the crotch found some staining that indicated that they weren’t all that new. I folded them up and picked up the other floral pair. They had the same "feel" as the pair that I’d inspected from the wash basket and, after closely looking at them found them to also be made by “Seam Pruf”. Because the floral print flowed throughout the material I couldn’t see if there was any crotch staining. I then picked up one of the other panties and looked at the crotch area first. They didn’t have much staining either which was a bit of a disappointment. I was about to look for the label when I heard a sound from the living room. My heart stopped... or close to it. I quickly stacked the panties back up in the order that I’d laid them out and dropped them back into the drawer. I stood there to see if any more sounds came from the living room area. I don’t know if it was my imagination or not but I thought I did. The bathroom was right outside the bedroom door so I slipped as quietly as I could out into the hall and into the bathroom and closed the door.

To be continued...

HARD TIMES... change, not for the better (Part 55e)

Hank did just as I’d told him to do and I could see his whip strike Crestwyn’s rump right at the start. By the time they got to the quarter mile pole he was about 5 lengths in front. He stayed that way all the way to the finish line. Seeing him cross the line first was a great feeling... and it wasn’t because of the approximately $85 that Eddie and I each won. I caught up with Hank a little later and he told me that he really hadn’t needed to hit the horse at the start. He was probably right but Eddie and I wanted our ”plan“ to be carried out just the way we’d designed it.

It was a good night for Eugene as well as he won his first race. Even though Faith was asleep when we got back to the apartment he woke her up to tell her. She’d been sound asleep and when she walked out into the living room she was rubbing her eyes. More important, (to me) was that she was wearing a fairly short flimsy nightgown. I could see her panties through it as she walked over to the table. Even though it was only for a short time it was a thrill just the same.

The next night Hank was to drive the 2 year old. I was not happy about that at all. He was still very skittish around other horses especially near the starting gate. As Hank was leaving the paddock for the race I warned him to keep the horse back from the starting gate even if the starter yelled at him to get him up closer. He didn’t respond. I had more horses to warm up so couldn’t go over to the grandstand to watch the race. With the paddock at the head of the stretch it was possible to see the start. To put it bluntly, it was a disaster. I could see the 2 year old swerve to the right and then watched as two horses went down. It’s always a sickening sight but especially after the experience I’d just gone through. Long story short... Hank had tried to take the two year old right up to the gate and the horse had shied to the right, running into that horse who, in turn, ran into the horse next him. No one was hurt but Hank was called into the judge’s booth to explain what had happened. The result was that the 2 year old was barred from racing the rest of the meet. I was really mad and it was at Hank. I’d told him about the horse and what to do with him but in his eyes I was just a ”kid“ so he ignored me. He wouldn’t talk to me about it. It was just another in the growing list of things that was upsetting to me.

Eugene didn’t have any horses racing that night so I didn’t have anybody to let off steam with. I lay awake for a long time and was praying that Dan would come through with a concrete offer when we would talk on Sunday. It was still three days away and since Eugene and Faith had made arrangements to spend that afternoon and evening with another young couple it was going to be my chance to finally peek at Faith’ panty drawer. To say I was eagerly looking forward to Sunday was an understatement.(12)

I’d only casually mentioned Dan to Elle when she was visiting. I only had slivers of information from him but the one thing I did know was that he’d built a half mile track at his farm in Pennsylvania and was planning on spending the winter there. If there was one concern that I had it was about that. I didn’t want to say too much to her until I had all the information hoping that there would be enough good things to overcome the fact that we would be basically all alone at the farm.

AJ returned on Saturday with what seemed like good news about his trip. The owner had purchased five yearlings including the most expensive filly (female) sold at the sale. He was not only excited about that but also that he and the owner would be going to the Harrisburg auctions to buy some race ready horses. The auction coincided with the close of racing at Boston and I knew we were going to New Hampshire at that time. I also knew that his friend, Hank, who’d driven AJ’s horses while he was in Lexington, wasn’t. My first thought was that maybe I’d finally get a chance. Actually, I was counting on it. The problem, for me, was it clouded my thought process as far as Dan was concerned.

When Sunday morning arrived I remember being as nervous as I was right before my first race. I had to go through my usual Sunday morning chores and was to wait at the cook house public phone for Dan to call. I was about 15 minutes early and those 15 minutes seemed like an hour. Dan actually did have an offer... and I could hardly believe my ears. I would get a $20 a week raise to start with. He would pay for my electric and heat (kerosene) for the trailer. All the food that we would buy at a local market would get a 15% discount. When it came time to go racing in the Spring I would be given a group of horses to race on my own. It was like my dream coming true over the phone. I didn’t have much to ask but did say that I needed to talk it over with my wife. At the end of the conversation he said I had to let him (or his wife) know within the week. Even though I was ready to say ”yes“ right then and there I told him I would. When I hung up the receiver I was shaking.

To be continued...

HARD TIMES... change, not for the better (Part 55d)

When the train arrived I could see that Elle was very tired and I was worried about her. Even though it was only about a half hour to the apartment she fell asleep on the way. She was apprehensive about meeting Eugene and Faith and worried about her wetting. Faith was waiting and had made a light supper for all of us. As Eugene and I left for the track it appeared that her fears were unfounded as the girls were getting along well. It was certainly way better than AJ and I were.

AJ and the owner were to leave for Lexington on Sunday. I met Hank, his driver friend on that Saturday night. He seemed like a nice guy and vowed to myself not to give him a hard time the following week. We already knew which horses were entered through the next Wednesday and one of them was the two year old that I’d been training and racing. I managed to sum up the courage to ask AJ if I could at least drive him and he just shook his head ”no“.

The girls spent all Saturday at the beach which was only a few blocks away. The weather had co-operated and was promising to do the same for Sunday. For Sunday they had decided that it would be fun for all of us to go down to the boardwalk. In spite of my memorable introduction to Faith (in just her full slip) and a few ”near misses“, I hadn’t really gotten any good views of her panties. The day turned out to be unseasonably warm and she ended up wearing a pair of light blue shorts. When we were about to leave the apartment she bent down to pick up the baby and I know Elle caught me staring at her bottom. It was a fantastic VPL (visible panty line) that caught me by surprise. I had a hard time not looking in that area as we walked down the street. Elle caught me another time and gave me a good smack in the arm.

We had a good time playing some of the games and then ended up on the beach. Their baby just loved the sand. I was thankful we ended up there because it gave me a chance to actually see Faith’s panties from a different perspective. Sitting in the sand she would change her leg positions as she tried to corral the baby. The best view was when she ended up lying on her back with her legs up. I got to see her actual panties and all the way up to the crotch line. Thankfully, both Elle and Eugene were not in position to see what I was able to see. One thing it reminded me was that in the week I’d lived with Eugene and Faith I’d never been in the apartment alone. I made a note to myself to work on that.

There was no way for me to take Elle to the train station on Monday morning and I had to get a taxi to take her. She wasn’t very happy about it and neither was I, but for a different reason. The cost of the cab was going to take just about all the cash I had for the week. But, all in all, I was glad that she’d come up to visit.

I’d mentioned the horse Crestwyn earlier and how Eddie and I had felt that the cause for his disappointing performance was AJ. We felt that AJ had some sort of fear of the horse and because of it was reluctant to drive him aggressively in the races. Horses are not the dumb animals that most people think they are. We felt that Crestwyn, knowing he wasn’t going to have to race hard, had become lazy. Eddie and I had come up with a ”plan” and I’d been looking forward for a chance to drive him so that I could put our ”plan“ to work. But it was Hank who was going to race him so we had to rethink our ”plan“.

Eddie was sure that in the five years that AJ had been racing him that Crestwyn had never been really hit with a whip. A light ”tap“ was all that Eddie could remember. On race night, prior to the actual race, each horse makes three separate warm up miles spaced out over about 2 1/2 to 3 hours. The first mile is usually done in about 3 minutes with the second about 2 minutes and 35 seconds. The last warm up mile before racing is usually done in about 2 minutes and 20 seconds with the last quarter mile done just a little bit faster than the other quarters. Even with Hank doing the race driving I was still to do the first two warm ups. When I turned him to start the first of the warm ups I hit him with my whip on his rump as hard as could. O H M Y G O D ! ! ! It was as if he’d been hit with a bolt of lightning. All I could do was hold on trying to steer him from hitting other horses on the track. When the mile was over he’d done it in about 2 minutes, 30 seconds with me trying to hold him back as best I could. He’d gone faster than he should’ve gone for even his second mile. When I got him back to the paddock Eddie was laughing. It was obvious that I’d gotten Crestwyn’s attention. Eddie and I decided that we’d go with only two warm up trips. I had to find Hank to tell him when the next trip was to be. We only told him that it seemed like Crestwyn had ”a burr under his saddle“ as he was really ”fired up“. When Hank returned he told Eddie that the horse was ”a handful“. Eddie and I looked at each other trying not to laugh. When Hank left the paddock for the race I told him that he should give him a good swat just as the starting gate pulled away because he had a lazy streak once the race started. Hank looked at me with a puzzled look but didn’t say anything.

Eddie had given me $10 to bet on Crestwyn to win. I wanted to watch the race from the grandstands so I could see the whole thing. The paddock was located on the fourth turn and since it was a mile track you couldn’t see the other turns or the finish line. As I jogged over to make the bet I was debating with myself weather to bet any money myself. I had a $10 bill hidden in my wallet for emergencies and as I waited to place Eddies bet I pulled it out... and began to worry.

To be continued...

HARD TIMES... Change, not for the better (Part 55c)

I actually got a good night of sleep in spite of my back. Eugene woke me up and Faith had coffee and scrambled eggs waiting for us. She was wearing a short house coat and although I kept my eyes on her most of the time I didn’t get a peek of what she had on under it. I knew what I’d be looking for every morning. I was in fairly good mood when I arrived but AJ soon took care of that. He told me that he and the owner of the 2 year old that I raced were going to the yearling sales in Lexington Kentucky the following week. My first thought was positive in that I expected that I’d get to race more of the horses. He went on to say that a good friend of his was shipping in a few horses and that he would be driving all the horses during that week including both of my grandfather’s horses. Talk about being deflated. I was so upset that I don’t remember if I ever asked him why. I do remember walking away from him and avoiding him the rest of the day.

Eugene and I drove back to the apartment, about a 20 minute drive at that time of day, for lunch. Faith had it ready for us and seeing her calmed me down. I hadn’t called Elle since I had arrived at the track and needed to do it. They had no phone which meant another trip downstairs. The apartment was located in a small community which was best known as a place for Summer entertainment. The community was located on a narrow spit of land between the Atlantic Ocean and Boston Harbor. Right down the street was a boardwalk with all kinds of amusements and I headed in that direction looking for a public phone. It was Labor Day and the area was packed with people. When I finally found a phone it was hard to hear Elle and hard for her to hear me. I hadn’t told her about my incident with three footed horse and decided that it was not the right time to do so. What I did get to hear was a plea for me to let her come up and visit for a weekend. At that point in time all we both knew was that the baby was due sooner than we had originally expected so I told her that if her doctor said it was OK I’d arrange for it. The only problem with that was that I hadn’t yet told her about my living arrangements. I remember walking back to the apartment wondering why life had to be so complicated.

Labor Day night was the grand opening for the track. To make a big ”splash“ they had asked the trainers to enter their best horses. The best horse AJ had was a big roan one with the name of Crestwyn. Eddie, my friend and the best groom AJ had, was his caretaker (groom) all five years that AJ had been training him. Over the time I had worked with AJ, Eddie and I had seen him drop from a really top of the line race horse all the way down to class B. Eddie was convinced that the problem wasn’t the horse but was in the way AJ raced him. We had chatted about how I would race him if I ever got the chance. Eddie was disappointed that I wasn’t going to get to do it when AJ took off for Lexington the following week. When Crestwyn didn’t do all that well that night it made Eddie even more upset.

I was the most upset when AJ raced my grandfather’s horse. I was the only one to drive him for the past two years and this move was, to me, a slap in the face. The fact that he won with him didn’t help matters either. I decided to try and get in touch with Dan and see if his offer of a job was for real. It took three days for the two of us to connect and nothing was decided. Setting a time and date for the next conversation was about all we accomplished. Elle had gotten clearance to travel from her doctor and my father made the train reservations for her to arrive on Friday afternoon. Watching Eugene and Faith interact with their baby made me miss Elle more than since I’d taken her home.

I made sure to go to the right train station this time but when I got there found that the train would be about 2 hours late. To kill time I decided to walk around the area. One of the area's big department stores was located nearby. Of course I made my way to the lingerie department. Back in those days it wasn’t uncommon for panties to be displayed on partial manikins and as I walked down this one aisle I saw this stunning pair of light blue panties with vertical lace inserts along side the side seams. As I stopped and looked I noticed a very distinctive waist elastic. I’d seen it before but couldn’t place it. While staring at the panties I didn’t see the salesperson walk up and she startled me. I know I was blushing when she asked if she could help. I probably stammered when I answered. It had been quite a while since I’d bought any panties. I pointed to the ones on the display and when she asked what size I hesitated. As I mentioned earlier, Elle was a lot bigger than in the first pregnancy. I knew that size 5 was what she normally wore but I asked for size 6. The manufacturer was Vanity Fair and I remember that I bought 3 pair for right around $5. The idea was to basically do the same as with the last pregnancy and to hold them aside until after the baby was born and then give them to her. It wasn’t until I got back to the car that I took them out of the bag to inspect them closely. When I got to the crotch I found something that I’d never seen before. All the nylon panties I ever seen had two layers of nylon in the crotch. The inside of these felt something like cotton but was much fluffier than cotton. It turned out that this was my introduction to ”brushed nylon“.

To be continued...

HARD TIMES... Change; not for the better (Part 55b)

AJ finally showed up in mid afternoon. I was not looking forward to seeing him face to face and having to try and explain what had happened with the three footed horse. I'd had plenty of time to think about it and realized that it was probably my fault. I'd not had my feet in the stirrups and when the horse stumbled I was unable to possibly pull him back up by the reins. I was fully expecting to get a "new ass hole" but he said nothing. The rain had stopped and he wanted us to get the horses out of the stalls and give then a walk. With my back I probably should’ve just stood around but I didn’t, wanting to get away from AJ. I ended up walking a few of them hoping we could get done earlier. The pain in my back was excruciating. I was afraid to ask AJ where he was staying and, not knowing anything at all about the city, decided that I’d just sleep in the car again that night. After AJ left I was headed for the cook house to get something to eat when I saw Eugene. I asked where he was staying and he said that he and his wife had an apartment in a suburb with his father and mother. That didn’t help me either.

The night in the car was better without the rain. Actually, my back felt better too. I made it through most of the workouts with the horses on Monday with tolerable pain but was glad when it was done. One thing that I’d noticed was that Eugene hadn’t showed up at the barn. They had one man working for them and when I asked him where he was he didn’t know. It seemed strange as he had seemed to be totally engrossed with the horses.

It was after lunch when he finally appeared. The smile I’d seen on his face the whole time I’d talked with him the day before was gone. I went over to ask if everything was OK and he shook his head to say no. He said that there had been a fire on the farm and his parents had gone home. They had driven up in one car and the horse van and now he was without a way to get around. The van was to large to park on the streets. He had taken a cab to get to the track and couldn’t believe how much it had cost.

I’m not sure when my light bulb turned on but, luckily, it did. I told him my situation about not having a place to stay and with a baby due, couldn’t afford the prices of places in the area. Even though my first impression was that he was a little “slow“ he quickly proved how wrong I was when he offered up his parents room. We were both excited and all sorts of ideas were put forth. I’d pay some money for the room and he would ride back and forth to the track with me. I’d pay some money for food and his wife would make me one good meal a day. There was more but you get the idea. In any case we both felt like a major problem had been solved.

The only thing wrong was this was all negotiated without involving his wife. It was on our way out to the apartment that he realized it. All of a sudden we both had some doubts. The apartment was on the fourth floor and you had to walk up. I was hurting really badly by the time I made it to the top and had to work real hard to have a smile on my face when we walked in. All I can say is that seeing his wife took my breath away. She was truly beautiful in a country girl way. Her name was Faith and if her beauty wasn’t enough she was standing there holding their baby wearing nothing but a full slip and I could see the outline of her panties under it. I would’ve expected her to go running into the bedroom to get something to put on. But, she didn’t. I’d walked in with a forced smile but the one I had on at that time was real.

Eugene introduced me and then we all sat down at the table so he could go over what he and I’d discussed. I had a hard time not staring at her. The baby was squirming around and when she put her on the floor I got a good peek at her cleavage. It too, was breathtaking. Eugene did 95% of the talking. She never raised any real objections. Her only concern was that without a car it was going to be difficult to do shopping and get to doctor’s appointments. I was so excited about the arrangements that I told her that we’d be able to work that part out. I think that the thing that surprised me was that she was writing the whole ”deal“ down. There was nothing wrong with doing that but it was a bit of a shock knowing that these were relatively uneducated people.

Eugene and I shook hands on the arrangements. Since I’d removed most of my clothes and things I needed to live with from the trailer when I’d parked it, they were in the car. Eugene helped me bring them upstairs and when we returned I was disappointed to see that Faith had put on a dress. But, all in all I was very happy even though I was still in pain. For the first time since I’d arrived I was looking forward to the coming month.

That night we sat around and got to know one another. Eugene was only 21 and Faith was 19. They’d gone to school together and got married as soon as she graduated. The baby was almost one so, while lying in bed, figured out that Faith was probably 5 months pregnant when they did. She’d never really worked and since getting married had done the record keeping for the racing stable. That sort of explained why she did all the calculations when we had been discussing my ”share“ of the costs. I had a hard time keeping my eyes off her. There was a lot of her that reminded me of Elle... blonde, good looking, easy smile, a bit naive, and a nice figure. As for Eugene, he was focused on being a harness racing driver and had persuaded his father to come to Boston so he could see what ”life“ outside Delaware was like. He was easy to talk to and I could see how that might get him in trouble. When we said our ”good nights“ I felt really good about the situation.

To be continued...

HARD TIMES... change, but not for the better (Part 55a)


I had a couple of days before shipping the horses. Since I wasn’t going to race the three footed horse before leaving I had to give him a training session. When we race we use a little two wheel thing called a sulky to sit on since we don’t ride on the horse. When we’re training we use a more comfortable but, heavier, cart. I had just finished one of the four trips and was on my way back to the barn. It’s called “jogging” when the horse is going slow. I was jogging along with both my feet out of the stirrups and the next thing I knew the horse was down and I was up against the dash and in great pain. Luckily there were some horse people nearby and they ran over to sit on the head of the horse to keep him from trying to get up with the cart still attached. I managed to extract myself from the reins and the cart. I know I was in a lot of pain but my thoughts were on getting the horse up. We had to undo the cart and the only way to do that was to take the harness off the horse. Once done we tried to get the horse up but it was obvious that there was a major problem. The foot that had been "nerved" wasn’t pointing in the right direction. One of the men ran off to call for a veterinarian. When he got there he gave me the worst news a horseman can hear. He’d fractured his ankle and would have to be euthanized. I asked if there was anything that could be done to save him and he was sympathetic, but said “no”. The only thing I really remember was seeing this canvas screen being placed around him and hearing a muffled sound. By then I could hardly walk. My ribs were sore and my lower back was just throbbing in pain and I had to call AJ to let him know. Technically it was his horse and that made it even worse. I don’t remember any of the conversation. All I wanted was to do something about the pain. I didn’t have any health insurance but the pain was so great I didn’t have any choice but go to a doctor. I had Asa drive me. Other than some pain pills he didn’t do much. He told me that I should rest and that would be the best thing. The problem with that was that if I didn’t work I didn’t get paid. Thankfully, Asa could jog the two remaining horses and I did try to rest as much as I could until Saturday when we were to ship the horses to Boston.

Any time a horse is "put away" at a race track, word gets around quickly. Even though I hadn't made any really good friends there were a number of trainers who stopped by. One was Dan, the trainer who had made a broad offer of a job to me when the Grand Circuit was at the other track. This time he made a much stronger, but not detailed, offer and told me if I was the least bit interested to call him by the middle of the upcoming month. I hadn't taken him seriously the first time but he did get my attention this time.

The pain wasn’t as severe when I started to get the trailer ready to move it. George, my neighbor, and his daughter came over and did the unblocking of it. I have one lasting memory of Ellen and that was after her father had jacked the trailer up a bit and she squatted down to pull the wooden wedges out. I got a really good DP (downpants). I just wished that I’d actually had more chances to see what kind of panties she wore while I was at the track. George hitched the trailer to the car for me and wished me luck.

The trip itself wasn’t all that bad. It was when I had to get out of the car that I felt it. As I pulled up to the gate the guy there told me I couldn’t bring the trailer inside. I was in no mood to be told that. I was probably just a bit “testy”. I was told that since the track was inside the Boston city limits it was not allowed. Without going into all the details I’ll just say that I was finally allowed to park it in the compound where the horse vans were stored. The “deal” was that it had to be parked right up tight to the fence with the door facing it. Now I had to find a place to stay. What made that even worse was that AJ hadn’t arrived and he had my pay for the week.

I don’t remember what the reason was why he was late in getting there but the short end of the story was that I slept in my car, bad back and all. On top of that there was a thunder storm with almost torrential rains. If you’ve ever been in a convertible when it rains you know how loud it can get. By dawn I was exhausted. In all, we had 14 horses with 12 on one side of the barn. The other two were stabled in the middle of the facing barn. It was still raining so all I could do was to just see that the horses were fed and watered... and wait for AJ.

While standing there (it hurt less to stand) a young blond man came up and introduced himself. His name was Eugene and he and his father had the other horses stabled with the two odd horses we had. They were from Delaware and this was the farthest from home he’d ever been. The family raised chickens and raced horses as a hobby. Normally they raced at tracks in Delaware that were close by to their farm. The season there was almost over and when they heard how much the purses (the money paid) were in Boston decided to give it a try. Eugene told me that he wanted to race horses for a living and this was a really big thing for him. I liked him right away even though I felt he was a bit of a “rube”.

To be continued...

GETTING A BREAK... finally (Part 54j)

I was looking forward to the Grand Circuit arriving. It seemed like there was ”electricity“ in the air what with the big name stables and their famous trainer/drivers. Even with the poor performance with the two year old in his last start I was looking forward to racing him against some of the best in his class. I was worried about drawing for post position because, on a half mile track, things are a lot tighter and an inside position would not have been good for him. I was afraid he’d act up with horses all around him. I needed not to worry as they ended up with eleven horses entered. Since they starting gate could only accommodate eight horses it meant that three of them would have to start behind them. I was so happy to draw position ten. It meant that I’d be able to take him back and get him to the rail early.

I knew the owner would be there and entered his other horse. What I didn’t expect was to have AJ there as well. He decided to drive the other horse which upset me a bit as he’d raced so well for me. But, the boss is always the boss. The other horse raced before I did and didn’t do all that well. I don’t remember much about it as I was focused on my race. I wasn’t as intimidated by the reputations of the other drivers as last time which helped to keep me calm. When the race started I did just as I planned. I held him back and quickly got over to the inside rail. There were a lot of horses ”parked out“ (It means they had to race a whole lane from the inside rail making them have to travel a further distance) which was good for me. I just had to have patience and hope that I’d find a way to get to the outside when we got to the head of the stretch heading for the finish line. Patience for a twenty three year old novice driver is not easy to find. I waited and waited and finally I had a chance to pull out at the 3/4 pole. It was earlier than I’d wanted but... When I got to the head of the stretch I pulled him out into the middle of the track and just turned him loose. I knew we were ”flying“ as I passed a bunch of horses on the inside of me. When we crossed the finish line I wasn’t sure where we’d finished. When I came back to be excused by the finish wire judge I saw that we were in a photo finish for 3rd. I also saw we were around 70 to 1, really long odds. It took what seemed like an eternity before they announced that there was a ”dead heat“ for third which meant the judges couldn’t determine a clear separation. I was in another planet! (9).

The owner was beside himself. Here was his home-bred, racing against some of the best two year old horses in the country, finishing third. As I readied to take him back to the barn to ”cool him out“ I saw the same famous trainer who had spoken to AJ and the owner the first time we raced walk up to the owner and start to talk to him. I didn’t hear what was said this time but he appeared to really be interested in the horse. I wondered what would become of that.

Back at the barn AJ congratulated me. It was rare for him to offer up much in the way of criticism or praise so it caught me by surprise. It didn’t take him long to get to the real point of his visit. He told me that he was shipping to another track located in Boston. It was a running horse track that had decided to try harness racing. AJ told me that it was just a month long ”test“ for them and it was to see the public interest. They hadn’t gotten a good response from trainers so, to induce them to ship there, they were offering some really good money for the purses. It was somewhere around 50% more than we’d raced for all Summer. AJ, who’d not had a good season, was hoping to do well there. I heard what he was telling me but, on a personal level, it meant the end of my ”independence“. Since two of the three horses had raced that night AJ told me not to enter the other horse and to be prepared to ship on Saturday.

That news took all of the excitement from doing so well with the two year old away. When I got back to my trailer I just sat on the step wondering what the new track would be like and how I’d adapt to no longer being my own ”boss“. I’ll admit that I was hoping for a ‘show” from Ellen but the lights were out and didn’t come on before I finally went inside.

To be continued...

GETTING A BREAK... finally (Part 54i)

During supper, where he grilled hamburgers on a charcoal grill in the little yard that we shared, I found out the he was divorced and that his daughter, Ellen, spent Summers with him working as a groom. I was more than pleased that I got to see a very nice DP (downpants) and VPL (visible panty line) while we ate. It was like a private ”welcome“ just for me. I left looking forward to more than just racing the horses.

It was probably Wednesday the next time I saw Ellen. I was coming back to the trailer to take my afternoon nap and I saw her hanging wash on the line between the two trees in out shared yard. At first I just waved at her but when I realized that there were panties on the line I stopped. Seeing the wash also triggered the thought that I was going to have to do my own. I walked towards her and glancing quickly at the panties, asked where the laundry was. She turned away from the wash and pointed towards a second gate. While she did this I took a closer look at the panties. All three were of a different color. I don’t remember exactly what colors but what I do remember was that there were days of the week embroidered on them. As she turned back towards me I diverted my eyes from the panties. But she then bent over to get more wash from her basket and I got another DP. I was really liking this!

AJ wanted me to train the 2 year old once on the half mile track before entering him in a race. That meant I had to wait a week. I got to race the three footed horse and as I remember it, finished third with him. The first time I raced the other horse, owned by the same man who owned the 2 year old, I drove a very poor race and finished way back. I was especially mad at myself because I’d talked down the owner’s ability and hadn’t done any better than he had. I was really looking forward to racing the two year old as he had trained really well.

By the end of that week I hadn’t seen as much of Ellen as I’d hoped. I’d been going to the races each night to observe, trying to get a handle on how to race on a half mile track. I didn’t want to make the same error that I’d made with that one horse. By the time I got back to my trailer the lights were usually out in George’s trailer. It was on Sunday that I decided to go ”exploring“ in the surrounding area. I took off after feeding the horses that afternoon and found a lake and spent some time there, reminiscing about all the things I liked about being near water. It was dark and probably around 10pm when I got back to the track. It was very humid so I decided to sit outside on the step. I was looking right across the yard at George’s trailer and could see a dim light on inside. The curtain was open and all of a sudden I saw Ellen, braless and in her panties, walk past the window. That caught my attention and answered the question as to her "shape". I sat there waiting for her to return. Unfortunately, she didn’t. But how could I complain. I didn’t get to see much of her panties but the braless view more than made up for it.

I was hyped up to race the 2 year old and when the night finally arrived I was a nervous wreck. Everything went well until we were called up to the starting gate. I distinctly remember we were number 7 which, on a half mile track, usually isn’t good. But I was happy because it would allow me to pull him back off the gate fairly easily. The problem arose as we approached the gate. The arm wouldn’t swing out. After a number of tries to force it into place they went to get the auxiliary gate. In the meantime all the horses were just walking around in circles on the track. As I’ve mentioned, my 2 year old wasn’t all that happy around other horses and I could see he was getting agitated. By the time the replacement gate appeared on the track he was in a frenzy and I couldn’t really control him. I should’ve taken him back to the paddock and had the veterinarian ”scratch“ him from the race but I didn’t. When we reached the starting line he was on a dead run and we’d gone almost a quarter mile before I got control of him. After the race I got called into the office of the track judge where he told me I’d have to qualify him again before he’d be allowed to race. I protested trying to explain that it wasn’t his fault but they weren’t listening. I was really upset.

I did manage to finish second with the horse that I’d driven so poorly the first time I’d raced him. In reality, I should’ve won but it was still a big improvement. I don’t remember the second race for the three footed horse. As far as the 2 year old was concerned, AJ told me to skip the qualifying race and just wait for the Grand Circuit race. As a pre entered horse, the track could not prevent him from racing. It made me feel a lot better.

George had some friends over for a cookout the following Sunday and also invited me and the guy in the third trailer in our triangle. Because of the age of the people I didn’t think I’d see anything of Ellen but I was wrong. She was wearing what I’d noted to be her preference, shorts and a sleeveless shirt tied in the middle. George had asked (required) her to stick around to keep the guests supplied with food and drink. I was certainly happy about it. Over the course of the afternoon I got plenty of ”views“. By the time it was dark I was pretty drunk and most everyone had gone. I ended up back inside my trailer and fell asleep on the sofa. When I woke up I knew I was going to puke so just opened the door and stumbled out. When I finished I just sat on the step. It was like deja-vu as I saw Ellen, topless again, walk past the window. The sight of her like that certainly helped to sober me up. The best part was when, this time, she walked back from where she’d come from. She was totally engrossed in something and, thank goodness, totally unaware of my presence.

To be continued...

GETTING A BREAK... finally (Part 54h)

I know I was excited about the next day and the move to the new track and being on my own. But it was the thought of those panties, just sitting there on the sink, that kept me awake. The alarm went off at 5:30am. I was supposed to be ready to load up the horses at 6am. I picked up the last of my things and stuffed them into my pillow case and headed for the bathroom as I left. When I walked in I saw that both items were still in the same place as I’d left them. Without a lot of thought I grabbed them both, stuffed them into my pillow case and headed downstairs for the car and trailer. It was already hitched up and ready to go and go I did. Based upon what Elle had told me Lisa was seldom up and out of bed before 10am and I knew I’d be more than halfway to the next track by that time.

It was probably about that time when it came to me that once Lisa realized that the items were missing that she wouldn’t really have a hard time in tracking me down. I knew that she and Elle had talked quite a bit and that she had enough information to track me back to AJ. To say that the last part of the trip was a bit uncomfortable is putting it mildly.

Once I drove though the gate into the track my thoughts changed to the horses. I was totally impressed with the track right from the start. It was more like a park than a race track. I had one groom (Asa) to help me which meant that I had to do groom work as well. It was early afternoon by the time we had everything squared away. Asa was ready to eat but I still had to get the trailer in place. I’d been given a map when I’d signed in and as I followed it I found myself even more impressed with the track. Unlike the way the trailers had been placed at the other track (all in one row) they were ”clustered“. There were anywhere from three to six of the full house trailers in a group and each group had trees and grass. For the camp trailers like mine it was somewhat the same. My spot was with two others and were set up in a triangle formation. In the middle were two trees and a patch of grass. As I drove up I saw a clothes line with some towels blowing in the wind. It was set up so that the entry door was facing into the middle (grassy area) of the triangle. I liked it. Because this was my first venture with a unit like this I was a bit out of my element when it came to getting it set in place. Harry had given me some cement block to help stabilize it but I didn’t have a jack that could help me get it level. All I had to work with was the jack on the tongue of the trailer itself. I was struggling when I heard a voice with a heavy city accent behind me. It was George, a trainer I’d met at Harry’s barn earlier in the season.

George had pretty much sized up the situation and arrived with just what I needed... a bottle jack, some wood to use as wedges and a level. In a matter of minutes the trailer was in place, stable and level. George helped me connect to the electric and water and I was good to go. There were no sewer facilities in this area and since I didn’t have a toilet it didn’t really matter. My trailer was really just ”bare bones“. I didn’t have a refrigerator but I had a real old fashioned ice box. There was a place for a block of ice and room for just a few items. I’d determined that it was adequate enough for me. There was a sink and two gas burners. Water from the sink just drained out into the ground. As you walked in there was what passed for a sofa. It folded out to make a double bed but the problem with that was that with it down you had to crawl over it to get out or in. There was a small closet just to the right of the door. In the back was a booth like affair with a table much like you found in diners of the day. The table could be removed and placed between the two bench seats and with the cushions placed just right it made into another bed. I decided that was the way to go. I decided to reuse the sheets that had been on the bed in the apartment. As I dumped out the things I'd stuffed into the pillow case I saw Lisa's panties that I taken earlier in the morning. I opened them up and saw the label "Argo Knit" on the outside. I was happy. I also opened up the other "ball" that I'd taken. It was Lisa's bra. The label read "Maidenform" 34 B which was the same size that Elle wore. I decided to set them aside and do something with them later.

All I had in the way of food from the apartment was a few half filled boxes of cereal and a jar of peanut butter. I figured the first stop I needed to make was to a grocery store and with directions from George headed for town. A quick drive through told me it was basically the size of the town where my grandparents lived. It was very much like the racetrack with a lot of landscaping and very clean. I located a store and was lucky to find block ice at the same place. Feeling very proud of myself I headed back. Once there I felt pretty foolish. I found I hadn't thought to buy a pot, can opener, dishes or utensils. It had been my stomach doing the thinking. I figured why not ask George if I could borrow them until I could get back to town. When the door to George’s trailer opened it took my breath away. Standing in front of me was this pretty girl with jet black hair down to her shoulders. She was wearing a pair of light blue shorts and a blouse that had probably been one of George’s dress shirts with the sleeves torn off and the shirttails tied in a knot right in the middle of her stomach. Because it was so big on her it was impossible to see her ”shape“. I was certainly not expecting anything like that. When I caught my breath I asked for George and she invited me in. The trailer was much like the one that I’d rented at the end of the previous season with a real room in the back part of it. George was sitting at the built in table and formally introduced me to his 16 year old daughter. I don’t know what the look on my face was but I do remember thinking that she looked more like 26 than 16. After I asked if I could borrow the things I needed he invited me to eat supper with them. He also asked if I wanted to go to the paddock with him that night as he had a horse racing. I remember thinking how lucky I was to have had my trailer placed there.

To be continued...

GETTING A BREAK... finally (Part 54g)

Even though I’d seen Lisa a few times during that week I’d been so frazzled that I don’t think I peeked in her room even once. I spent Sunday afternoon packing my things and immediately found the new trailer to be a big help. Lisa stopped by during her break and seeing her in her uniform made me think about the first time I’d seen her and how I’d followed her up the stairs. She asked if she could help and, thinking about that episode, said yes. It was the third time up the stairs that I got what I was looking for... a real time, moving, panty peek. As I’ve mentioned, the only panties I’d seen of hers were “common” cotton and I’d pretty much determined had been worn when she had her period. But these were band leg and because of the breeze blowing up the stairwell I got a good look at both cheeks and she filled them out very well. When the last of what I’d packed was loaded Lisa said she was going to go sit out back. Having been “stimulated” by the sight of her panties I decided that I would actually take a chance and go into her room and take a look in her dresser drawers. I hit “paydirt” on the second drawer. It was obvious that she was very precise as there were separate piles for each type of undergarment... slips, bras, and panties. Panties were my focus and I found three piles. The most obvious one had the band leg panties like what I'd seen her wearing. It wasn’t just that they were band leg that made them stand out. It was that they were obviously new. I carefully picked up the top pair and held it up and saw something I’d never seen before. The label was on the outside. It read “Argo Knit” with the size (S-5) listed below. What impressed me was the size of the crotch from front to back. I was sure that they would show a very noticeable VPL whenever she wore shorts. I flipped though the rest of the pile and found 4 more, all appearing to be new. After folding the pair I’d inspected back up and placing it back in the drawer I checked the next pile. They were similar to the ones I’d checked out hanging on the clothes rack except they seemed to be newer. There was a small label on the inside but it was totally blank and they had leg elastic. Again, I’d describe them as “common’. It was the ”Argo Knit“ panties that intrigued me. They were very similar to the ”Lollipop“ band leg panties that I’d seen any number of times before. I probably spent no more than two or three minutes in her room but I didn’t want to take a chance on being caught so I went back to my room.

I ended up at the restaurant around 7pm, wondering why the owner wanted to meet with me. I wasn’t about to turn down a free meal, especially at a nice restaurant. His wife was with him which made it doubly uncomfortable for me. As we were being led to our table I saw Lisa heading towards us. After a few words with the maitre d’ he changed direction and we followed. Lisa had asked him to seat us in her area. I kind of liked that. After some small talk the owner showed his hand and started asking questions about AJ. I had mentioned that I felt the reason I got to drive some of the horses that I did was that AJ was somewhat afraid of them. I got the impression that the owner felt that AJ wasn’t driving his horses aggressively enough. Truthfully, I felt the same but loyalty to AJ prevented me from verbally agreeing. It was a very uncomfortable situation and I was certainly glad to see Lisa arrive with our food.

Lisa had mentioned that Sunday evenings were fairly slow as the main attraction was the brunch. By the time we finished there were very few people left in the restaurant and it was only around 9pm. I said my goodnight to the owner and his wife and walked across the street headed for the apartment. It was still very warm and at the last minute decided to go out back to the stream. I’d only occasionally had the opportunity to spend time out there by myself and this would be my last time. Elle had often sat at the edge of the stream with her feet in the water to help her cool off. I decided to try it. I dragged one of the chairs over and actually into the stream and with my shoes off, relaxed. I actually fell asleep.

It was Lisa who woke me up by calling out asking who was out there. When I responded she joined me. She asked what I was doing there and I answered by asking what she was doing there. She said that she would often come out there after work, especially on the hot, humid nights. Then, she sort of chastised me saying that if I wasn’t there she’d be getting out of her uniform to go for a ”dip“. Just hearing her say that started a bulge in my pants. I told her that she was welcome to go ahead and that it wouldn’t bother me at all. She laughed. I’d had a number of conversations with Elle asking about why girls were so concerned about guys seeing them in their underwear. It was my thought that it was basically the same thing when they wore a bathing suit, especially the new bikini style that was just becoming popular. Elle’s response wasn’t really an answer saying that it was ”just different.“ I asked Lisa basically the same thing and, because all we had was ambient light, I couldn’t really see the expression on her face. As I remember it she sort of hemmed and hawed but then suddenly started unbuttoning the front of her uniform. The slight bulge quickly became a large bulge. She was actually doing a strip standing right next to me. I watched her pull the uniform up and over her head but all I got to see was her slip. As soon as she had the uniform off she started out into the stream. As I’d mentioned earlier, Mrs M’s son in law had dug out the middle of the stream to make a small pool like area. It only took a few steps for her to be in up to her thighs and, at that point, she pulled the slip over her head an squatted down into the water. I only got to see a bit of the top of her panties before they (and she) slipped under the water. I have no idea what we talked about but it wasn’t long before she started moving back towards the edge of the stream. Even though it was fairly dark, I remember that her bra seemed to be illuminated as she rose out of the water. My attention quickly focused on what was below that and I saw more and more of her panties with each step she took. Once on firm footing she grabbed her uniform and held it up in front of her. I had visions of following her as we went up the stairs but she quickly put an end to those thoughts. She asked me to stay and wait for her to get upstairs. There wasn’t much I could say. The bulge soon disappeared as I waited to head upstairs. Once there I did check down the hall and saw that the bathroom door was closed. I waited at my door for her to leave and when I saw her dash across the hall to her room I headed in. I used the toilet and was washing my hands when I saw two little balls of material behind the knobs for the faucets. I picked up one and saw it was her panties. I quickly balled it back up and put it back where I’d found them. From there I headed for bed.

To be continued...

GETTING A BREAK... finally (Part 54f)

The following week is just a blur in my memory. I’ve tried to put all that happened into the proper sequence but to much happened in a very short period of time that I couldn't. So what I’ve done is to just put down the events.

The most significant was when AJ took me aside to tell me that he was sending me with three horses to a half mile track about 3 hours to the East. At first I thought he was kidding but he just wasn’t that type of a person. I knew that the 2 year old that I was training and racing was entered in a Grand Circuit race at that track but I had assumed that we would just truck him over and back. AJ told me that he wanted him to get used to a half mile track (the track we were at was 3/4 mile). He wanted him to be in a race before the “big” race and that the best way was to ship him to the track and then just stay there. As much of a shock as that was it was a bigger shock when he told me about one of the other two horses that I’d be in charge of. The two year old was owned by the man who had fancied himself as a “driver“ and whom I’d pretty much ”dissed“. It was his idea to send the horse he’d been driving so that both his horses would be together. AJ had then added the ”three footed” horse that I’d been racing as he felt that he was actually better suited to a half mile track. Whatever the reasons, I was excited. AJ still had to work out the details so I didn’t know when I’d be on my way.

The first person I told about my good fortune was Harry. I stopped at his barn when I was on my way to the apartment for my afternoon nap. It was obvious that he was happy for me but he also put somewhat of a damper on my excitement. The track was located in a resort area and also was home to a running horse track (think Kentucky Derby). There was a distinct shortage of reasonable priced places to stay. After some discussion he gave me a suggestion to think about. He offered to sell me a 16 foot camp trailer at his cost with a guaranteed buy back if I didn’t want to keep it. All he wanted was $200 down. My first reaction was to say “no, but thanks anyway” but I didn’t. I needed all the money I could come up with because of the new baby that was due. As I was leaving he told me about his “big news” and that was that his nephew, Levi, was going to drive in his first races. He was to drive a couple of Harry’s horses at the same fair that I’d raced at the previous Summer. I was hoping that I’d be able to be there but Harry didn’t know the schedule.

When I got to the apartment Mrs M was waiting for me with a message to call Elle. I did, right away, and got another shock. We’d anticipated that the baby would be born around November 1st. Elle had gone to her new Doctor and he told her that she was going to have the baby around the 1st of October, a month earlier that expected. That news certainly explained why she was a big as she was. It meant that there was only 6 weeks until the baby arrived.

As I stated above, there was a LOT going on in a VERY short period of time. Money, and my lack of it, was certainly central in my thought process. Of course I was excited about going off on my own but Harry’s warning about the lack of affordable housing put a damper on that. Then there was the question of where I’d be located with the horses when the baby was actually due. The more I thought about the offer for trailer the better it looked. So, without a nap that afternoon I went looking for Harry.

Getting the trailer to the track was not a problem. The problem was getting a trailer hitch put on the car. I’d mentioned the service garage that was located just outside the rear gate for the track. It was where I’d taken Pat’s (the track photographer) car when she “cooked” the motor. I had to start somewhere so that’s where I went. As I walked inside the building I couldn’t help but notice a race car parked near the back door. That caught my attention right away. Of course I had to go look at it. It was somewhat similar to the one I’d had but with one major difference. Where I was used to old Ford “flathead” engines, this car had a much newer type V8 Chevrolet engine. Just seeing the car brought back memories of home. The car belonged to the son of the owner. As I explained what I needed for my car I told him that I’d owned a race car and where I’d raced it. He suddenly became very friendly and told me he’d come up with something.

I was pretty much resigned to not getting any money back on the rent for the apartment. I had to prepay each month and with the season winding down there wasn’t a lot of demand for rooms. Basically, the room rentals were the only income Mrs M had. When I told her that I’d be leaving she was very sad. She and Elle had become friends and I, certainly, knew of all the little thing that she did to help us. But she offered to return the portion without being asked. The amount was enough to pay for the trailer hitch, license plates and the extra insurance required.

It was at the end of the week that AJ got confirmation on the stalls at the track I’d be going to. We decided that I’d be on my way first thing the following Monday. Once I knew the date I started telling people including the B’s, my friends up in the clubhouse. They were excited for me and made me promise that I’d stop by their table that Saturday night. When I finally got there I found that they’d set up a small party for me. Among those who were there were a couple of AJ’s owners who I’d introduced to them. One of them made me promise to stop over at the restaurant across the street from the apartment on Sunday evening. I wasn’t comfortable with it but if there was one thing I’d learned about the business was not to say “no” to an owner.

To be continued...

GETTING A BREAK... finally (Part 54e)

As far as racing was concerned I was having what could best be described as ”marginal success“. I got a couple of 3rd place finishes with the three footed horse and a 2nd and a 3rd with my grandfather’s horse. The two year old was getting better behaved and that was good as his first race was coming up. In harness racing they have a special series of races each Summer called the Grand Circuit. Horses are nominated for these special races at the time of their birth. The purses (the dollars that they race for) are much larger than 95% of the regular races so there is a lot of attention paid to them. The Grand Circuit was scheduled for their week at the track in the middle of July. The highlights of the week was in seeing many famous drivers and some really good horses. The owner of my two year old (the one who decided to drive his own horse) had entered him in one of the special races scheduled for the week. I was sure AJ would take over the driving duties just because of the prestige of the week but he said I would drive. I was very nervous leading up to the race because I would be competing against some really expensive (and good) horses and very famous trainer/drivers. There was also the fact that the horse had not competed in a night race that I had to factor in.

On opening night of the Grand Circuit the owner who was driving his own horse caused a big wreck. No horse was hurt and the other drivers escaped with just bruises. The officials suspended his license which was way overdue in my mind. I know it made AJ happy. In spite of what I’ve written about the man he actually liked me. When it came time to race the two year old I think he was more nervous than I. Harry, even though he didn’t have a horse to race on that night, came just to wish me luck. Without Andy as a mentor, I’d turned to Jackson, who was having a very good year, and he told me to just ease my horse back from the gate at the start and get to the rail and then see what I could get during the last quarter mile. It was good advice. I was last for the first three quarters and then pulled out and just let him go through the stretch. I ended up finishing 5th which doesn’t sound like much. But when you look at the whole picture... it was the very first race for the horse... he was racing against some of the best two year old horses in the country... I was still a ”rookie” driver... and the horse earned more money for finishing 5th than if he’d won a regular race for two year olds at the track... it was a very successful outing. But the best part was yet to come...

One of the competing trainer/drivers in the race came up to me (and AJ and the owner) after the race and wanted to know more about the horse. I’d gone past him like his horse was standing still and he was truly impressed. I was so excited during the race that I neglected to start the split timer on my stopwatch to see how fast he'd gone that last quarter of a mile. The owner volunteered that if the race was another 100 feet or so that I would’ve been second or third. In any case, the famous trainer and driver left saying that if the owner wanted to sell the horse he’d be interested. To say that I was excited was putting it mildly. It was a bigger thrill than winning my first race.

Another trainer/driver that was there for the Grand Circuit was Dan, the man my friend Alida (from my first season with AJ) had sold her good horse to. He had a number of good two and three year old horses entered and after my big night came up to me and also asked about the two year old. The fact that a couple of big name trainers had taken notice made me feel really good. In Dan's case, he made a point of talking to me a couple of other times and, in a round about way, inquired if I might be interested in making a change in jobs. There was nothing concrete but it gave my ego a boost just to know someone had been watching me and had made an inquiry. When the week was over I was sorry to see all the big names leave.

The heat of the Summer was getting to Elle. She was much bigger than in her first pregnancy and her wetting was worse than the last time. The baby was growing and into everything. It was a good thing that Mrs M and Margie were so nice. Lisa was also a big help. Elle needed to take a nap each afternoon just as I did. One or the other of them would look after the baby so we could get some rest. Finally, in early August, Elle decided that she wanted to go home. We’d planned that she’d have the baby there and was originally going home when we shipped out to New Hampshire in September. I didn’t argue because she was pretty miserable to live with. I worked it out with AJ to do it over a weekend. We’d managed to put some money away for the delivery and with Elle living with her parents would save even more money.

We left for home after I got through my training chores on a Saturday and got home late that night. It was a miserable trip as the baby fussed most of the way and Elle basically sat in a puddle most of the way. I stayed until early Sunday afternoon and got to visit with my grandparents. That turned out to be very good. He’d already planned for Elle to be home to have the baby. He made arrangements with a Doctor friend of his to take care of Elle and the birth. Elle wasn’t so sure about it as she'd wanted to talk with some of her friends that still lived in the area as to who she should go to. She understood the money factor so kept her mouth shut. It turned out that the doctor was the uncle of MJ, my friend from when I went to school in the city, and had a very good reputation. I headed back feeling pretty good.

To be continued...

GETTING A BREAK... finally (Part 54d)

I got another surprise from AJ the following week. A new horse had been added to the stable and AJ had put me in charge of training him. He needed to be ”qualified“ (meaning he had to show that he could go a mile, in a race, in at least 2 minutes, 12 seconds). I looked over his ”papers“ and saw that he really wasn’t much of a racehorse. But like I said before, I was willing to drive anything. I got him qualified the first try and entered him in a betting race as soon as I could get him in. He was in the lowest class (C-3) racing for the least amount of money but it didn’t matter to me.

I was really excited the night of his first race. It was the first time that I was listed in the program as ”Trainer“. I didn’t expect a lot but I certainly didn’t expect what I got.
Since the majority of the races were at night we raced under lights and at the finish line there were a special bank of lights that lit up the width of the track to aid the photo finish cameras. I don’t remember where I was as far as position was concerned (maybe 6th) when we reached that point. But, when he reached the bright band of lights he tried to jump over it. It scared the shit out of me. When he came down he stumbled and almost went down. I don’t know how I stayed on the sulky (the little cart behind the horse where the driver sits). It wasn’t until I got back to the paddock that I could breath normally.

As frightening as that was it was soon replaced by a mild kind of euphoria. I won with my grandfather’s horse. I was surprised that I wasn’t more excited. AJ soon added another horse for me to train and race. It was 2 year old who had shown some exceptional speed but was rather unruly on the track, distracted by other horses. Looking back on it now I know what what AJ was doing. Horses that he was afraid of were shunted off to me (with the exception of my grandfather’s horse). I didn’t care. It was all a learning experience and I wasn’t intimidated by it.

Harry shipped his horses in to the track the middle of June. His nephew, Levi, had been "promoted" and was now listed as an Assistant Trainer and was going to try and get his drivers license. I was excited for Levi but recognized that my chances to get to race any of Harry's horses were much diminished. When I stopped at their barn, located at the old fairgrounds, I was introduced to Georgie, another trainer/driver stabled there. As soon as he opened his mouth it was obvious that he was born and raised in the city. Not only that but he talked a mile a minute which made it doubly hard to understand him. It wasn't Georgie that caught my whole attention. It was the girl who appeared to be working for him. Without a doubt she was a "looker". I would've liked to have spent more time finding out about the two of them but I had a horse waiting to get out onto the racetrack. I knew there would be more time in the future.

It was in early July that I finally got my chance to see Margie’s panties up close. The area we were in was known for Summer thunderstorms. They would blast in with wind and fury for a short time and then leave with sunshine soon reappearing. On this one particular day a storm came in right before lunch and drenched everything. When I got to the house I saw clothes still on the line and knew it was Margie’s day for washing. Mrs M usually took Margie’s clothes in on those occasions and I thought it was strange that they were still there. Elle told me that they had gone somewhere for the day. I tried to think of a reason to go back downstairs to take a look but couldn’t. I could only hope that they wouldn't be back by the time I was ready to head back to the track. I know I didn’t nap all that well thinking of the opportunity to finally see the panties.

When I got to bottom of the stairs I knocked on Mrs M’s door. Usually it was open but I wanted to make sure she wasn’t there. With no answer I became emboldened and headed for the other side of the house. As I approached it I could see that the wind had blown some items off the line and into the back yard. The first thing I came to was a pair of what were obviously Mrs M’s panties, just from the size of them. I looked out towards the grove of trees and saw other items as well. I headed that way and found some of Margie’s daughter’s clothes. Finally, I found what I was looking for draped against a bush. I’d taken far more time than I’d intended and was worried that Elle would wonder why I hadn’t left so just grabbed them and stuffed them into my pocket. Thank goodness they were just damp. One nice feature of nylon panties is that they dry fairly quickly.

I didn’t look at them until I got to the barn. I went for the label first. Mojud, size 5. It was a fairly familiar label for me. They were plain, just like the other Mojud panties I'd previously come across. They didn’t have any noticeable staining in them which told me they were probably fairly new. As I studied them I thought back to the night I’d seen the lot of them hanging on the line and hadn’t gone over to take a look. I consoled myself saying that Summer still had a long way to go.

I’d not had a lot of luck in seeing much of Lisa, the waitress. Elle rarely went anywhere and was satisfied to take the baby out back in the afternoons to give me some peace and quiet. Elle had only used her to look after the baby a few times when she and Mrs M had gone food shopping. I don’t remember exactly when I finally got a peek into her room. The one thing that struck me was that she had a folding clothes rack set up over by her window. I didn’t see any clothes on it but it was a signal that she would hang some of her wash on it from time to time. On this one day I came home for lunch only to find Lisa out in the yard with the baby. I stopped and chatted for a few seconds noting only that her shorts weren’t as short as Margie’s. I went upstairs and as I went into the bathroom saw that her door was open and that there were clothes hanging on the rack. I know I didn’t hesitate as I walked in and saw three pair of panties blowing back and forth. As I looked at them I could see Lisa and the baby in the yard. I picked up one pair and saw they were cotton. I went to find the label and was disappointed in not finding one. I spread them out and saw that they were obviously her "period panties" as the were blood stains on the leg elastics. They weren’t special in any way. I classified them as ”common“ and probably purchased at a ”Woolworth’s“ or another 5 and 10 cent store. I hung them back up without looking at the other two pair. I left feeling somewhat disappointed.

To be continued...

GETTING A BREAK... finally (Part 54c)

The two other renters had moved in and Elle had met them both. She seemed to be at ease about the man after meeting him. The girl was a mystery to me though. Any time I was around she wasn’t. Elle described her as being very nice and very good with kids. Our daughter went right to her even though she was a complete stranger. It was the same with Margie’s kids. Elle said it was amazing. By then we’d been there for almost four weeks and Mrs M still wasn’t accepted that well by our daughter. The girl’s name was Lisa and she'd volunteered to babysit Monday through Thursday from 1 to 4pm at which time she had to report for work. Even though I was usually there during those hours I was usually taking a nap. But I made a note to keep my eyes open for her.

AJ gave me a chance to actually race a couple of horses at the end of the first full week of racing. It certainly picked up my spirits even though the results weren’t all that good. One of the horses belonged to my grandfather and I sort of knew that he was behind me getting to drive it. The other was a horse that had been in the stable for over a year and owned by a man who was really slow in paying AJ. The horse had a hoof problem and if he wasn’t racing (and winning money) AJ wasn’t going to get paid. In a desperation move AJ had a veterinarian ”nerve“ the offending hoof. It meant that the horse would no longer be able to feel anything in that hoof. It had been a fairly common procedure in ”the good old days“ but had been outlawed with the new found popularity of harness racing and much stricter rules. With the lack of feeling in the hoof there was possibility of the horse stumbling. (Think of having your foot go to ”sleep“ and then trying to walk on it.) Being somewhat wary soul to begin with AJ decided that I could drive him. At that point in my frustration with the lack of drives I didn’t care. I’d drive just about anything. I’ll admit I sort of held my breath the whole race. But he raced well and it was my conservatism that kept him from doing better. Later, AJ said I could drive him again which pleased me to no end.

One thing that I noticed right away was that some of my driver friends had not returned to the track this year. The most noticeable was Andy. Harry and Clyde were also missing but that was because the track would only give stall space to horses that were race ready and the harsh Winter had them and others who trained up North behind on their schedule. It wasn't that I didn't know anybody but they were my closest racing friends.

The baby’s first birthday was the next Sunday. Elle and I had decided not to buy any presents and forgo a party to save some money. Elle’s and my parents had sent us a batch of new clothes for the baby to grow into. Being a Sunday, I still had to go to the track to check on the horses and upon my return I found the yard almost filled with cars. I had to park on the lawn. As I walked over to the door I could see a bunch of people in the back yard and I recognized Vi, Harry’s wife. Puzzled, I walked over to the group and saw Elle, Mrs M and Margie along with some other people that I didn’t recognize. There were also a group of young children running around. Mrs M, without saying anything to Elle, had organized a party for the baby. Margie invited some of her friends, along with their kids, to make it a ”real“ party. Vi had the birthday written on her calendar and as I’d told Harry where we were living this season, was able to find us. The one thing that stood out to me when I walked up was that the baby was in a playpen. It turned out that it was gift from Harry and Vi. I arrived just in time for the cake and ice cream. The interesting part of that was that up to then the baby had never had ice cream. I wish that we had a camera because she didn’t like the cold and would just shake her head after feeling it on her lips. She did finally catch on.

For me, it was like a show. Including Margie, there were three young women in short shorts, all with young children that needed to be chased. Each time one would bend over to pick up one of their charges I’d get either a peek at their panties from under the leg openings or a nice VPL. I was in heaven. I was sorry to see the party break up.

Actually, it was my first official meeting with the girl who lived down the hall. As I mentioned before, she worked at the restaurant across the road. On Fridays and weekends they were open for lunch as well as dinner and she’d finished up her lunch time duties and was on her way up to her room to rest. I held the door open for her and followed her up the stairs. I couldn’t help but look up as I did. Her uniform was pale yellow and fairly short with a somewhat full skirt. I won’t lie and say I got an eyeful. It was close but I didn’t see her panties. The hem flounced from side to side but I never saw the ”target“. But, what it did was to get my mind racing even more. She wasn’t particularly pretty but she had a decent figure. She was maybe a couple of inches shorter than Elle. Knowing that I had to walk past her room to get to the bathroom was certainly an interesting thought.

Elle had put the baby down for a nap and lay down on the bed herself. I joined her with all the memories of the afternoon racing around in my head. Elle was showing a lot more than at the same time with the first pregnancy and it was taking a lot more out of her, especially with the stairs. I thought I might find some ”afternoon delight“ but she was ”too tired“. I remember waking up having had a wet dream and being embarrassed.

To be continued...