

Now Boarding

By

Charles E. White

Copyrighted by Charles E. White and Published by Smashwords

Smashwords Edition, License Notes

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ISBN No: 9780463215395

Barrett concluded that an airport is an airport. He had passed through all of the major airports in the United States as well as a few in the smaller cities. As long as he could find an average restaurant where he could sit down and have a meal before the next flight he didn't really give a dam as to how large or how small the facility was or that it was or wasn't a main hub in the Midwest, the South, the Northeast or anywhere on the West coast. Right now his two biggest concerns were waiting out a flight that had been delayed by two hours and would his car, which had been parked in Economy Parking at his home airport, start when he returned. For several weeks now the vehicle had been hard to start and though he had planned to replace the battery it hadn't risen to the level of top priority. As long as the car started when he was ready to leave the parking lot he would yet again postpone a new battery.

He had to work, but if he was lucky he could retire in twenty more years. He had a lady friend, but not everyone had one nor did they desire one, but he did or at least thought he did. Lately things had not been all that good and on this latest work trip she had bugged the crap out of him, calling or texting him what seemed like every hour. They had been living together for two years and though he occasionally pondered what it would feel like to be married he had not taken the idea past the thinking about it stage. He had been in and out of relationships since college but for now the current situation had its ups and downs. Both of them worked five days a week and when weekends came they slept late and hung around their small apartment for most of Saturday. Saturday nights they ate out, returned to the apartment and watched TV. On Sunday, they repeated the cycle and prepared to return to work on Monday. They had never been on a trip of any consequence except one time to visit her grandmother who was dying from one of several conditions most old people die from.

Maybe it was time to sever this relationship, two years is a long time when one is not sure of things. How would he go about telling her "it's over?" Maybe time to commence an open dialogue he thought, just sit down and have a heart to heart when he returned, just tell her how he was feeling about their relationship once he figured it out, but at least try real hard to listen to her side although that part would be really hard.

The airport terminal was extremely crowded as airports often are. How can this many people afford to fly, tickets are expensive but somehow people find a way to pay, he thought. His client was amenable to his travel expenses, agreeing to reimburse for first class airline tickets, the best hotel chains, and generous meal allowances.

For more than two hours after lunch Barrett sat motionless in the gatehouse, for the announcement that passengers could board. As he panned the waiting area he observed people playing with their mobile devices and waiting just like he was. He wondered where they were going and why and what kind of lives they lived in their normal day to day existence.

As he looked at the passengers he decided to break the monotony of waiting by devising a game. He would observe people and then try to guess just what kind of lives they lived and where they were going. It would be something to do as he was tired of looking at his mobile device.

Grayson sat directly across from Barrett busily writing detailed emails to his mother. He was returning home to assist his mother in preparing to sell her house. Just a month ago Grayson's father was very active in work and community with much to live for, but one fateful day he didn't look directly both ways at an intersection and an entitled driver hit him head on and killed him instantly. The funeral was held four days later and friends and relatives attended from far and wide. Grayson's mother, though normally perfectly capable of handling day to day tasks was not up to preparing her house alone for sale. In his lengthy email he explained to his mom that they needed to locate a good real estate agency to list the house. As Barrett watched Grayson, who appeared to be close to Barrett's age, he wondered if circumstances brought them into contact with each other might they be good friends. They might even get together for a beer or perhaps take in a game.

Down at the far end of the seating Barrett noticed a lady, maybe in her forties, who appeared to be very anxious as she was constantly up and down, walking around, returning to her seat or looking for another one seat close to the gate, but seemingly uncomfortable about something.

Lois was not looking forward to getting on the plane as she got very anxious every time she flew and was never comfortable until the plane touched down and taxied to the gate. She had talked to friends who often flew about the flying experience, but none ever provided the comfort she hoped for. She downloaded books about flying on her e-reader; words did not seem to help. She asked her doctor for some sleep aids which she prescribed, but Lois doubted she would take any of the medication. She thought about having a few drinks before boarding in hopes booze might mitigate the anxiety. She'd already been to the ladies room three times and was feeling like another visit would happen before she boarded.

Perhaps Lois' biggest problem that day was not boarding the plane, but dealing with a perceived strained marriage when she returned home. The flight was scheduled because of her need to get away, somewhere, anywhere, and sort things out. There wasn't much more advice she could take from well meaning friends and a few experienced relatives on the matter and while she had talked to many people she never talked to the one person who could help, her husband Tim. She realized it was time to figure this out on her own and a trip might be just what she needed.

Seated on the end on Barrett's side was another lady, perhaps a bit older than Lois, who had no carryon with her, actually all he could see was what that mobile device in her right hand. She wasn't even looking at anything on the device, highly unusual he thought. He noticed she had a dress on rather than jeans or yoga pants.

Ariana was on her way to visit an old college friend she hadn't seen in ten years, though she had managed to maintain some occasional contact. While in college they had been roommates for almost two years before Edie dropped out near the end of her sophomore year. She decided college was not for her. A diminutive woman, Edie was very pleasant and everyone liked her, but the classroom was not her forte. She enjoyed her English classes and made B's those three courses, but when it came to math, foreign language, and science, additional required subjects she never had sufficient interest to learn enough to pass most of the courses. She was a bit of a party animal and had dates when she wanted them, but too many dates during the week ran counter to any semblance of study habits needed to be a successful student.

Next to Grayson across from Barrett sat another young man, Jamir, who was wearing a blue oxford cloth shirt with a regimental tie, a navy blue blazer and gray slacks. He was reading the latest issue of a sports magazine. Upon standing Barrett surmised Jamir must be at least 6'5', so he assumed he was a basketball player likely heading home over school break to see loved ones.

The final person Barrett took notice of was an old man, a "senior citizen" who was not playing with his mobile device, but reading the local newspaper. The man sat diagonally across from Barrett near the end of the seats facing him. He was wearing a vee neck sweater, brown slacks, and wing tipped shoes. Barrett assumed he was retired.

Stanley had been retired for almost twenty years from the principal ship of a large high school in the northern part of town. Originally he taught at the school for ten years before being named principal.

Barrett got up from his seat and took a walk as he was bored just sitting and looking at people. As he walked he noticed there seemed to be at least one shop for every possible need a person would have once they cleared security. Restaurants with a variety of food options seemed to take most of the space; some restaurants had table service while several others provided only counter service. There were bookstores for the readers and stores to buy mobile devices and accessories. There was even a center to get a pair of shoes shined, but there were no customers. Several custodians were passing by pushing large trash cans with brooms, mops and whatever else they needed to keep the airport clean. Everyone seemed to be in a hurry even if they had plenty time and almost everyone had a mobile device in front of their face. He entered the men's room and found the facility to be similar to all other airport restrooms he visited. There was one man who came out of a stall and walked directly out of the restroom without washing his hands. Barrett was never able to figure out why some men did that, but it seemed to happen often.

When Barrett returned to the gatehouse his seat was still empty so he resumed temporary ownership. He checked the time and expected the ticket agent would soon make the boarding announcement. As he looked around he noticed the five people he wondered about were still seated and waiting. Being first class he didn't have to rush to secure an overhead bin like the economy class customers. He might even use some of his fringe benefits and have a drink or two once they got airborne. There were occasions on flights he would read, even watch a movie, but most of the time he just looked out the window. He hoped the person seated next to him was as introverted as he was as he hated to get into conversations on a long flight. Once some people introduced themselves and he reciprocated he got locked in with petty conversation for the whole trip. There was nowhere to go to get away from such a passenger. He didn't want to be rude but he didn't want to talk to anyone.

Barrett's work involved assisting community colleges across the country in developing strategic plans. Since there were so many colleges spread out across the United States his travels allowed him to see much of the country. Some colleges did not have the financial resources to pay for his services beyond an initial visit so he tried very hard to cram as much information as he could in the training session. He did the strategic planning workshops on the side as his regular job was an institutional effectiveness officer at a local community college.

The work load he could manage, an unsettled relationship was another thing. His mind wondered back to Lorraine and what should he do when he returned home. Maybe the best thing was to maintain the status quo, let things ride for a while longer. But even though he could do that, quite easily, he wasn't sure he wanted to. Maybe he would call her later and give her a deadline to get her ass out of his apartment before he returned.

Grayson was seated in the next to last row of economy class, but he didn't care as long as he was on the plane headed home. He wondered why the rush to sell the house, but he accepted that his mother had her reasons and he would soon find out what the reasons were. He had no idea what the house was worth, but the right real estate agent could help them get a reasonable price. He knew the house needed a few repairs and hoped his mom had the funds to cover these expenses. Grayson got his backpack from under the seat in front of him and took out his laptop to search for some basic principles of selling a home. He found many articles about how to sell, when to sell, preparation of the house before selling, putting a house on the market, as well as how to decide on a selling price.

Lois was seated close to the emergency exit near the middle of the plane, but when she declined to agree to assist with opening the exit in the event of an emergency. she was moved several seats away. She wanted no additional stress, therefore being put in a situation where others had to depend her giving assistance to get off the plane in an emergency was not something she wanted to deal with. After she fastened her seatbelt she tried to think about the trip she was taking, a break to help her decide if she was to end her marriage and if so to figure out how she would proceed once she returned. She wondered why she ever got married in the first place. It seemed to her that after twenty years of marriage she would at least know the person she married, but such was not the case. Hopefully the trip would help her clear her head and come up with a plan on how to proceed.

Ariana was seated three rows behind the last row of first class seats. She was having ambivalent feelings about getting reconnected by an actual face to face visit with her old roomie. Why not just leave it as it was with social media or an occasional phone call for a few minutes? She wasn't sure why she agreed to visit; perhaps Edith caught her in a weak moment. Anyway, she was flying to see someone who hadn't really occupied many of her thoughts over the past two decades. She vowed to work hard on being positive over the three day trip.

Jamir was seated by a window four rows behind Barrett. After he put his carryon bag in the overhead he readjusted the headphones to his mobile device as he moved to the window seat. He was on a basketball recruiting trip at Holloway University. He would be there for the weekend, attending a varsity game, touring several campus departments, and a social prepared just for him plus other highly sought after recruits. He had been the star for his high school team for the past two seasons and during the current year, his senior year he scored 32 points in the state championship game in a losing effort that was extended into two overtimes. He was also first team all conference and was highly sought after by several other major schools. This was his first recruiting visit as he had three more visits he was contemplating. His high school grades were acceptable to most of the schools, but if any school wanted him badly enough to play basketball he would be admitted. His parents were very middle class and could swing paying for his four years if they had to, but nothing would please them more than Jamir receiving a full scholarship.

Stanley was seated in an aisle five rows from the restroom which was convenient as he needed to go often. He was on the way to a large medical center to seek a second opinion on a serious medical issue. He had been a widower for five years and continued to live alone in an independent living retirement center. He had an 800 square foot apartment with a small kitchen connected to an equally small living area and a separate bedroom. He had a balcony and on occasion would cook on a small gas grill. He had great difficulty coping with the death of his wife and found it hard to adjust to being alone. He was very picky about who he associated with and found good friends hard to find. Most people he came in contact with eventually showed their true colors, thus he distanced himself from such people. He had been diagnosed with prostate cancer and his physician recommended he have surgery to remove his prostate. After hearing this news Stanley wasn't quite sure if he was ready to remove a part of him he thought still made him a man. No harm in getting another professional opinion, he thought.

The main door was closed and the flight attendants went through their standard safety speeches and the plane slowly backed away from the gate. The pilot positioned the plane on the runway for the control tower to clear them for takeoff. Lois had already called for her first drink, but was told she'd have to wait until they were airborne. Everyone settled into doing what they normally did on a plane.

Once the plane leveled off to 32,000 feet the seat belt sign was turned off and a flight attendant announced shortly light snacks and beverages, including alcoholic beverages, would be served. Lois was having a difficult time with the confinement, especially since she was seated in the middle of the row. She wanted to go to the restroom but was too embarrassed to ask the person in the aisle seat to get up so she could get out. She could make it for a while, but if she had a drink or two then, for sure she'd muster up the courage to ask the gentleman to get up.

The three hour flight was uneventful; with just a small bit of turbulence. As the main cabin door was opened passengers jumped up as if by some cue and started grabbing their carryons as if they didn't someone else would seize them, but as always one goes anywhere until the first person moves, then the second and so on. Sometimes entitled people try to get a jump on a few rows of passengers and try to rush up past people. One by one the passengers filtered out, Barrett, Lois, Ariana, Grayson, Jamir, and Stanley had arrived ready to attend to their purpose for the visits.

Grayson took an Uber to his mother's (Linda) house which was fifteen miles away from the airport. Upon arriving he noticed Linda in the front yard on her hands and knees. He assumed she must be planting flower bulbs as she was an avid gardener. After unloading his bags from the car he slowly walked toward Linda. As he approached her she turned toward him, smiled, got up and walked toward him. They embraced and walked together arm in arm up to the house. He took his bag to his old bed room he had occupied as a youth. After he put the bag on the bed he panned the room for familiar sights from his past. He noticed several pictures of from his childhood, one picture was of his recreation league football team and another was a family picture taken at a beach. A few flashbacks of some good memories passed through his mind as he turned his attention to his old radio on the nightstand next to the bed. His dad purchased the radio for Grayson during his last year of middle school. Over in the corner was a chair Grayson used to lay out his clothes for school each day. He was pretty organized and had been for most of his life, something he picked up from his dad. When he left the bedroom he looked for Linda and found her at the kitchen table finishing a cup of coffee. He thought she appeared a bit older, but maybe she just looked older because she had no makeup on which was unusual for her. He wondered since dad died maybe she just didn't give a dam. As Grayson sat down at the kitchen table Linda extended her hands to meet his which were moving toward hers. They sat there, hand in hand, looking at each other, momentarily speechless. Grayson could tell his mom missed her husband.

"Mom, we have to talk about selling your house. Is this really the time to leave the house you and dad lived in for over forty years? Are you ready to part with the memories? I can tell you it was hard for me to come home, see you and not see him. As I move about the house I am reminded of all the good times we had and it will be a sad day if soon I cannot return to my roots." Offered Grayson.

Linda responded, "Every day I wake up the first thing I think of is the absence of your dad and how do I get through another day without him? I eat breakfast, get dressed, straighten up around the house, maybe wash a load of clothes, and then try to figure out what to do the rest of the day. I have good friends, wonderful friends, and they check on me often and invite me to go out to lunch or to a movie and that's fine some of the time, but I can't make my life just about eating lunch out and going to movies I don't want to see. It's here, the memories are all here, but I'm not sure that every day I want to relive all those memories. I think I need a change of scenery, I need a new start somewhere else and the way to get there is to sell this house."

"I'm trying to understand," said Grayson, "if it were me I might want to do the same thing. Well then, let me tell you a few things I learned about selling a home we will need to consider. First, I've read that a homeowner can elect to sell their house themselves, but there are risks. First you don't have as effective marketing medium as with a real estate agency. You may spend more time selling the house than through an agent. You may not know a sensible price to sell the house for. You are legally responsible for everything you disclose and if you fail to disclose something or someone thinks you misrepresented something you could be in legal trouble later even though the sale was completed. An agent can help you avoid such pitfalls. These are just a few things I read on the plane, so what do you think so far?"

"I have been leaning toward getting an agent all week. After the points you just made I don't think I want the hassle of going it alone. What I really need you to do now for is to help me select a realtor, then help me select what items stay and what items go when the day comes I move.

Grayson added, "well I also read that the homeowner should get someone to inspect the house before putting it up for sale because you can be sure if the buyer is interested in the house they will hire their own inspector to look for things in need of repair and if found, they will expect you to fix them or at least negotiate to get the asking price reduced."

"Um," said Linda, "sound advice as I didn't know this either, see, this is why I asked you to help."

"Do you have any information on these real estate agents?" Grayson asked.

"All I have are some names and phone numbers," said Linda.

"OK, give me what you have and I will go online and try to research what their former clients said about their service, this will give us a foundation from which to make our selection," said Grayson.

Linda added, "we've spent the morning on this, let's go to lunch somewhere nice, take our time, have a glass of wine or two, then when we return we can get make a short list of what needs to be done."

"Sounds good," Grayson added.

"I come to this place often with lunch with my friends," Linda mentioned. "The food is good, the service is good, and given the way the tables are situated the acoustics allow you to have a conversation. I hate to go to restaurants where you have to lean across the table to have a conversation"

"I can certainly agree with that assessment," said Grayson. "What do you suggest for lunch mom?" He asked.

"Well, I like the salads and the soups, but a few times I've had a sandwich and they were good also, so just about anything you normally like and they offer should be good," she said.

After they ordered lunch Grayson wanted to talk a bit about the past. "Mom, I want to ask you a few things about my past. Was I ever a pain in the ass, really was I? If I was you never told me," Grayson posed.

"Um, interesting question," Linda said, "were you ever a pain in the ass? Let me think, well yes, there was a time or two. One time when you pitched a fit because it rained out your little league baseball game and you took it out on me by throwing your dinner in the floor and then running to your room and locking the door refusing to come out until much later. I had to come to your room repeatedly that night and try to coax you out to eat dinner and take a shower before bed. You finally come out, but you never apologized."

"I had forgotten that! Gee, I'm sorry mom, I really am. I loved baseball so much, I was so angry about not getting to play that I needed to vent, to do something, to destroy something and the dinner on the table was the first thing I noticed needing to be destroyed. It was selfish I know, not sure selfishness was a thought I had that night, but now I see it was a selfish act. Sorry"

"I forgive you Grayson," Linda said.

"Then there was the time in the toy store when you wanted some toy, I don't remember which toy but one I didn't have enough money to buy and you pitched another fit and lay in the floor refusing to get up. People were trying to get down the aisle and you refused to get out of the way, which really embarrassed me. You either didn't understand that I didn't have enough money to buy the toy or you didn't care. It was before most of us had credit cards so if I only had so much cash there was no way to pay for what you wanted. You finally got up and I managed to get you to agree to settle for a toy I could afford, I should have taken you out of the store and put your little scrawny ass in the car and brought you home."

"I had a scrawny ass?" Asked Grayson.

"No, just a figure of speech, you had a nice little round ass."Said Linda.

"Were there any other occasions where I embarrassed you or pissed you off?" Grayson asked.

"Well, let me think, oh yes, your high school prom, junior year I think. After the prom you wanted to take your date to someone's house for a party. I don't recall just who it was, a friend of yours. Anyway I found out that his parents were not home and he wanted to have a big hell raising party including drinking and who knows what all else and I said No! Yes, you raised holy hell about that one, something about I didn't trust you, and I was treating you like a child or some such shit." Explained Linda.

"Now that one I remember because peer pressure was dictating that I be there, not to be there suggested I was some dork or a mama's boy and I couldn't deal with that. I didn't go, I took my date home by I think 10:30 or 11:00p.m., then came home, went to my room and slammed the door hoping somehow the noise would give you the message that for that night, you had ruined my life." Offered Grayson .

"Believe me, I could understand your desire to be at that party, but as a parent I just couldn't knowingly let you attend that party. If you ever become a parent you'll understand, this parenting is hard work."Said Linda.

"Well, here's our lunch, I'm glad we cleared the air about past grievances I hope, didn't we?" said Linda.

"Mostly," said Grayson.

"You mean there's more?" Linda asked. "Well, if so I don't want to hear more until after I've had my soup and salad."

"One more, but yes, it can wait, it can really wait, perhaps a very long time," replied Grayson.

"Now that we are back home let's get serious about selling your house. Do you have a particular realtor you prefer to contact?" Asked Grayson.

"I have two that were highly recommended by my friends, one agent a friend used to sell her house and the other agent is from a recommendation from another friend's sister. Probably both are good, but we have to call somebody so let's call one and set up an appointment," explained Linda.

"OK," said Grayson, "give me the number and I'll call now."

"Here it is."

"Hello, this is Grayson Dixon; I'm calling on behalf of my mother Linda Dixon who is interested in meeting with a realtor as soon as possible to discuss selling her house. We are available any time over the next week. I'm in town for the week and will attend the meeting with her."

"Well, Grayson you may be in luck if today is good I have some time after three o'clock. I would prefer coming to your address to meet, that way I can take a quick look at the house, so will any time after three work?" The realtor asked.

After conversing with Linda, Grayson came back to the phone and set up the appointment for three-thirty.

"OK," said Grayson, "we have the appointment set up for this afternoon."

"Wonderful," said Linda, "I want so much to get a realtor selected so I can get this house sold soon!"

"This agent, Grace Beckham, is highly recommended by my friend. She had me look online for reviews from her past clients and all were very positive," said Linda.

"Mom, if you don't mind allow me to at least initiate the questions, chime in when you need to, but I've read up on real estate transactions so I think I might be a little better prepared than you and I came here to help," offered Grayson.

"Fine with me son," she said, "I will serve as secretary and try to write down as much as I can."

At precisely 3:30p.m. The door rang bell at Linda's house. Grayson went to the door and greeted the lady, who introduced herself, then Grayson reciprocated, then he introduced Grace to Linda. He offered her a seat close to Linda and then positioned his chair in the middle of the conversation.

Grace made a presentation about herself, her credentials, experience, how many houses she'd sold that year, how close the owners were able to get their original asking price, and her marketing strategies

When she finished Grayson told her Linda wanted to sell a start a new life away from the memories she had experienced with her recently deceased husband. He mentioned they both expected the house would need some presale preparation before the sale, but that they hadn't had much time to determine what needed to be done so they would expect Grace to help with that. He also said Linda would look to her for guidance as to a reasonable price for the house. He concluded by saying that while Linda would like to move on she was not desperate so if the time of year was not right for selling she could wait until later.Grace was taking notes along the way and asked no questions during Grayson's presentation.

"Grayson, your comments are familiar and I will do everything I can if selected to get a sale at your asking price within a reasonable amount of time," said Grace. "May I look at your house?"

"Sure," said Linda, "I'll give you the first class tour."

While Linda was showing Grace around Grayson opened his mobile device to review the comments from some of Grace's prior clients. He found no negative comments from forty-five people, not one, and he was very impressed that in all cases, houses sold within a short period of time. Maybe Grace was the agent Linda should hire.

When Linda and Grace returned to the living room Grace make some additional remarks about the condition of the house. She commented that the house looked very well taken care of, things looked neat which was good when showing a house, but some things were a bit dated, like wallpaper, most people were not interested in seeing a house with that many rooms with wall paper. She suggested Linda consider having the wall paper removed and the rooms painted or expect to take less for the house when the negotiating started. She mentioned the kitchen was dated, the dark cabinets were not what most buyers would probably lean to wanting, but they would be expensive to replace. The same applied to her appliances, while appearing to be fully functional the gold color was a downer for most home buyers. She noticed the garage door had several dents and recommended it be repaired, but in all likelihood she expected it would need to be replaced.

After making her observations known Grace mentioned any prospective buyer would do an appraisal of the home before any offer. So anything Linda would be willing to do to "spice up" the house would go a long way to getting a sale. Another key point Grace made was that the appraiser would look closely at the sale of comparable homes in the area which could provide a snapshot of the chance of Linda getting close to her asking price. When the appointment ended Grace thanked them for their time and said she hoped to hear from them soon as they made a decision. Grayson said he hoped he would see her again.

"Well mom, what do you think?" Asked Grayson. "Did you like her and what she had to say?"

"I liked her very much and she was pretty much like what my friends had told me. Now I don't know whether to contact the other person or to just go with Grace. Maybe we should sleep on it and decide what to do in the morning," said Linda.

"That's fine," said Grayson, "but what did you think about her concerns about the wallpaper, the antiquated kitchen, and the garage door?" "How much money might you have to put on repairs, remodeling or whatever?" Asked Grayson.

"Reasonable question, your dad did leave some cash plus I expect to receive the proceeds from a life insurance policy soon." "I can put up maybe $10,000 toward what needs to be done."

"Grace did say maybe I won't get the price I want unless I do the suggested remodeling, but I think I have a lot of leeway since the house is almost paid for. Your dad made sure of that when he made additional house payments to reduce the mortgage balance. The other uncertainty is I don't know where I'm moving to yet or how much the move will cost so I might need as much for the house as I can get. Oh, this is all so confusing and is beginning to get stressful," said Linda.

"Let's make a deal right now, for the rest of this day let's don't talk about selling this house anymore, agreed?"Asked Linda.

"Agreed," said Grayson.

Grayson was up early the next morning. He made a cup of coffee and went out on the back deck and waited for Linda to get up. Shortly after eight o'clock Linda came looking for Grayson and joined him on the deck. Grayson went back into the kitchen and made her a cup of coffee and got himself a refill. They sat for a few moments in silence before Grayson spoke.

"Mom, I think before too long this morning we need to make a list of action items for selling your house. If we don't the week will end soon and I'll be leaving feeling like I did nothing to help you," said Grayson.

"I appreciate that Grayson and I did want you to come and help and you have thus far," said Linda. "Yes, we will do that today, this morning, but for now let's just sit here in the serenity and listen to the birds and at least pretend we don't have a care in the world."

"I can do that," said Grayson. "So while we are sitting let's go back to the past for a few minutes," said Grayson.

"Um, OK, what do you want to talk about, another grievance?" Asked Linda.

"About having other children, I remember you told me you had a miscarriage a couple of years before you gave birth to me, but after I was born why did you and dad decide to put a cap on just one child?" Asked Grayson.

"Well, I never told you and you haven't asked until now, when you were born you were premature and remained in the hospital for two weeks before we could bring you home. After we got you home and you got stronger we wrapped ourselves around you and you were our world. Having difficulties with two pregnancies we were simply afraid to go through the possibility of another complication if I got pregnant again. By the time I had you I was in my late thirties which raised greater possibilities of more complications with child birth. So, we stopped at you and we were completely satisfied with how you turned out except the few fits you threw I alluded to yesterday." Explained Linda.

"Just wondering," said Grayson. "I've tried to be responsible, do the right thing, make you and dad proud of me; I wouldn't say everything I've done would make you proud. Like the time and this is the first time you've heard this, when I was in college in my sophomore year I had gotten into drinking some beer, trying to be social, and one night I had a little too many and came back in the dorm and broke the glass out of the vending machine at the end of the hall. A classmate was walking by just as I was taking my foot out of the machine. He reported me to the Dean of Student Affairs the next morning. I was promptly called into his office and was given an ultimatum, pay for the repairs to the vending machine immediately or be dismissed from school. If you remember the night I called about needing fifty dollars to buy some textbook I needed, well it was for the vending machine, I lied and I'm sorry and I certainly was not being responsible."

"I also doubt you would be proud of me for the few times, I'm not telling you how many, but a few times that I stood up blind dates." Voiced Grayson. "If a classmate got me a blind date as a male I'd always ask what she looked like and once I got the profile of her appearance I would look her up in the yearbook, now if she wasn't up to my "standards" I might just not show, I did that several times, I'm not proud of it, but I did it."

"Interesting," said Linda, "yes, I am surprised, but sometimes when you're young and even when you are old you do things you are sorry for. I remember the time your dad had a big family work function one Saturday afternoon. He went early to help with the setup. I was to bring you later, but you took a nap and rather than wake you up so we could both go, I let you sleep. Dad called when the event was ending wanting to know what happened and when I told him, he was disappointed and I felt like homemade shit. I told him I was sorry and did so again when he got home. It the little things that hurt and sometimes leave scars on the wound that never heal, but we always hope we learn from it and not do stuff like that again."

"OK, enough from the blast from the past," said Linda, let's prepare that plan; I'll get a sheet of paper so we can make a list."

"The first thing I think is to decide do we want to hire Grace or interview another realtor?" Said Grayson.

"I have no problem with Grace because of recommendations from my friends and she did interview well so I think item Number One is to call her and tell her we want to hire her to help us sell my house," said Linda.

"Next," said Grayson, "you mentioned you were willing to spend $10,000 on some remodeling, repairs or whatever, Number Two let's decide what things you want to get fixed."

"OK," said Linda, will we repair all the three things Grace mentioned, what's next?"

"I think before we meet with Grace again we decide maybe maximum/minimum numbers we want to ask for the house after some clean up, fix up things we intend to do," suggested Grayson.

"Lastly, I think we need to decide which things in this house stay with you and are moved, which things are discarded, and which ones I take home with me because even though selling a house can be tough I've read it's the preparing to move and the actual move the drives you up the wall," said Grayson.

"Our list looks good so today we can give Grace a call, she's got to come back anyway for us to sign the real estate agreement papers, perhaps she can look around some more for things we need to do," said Grayson.

Grayson placed a call to Grace to inform her Linda had decided to hire her to sell the house. Grace had a tight afternoon schedule so she asked if they could come to her office to sign the contract. Linda and Grayson agreed to meet Grace at 4:30p.m.

When the contract was signed Linda asked Grace to review the things in need of repair or replacement. Grace referred to her notes she had made at their first meeting. She suggested removing the wallpaper. She felt the kitchen cabinets ideally should be replaced but the cost was probably prohibitive for Linda so she suggested she either paint them or have a professional paint them and gave her a name and number for someone who could do the job. The garage door would more than likely need to be replaced since Grace doubted a garage repairman could repair the dents. Linda asked Grace about how much she thought these repairs might cost and Grace gave a general figure of about seven thousand dollars which was within Linda's budget.

When they returned to Linda's house Grayson pressed Linda to get started on the items that needed to be removed from the house and which items she would eventually move to her new living arrangement.

"Mom, where do you want to start?" Asked Grayson.

"Let's start in the master bedroom, the big closet, I have many things there that are special and some not so special but I need to look at all of it, I can't take all of it with me," said Linda.

"Grayson get the step stool from the garage so you can get those boxes off the top shelf please," requested Linda.

When Grayson returned with the boxes he lined them up on the floor so Linda could see them. There were many many pictures which would take days but she decided right away they were all going to make the move. Grayson began looking through some of the boxes and made of pile of pictures he hoped Linda would let him keep. Linda was OK with his selections and got a box from the kitchen cabinet for him to put his pictures in.

Linda looked at all the racks of her clothes and told Grayson she was going to force herself to get rid of at least half of the clothes on the rack, many of which she admitted she never wore. Grayson told her he would run to the liquor store and ask for some empty boxes to be used to pack her items. When Linda's husband passed away she had all of his clothes donated to a local thrift shop and she intended to do the same with everything she parted with now. When Grayson returned he had fifteen boxes, a start, but Linda would need many more before she was finished. It wouldn't be necessary to get everything packed just yet, just the things she would not need day to day.

The next day Linda had Grayson call the man Grace recommended painting her kitchen cabinets. The man said it would be a week before he could get by there to look at the project and give an estimate. They called another person about removing the wallpaper and were told it would be two weeks before anyone could get out to provide an estimate. The garage repairman was called and he offered to come late the next week. Grayson had three more days before he returned home and he was feeling good about the progress made thus far.

By Thursday Linda had made considerable progress on packing up treasured items and setting aside items to be taken to the thrift shop. It would be a long process, but she doubted the house wouldn't be sold right away so she could take her time. One big question still remained, where would she move? She had made no plan whatsoever to move to another location. She had talked to friends, read articles about downsizing and the types of accommodations available, but she had not made any effort to figure out what to do. Grayson would be leaving in three days and he had been of tremendous help, but if she was to have him assist her further she needed to think seriously about where she wanted to go. Linda had already been awake for several hours when Grayson came into the living room.

"Good morning," said Linda. Grayson returned the greeting. "You know son I realized this morning that with all of our work this week in preparing the house to sell and the initial packing I have no clue where I want to move. I don't even know whether or not I want to continue living in this town. I haven't really thought of it very much."

Grayson paused a few moments before speaking. "Yes," he said, "you will need to figure this out pretty soon. What if Grace called today about showing the house and before the end of the day you got an offer? What then? Yes, we need to work on this right now. My thoughts, first, you definitely need to downsize, that's a given, it's just you and you don't need this much space. There are developments called age restricted communities that are more situated for older citizens, smaller houses, with restricted environments run by homeowner's associations with dues, but they make things easier for residents. Then there are all sorts of apartments in many locations, some close to conveniences and some further away if you want more solitude. But yes, you need to think about just where you want to live and in what type of living arrangement you want, be sooner the better."

The next day Grayson offered to drive Linda around to look at apartments for older citizens and age restricted communities. At each stop they went in and talked to a salesperson that was happy to show them around the properties. By lunch time they had visited several apartment complexes and two developments. During lunch they discussed the properties and Linda was most excited about the small houses in the restricted developments that offered amenities. She felt with the apartment living she wouldn't feel like she had as much privacy as with a house and she was used to living in a house. After lunch they decided not to visit more apartments. They visited two more restricted communities and Linda liked both of them. Driving back home they talked about all the developments. Grayson tried to get Linda to narrow down the choices for he knew the sooner she committed the easier it would be to accept an offer on her house if she knew where she was moving.

Linda had enough money in her savings account to make a down payment on one of the houses. She would have no trouble securing a mortgage loan and paying monthly payments until she sold her house and used the money to pay off the new home mortgage. Grayson tried hard to tie her down on one of the houses and pay a deposit to hold the house before he left. If he could get her to commit that far he would leave for home in good spirits knowing Linda had a clear path to a successful transition. That night sitting around the fire pit after a cookout Grayson asked Linda more personal questions about her future.

"Mom, you're only fifty six years old, do you think you might at some point want to go out somewhere, dinner or a movie, with a man?" Grayson asked.

"I don't know," Linda replied, "I haven't thought about that, too busy thinking about selling my house and making it through another day. As far as the thought of sharing my life, day to day with another man, well, I can't see that now. For sure I have no plan to look for a man, if by chance at some point I should meet someone and things happen, well, we'll see, but I don't anticipate such a thing happening, at least in the immediate future. I'm fine alone, your dad and I had a great life together and to even think about starting another life with someone else, no, I can't see it."

"OK, fine, mom, just wondering, but if you should happen to meet someone new you come to like, I mean really like I'd be OK with it as your son," said Grayson.

"Well Grayson if such a thing happens you will be the first person to know about it," said Linda.

The next day Linda was up earlier than usual and had breakfast on the table when Grayson came into the kitchen. "Wow! I wasn't expecting this," said Grayson, "quite a spread this morning."

"I woke up early, feeling spry because I have decided what I want to do today," said Linda.

"I like the age restrictive communities for all the reasons we heard about yesterday and the one I have selected is the one closest to my house, that way I can maintain my connections to my friends plus I will meet new people once I get settled in. After breakfast I want us to go to the office a pay a deposit on that little blue house. Then I want to go by my bank and complete the paperwork for a new mortgage. Lastly, I will call Grace and let her know in advance that if anyone is interested in seeing my house that no reasonable offer will be refused. There! That's a days' work," concluded Linda.

"I'm impressed," said Grayson, "and I'm happy you've made the decision I'd hoped you'd make but I didn't want to give you my opinion, but moving to that location was what I was hoping; now I'm having more pancakes!

Jamir knew he was to be picked up by a university shuttle bus with the Holloway University Roadrunner mascot logo on both sides. There were several other recruits traveling from other parts of the country and all were scheduled to arrive at roughly the same hour. Jamir waited patiently in the shuttle pickup area. As he was waiting two other young men walked up near Jamir. As they got close they made eye contact and simultaneously exchanged greetings and discovered they were headed to the same place. The young men were very excited about their opportunity and were looking forward to the weekends' events. Chances to see the campus, watch a game and attend a social just for them were activities none of them had experienced. They talked about their high schools, their teams, their positions and by the time the shuttle approached the recruits were very comfortable with each other. The campus was located on the outskirts of town away from the hustle and bustle of the city going through a tremendous growth spurt. The university had an enrollment of 20,000 with an aggressive goal to reach 25,000 within the next three years. Holloway University, which was a public institution, had received funds courtesy of a state bond issue to build several new dorms to accommodate the expected enrollment growth. The school had an excellent academic record with a graduation rate of 60% and a job placement rate of 53%. Most talented basketball recruits had dreams of getting drafted to the pros within the first two years of college.

When the recruits arrived on campus they were taken to a special dorm just for athletes consisting mostly of football players with a few from the other college sports. They were greeted by a graduate assistant to the head coach who directed them to their rooms. Each man had his own room, but the restrooms were a shared arrangement down the hall. The rooms were small, but since there were no plans to spend much time there except sleep and change their clothes they were large enough. The weekend opened the possibility of being a game changer for these prospects.

On Friday night the recruits attended a basketball game between Holloway University and Goins College, one of the top teams in the conference that perennially vied for the conference crown. The young men had good seats three rows up from the home team bench. They got to experience up close the atmosphere of an upper level basketball game. The coach was a yeller and screamer who contested every call by the officials and got in the face of every player when they came off the court, especially if they had made a mistake. Jamir was not particularly thrilled about playing for such a personality, but I thought it might be necessary if he was to play at a top school under a coach of legendary status. If he didn't make any mistakes there shouldn't be any need for the coach to yell at him he assumed. The other two recruits spent most of their time playing with their phones rather than watching the game. Jamir could have cared less as he was on a mission, to find out as much as he could about being a basketball player at that school. His decision would be critical for him and maybe even for his family. Although his family was financially in good shape Jamir was well aware of pro players who signed huge contracts and buying their moms nice cars or building new houses for them. He fantasized about that possibility. At the half the home team was down by five points. The first half had been back and forth and the same play was expected for the second half. Jamir left his seat to grab a snack while the other two recruits continued to focus on their phones. They never looked up.

The game ended in a thriller with the home team losing by three points when a Holloway player made two successive turnovers with the last two possessions. His coach lit into him as he came off the court after the game had ended. Jamir shook his head and muttered to himself, "Man, I couldn't stand for that shit that MF, needs to lighten up!"

The three made it back to the dorm around 9:30p.m. There was an envelope taped to their doors with a note inside about their schedule for Saturday. Once Jamir got in his room he reviewed the schedule with a full day of activities.

He checked a few emails, and then sent his parents a quick text letting them know he had a good day and tomorrow promised to be very busy. As he got under the covers his head was filled with thoughts of playing basketball on that court he had just sat three rows from, making the big shot, making a good pass, making a defensive stop, yes this could be great, that is if he could get comfortable with the coach.

The next morning the recruits had breakfast in the cafeteria close to the dorm where most of the athletes dined. As they ate they talked about basketball in general and the previous night's exciting game.

"Deandre said, "man, I sure would like to have been on that court in the last few minutes, I would not have turned the ball over like that guy did 'because I would have seen the guy he was passing to was not open."

"Now how could you sit in the third row looking at your phone and know you could have made that pass? Come on man, you weren't even looking at the play, that sounds like bull shit," said Jamir.

"I'm just messing with you man, but I'm so good, well, let me tell you, I only made 10 turnovers the entire season and I handled the ball a lot, so if I was out there, you know, I'd make a good pass or I'd keep the ball and take a three pointer and I'd make that, you know what I'm saying so wouldn't be no need for no pass," said Deandre.

Antonne said, "it's getting deep in here, let's finish up and go do a quick tour of the campus, maybe check out the women before our first meeting."

The campus was too large to cover in fifteen minutes, but the men saw as much as they could. The first meeting involved some student volunteers taking each recruit to a class in session. There were three volunteers assigned to take one to a math class, one to an English class, and one to a history class. Whoever spoke up first got their choice of the class they wanted to attend. They were to observe for about thirty minutes before being escorted back to the meeting room. Jamir listened intently to the professor in the English class and thought if he wound up at Holloway he might enjoy taking a class under this guy. The student volunteer returned and motioned for Jamir to leave and come with him. By the time they got to the meeting room the other recruits were already there.

The next stop was the main library. An assistant librarian greeted them at the book check out desk. She gave a brief overview of the library. She spoke about their information access and digital resources. Included were explanations on their online resources, research databases, not to mention the usual collection of physical books and various journals. She showed them where the student study areas were and concluded with an explanation of their information literacy instruction. The presentation took about an hour and by the time the men left they were looking at each other with confused looks on their faces since neither of the three had spent much time in any library so this one was a bit overwhelming.

They spent the remainder of the morning listening to presentations by representatives of some of the major programs at the university. The programs represented were Business Administration, Communications, Computer Science, Education, and Sports Management. By the time the session was over the student reps escorted the men to another more upscale restaurant on campus. The menu was a bit fancier than the cafeteria style food and the recruits were of course treated as special guests of the university athletic office.

The afternoon schedule focused entirely on basketball. The first stop was back to the arena and a tour of the athletic center which included player lounges with big screen TVs and ample receptacles and headsets for mobile devices. There was a theater style meeting room with a large screen to review practice and game videos. The final stop was the players' dressing room with individual lockers, again convenient receptacles and headsets for mobile devices, comfortable seating to relax and to put on uniforms and sneakers. At this point the three were in awe and spoke very few words to each other or to the student volunteers. They walked down to courtside and around the court and by the home and visitor benches.

The next stop would last for most of the afternoon as each recruit would meet with several coaches for a very detailed session with the final stop being at the head coaches' office. There were five assistant coaches so each recruit had a personal interview one on one with an assistant. After those interview sessions the first recruit would meet with the head coach while the other recruits continued their session with the assistant coaches. Since Jamir was a Number 2 guard or shooting guard he met with Coach James while Deandre, a Number 4 forward or power forward he met with Coach Sanders and Antonne a Number 3 or small forward met with Coach Davis.

"Hi, Jamir, I'm Coach James, one of the five assistants to Coach Brown. I mostly work with the guards, but especially with the 2 guards. As you know we have a very successful program here at Holloway and the staff works extremely well together trying to be competitive each year. Our fans are like all other fans in that they want to win all the games. As much as we would like we are unable to do that, but we try to win as many as possible. Coach Brown was very impressed with your game and midway in the season I attended one of your games, the game against Central High where you had 35 points along with 12 rebounds and 7 assists. You sort of "took over" with about seven minutes to go in the game. I made a few videos with my phone of some of your moves. I think you could be a good fit here, but Coach Brown will talk more about that in the next meeting"

"Thanks coach," said Jamir, "I've studied up a lot on the basketball program here as well as the academics and I think I can make a contribution here if I get an offer. I do have at least two more college visits I'm still considering this month. I've spent time looking at all three programs and I have to say thus far I like what I've seen and heard today."

"OK, Jamir," said the coach, "let me tell you a little about the defense and offense we run here. Note I start with the defense because that's what we start talking about at the beginning of every season, what is our defensive commitment for the season? Are we willing to do the work defensively in order to have a good team? We play a basic man to man with some full court pressure at various stages of a game if we need to change the tempo. We take you where you are and try to improve your technique and try to get you to believe that we can win a game if we are better than the other team defensively."

"That's great coach," said Jamir, "our high school coach worked us hard defensively, but truthfully as a player in a game my mind was mostly on getting that ball and scoring."

"If you decide to come here we think we can convince you to embrace our philosophy especially if we win games. I think you will agree if you score 30 points and get beat by thirty you shouldn't be happy for the team. I can also tell you down the road a pro scout will be more interested in the all around play, not just offense and I'll bet that's why you want to play some college ball, right?" said the coach.

"You got that right coach, it's a dream I have," said Jamir.

"OK, well our time is about up so I'll take you down to meet Coach Brown and I hope you consider coming here, but if you don't it was nice meeting you and good luck with your basketball pursuits," concluded the coach.

Coach Brown had just finished his meeting with Deandre when Jamir arrived and he smiled at Jamir as he approached the entrance to his office. As one would expect Coach Brown's office was larger and well appointed with the latest technology and comforts to support a long work day.

"Hello Jamir, on behalf of the Athletic Department I would like to welcome you to Holloway University and Roadrunners basketball. I hope you had a good flight and thus far a good experience on our campus, sorry about our loss last night, maybe if you had been in the lineup we would have won," said Coach Brown.

"Nice to meet you coach, yes it was a good flight, I have enjoyed what I've heard so far and yes, if I was in the game last night I would have given you everything I had to try and win that game," said Jamir.

"Come in and have a seat, I have been looking forward to meeting you and talking further about our program," said Coach Brown. The counseling staff has reviewed for me your high school transcript and your test scores so we don't anticipate you having problems with the academic program at Holloway, but as I'm sure you've been told some curriculums are more difficult than others. Have you decided yet what you intend to study?" He asked.

"Coach my parents are educators so they are helping me realize my academic strengths and weaknesses, explaining the possible directions I can go, and are encouraging me to look at programs where my strengths and interests lie, but as of right now, no I haven't decided," responded Jamir.

"OK, that's fine it'll be your decision when the time comes. We have a fine staff of counselors who can assist with that when the times comes. Well, let's talk about what we do here, why we do it, and how we do it," said the coach.

"First off, what I look for in a prospect is someone with good leadership qualities, someone who already has some of these qualities but can be taught to expand on their existing skills. From what I've gleaned thus far I think you meet that prerequisite. The second factor I look for is a good work ethic and in talking to your coach he gives you high marks. I also look for toughness, when the going gets tough, when we are down by 18 points early can you exert some mental toughness to go with your leadership qualities to help me recharge the other men on the team to mount a comeback and perhaps gain a win. I also look for a player who is coachable, one who can quickly pick up a new offensive set or a defensive switching pattern very quickly. I look for how a player reacts when things don't go well. For example, you get called for a foul you don't think is fair, you react negatively and get a technical, you sulk, the next time down the court you throw the ball away or take bad shots, and slough off on defense so I have to take you out and have one of the assistant coaches talk to you and settle you down, you can't help us sitting on the bench. But our main priority here at Holloway is to assist you in obtaining a degree so when you need skills to make a living you will have them in a field with a high demand for jobs. I know what you really want, you want what all the other recruits who come to college want, you want a pro contract as soon as you can get one, but you know, you've read the research, I won't lie to you, what is the percent of college players who ever go pro? It still remains a fact that about 1% of college players ever suit up in the pros. So Jamir, let's get you a good education."

"Coach, all this sounds really good, sound academic programs, a top notch basketball program, and if you offer me a scholarship I will give the offer the utmost consideration after consulting with my family," said Jamir.

"I understand completely," said the coach, "and this weekend and in consultation with my coaches especially after a light workout this afternoon we will give you every consideration."

"Thanks coach," said Jamir, "but one more concern I have, all the qualities you mentioned you want in an athlete, well, I have a concern and I may be out of line here and I might jeopardize my coming here, but I was concerned about your yelling at the refs and getting in your players' faces after they screwed up, coach I don't like that."

"Yes, I'll bet you don't, but it's all an act, a charade, it's designed to make me look tough, intense for TV, it's for the fans, they love it, look at the tough guy he don't take no shit, the players know it's bullshit because we go over it in practice. I tell them OK today I'm going to jump in your shit when you come out of the game. With the cameras rolling and TV analyst talking about it, "did you see Coach Brown go after that guard; he sure got his attention after that awful shot. My players know I love them. We work them hard to be successful on that court and that tough guy crap is an act, just an act, many coaches do stuff like that." Offered Coach Brown.

"Thanks coach, well I didn't know and I wanted you to know I don't like that, but if it's just an act, well OK," said Jamir.

"OK Jamir our time's up, I assume you consented to come to practice at four and go through a few drills with our team, it's purely optional," said Coach Brown.

"Yes, I also think Deandre and Antonne are participating too," said Jamir.

"See you at four then," said Coach Brown.

Jamir returned to the dorm to get his workout gear ready to take to the arena. He went across the hall to check on Deandre and Antonne but they were not back yet. He finished packing his bag and left for the arena. A student rep had told him which entrance to enter. He felt a little uneasy arriving at a locker room with guys he had only seen in yesterday's game. His anxiety was reduced when as soon as he entered the room a player came up and introduced himself and escorted him around the room introducing the remainder of the team. This kind gesture put Jamir at ease. At four o'clock an assistant coach came in and informed the team it was time to head out to the court. Jamir waited until the last player exited before he fell in the line. Another assistant coach came over, introduced himself and went over the portion of the practice Jamir would be participating in. Just then Deandre and Antonne, both late to the locker room, ran out into the court and were directed to where Jamir was with the coach.

After going through several drills the three were motioned off the court to the bench and remained for the rest of the practice. After the practice each assistant coach who initially met with each recruit took them back to their offices for a brief conference to discuss their evaluation of their efforts in the workout.

After the brief sessions each recruit was taken one by one back to Coach Brown's office for a final meeting to discuss the possibility of a scholarship offer. When Jamir got to Coach Brown's office the coach greeted him with a smile and offered him a seat.

"Jamir my assistant's and I observed your workout today and we all agree we think you can be a good fit for our program, therefore, as of today I am offering you a full scholarship to attend Holloway University for four years. I know you mentioned some other programs you are considering visiting. The deadline to sign your National Letter of Intent is in five weeks so I hope your decision will be to come to Holloway. Thanks for coming, have a safe trip home. Talk with your parents, talk with your coaches, and call us if you have further questions. Good luck and I'm sure whatever decision you make will be the right one for you." Explained Coach Brown.

Jamir thanked the coach and went outside to wait for Deandre and Antonne. On the way back to the dorm Jamir spoke up first and suggested they not talk about their meeting with Coach Brown until they got back to the dorm, then they could settle in among themselves and spend as much time as each was willing sharing their experiences.

Back at the dorm Deandre spoke up first, "well, they were a little pissed that we were late to practice and yes they have a right to be I suppose. We were on the other side of this big campus and just got confused about how to get to the arena. We finally stopped and ask a student for directions. Once we got to the arena, got dressed and got into the drills I thought I did OK, at least that's what the assistant coach I was assigned to said. Coach Brown was quite honest with me and said up front they were looking at someone else for my position and if they failed to recruit them they would give me a full ride, so I won't know right away, but I ain't waiting, I'm doing some more visits, not going to be left waiting on this, shit on Brown."

Antonne was briefer with his comments, "my meeting with Brown was very short, he thanked me for coming and told me he'd be in touch, so I guess I won't hold my breath for getting a free ticket to enroll here. I plan to schedule some more campus visits as soon as I return home."

Jamir spoke, "guys gosh, I feel bad in telling you he offered me a full ride today in his office, I hate that your meetings were not positive, but I hope things will turn out for the best for you in the end."

The recruits had one more activity, a social that evening in a room especially set up for the event in the student center. The activity started at 7:00p.m. beginning with a meet and greet among other athletes and some other invited students. By 9:00 most everyone had filtered out and headed back to their dorms or off campus apartments.

The next morning Jamir and the others were shuttled back to the airport for their return home. Jamir said goodbye to Deandre and Antonne and wished him well in their college pursuits. He called his parents and told them what time to pick him up at the airport. After passing through security he found a seat at his airlines gate and commenced to wait for the boarding time.

Jamir's parents were waiting in the airport cell phone lot until they got a text from Jamir stating he had arrived and was heading for the exit. His parents were aware they couldn't drive up to the airport entrance and stay for very long or the security officials would come over and ask them to leave. When Jamir saw his parent's car pulling up he ran and got in the back seat with his bag.

"Hi, glad to be home," said Jamir. "It was a good trip and I'm feeling pretty good about attending school at Holloway University."

His dad asked, "did you like Coach Brown?"

"Well, I liked him some I guess, but I don't like his demeanor, I mean when he yells at the players, the refs, everybody, I don't like that. When I asked coach about the yelling he said it was "show time," all an act and before a game he goes over with the players what he might do, it's for the fans and TV," Said Jamir. "I just don't know if I believe that or not."

"Could you maybe ask some of the current players how he really is?" Asked his dad.

"I wanted to while I was on campus but due to time constraints I didn't get to ask, maybe I could figure out a way to make contact with some of them soon, perhaps social media," said Jamir.

"What were your overall impressions of the university, the programs, and the facilities?" Asked his dad.

"We did get to sit in on a class and like classes in general it was OK I guess, but I didn't understand too much of what the professor was talking about," said Jamir. "I liked the food service and the library seemed OK especially the area set aside for students to do their work."

Mom chimed in, "well, you have time to relax and think about the visit and maybe plan another one or two before the deadline. For now just concentrate on doing the best you can in your classes the remainder of the semester."

"Yes," said dad, "but also continue to work out and stay in shape as before you know it it's time to suit up and practice for the upcoming season."

"As I told you on the phone the other night the coach offered me a full ride for the four years if I sign and it's good to know that offer is on the table in case I decide not to pursue visiting the other two schools," said Jamir.

"I met two other really nice guys, Deandre and Antonne and neither got the same package as I did," said Jamir. "But they still might show up at Holloway if they get offers later. We agreed to stay in touch."

As they pulled into the drive Jamir was glad to be home with his family who had supported him every step of the way on his basketball journey. They attended all of his games at every level and were prepared to purchase season tickets to his basketball games at whatever school he decided to attend. Jamir felt very comfortable knowing they had his back.

He had a lot of school work left yet to do, including a major term paper for his senior English class, a final project was due soon for economics and he still needed to figure out an exhibit for the annual science fair. He still needed to decide whether or not he would visit other colleges before the deadline.

Lois was satisfied to stay in her seat on the plane until everyone had deplaned. By the time she found her airlines' baggage claim her bag was easy to spot as it was the only one left on the carrousel. After she found the exit to cab pickup she was lucky enough to spot airport staff who helped her hail a cab. She planned to spend one night in a downtown hotel before renting a car and driving to the beach resort she had selected with a great deal of difficulty. The cab driver was very social, but Lois didn't care to share her entire life story with him. She wondered why he didn't just shut up. Soon she was at the hotel and away from the obnoxious cab driver. After checking into the hotel and taking the elevator to her room on the fourth floor she sat her bag down and lay across the bed and stared at the ceiling for what must have been at least fifteen minutes. Many thoughts rushed through her mind, but the thought that lingered most was would she leave the beach in a week and return home with a sound plan about how best to deal with an unsatisfactory relationship. Her marriage was not what she wanted it to be, but she wasn't sure exactly what she wanted it to be. She had several discreet appointments with a marriage counselor, but she was still not sure of what action if any she would pursue. She committed herself to try and have a good time at the beach and hopefully figure things out.

She finally emerged from the bed and went over to a large window and peered into the street. She saw the usual downtown street, cars moving left and right and many people walking in all directions seeming to be in a hurry to get somewhere. A few people had bags in one hand and their devices in the other. Occasionally she saw a senior citizen slowly moving up the sidewalk with no bag and no phone. She planned on picking up a rental car as soon as she could the next morning. She took the elevator to the lobby to ask the concierge if there were any good restaurants within a block of the hotel. The concierge was not available so she went to the front desk and asked the receptionist for dinner suggestions. The receptionist admitted she wasn't familiar with many restaurants so she asked another receptionist and between the two of them Lois received two suggestions. One place was about a half block away that served Creole style food and the other restaurant was an English style pub serving mostly sandwiches. Lois shied away from the Creole restaurant assuming many of the dishes would be too spicy for her tastes so she opted for the pub. She took the elevator back to her room to freshen up before leaving for dinner.

She left the hotel around 6:30p.m.for the pub. When she arrived she found the establishment quite lively with seats at the bar mostly taken and only a few empty dinner tables remaining. The maitre de escorted her to a table in a back corner but near a window, provided her a dinner menu, and took her drink order. While she was perusing the main menu the server returned for her drink order, an Old Fashioned. Lois told the server she wanted a Reuben on rye bread with potato chips. As Lois sipped her drink she panned the room and noticed most of the people seemed younger but there were a few couples who looked like they were close to her age. There was one young couple with a school age youngster seated near her table. She noticed the bar scene was mostly younger looking males and females heavily engaged in conversations about who knew what. She did notice an older man who turned and faced her several times, looking directly at her and each time just before their eyes met Lois turned away. She wasn't sure what might happen if she looked directly at him and he smiled, would she smile back? She felt a bit uneasy. Soon her food arrived, but before she commenced to eat the sandwich she ordered another Old Fashioned. The Reuben was delicious, something she hadn't eaten in ages. As she finished her meal the server returned to enquire about dessert and Lois, feeling a little of the effects of the Old Fashioned thought, "what the hell, I'm on vacation for a week I will eat and drink whatever I want," so she ordered a slice of key lime pie. The pie was good, but she only took two bites. After finishing her dessert the server brought her check and when Lois settled the bill she got up from her seat and looked for the front door as she had forgotten from which direction she came in. As she was walking by the bar the older man who had looked at her several times got up and followed her to the entrance. When she found the door and went to open it the man moved in front of her and said, "Allow me madam." Lois was taken aback and began to feel a bit uneasy although all the man offered was to open the door, but she remembered how he had looked at her. "Can't a man look at me?" She thought. Maybe she was feeling insecure because of her perceived marital issues, not fair perhaps to this man, but she didn't know this man and probably didn't desire to. As the two were out on the street in front of the pub the man engaged her.

"I noticed you when you were checking in at the hotel. I was seated in the lobby next to the fireplace reading while you were at the front desk. Do you mind if I walk with you since we are returning to the same hotel? I'm really quite harmless and one never knows what might happen out here on a dark lonely street." Asked Len.

Lois was flummoxed, what in the...? She couldn't easily get out of this, what if she said no, would he cease walking with her, return to the pub, knock the hell out of her or what? She decided it wasn't that far to the hotel so what the hell, what could happen in this short distance?

"OK, that's fine," said Lois, "I don't know you and you don't know me, but yes you may escort me back to the hotel."

"Are you here on business?" Lois asked.

"No," said the man who introduced himself as Len, "I'm just here for some rest and relaxation, nothing more, I plan to do as little as I can get away with."

"What about you?" Len enquired. "Business or pleasure?"

Lois wasn't sure whether to tell the truth or to make up something, but why not tell the truth, he was probably staying here in town, so she replied, "same for me, pleasure trip to the beach in the morning."

"That sounds good, I hope you enjoy, it's a great time of year to be there, not too hot, not too crowded," said Len.

When they reached the hotel Len said goodbye as he had to stop at the desk. Lois got on the elevator to the fourth floor. Nice man she thought, but she doubted she would probably never see him again. As she opened the door to her room she was still thinking about Len. She wondered what he was really like. What did he do for a living? Was he married, have kids? Perhaps he was here like she was, trying to solve some problem.

Before turning off the lamp next to the bed her last thought was about Len. Was this the trip where she decided it was time for a change in her life? Was the time right for a Len or some other Len or would she conclude she still had a marriage worth saving. There was a lot to think about as she closed her eyes.

The next morning Lois called the front desk to check out. The bell hop got a taxi to take her to the rental car office. She had requested a small four door car prior to her flight. She presented her driver's license, had her credit card swiped, and signed the insurance waiver. She followed the rental agent out to the lot to select a car. There were only two small sedans left so she selected a light green car. She returned to the office to complete the paperwork while the car was filled up with gas and brought around to the entrance. She put her bag in the trunk, got in, and opened her GPS for directions to the beach resort.

The scenic drive to the beach took about two hours. The traffic was light that morning which was good since she was driving on roads she had never been on. When she pulled up to the resort a valet came out to park her car. She checked in and a bell hop escorted her to a room on the fifth floor. The resort hotel was quite large and had three restaurants all with unique menus plus a bar next to the lobby area. When she got to the room she unpacked her things since she was registered for a week. She looked out her window and noticed a large swimming pool with many chairs arranged around it, but only a few people. After she put away her clothes she looked at several brochures placed on the coffee table. She realized she had booked a room for an entire week but had failed to plan what she intended to do, except to think about her marriage issue. She assumed there were some more tour brochures available so she left the room for the lobby to check on the brochures. She found several that interested her; one was a day trip on a boat out to an island that featured wildlife and exotic plants. She thought that tour could be interesting so she kept the brochure. Another one of interest was a Segway guided trip through a state park. The guide instructed customers how to use the Segway then lead them through the park showing them the sights. That tour lasted for about two hours. There was an overview tour of the town and surrounding areas giving participants a quick glimpse of places they might want to return to on their own. She took the brochures back to the room to decide later which one(s) she might want to select.

She decided to change into some shorts and a short sleeved top and take her latest novel down to poolside and read. It was nice day and the most of the pool chairs had umbrellas. She found a nice chair away from the pool so as not to get splashed by some irresponsible person. There was no life guard on duty so people were free to do whatever they wanted. She started to read her book and within fifteen minutes she had fallen asleep. When she woke up most of the guests had left except parents watching their two small children splash around in the kiddy pool. She sat there watching and wondering why she never had children, maybe that was a reason why she was considering dissolving the marriage. As she continued to think about children she realized maybe the reason they didn't have any was because the two of them never discussed having a family. They married late by the traditional averages and both already had established careers. They traveled when they had time and wanted to and since money was not a problem they could travel anywhere as long as airplanes could be avoided as much as possible. The house they bought was exactly what they wanted. They got home late each day, prepared dinner together, shared a bottle of wine, briefly read or watched TV, then went to bed and repeated the cycle the next day. Sex was something they read about or watched on TV, but most of the time for them it was just too much trouble. So, now after all this time Lois thought, what was the dam problem? "I'm pissed, I came here for a week to figure it out so now what is it?" She said to herself. Tim was a bit of a flirt, that's one thing she didn't like, when he was around other women he was quick to start a conversation with a woman and get as close to her as possible. Being objective she understood that some people are like that, what you call "close talkers," no harm intended, no thoughts of some intimacy later, they just had a habit of getting close to people when they talked. Maybe that's all it was with Tim, shouldn't leave him for that. It sure seemed strange that when Tim went on business trips Lois found out that Tim's administrative assistant also went on the trip. Why, she wondered, did he need her for something else on the trip or did she go for strictly business? Lois did not like Tim playing golf on so many Saturdays, maybe she wanted the two of them doing something together at least some of the time, but yet she never mentioned do anything else so how would he know and why would she get pissed about it? At that point she had had enough of sitting around the pool trying to analyze why she was having unresolved feelings about Tim. At least she raised some questions that had no immediate answers, but maybe they weren't that big a deal especially since she never brought any of them up with Tim. Maybe the real problem was boredom, sheer boredom giving with the same fairly predictable person. She doubted he did anything with his assistant on the business trip although she could fantasize about them having an affair and try to make something real that wasn't in a feeble attempt to be irritated. So yes, maybe Tim was too predictable which led to her being bored with the marriage. There was simply no excitement in the marriage, dam! Maybe she had hit the nail on the head, she was living with a boring person, and therefore, did she desire to continue the rest of her life with this man?

She went back through the lobby to take the elevator to her room when out of the corner of her eye she saw a familiar face, the man from the downtown hotel she had met briefly coming out of the pub. Should she get close enough to speak to him or just wait til he moved out of sight before getting on the elevator? Maybe he had completely forgotten her so if she said anything to him and he didn't recognize her she would be embarrassed, but then it might make him think he was important enough to her to remember him, another confusing position to be in. Well, he was almost out of sight, so, she decided to let him go on down the hall. By the time she got to the room she was really pissed with herself, but she was really confused, torn between what to do with the marriage yet at least a little intrigued with Len. Perhaps she'd see him again in different circumstances and the acknowledgement would be easier. It was almost time to consider what to do about dinner, but before she could make that decision she decided to check out the hotel bar. Arriving at the bar at happy hour she noticed a few people seated at the bar, but most were at tables already heavy into conversations about whatever their day was like. She found a seat at the far end of the bar and hoped no one would come and sit near her while she was there, she didn't want to converse with anyone. She decided to order a mint julep.

After leaving the bar Lois returned to her room before dinner. As the elevator opened she saw none other than Len coming out. He smiled and proceeded to exit saying nothing to Lois, but just before he was past her she spoke. He returned the favor and continued to walk to the exit. Lois was really confused, why did he not speak when he came out of the elevator? She was the one doing the communicating. Had Len forgotten her? Surely not, he was the one in the bar who continued to make eye contact, how many times did he turn and look at her she thought. When she left the bar who started a conversation on the way back to the hotel? Not her! Len did and she assumed he did because maybe he was interested in her, now he rushed past without really noticing her and she was confused. Men! She thought who needs them?

The next day she decided to take the island boat tour. Before she left the hotel she decided to check in with Tim. He answered on the second ring and as she might have predicted he was preparing to drive to the golf course as he usually did on Saturdays. He mentioned that he would clean house and launder the clothes before the day of her return. His mentioned that his work week was hectic and he was glad it was over. Very predictable comments from him and reinforced her assessment of their marriage, predictable and boring. She usually knew what his responses would be to any question raised. Oh well, at least she touched base. A shuttle picked up Lois and a few other hotel guests to take them to the harbor to meet the tour boat. There were about 45 people on the rather large boat. The water was calm and there were many beautiful sites to view on the way to the island. The boat's captain pointed out several pertinent sites along the way. When they arrived on the island another shuttle picked them up for the escorted tour around the island. During the tour all Lois could think of was her boring marriage and her new infatuation, Len. Infatuation? What was the time frame that marked an infatuation? Should it be a day, week, and month or did a few minutes on two days meet the mark? Did her thoughts of him need to meet any definition? After all Len might just be the biggest asshole in the world. If he was married maybe he beat his wife often. Maybe he never paid his bills or never cleaned house or washed clothes like her Tim did. Wait! Didn't she think attending to repetitive tasks by Tim lead to martial boredom which she thought was a real problem? Maybe Len was one of those serial killers only killing women after seeing them in a bar, a hotel, and another hotel, and then cornering them maybe in an elevator and choking the shit out of them. Maybe she was spending too much time on Len and not enough on her problem with Tim. Maybe Tim was prototypical of any man and if so she didn't know that. Maybe her marriage counselor should have informed her of that. Maybe if she got up with Len he'd wind up being just like Tim. Maybe she didn't need either of them as she almost missed seeing a large osprey nest the captain pointed out. The bus stopped at this large plantation house to view the gardens. As the passengers were led to the rear of the house Lois marveled at the variety of flowers and was amazed how well manicured everything was. Their tour guide was very informative and for the most part Lois was listening. After walking through the gardens the guide took them through the house. It was what Lois expected, huge rooms, well decorated and furnished. The doors and windows were huge to allow sunlight during the day and plenty of cool breezes when there was some. Everyone boarded the bus and taken to a small museum featuring works from some of the local artists who either had lived or still lived on the island. Lois was impressed with most of the art. She concluded years ago when visiting museums, one can't know what to expect to see in an art collection especially in small museums.

The group had a quick lunch in a small place on the harbor and took a few minutes to look in several shops before reboarding the bus. The next stop was an aquarium, a rather large building out in the middle of nowhere. Once inside Lois was amazed at the variety of sea creatures. She took many pictures of the creatures and texted some back to Tim. The bus returned to the harbor around four. Passengers had a few more minutes to grab some last minute bargains before getting back on the boat. Lois looked at a few items in several stores and bought a cup with a picture of the island on the side as Tim liked to collect cups from the places they visited.

The tour boat docked at five and as the passengers left they thanked the boat crew and the tour guide and most of them put some money in the tip bucket. Lois returned to her room to freshen up before dinner. She decided to stroll downtown and look for an interesting little local diner. Downtown was only three blocks so one could cover the whole stretch in a few minutes. She was back out on the street in 20 minutes and within 10 minutes she was in the middle of downtown. As usual she saw restaurants, pubs, and lots of shopping opportunities. She decided to walk the whole three blocks to make sure she didn't miss anything. When she got to the end she walked up the other side. With all the walking she was working up an appetite. By the time she got to the end of the street she had narrowed down her choices of places to eat, one seafood restaurant, of course, since this was a sea coast town and the other was an Italian restaurant. She expected the seafood restaurant to serve fresh catch so that was her choice. Before she entered the restaurant out of the corner of her eye she saw none other than Len, but this time there was a woman with him. She entered the restaurant before they passed her. Now she was confused, upset maybe, but then why would she be upset over someone she had spoken to briefly twice? As she was escorted to her seat she wondered if she was hoping for some kind of fling, a one or two night fling, no commitment, one where when she returned home there would be no follow up communication, nothing, it would just be over before it started. She had friends who told her they had harmless flings and sometimes it helped them reconnect with their spouses. Maybe that woman was Len's wife, if so, and then any fantasies she had would be dispelled. Maybe she was taking all of this a bit too far. Maybe she should return to the real reason why she took this trip, to figure out what direction she wanted to go with her unhappy marriage.Lois was having another meal sitting alone, having a drink, waiting for her entrée, and wondering just what in the hell she should do.

The following day Lois slept late. She was normally an early riser, but she knew when she turned in she had no plan for the next day. When she got up she looked out her window thinking how in the hell, why in the hell am I here and what's wrong with me? I'm in a marriage I think is headed in the wrong direction, yet what I come up with is boredom which should not be a problem with my spouse or is it? Can it be overcome or do I need a change, like a guy like Len who I really don't know and at this point may never know. Son of a bitch! She was not terribly excited about starting her day since she had no tour booked and had no idea what she really wanted to do to fill the day. After taking an hour to get dressed she went to the hotel restaurant for breakfast and as she walked in whom did she see but Len, this time alone. She ordered the buffet giving her unlimited choices and as she picked up a plate at the beginning of the line Len came up. He said nothing as they both moved down the line viewing the selections, but near the end where the fruit was Lois turned and made eye contact hoping to at least get a smile as she should expect from any total stranger who Len almost was. When she turned he was placing a biscuit on his plate so he did not immediately notice her. She stayed turned toward him until he put the biscuit on his plate and turned to move to the fruit where Lois was standing. He finally made eye contact, smiled, and waited for Lois to move along the line. She stood still waiting for still more from Len that she did not get. Finally, not recognizing or pretending not to recognize her he said, "excuse me, I need to get to the fruit thanks."

This really pissed Lois off, how dare he pretend not to notice her, not to remember that they met two days ago and somehow he had forgotten. She wondered what, if anything, should she do? Maybe she should take her plate, find a seat, and eat her breakfast and Len could ram his breakfast up his ass! She stopped at the end of the line and turned facing Len and said, "excuse me I met you two days ago at the pub and we walked back to the same hotel we were staying, don't you remember?"

Len looked up from his plate and looked into Lois' eyes resulting in smiles from the two of them. "Yes!" Said Len, "I'm sorry I do remember you, Jean, right? You were going to a beach resort for some rest and relaxation and wow! Here you are, well hello, can we share a table?"

"Of course," said Lois and she motioned for him to follow her to an empty table for two.

"Gee, I'm sorry," said Len, "for not noticing you this morning."

"That's OK,' said Lois, "but my name is Lois."

"Oh, Lois, yes, that's right, I'm so sorry Lois," replied Len.

"I saw you yesterday getting off the elevator with another woman. Is your wife sleeping late?" Asked Lois.

"Oh, that lady was not my wife, just someone I spoke to briefly coming down on the elevator," said Len. "We got into a conversation about the resort and she mentioned she had been coming here at least once a year for the past ten years and said it was a wonderful place to come and relax, get your blood pressure down and do absolutely nothing if you want to. Is your husband sleeping late?"

"No," said Lois, "he's back home working or supposed to be working."

"So you're here alone?" Asked Len. "That's interesting, husband at home working, you're here but not for a conference or some meeting, just to relax. Um, and you're husband you said is at home."

"Yes," that's what I said," replied Lois, "he's home."

"And I believe you told me walking from the pub that you were coming here to do what I'm doing, relax, is that still correct?" asked Lois.

"Yes," said Len relaxation is the reason I'm here and I don't have a wife, but I did have one until three years ago."

"Divorced?" Asked Lois.

"No," my wife passed away and I don't want to talk about that, at least not now," said Len.

"Oh, I'm sorry," said Lois.

"Oh, that's OK," said Len, "you couldn't know until you asked."

"Anyway, this resort and the surroundings are nice, so what all did you do yesterday Lois?"Asked Len.

"I agree, the resort is indeed very nice," said Lois. "I took a day tour out to the island and it was fun, I saw some beautiful sights." "What did you do yesterday?"

"Well," said Len, "I hung out mostly at the pool off and on all day; I didn't want to get too much sun. I did a bit of reading."

"I have an idea Lois," said Len, "have you heard about these things called Segways? They are these two wheeled motorized vehicles that you can rent to ride. A trained leader teaches you how to operate one before they let you begin the tour. If you don't have other plans would you like to join me on a Segway tour?"

"I haven't made any plans yet so, yes, I would like to try the Segway with you, it sounds like fun," said Lois.

"Great!" Said Len. "When we finish breakfast we'll go get the tickets."

The Segway center was located across the street from the resort, so Lois and Len didn't have far to walk. Len offered to buy Lois a ticket, but she refused the offer opting to pay her own way. There were six other people in the group and once everyone was comfortable with their Segways the tour leader led them down a narrow road to a nature park. Along the way he pointed out various plants and a few small animals. Most of the people were able to keep up with the guide. Lois seemed to be into her Segway and when she got next to Len she gave him a smile of approval. After the tour the two walked back to the resort.

While walking back Len told Lois he enjoyed the Segway ride with her and she responded likewise. When they got to the lobby Len asked if Lois would care to join him at the pool around three, for a swim. Lois said it would be fine to meet but she wasn't up to going swimming, but they could maybe sit around the pool and chat for a while.

At three o'clock Len walked out to the pool and selected two chairs and a table with an umbrella. Lois came fifteen minutes later and apologized for not being on time. Once they were seated Len began the conversation.

"Lois, you told me you are here to relax and your husband is back at home working, but I think it's strange for a married woman to come to a fancy resort alone just to relax." Said Len.

"Well, said Lois, "it may be strange to you but that is the reason I'm here, to relax and OK there is another reason I'm here, to figure out my marriage."

"What's there to figure out?" Asked Len.

"I'm trying to figure out whether or not I want to stay married," said Lois.

"Well, you don't have to share any more with me than you desire to, you really don't know me like you do a trusty friend or a relative," said Len.

"But maybe because I don't know you I can afford to be totally honest about my marriage," said Lois. "The gist of it is I'm just plain bored with my every day existence with my husband Tim. He works hard, he pays the bills, we go out, take trips, he likes golf, but at this point he's too dam predictable and is boring, those are mainly the issues."

"Wow!" Said Len. "He's doing what should be expected, but that's not enough, I doubt he has a clue you are dissatisfied, right?"

"True, he has no clue because for him if he does everything that needs to be done every day according to the same routine what is there to get worked up about?" Said Lois.

"OK, let me get a little more personal and if I go too far, stop me," said Len.

"I know where you're going and I can just tell you straight up, not much, the bedroom is treated like any other room in our house, it has a purpose, the purpose is to get a night's sleep, so maybe, just maybe that's the key to the problem, boredom with doing nothing in that room except sleeping," concluded Lois.

"I think I understand," said Len, "I sure miss my wife and our intimacy, the need never goes away and it's really hard now to be alone every night. I've taken one woman out since my wife's death and that was short lived. I could tell in the first hour it wasn't going to work out."

"What did your wife die from Len?" asked Lois.

"She died of a massive heart attack at age forty-two," said Len. "Heart disease ran in her family and all of her near relatives on her mother's side died fairly early. I knew this family history soon after we started dating, but when you fall in love with someone family history ceases to be that important."

"Again I'm so sorry Len," said Lois as she put her right hand over his to express her sympathy.

"My husband Tim would be devastated if I were to have an affair and he found out or if I told him I wanted a divorce when I returned," said Lois.

"So now you're sounding serious, affair or divorce, you're talking a game change here," said Len.

"I'm here for the week trying to figure things out," said Lois, "I hope I can have some sort of answer before I leave at the end of the week."

"I don't envy you Lois," an affair can signal the beginning of the end, but everyone and every couple is different. I know for a fact people have had brief affairs only to have stronger marriages afterward, how that works I have no clue, but I know of a few of those cases," said Len.

"I know of cases where the marriage becomes stale, there are no others, the couple just mutually decides they don't need each other anymore and they divorce," offered Len.

"Lois I have enjoyed our brief time together talking and if you'd like some company for the remainder of this day or anytime during the rest of the week I'm open to spending however much time together you want. Don't take this as a move on you or that I'm determined to show you just what a loser you are married to. You will let me know if I'm over the line. I'm just interested in what I came here to do, relax," said Len.

"Thanks Len," said Lois. "I think I'm going back to my room now, I enjoyed the Segway tour and our conversation."

Len was confused when Lois left. All of a sudden, poof! She's gone. Maybe he said something that offended her or maybe she wanted things to go further or who knows what. He went back to the lobby to get the time for the next shuttle bus for downtown. He decided he would spend the rest of the afternoon downtown and have dinner before returning to the resort.

Once back in her room Lois was really confused. In the brief time she had spent in Len's company she realized how comfortable she was with him. He was open, relaxed, and easy to talk to and she enjoyed that. Maybe she left too soon. Had she stayed he might have asked her out to dinner and then who knows, but she cut it off and came back to the room, now what?

She called Tim as he was finishing up a load of clothes and preparing to vacuum all the rooms in the house. He asked how the trip was going and Lois said so far she had had some nice tours, but did not mention the tour with Len. When she hung up she thought, predictable he is, call him, he's working, cleaning or playing golf. The week was half over and she still had yet to get past any real problems with her marriage except boredom. She was running out of time. She reminded herself of what Len said about affairs; sometimes a fling is just what a marriage needs. Sometimes maybe you have to be around someone else to realize what you have is all you need. Maybe she should work harder to get closer to Len, nobody would ever know, he's not married, he will leave the resort and return to his home, and if, just if they got close, intimate and she found it helped her appreciate Tim's cleaning and other predictable shit, maybe it wouldn't be a bad thing. Len was not married, but he didn't say he was involved with someone else either, Lois was perhaps way ahead in assuming he was that lonely and wanted to be with someone but hadn't found them, a lot of assumptions were going through her mind. She was so confused and now she was in her room. Len was who knows where, and she had given up the rest of the day and possibly the evening with Len had she desired to take things further. Wait! Phone! She had a cell phone and of course he did, but she did not have his number, but when one goes online there are all kinds of information one can find, even cell phone numbers if you look long enough. If she got Len's number what would she do with it, call him, and then what would she say? First, she'd locate the number then decide her next move. After searching for 45 minutes under several people across the country with the same names she narrowed it down to three people. She had no idea where Len was from so between the three it would have to be a guessing game. She could opt to call each and just ask if they were the Len at this resort, they'd either say yes or they'd say "wrong number" or "go f..k yourself!" What was she really trying to do here she thought? She concluded she wanted Len, she wanted a fling and then she was ready to reacess the marriage. Who knows maybe Len could light her up, something Tim had little ability to undertake. She looked at the three phone numbers and put her finger close to the list and closed her eyes to pick one at random. She opened her eyes and her finger was near number three so she dialed and waited for a connection. The phone rang four times, five times, six times, no answer and went to voice mail. She listened to the voice giving the message and was pretty sure it was not Len's voice so she put an "X" by number three. She now had a fifty fifty chance of getting Len on the next call. She closed her eyes again and played the same game. She opened her eyes and her finger was close to number two so she dialed and on the second ring someone answered but it was the wrong Len. Down to the last number, this one has got to be Len she hoped. She dialed the number and on the fourth ring someone picked up, another Len, but not the Len she wanted. Dam! Three numbers and all wrong, how could all of them be wrong? She realized she didn't have his full name and when looking up the numbers she looked for a Len, maybe the correct one could have been a Leonard, now what?

She went to the lobby hoping by chance he might be hanging out down there, maybe reading a paper like he was the day she checked in. Maybe she would sit in the lobby and pretend to read and he just might come in from somewhere and she'd see him before he got to the elevator. Maybe she was crazy for thinking of any of this shit. It was four o'clock when she got to the lobby. She looked around but there was no Len. She walked over and picked up a newspaper and sat down and looked at the headlines as she had no real interest in any news. Len could be anywhere she thought. How long should she wait? Might they help her at the desk, probably not, she was doubtful they would give her a phone number. She decided to just sit until at least she got hungry. She planned to eat in the hotel restaurant anyway and had no other plans for the remainder of the day, so she would just sit and wait and eventually he would return.

Five 'clock came and no sign of Len. Six o'clock came and no sign of Len. Seven o'clock came and no sign of Len. At that point she decided to go to the bar and have a drink or two then have dinner before returning to her room. She entered the lounge and sat at the bar since it wasn't crowded and she could have space between her and others. She ordered an Old Fashioned and waited for the bartender to mix the drink. As she looked around the lounge over in a far corner she spotted Len, not alone, but with the woman he walked out of the elevator with the first day. Lois wondered why was he with her when he said he only talked to her coming out of the elevator and now he's in the dam corner talking his ass off. Lois was really pissed, but why, she'd only taken a Segway tour then had a brief conversation with Len. What did she expect, that he was "her man?" As she reviewed the afternoon she realized she abruptly broke off their conversation and went to the room, Len didn't leave first, so no need to be pissed. Len had mentioned they could do some other things, but she decided to return to her room, so not Len's fault. Bad move, she thought, now what could she do? For one thing she could keep her eyes on Len and that other woman. She wondered what they were talking about. Was he putting a move on her and pretty soon they were going to her room for the night? If so, Lois thought, it could have been her if she hadn't been so silly and been in such a dam big hurry to get back to her room and sit on her ass. She ordered a second Old Fashioned as she continued to watch Len and the other woman. Maybe she should just walk over and see if he would invite her to sit down and if so, then she could make it a contest between her and the other woman to see which one would get to spend the night with Len. Did she just say "spend the night with Len?" It must be the liquor she thought, but she decided she wouldn't walk over and interrupt the two. Now she was getting a slight buzz on and getting hungry. Maybe she'd get one more drink and hopefully sit it out 'til they got up and see what might happen. She could get room service later as long as she ordered before ten.

It was close to eight thirty and Lois was finishing her third Old Fashioned and Len was still in the corner with that woman. She decided she could not wait much longer. Maybe if she got her courage up enough to walk over, it couldn't hurt, she would be just passing by and "oh, it's you, I didn't recognize you Len, how are you?" Then Len of course would ask her to join them and she would be accepted into the circle. Time was running out, what should she do? She returned to her room, took a shower and went to bed without any dinner.

Lois realized her trip was quickly coming to an end and still no solution on what to do about her boring husband Tim. But for now what should she plan to do today? She poured back through the tour brochures and tried to find something of interest to fill the day. There was a city tour including lunch that lasted most of the day. The stops included an art museum, sculpture gardens, an old factory recently turned into a state historical museum and a spin through the shopping district to end the tour. This tour would cover the day which was what she wanted, something to do all day. The art museum featured some impressionist art which were her favorites along with some renaissance art which were her least favorite. The history museum held zero interest for her. The sculpture garden held her interest for a few moments. The truth was all she could think of was Len and that woman, but why not Len and her? When she returned to the hotel she hoped she might spot Len in the lobby, but he was nowhere to be found. She went to the room and realized the day was quickly coming to an end. She wondered what his room number was but since she had no idea and if she did she'd never go there. She was unable to secure his phone number so all she could was to appear in the bar again and then later eat in the hotel restaurant hoping between the two places she might see him and they could somehow get together. She concluded it was a slim chance.

At five o'clock Lois headed to the bar's happy hour, Len or no Len. As soon as she walked in there he was at the bar with no one close to him. Lois wondered where that woman was, but this might be her only chance, maybe even her last chance. She decided to be bold and walked up and sat down beside him.

"Hi, Len, how's it going?" Said Lois.

"Oh hello," responded Len.

"So, are you having a good time?" Asked Lois.

She decided dammit, she would press him on the previous night and that dam woman.

"I was in the bar last night for a while and I noticed you were at a table over there in the corner with someone," said Lois.

"Yes, oh sorry, you should have come over and sat with us, it was the lady from the elevator the other day. I was at the bar early and she came in and sat beside me and after a while given the noise at the bar we decided to take a table. You should have come over," said Len.

"Well, I didn't want to interrupt, I mean you said you were single and maybe she is single and." Responded Lois.

"Wait? Now you're really ahead of things, just because I was talking to a woman like I am talking to you now doesn't mean anything past a drink and a conversation. There's no need for me to discuss with you what the topics of our conversation were. I hope I don't offend you Lois, but you don't need to know," stated Len.

"Oh hell, I'm sorry Len, I'm so confused and I'm running out of time trying to decide this relationship thing and for no good reason should I think you, who I don't know could help shed any night on what I should do," said Lois.

"Other than the points I mentioned the other night I have no other advice, you got to decide, you either do have a problem or you don't. You decide to live with your husband for what he is or you work with him to improve the relationship or you move to higher ground, that's an opinion from a person who had a happy marriage," said Len.

"I know what Lois; I noticed the other night just down the block is a theater with a play opening tonight. Let's finish these drinks, have dinner, attend the play and then if it's not too late and you're up to it we can come back here for a nightcap. What do you say Lois?' Asked Len.

"I'd say, let me go to the room real quick and I'll meet you in the lobby in fifteen," said Lois.

Lois rushed out to the elevator. Her heart was beating fast. This could be it, if things go well and she was put in the position of more than a nightcap this could be her big chance she thought. She came back down to the lobby in 25 minutes and found Len waiting patiently. He smiled as she arrived and together they left for dinner.

The restaurant was right across the street from the theater so they wouldn't have to eat and rush out. As they waited for their dinner they resumed their conversation.

"Tell me about your wife Len, if you are OK with it," asked Lois.

"We got married while we were in college, had two kids early and then when the kids were in school she worked at a bank until the day she died. My kids, a boy and a girl live far apart from each other and from me so I seldom see them, but thank goodness for today's technology," said Len.

"She was a wonderful, caring, funny, sensitive woman and she's always with me," concluded Len.

"I'm sorry I asked, I can tell from your demeanor I upset you," said Lois.

"No, it's OK, some days it's easier to talk about her than others," said Len.

At the theater Len got good seats near the stage. At intermission they went to the lobby and talked about how good the first act was. When they started to walk back to their seats Len grabbed Lois' hand and held it until they were seated. As the second act began his left hand found Lois' right hand and they stayed clinched until the show was over. As they walked out of the theater they were still hand in hand. When they got back to the hotel they went to the bar for the nightcap.

"Len," said Lois, "this has been a lovely evening and....I don't want it to end."

There was a pause before Len responded.

"I am glad you enjoyed the dinner and the play as well as my company. I have enjoyed being with you too, but I also know you are married and your husband is back home and he has no idea unless you tell him that we are here right now. When you say, I don't want it to end, what do you mean?" Asked Len.

"I mean I would with you," said Lois.

"You would with me?" responded Len. "We are experienced adults here and I think I know what you mean," said Len.

"The only person I've been with in twenty some years was my wife," said Len.

"Same here Len," said Lois.

"I'm ready if you are," said Lois.

"I'm a man," said Len, "I'll get the check."

Within ten minutes they were in Len's room sitting beside each other when Len leaned over and kissed Lois. Soon they were lying on the bed exploring new territory. Len reached for the bedside lamp. Within three minutes Lois jumped up and ran out the door leaving a bewildered Len lying on the bed.

She got to her room and closed the door and began to cry as she fell across her bed. Why had she done this? She was with someone she didn't really know because her husband was boring? Boring? For a week all she could come up with on Tim was he was boring.

Stanley's luggage was lost. At baggage claim he stood for most of an hour, but the bag never came out onto the carrousel. He went over to the lost baggage office and filed a report of a lost bag. Now he was really concerned for everything, including his medications, were in that one bag, if it could not be found by the end of the day he was in trouble. After filling out the necessary paperwork he left the office and looked for the exit sign for taxi pickup. Once outside there were few other passengers still waiting so it took a while to get a cab. His hotel was located within one block of the medical center where his appointment the next day was scheduled. Once he checked in, being close to five o'clock he headed to the hotel bar since there was no need to go to his room. After a couple of drinks he was a bit calmer about the bag. He called his pharmacy to enquire as to what he should do about his medications should his bag not be recovered by the time he took his pills which was just before he went to bed. He was told that if necessary the pharmacist could call a local pharmacy there and get enough medication to last at least through his trip. After the call he focused on why he was in this town in the first place. At his age did he need a prostate or not? What was the big deal anyway? If he ever engaged in sex again, which was highly unlikely, would it matter to the other person? How could he answer that one? If he decided against surgery would he want to go through perhaps radiation or chemotherapy or some kind of treatment which could be uncomfortable and perhaps screw up something else? Damned if you do, damned if you don't he thought. Since his wife died he hadn't been out with a woman for any reason, any reason! Why that would be changing with or without a walnut sized organ. Within 24 hours he hoped for more definitive answers.

At just after six o'clock Stanley received a call from the airport lost baggage office informing him that his bag had been located and they would deliver it by eight o'clock that night. He was relieved as he hung up the phone. He decided to call room service and order his dinner as going out held no interest for him. Room service responded quickly allowing Stanley time to finish dinner before his bag was delivered.

Stanley had a restless night, tossing and turning and making more than normal visits to the bathroom. After his last bathroom call at four o'clock he could not get to sleep so he got up and sat in a chair over at a window and observed the street below which at just after four o'clock was very quiet. He decided to take a shower and get dressed. He took the elevator down to the lobby and walked outside to get a feel for the current weather. He determined he would need his coat when he departed for his appointment at the medical center. He returned to the lobby and picked up a free copy of the local newspaper and sat down to read topics of interest. When he finished reading the paper he decided to return to the room.

After breakfast in the hotel restaurant Stanley returned to his room and watched TV until time to leave for the appointment. When he got to the lobby he had the bell hop call a cab. He arrived at the medical center fifteen minutes early which gave him enough time to find the clinic. When he got to the clinic he checked in and was given a questionnaire to complete while he waited to be called back. He completed the form and returned it to the desk and gave them his health insurance card. As soon as he sat back down he was called. A staff person ushered him back to an examining room. He went in and sat down and waited for the doctor. At that point he was very anxious. He had read many articles about prostates and about surgery and treatments and he didn't like any of them. His doctor had suggested surgery and he wondered what this doc might say, might he agree or suggest some other treatment. Stanley was hoping he would say, "At your age you should just live with it."

After about fifteen minutes of waiting the doctor came in and introduced himself as Dr. Slavin. "Stanley, I have reviewed all of your previous tests ordered by Dr. Zevon and I have no plan to repeat any of these tests." I think where we are today is to discuss the score that puts you right at a medium grade cancer. I would like to schedule an MRI tomorrow to determine if this cancer has spread beyond your prostate. If it hasn't then we can discuss treatments or maybe surgery. Surgery could be a good long term choice as we remove some surrounding lymph modes and surrounding tissue to make sure no cancer is found then you can be fairly confident that you've done the right thing. Now since you are in the middle then perhaps some treatments we can discuss or perhaps a third option which will be up to you, do nothing. This test can help us determine if the cancer has spread but is not 100% accurate, there are other tests, but let's not go there yet. If you are OK with this I will schedule the MRI as early as I can tomorrow. The test usually last for oh, about 40-45 minutes."

"Well, I guess I came in expecting some other sort of test," said Stanley. "My wife is dead and I'm alone so doc must tell you today I don't plan on being too inconvenienced over a bunch of tests and treatments. I know a prostate is there for, but come on, for me now, I mean, really? But I'm still a man who thinks about women and fanaticize about the possibility, though remote, that before I die I just might get to be with a woman again and if so I'd like everything to be in place."

Dr. Slavin responded, "I appreciate your candor Stanley and I'm going to try helping you as much as possible to preserve that possibility, we just have to evaluate the best possible solution and lay it out for you. As long as you are in town I suggest you think about this, weigh this decision and I'll help so when you leave you will be confident you did the right thing."

Stanley's MRI was scheduled for ten o'clock the next morning. After checking out he took a cab back to the hotel to think. He decided to call his best friend back home who had his prostate removed two years ago to talk to him about the upcoming MRI.

"Jake, hi, Stanley, I'm here and the doc scheduled an MRI tomorrow to see if my cancer has spread beyond my prostate. He also mentioned we would talk further about the possibility of surgery or some kind of treatments after the test. I know you had your prostate removed about two years ago I think, so how's that situation now?" Asked Stanley.

"Well," responded Jake, "as long as I don't laugh too hard or hope to get a hard I guess it's OK. Sometimes I have to pee more than I used to. At this point in my life maybe it's silly but sometimes I think some of my manhood has been taken away and it bothers me. But it's done, so I'm living with it. I gather you want advice, I'll give you advice, don't let them cut on you, if the doc says you need to do something to arrest the cancer, look at treatments, they got a shit ton of stuff they can do now, so let the doc pick the one you are most comfortable with and that gets results."

"Thanks Jake, that's useful information, OK, I got to go, I'll check in with you later after I have my MRI tomorrow," said Stanley.

"OK," said Jake, "good luck."

Stanley woke up early the next morning and went down to the lobby looking for a cup of coffee. He couldn't find any in the lobby so he went to the desk and was told that the only coffee at that time was in his room so he returned to his room and tried to figure out how to make one cup of coffee. It seemed to Stanley that over the course of his travels staying in all kinds of places that there was no consistency in coffee makers, so in every hotel he had to learn a new process for one dam cup of coffee. The clinic had left Stanley a message that the MRI was scheduled for 9:00a.m. so luckily he didn't have too long to wait. He had never had an MRI but knew he would be placed in some kind of tube and have to remain still for the duration of the test. Not being able to move for as much as 45 minutes Stanley thought would be hard especially since he would have no idea of the time remaining, yet he had no choice. He arrived at the clinic at about 8:30, checked in and seated himself in the waiting room until called. At 9:10 he was called back to a room to remove his clothes and change into a gown. The nurse told him to make sure he had no watch, rings, jewelry or anything else metal before coming out of the room. Stanley removed all of his clothes and just before attempting to put on his gown he looked in the mirror and shook his head, almost breaking down and crying thinking to himself, "why me, why didn't I die before my wife, why didn't I go to bed one night and never wake up, why, why, why, now this shit. He struggled with the gown before figuring out if he tied the gown in the front then moved the strings and the opening to his back it was much easier than trying to tie the thing from the back. He went out into the hall in search of the nurse being careful to keep one hand on the back side of his gown so as not to give the other workers a cheap thrill that early in the morning. When he found the nurse she escorted him to have an IV inserted into his arm so contrast could be injected to help the doctor identify areas of concern in his prostate. The nurse took him to the MRI room and Stanley got his first glimpse of the tube. He had seen pictures of it and it looked pretty much like the pictures. The nurse offered ear buds if Stanley wanted to hear some music, but he declined. The radiologist came in and introduced herself to Stanley. She went over the procedure and asked if he had further questions. Stanley had no questions; he just wanted it over as soon as possible. He stepped up and went into the tube feet first as the assistant helped steady his entry. Once in the tube and settled Stanley was told to remain as still as possible and if he needed assistance to pull the cord on his right side. Before the assistant stepped away Stanley changed his mind and requested some classical music if some was available. When the test began Stanley found the music to be most soothing and he was glad at the last minute he called for it. While he lay in the tube still as could be thoughts of his life flashed through his mind, from his childhood on a farm through high school and his attempts to play varsity sports to college to his first job, his second job, his third job, marriage, and his lasting job he would retire from thirty years later, his wife's illness, her death, her funeral, his loneliness, and now this, an MRI to determine a direction he might need to go.

Forty-five minutes later the assistant informed Stanley the MRI was complete and she would assist him in getting out if he needed it. He thought he could exit by himself but felt a little uneasy getting down. The assistant helped Stanley down to the room to get dressed and told him to go to the waiting room as the doctor expected to provide some results soon. Stanley had no idea about much of any of this procedure, but he was pleased if he could at least have some idea of where he was with this procedure in helping determine his next step. He pretty much figured that regardless of the findings the doctor would be talking surgery or some kind of mostly awful treatment. Stanley sat in the waiting room for what seemed more than an hour forced to watch some cable news network of talking heads conversing about issues they could do nothing about. At this point in his life that type of news reporting was the last thing he needed, what's happening good or bad and where and why and who's involved, he didn't give a rat's ass about everybody's freaking opinions on any of the major news stories. He accepted that current news was presented that way and wasn't likely to change in the short time he had left on this crazy planet. He needed a snack so he walked around until he found a little snack bar complete with everything he did not need to eat, but what the hell, he went for it! He got a soft drink full of lots of sugar and a bag of chips laced with tons of salt, the sugar from the drink against the sodium of the chips, a total standoff! He went back to his seat and continued to wait until finally he cornered some assistant person and told her he had been waiting for close to two hours so could she in her really busy schedule allow herself to seek out information about how dam much longer he had to wait? She told him, "I will look into it." What a peach! Stanley sat back down and continued to watch more recycled news since 8:00 that morning.

After another half an hour Stanley went to the desk and announced he was leaving within the hour, the doctor could call him or however he communicated but he had had enough of this shit so thirty minutes from that point he was out the door, prostate exam or kiss my ass.

Another half hour passed before the assistant came out to speak to Stanley. She said the doctor was way behind schedule and had not had time to review the scan and wondered if Stanley could come back tomorrow. The doctor promised the results would be available. Stanley was a bit irritated about the whole day, but since he had already spent much time on this visit he might as well do as they say.

"OK," said Stanley, "I'll come back tomorrow, what time"

"If you can come about 9:00a.m. we'll try to be ready with the results," the assistant said.

Stanley left the clinic for his hotel to try and figure out what he could do to waste away the rest of the day. He was very frustrated and wondered why he bothered to get a second opinion in the first place. At his age he had no interest in going out for an adventure. He was not interested in any dam tours and certainly was not going to walk around in a strange place and risk getting mugged. By the time he got to the hotel he decided to just stay at the hotel and divide his time between napping, eating, reading the newspaper, and watching TV.

Stanley arrived at the clinic by 8:45a.m. The next morning and told the desk attendant to tell the doctor he was there. He found a seat and proceeded to wait. One hour passed, still no doctor. Into the second hour finally a nurse called for him and he went back to the doctor's office.

"Good morning Stanley," said the doctor.

Stanley reluctantly said "good morning."

"Well Stanley I did not find the cancer had spread outside your prostate and that is some good news, but with the cancer being in the medium range as I stated two days ago you have three options, surgery, treatments we can talk about, or do nothing because we have no way of knowing just how fast the cancer will spread. Some men continue to live productive lives without doing anything and their cancer never progresses fast enough to warrant any intervention. If you elect to do nothing I recommend you get checked out by your physician each year just to be sure your cancer does not become more aggressive." Concluded the doctor.

"OK, I will schedule to be checked every so often," said Stanley.

"OK, then," said the doctor, "I will sent the results of the MRI to your doctor and I suggest you keep tabs on the situation by regular checkups."

Stanley left the clinic for the hotel. He intended to call the airport to see if he could get on a flight back home that day. The ticket office told Stanley that the only flight available was a 7:00p.m. flight so Stanley booked it and paid the extra charges as he was ready to be home. He arrived home at about 10:30p.m., threw his bag down, undressed, and went to bed.

"Jake, hi, this is Stanley. By the way do you have the name and number of that friend of yours, you know, she's about 68 or so and lives somewhere in your neighborhood? You said she mentioned one time she'd like to go out, like to dinner or something? Do you have her number?" He asked. Barrett was dropped off at his hotel near the college campus. He planned to walk the two blocks to campus the next morning to present the training session. His room was a suite with a large desk where he could set up his laptop and lay out all his handouts he expected to issue during his meeting. He had participated in so many of these training sessions he didn't require much preparation, but these days people expected PowerPoint presentations and copious handouts. After going over everything he closed his laptop and decided to go to the bar before dinner which he planned to have in the hotel. After dinner he took a quick walk down to the campus to locate the building where the sessions were to be held. He was back in his room by seven and after a final review of his presentation materials he turned in for the evening.

He prepared to leave his hotel room early enough to make sure a projector was set up for his laptop. Suddenly his phone rang. Since he had Loraine in his contacts her name flashed up on the screen. Should he take the call or let it go to voicemail? Why in the hell didn't she call last night if she had anything to say to me he thought. He decided not to take the call; he didn't want to get off to a bad start and have to walk into the meeting room with a scowl on his face. He muttered to himself as he walked to the elevator, "I'm getting tired of her shit!"

Barrett arrived on campus in about twenty minutes. The college had a beautiful campus that opened its' doors in 1965. It was one of the largest schools in the state and boasted an annual average enrollment of 15,000 full time students. Most of the students were either in the two year college transfer program or a two year associate degree program with the remainder of the students in one year vocational tracks. The college had a strategic plan, but year in and year out many of the goals were not met so the administration decided to bring in a professional to review their current plan and offer some of the latest best practices strategic plans. He had talked to the president of the college briefly on one occasion and the institutional effectiveness officer several times in preparation for his visit.

The meeting room was large with tables on three sides allowing everyone to see each other. There was a lectern with locking wheels in front of the room which allowed it to be easily moved to the side when the speaker was using a table for a presentation with a laptop. There was the usual screen for PowerPoint's or other visual presentations in front of the room which was mounted over a blackboard. He took his laptop out of the case and set it up next to the projector and connected the necessary cords. Next he opened his PowerPoint and using a mouse scrolled through his presentation. Next he took out his handouts and placed them on the table next to the projector. He walked around the room making sure he had room to walk around the tables for once he got started he often liked to walk around the room and get closer to the participants. He left the room in search of the restroom for one last call before the participants arrived. While he was in the men's room his phone rang again and it was Loraine. This time he decided to answer the call.

"Yes Loraine, what is it?" Asked Barrett.

"Are you in a bad mood Barrett?" Loraine asked. "I've called you several times since you left but you refuse to pick up or return my call."

"Loraine, I've been extremely busy preparing for this workshop so I haven't had time for chit chat, the session is starting in fifteen minutes, so what do you want," he asked.

"I know the timing may not be good and I'd rather tell you in person, but this just happened like now. Barrett I'm moving out, I've been seeing someone else over the past two months and we have decided we want to be together, that's all I have to say. I hope you aren't mad," she said.

"You hope I'm not mad? You've been carrying on for you say about two months, but now with 10 minutes before I start my workshop and being out of town you say you're moving out. Well, don't let the door hit your ass when leaving, goodbye bitch!" Barrett then hung up before Loraine could respond. She immediately called back, but Barrett refused to answer. She left a voice mail but he erased it. Time to begin the training he thought as he walked back to the meeting room.

"What was I thinking just a few days ago," he muttered to himself, "about calling Loriane and telling her to get the hell out and now she's taken care of it. For the immediate future in case she calls again I must continue to appear pissed off about her leaving, but this is great news."

Barrett was elated and was literally jumping for joy as he entered the training room. He was smiling at everyone and shaking hands, being much more gregarious than what was usual for him. After allowing for individual introductions from the participants where each person gave their name and their position at the college Barrett gave a brief bio of his background. Introductions were followed by an open discussion on how the employees felt about strategic planning in general, then more specifically how they felt about their own college's plan. Most had little of anything to say, while the few talkers had quite a bit to share. One man explained that one of the problems was there was no feedback from the administration at the end of the planning cycle. A report was written, distributed, but that was it, no feedback about what was accomplished and no action plans to remedy the problems. It seems as they were all left to interpret it individually as to what the report might mean for them rather than the institution. Another person said there was no one assigned to help staff with drafting their objectives. Barrett listened intently to each person. Two more people said that they thought the whole thing was a bunch of crap and they hated being asked to do it.

Barrett began his presentation with two main points, he was asked to appear as a strategic planning expert to share a model, a template for developing and putting into place the strategic plan for the college which he was prepared to do. His second point was that without a total support and backing from the administration and a total buy in from all college employees the whole day might be a waste of time for everyone in the room, but since he was being paid to give a presentation he was ready to begin.Some people looked at each other with puzzled looks, like WTF? Who is this guy? What's he saying?

Barrett opened his PowerPoint and began his presentation. "One of the first task to undertake is to look at community college best practices, what are other schools doing that have met with success? This takes time and many things I present may not apply here, while others will. You at least get to see what's working somewhere else and you get to think about the possibility for your school."

"Next we want to review the data. What's going on nationally and at the state and local levels? What does the economic picture look like? In what fields are most of the jobs?" Barrett continued on this path citing extrapolating the data and coming up with implications for what their institutions needed to do in developing college goals and specific departmental measurable goals.

When they returned from lunch Barrett talked about objectives, how to write an objective that can be measured such as using numbers and percentages in the statement. He challenged the participants to work to develop reasonable objectives. He gave them a homework assignment to bring in five measurable objectives for their respective areas to share in tomorrow's class.

By the time the session ended and Barrett arrived back in his room he was exhausted. The next morning he was up early, showered, and hurried down to grab breakfast before heading back to the college and day two of his workshop. Being his last day he felt he needed to hit a home run for the college for if participants didn't leave being excited about his presentation the college would be no better off than two days ago. He knew paradigm shifts can and do work, but work best when the senior administrators are in attendance and none of them were present, so he realistically felt he was wasting his time, but he would still get paid for it. The session began and Barrett went around the room soliciting measurable objectives from the homework assignment. It was obvious many had put some thought into the objectives they wrote while for others it was crystal clear they spent maybe five minutes writing theirs, which reinforced Barrett's earlier opinion that without the leadership in attendance and with so much negative energy in the room his success here was limited. The second session concluded and several attendants came up to Barrett afterward and thanked him for helping them and they hoped his system would be embraced, but by that time all he wanted to do was get the hell out, get back to the hotel, have a few drinks, dinner, meet with the college president the next morning and fly out to an empty apartment.

The next morning Barrett's first thought when he got out of bed was what it would be like to go home to an empty apartment, all empty. Of course he didn't have a clue as to how it would feel but he knew minimally he wouldn't have to put up with her senseless drivel, she constant petty shit, asking stupid questions, providing stupid answers to his intelligent questions, not being able to help around the apartment, no none of that shit would he miss. So it should be a good welcome home.

The meeting between Barrett and the college president was held at 9:00a.m. in the president's office. The meeting was to be a debriefing as the president wanted feedback from Barrett as to how his employees received the workshop. Barrett was very up front from the beginning when he told the president he thought there would have been a stronger buy in had he, the president and the other senior administrators been in attendance. The president said simply he had "other things to do" or he would have attended and as far as the senior administrators if they had attended who would have filled in for them? Barrett didn't think that was much of an excuse but he said nothing. The final question Barrett asked was did the president think the college was ready for the new strategic planning model or not? The president told Barrett he planned to convene a meeting of all the attendees which were mostly instructors, department heads, and division chairs and garner their opinions before proceeding. He thanked Barrett for his willingness to come and make his presentation and he would be in touch if he needed him further. With that Barrett exited the meeting and walked back to the hotel to pack and check out for an early afternoon flight home.

For the second time he thought about returning to an empty apartment, empty without Loriane. Before his trip he had hoped somehow he'd figure out how to rid himself of her, now she beat him to the punch. Maybe he really cared for her and took her for granted and didn't do all the little things he needed to do to make her happy and contented with him so she decided to up and leave and now he was going to be alone when he opened the door to that apartment. And to think she found someone else to meet the needs of what he failed to provide made him feel grossly inadequate, son of a bitch he thought, now did this happen? He was also second guessing his abilities as a strategic planning presenter after leaving that pathetic group he made a presentation to. At no point did he feel they "got it" and he was able to win them over, which he had always done with past groups. He severely questioned his ability to continue to do this work. What was he good at? Maybe he just needed to be satisfied with his regular job at the local community college where most everyone accepted the strategic plan he had put in place. The flight home held the possibility of being the flight from hell, he had to take it to get home, he hated flying and he now had nothing to come home to. He was realizing maybe he liked or perhaps even loved old Loriane and wondered somehow if he could win her back. Maybe he could send her some flowers or something, no, that was a stupid ass thought. He had no idea. He was totally confused about everything in his life. He needed to get home and regroup.

Ariana was among the first passengers to retrieve her one suitcase from baggage claim. She wheeled the bag over to a bench and sat down to call Edith and let her know she had arrived. After exchanging a few pleasantries Edith offered to pick her up, but Ariana declined opting for a cab. After the conversation she took the escalator to the main level and walked outside to find an available cab. After two failed attempts she managed to flag one down. After giving her bag to the driver she hopped in and fastened her seatbelt, always in cabs, and waited for the driver to return to his seat. After giving the driver the Edith's address she looked at the passing scenery while she thought about the visit and tried to convince herself it could be a worthwhile trip. The cab pulled up in front of Edith's house within 45 minutes of departing from the airport. Ariana paid the driver including a nice tip and proceeded up the walk to the front porch. She ran the bell once before the door was opened and there was her old roomie, Edith. After a few hugs they moved into the living room and sat down. Edith took Ariana's bag and put it in the guest room. After returning Edith offered Ariana something to drink, but Ariana declined. Edith mentioned several places she was planning to take Ariana, among them the local art museum, a theater which she had purchased tickets for a matinee on the second day, and an Italian restaurant she had selected for dinner on the last night of her stay.

Ariana unpacked her bag in Edith's guest room and decided to slip into some more comfortable clothes for the rest of the day. She decided soon after she returned to the living room she would lay it all out to Edith, tell her just how she felt, about their college days and their current relationship. Maybe Edith could take it, maybe not. Time would tell if this was the case.

Ariana entered the living room and sat down on a lavender sofa directly across from where Edith was sitting reading something on her laptop. "Edith, can we talk?" asked Ariana, "I've got some things to get off my mind."

"Really," responded Edith, "like what?"

"Well, let's talk about our college days," said Ariana.

"You talk, I'll listen, said Edith.

"OK, I have some things to get off my chest that have bugged me since college and I decided I can't put them off any longer. I'm sorry waited this long to bring them up but I can't keep living a lie. I never liked it that you wouldn't help me clean our dorm room. I never liked it when you had other girls in our room hanging out when I was trying to study, especially for a test, it was my room too. I never like it when you stayed up later than I did and kept your desk lamp on while I was trying to get to sleep. I never like it when you ran out of sanitary napkins and took some of mine without asking. I never liked it when you borrowed money from me and never, except for one time, did you pay me back. I never liked it when the classes we took together you wouldn't take any notes then later wanted to use all the notes I had taken and then there was the time you left my notes in the library leaving me with nothing to help prepare for my test. I never liked it when you smoked in our room. I really never liked it that night you sneaked your boyfriend into our room, a clear violation of college rules which would have gotten us expelled had we been caught. I never liked it when one night you came in after partying with a half full can of beer and spilled it all over my dam bed. And finally, be thing I really didn't like was our sophomore year when I was dating Fred and liked him quite a bit. When you were around us you flirted with him and he became infatuated with you and the next thing I knew he dumped me for you and you wind up marrying him. I never totally got over Fred and thanks to you I'll never know what we might have had."Concluded Ariana.

"Dam!" Responded Edith."I don't know what to say Ariana, I'm nonplused, shit, after all these years, all the phone calls, letters before texting and emails and now after all that it sounds like I was and still am a disgusting piece of shit. I totally ruined your college experience yet for some reason you decided to maintain contact with me, now that's strange. If you didn't like me why didn't you sever ties then, hell you could have requested another roommate or better you could have sat down with me and maybe we could have hashed this all out, but no, you waited until now, today."

"I can apologize but I'm not sure that's what you want, so I'm not sure what I need to do to make amends," said Edith.

"This stuff is so in the past I can't help clean your room. I doubt you really need those napkins replaced. By now your bed has dried from the beer I spilled but that's not the bed you now sleep in. I will make sure the lamp in the guest room is turned off when you go to bed tonight. I don't smoke anymore so that shouldn't be a problem for you. I will pay back all the money you said I borrowed and never paid back if you kept a record of what I owe. I don't have a boyfriend to sneak into the house tonight, just Fred if that's OK, so all these things I can attend to right away, now is there anything else?" Offered Ariana.

Ariana responded, "I know all this happened in the past, but at the time it irked me, but there's one thing you left out."

"One thing?" asked Edith.

"Yes," replied Ariana, "there is one more thing, Fred."

"Fred? You mean my husband Fred? I don't understand where you're going with this one. You are still not married I assume because you have elected not to enter into any long term relationship, but this choice, well, what's it got to do with Fred my husband?" Inquired Edith.

"Well, that's the part you can fix, Fred, I liked him a lot, quite a lot, and you took him from me and now I would like him back, he's the only man I was ever in love with," said Ariana.

"I do not believe this shit I'm hearing, said Edith. "Let me get this straight, you want Fred, my husband. How do you want him, just for the night or forever?"

"Well, I've wanted to be with him since college if that helps answer your question. The only reason I've kept in touch with you was so I could follow his life by the information you provided to me."Said Ariana.

"I cannot believe I'm here in this house, my house, listening to this shit from a person I've known for a long time, who I thought was my friend only to discover today that you are not. Go get your bag bitch and leave my house now!"Said Edith.

Just then Fred arrived home from work and when he entered the door he saw Ariana whom he had not seen since their college days. He walked over and embraced her and kissed her lightly on her cheek. Edith was standing nearby with her hands folded trying hard not to frown.

"Great to see you Ariana, you look great," said Fred. "Let me go in the kitchen and fix us a drink and reminisce about the past."

Moments ago Edith instructed Ariana to leave, but now she had no choice but to relent since Fred was home. Fred returned to the living room with three martinis and set the tray on the coffee table so they could serve themselves.

"So Ariana here's what I remember," said Fred, "I met you at college, we dated for awhile, then I started dating your roommate here, Edith and later we were married and have been for eighteen years. I understand you are still single, by choice, because occasionally Edith will inform me of some of the things going on with you. I know you travel a bit and have a successful career as a book designer."

"Yes Fred," said Ariana, "all of that is mostly true, but I wouldn't say I've remained single by choice, maybe I'm too picky, but the right person hasn't come along in twenty years."

"Twenty years," said Fred, "I mentioned we dated some about twenty years ago and you just said the right person hasn't come along in twenty years, um, I don't know....."

"Nor do I," muttered Edith, "I have no idea where any of this conversation is going."

"Maybe we should let Ariana respond, just before you got home she told me she still wants to be with you after twenty years," said Edith.

"I'm going to need another drink, perhaps a double this time, anyone else?" said Fred.

"I sure need another," said Edith.

"By the way what's for dinner Edith?" asked Fred.

"I have no idea, suddenly I seemed to have lost my appetite," responded Edith.

"Maybe I'll treat us to dinner out tonight since Edith was so kind to invite me here for three days," said Ariana.

When Fred returned with the second round of drinks he spoke, "before we get too much further I think we need to clear some things up now if this is to be a pleasant visit. Edith invited you because the two of you have been friends since college or I assumed that, now you say you still have what, like a crush, on ME after all these years, really? How did this happen?"

"Fred, I understand believe me," said Ariana, "I know you are surprised that after all these years I can sit here in your house and say to you in the presence of you wife I still want to share a life with you. But, if you allow me to continue I will share with you some things I know about your wife I doubt you know. You deserve the truth."

Edith was shocked and sat motionless as Ariana commenced with her explanation.

"Fred, when Edith and I have communicated over the years I doubt she has told you about everything we talk about. She tells you about my work, my trips, maybe my grandmother, a new car I just bought or that I moved into a new apartment, but she never told you the other things we talked about. I'll bet she never told you about the time five years ago when you were sick in the hospital for two weeks she was seeing another man when she wasn't at your bedside. I doubt she told you that when you went on business trips there were other men she was seeing and note I said, "Other men" meaning more than one. I'll bet she never told you that some other man has slept in the same bed you sleep in every night. I'll even bet she never told you about the little beach trip she took while you were out of town."Stated Ariana.

"I don't know what to say," said Fred.

"Edith, how about you, any comments?" Asked Fred.

"Yes, I have a comment, Ariana is full of shit!" Replied Edith. "I invited her here because I thought she was my dear friend over all these years, college roommates and all. As soon as she got in the door she began dumping all this shit from the past, things I did that irritated her beyond belief, yet at the time she never one time mentioned any problem with anything I said or did, now she wants my husband because I took him away from her and she still hates me for that and still wants you Fred. Just before you got home I asked her to leave, what a mess, looking forward to a nice reunion and all this happens."

Fred said, "at this point I agree Ariana certainly doesn't need to remain, unless...

"Unless what? Asked Edith.

"Unless she can prove any of these accusations," said Fred.

"Prove? How in the hell can she prove things that didn't happen?" Asked Edith.

"You're suggesting that you think some or all of these affairs, flings, one night stands or whatever happened. You should have no doubts whatsoever that they didn't because I have been as faithful, loyal, and honest as a wife could be and I'm not hearing you say you doubt any of these but you like to hear more if Ariana has more."Said Edith.

Ariana spoke, "Fred I feel for you at this time, your wife has been living a lie and now one of her best friends has showed up at your doorstep to blow the whistle. I know you are uncomfortable and if you'd like I will call a cab and leave immediately."

"No, I want to hear about these instances of infidelity, I mean can you prove, can you document any of what of what you have said?" Questioned Fred.

"I have kept a log of my calls with Edith in a small booklet and since all of our communication over these years has been via phone there are no recent emails or text. We got in the habit of calling each other and that has been our method of communication. More people than you think still communicate by phone, believe it or not," stated Ariana.

"But that's your side of this, you can write down all kinds of crap, make up as much as you want," said Fred.

"Yes," said Ariana, "but the difference here is in my log I have names and dates, now some of these people you might know and if you have any records from your work, like conferences and meetings, events maybe you put on a calendar and somehow you still have them you can match them to the dates I give. Coincidence? Maybe, but you be the judge when I finish. As a matter of fact my log is in my travel bag let me go let it and I'll share these instances with you."

"This shit gets crazier every minute Fred," said Edith.

"But I want to hear her out, if this is total fabrication then she must go and your friendship is ended forever, but at least you'll now know just what kind of person she was and is and hopefully you will learn what a true friend is. But if this is something else, well... Edith I have had no reason not to trust you since we have been married and I'm not planning to stop trusting you now, unless." Said Fred.

"Unless what, Fred?" Asked Edith.

"Unless I hear something from Ariana that's believable," answered Fred.

Ariana returned from the guest room with the log book in her hand.

"So, in that little black book you have there you have my whole life story since I've been married and we've been talking on the phone?" Asked Edith.

"Well, yes I guess so, once you started telling me of these other men I figured out that if I documented the stories you were telling me perhaps one day I could get Fred back." Said Ariana.

"Ariana we dated what, two or three months, I have practically no recollection of our dates other than a football game or two and maybe a movie. I just don't have any memory at all of feeling at the time you were all that interested in me and now you state you were in love with me then and still are beats the pure living shit out of me," said Fred.

"Short time, true, but had we been together longer you would have had the opportunity to see just what we could have had if you had given me longer," said Ariana.

"And I know you had sex early with Edith because she told me, third date I believe, while the times we dated I refused your advances."

"You're throwing everything out aren't you bitch?" Said Edith.

"OK Ariana," said Fred, "let's hear what you have in that little book."

"On July 15, 2008 you entered the hospital for a ruptured appendix and you were there for a week. How many times did Edith come to the hospital and how long were the visits?" Asked Ariana.

"How long were the visits, how in the hell can I remember how long the visits were?' Said Fred.

"Edith do you remember?"Asked Fred.

"I have nothing to add to this conversation," Edith said.

"I can tell you Fred, Edith was there to check you in at 9:00a.m. and stayed an hour. She returned at 2:00p.m. and stayed two hours and left. She returned the next day at 10:00a.m." Offered Ariana.

"Do you want to know what she was doing during the times she wasn't at the hospital?" Asked Ariana.

"That's why we're having this conversation, to determine if any of what you report can be confirmed," said Fred.

"Edith went home and called a man she had known for several years she met at work. He was there on business from out of town and she had lunch with him, as a matter of fact he visited often and every time they had lunch and the lunches got longer to where they carried over to dessert in a motel," said Ariana.

"But the first hospital day Edith took a sick day to take you to the hospital, but also the man was scheduled to be at her company that day so rather than lunch she called him and picked him up at the office and brought him to this house. They had a long lunch, but she left enough time to dry off and return to the hospital by 2:00p.m."Said Ariana.

"What about this Edith?" Asked Fred.

"No comment," said Edith.

Ariana said, "Well, Fred I have business and home addresses plus business and cell phone numbers for the man if you want to call him and ask. Oh yes I also can give you his name. I'm sure he'll be embarrassed but I imagine he'll corroborate the story, but perhaps he'll just lie like most men do. Here are the numbers, I wrote of them down on a separate sheet of paper before coming."

Fred got up and walked over to Ariana to get the phone numbers while Edith sat across the room shaking her head.

"September 25 of the same year, you were on a four day business trip. Edith was working by day and entertaining by night, sometimes at your house and some at undisclosed locations. Do you wonder how she got lovers into your house without the neighbors seeing them? That's what garage doors are for, if you bend over in either the front or back seat while driving into your yard not even a nosy neighbor would be likely to spot you. Once inside behind locked doors and closed blinds you can be very discreet. If you leave after dark it's even harder for folks to see you. Would you like names here plus addresses and phones?" Asked Ariana.

"Yes," said Fred.

"And the sad thing is Fred two of these men you know well, but not as well as your wife," said Ariana.

"One is a neighbor at the end of your street; actually he was a neighbor in 2015 when he and Edith were seeing each other when you were away. As you know he moved in 2016." Said Ariana.

"Leonard?" Asked Fred.

"That would be him," Ariana responded.

"And who else?" Enquired Fred.

"One was a young man at your church, the associate pastor, but he transferred to another church in 2012 to get him away from Edith and a few other women to save for some reason his career in the ministry," said Ariana.

"OK, thus far I've heard of at least four," said Fred, "at some point I want more proof than names and numbers from the past. Do you have anything else Ariana?"

"Even if I get all your names and numbers and spend the rest of the day calling these people what will they say? OK, you got me, I confess I was running around with your wife and here are the details. No! People wouldn't do that, they'd lie and then somehow I'd still need more proof these things happened," said Fred.

"Yes," said Edith, "you would need to get proof and you haven't heard it yet because I didn't do anything with any of these people! Ariana what a bitch friend you are! Coming to my house for a friendly visit and then stirring up some crazy ass story in a feeble attempt to lure Fred away from me and back into your arms."

Fred sat on the sofa with a puzzled look on his face not knowing what to say about anything.

"Well, it's way past my dinner, I offered to treat you too tonight so who's in?" Ariana asked.

Edith said, "dinner! How in the hell can anyone think about dam dinner after all this shit they've had to listen to? There's no way in hell I'd go anywhere with you now after you have tried to ruin my marriage."

"Fred would you like to go?" Asked Ariana. "If I'm lying then at least you get a free dinner. Edith has nothing to worry about unless I'm telling the truth, right Edith?"

"Edith I want to hear the rest of what Ariana has to say and yes, I agree, if you've done nothing no worries," exclaimed Fred.

"I'm not believing this, well you go with her Fred. Perhaps after dinner you two shack up for the night and maybe when you get back my ass will be gone. I'm your wife and right now I have a feeling that you believe this sorry bitch Fred," said Edith.

Fred and Ariana left for dinner leaving Edith alone. Ariana directed Fred to a little place she had found earlier online. When they were seated Ariana told Fred she had always loved him and the spark was still there after a decade.

"Fred, we could have been happy together and we still can if you believe me, Edith doesn't deserve you after all of her trysts," said Ariana.

"The truth is Ariana I stopped asking you out back in college because I got to the point where I didn't think I was good enough for you. You came from a wealthy family while mine was low rent. You made Dean's List in college and I barely squeaked by. You were popular with the women and the men whereas I had very few acquaintances. How we got together initially and stayed together for those few months is still an enigma to me. So when I stopped dating you it was because I figured there was no long term possibility, of course I never told you that, I just started dating Edith. I must say you still look great and as I mentioned earlier tonight Edith told me you've had a wonderful career. I been fortunate with my job and Edith and I have been happy, but when we found out several years ago she couldn't have kids, that was a bit of a downer. We thought about adoption for a while, but decided we didn't want someone else's children, sorry, I guess, but we didn't. There have been a few times and I didn't admit it in front of Edith that I was suspicious. I mean times I'd call especially before cell phones where I'd call home and expect her to be there but she didn't answer. I couldn't track her then as I could now with my cell phone. Where was she I wondered? Maybe she was where you said earlier. You have certainly planted some doubt in my mind Ariana."Explained Fred.

"Maybe it would be wise that I plan to leave early in the morning so you can sort all this out. You can do your own detective work or perhaps figure out a way to get Edith to tell the truth. You and I can communicate via cell phone if there is more you need to know. I'll always be there for you and as I stated you have always been the man I wanted in my life. I've waited this long and I can wait for you should you to sort all this out," said Ariana.

"I agree Ariana," said Fred, "I think it would be a good idea if you would leave so I can sort things out."

When Ariana and Fred returned Edith had already gone to bed. Fred and Ariana embraced before going to their bedrooms and Ariana planted a kiss on Fred's check. The next morning Ariana was packed and ready to leave before Fred went to work. She called a taxi and waited on the front porch. During the ride to the airport Ariana quietly congratulated herself, she had indeed planted the seed of doubt and with any luck this seed would sprout soon and develop into a perennial.

Ariana was TSA prechecked at the airport allowing her to be at her gate within ten minutes. As she looked for a seat at the gatehouse she noticed someone she had seen somewhere recently. Maybe it was at the restaurant with Fred.

Barrett was seated close to the boarding counter so he could get the jump on everyone as usual when time to board. He was on his laptop when a lady walked over looking at a few vacant seats close to him. As he looked up he made eye contact followed by a smile. She looked familiar, but after several hundred flights everyone looked familiar to him. He went back to looking at his laptop as Ariana seated herself two seats away in the same row. When the boarding agent announced boarding would commence in five minutes Barrett shut off his laptop and put it away, then grabbed his carryon bag and got up to get in line as close to the front as he could. Ariana, was also in first class so she got up with her bag and moved in the direction of Barrett. They were both in line at the same time, Barrett in front and Ariana directly behind him. He turned around several times and smiled and Ariana reciprocated. When Barrett looked straight ahead each time he thought, "that woman looks familiar, I think she was on the same flight as I was going out and now she's on the same flight back home."

When the agent called for first class Barrett presented his boarding pass and moved into the passenger boarding bridge. Directly behind him followed Ariana. Barrett put his carryon in overhead compartment above his seat, keeping his laptop and seated himself in his seat next to the window. When he looked up Ariana was putting away her bag. The next thing he knew she was seated next to him. They looked at each other and smiled. Barrett was the first to speak.

"Excuse me, but weren't you on a flight going out just a week ago?" Queried Barrett.

"Why yes I was, I was going to see my old college roommate and her husband," responded Ariana.

"I thought I remembered you, I travel so often while I'm waiting for my flight I'm

accustomed at looking at other passengers and wondering where they are going, why, and what their lives are like, I have to do something to while away the time when waiting for a flight," explained Barrett.

"I travel quite a bit too, but I seldom notice anyone, if you say you were on the outgoing flight I believe you. My name is Ariana," said Ariana.

"Oh, sorry, my name is Barrett," said Barrett.

"And why were you flying Barrett, did you say?" Asked Ariana.

"I was out doing a presentation on strategic planning at a community college, some say I'm a "recognized expert on strategic planning," but since you didn't recognize me I guess that is not an accurate claim," said Barrett.

Ariana laughed, "well, whether or not some say you are an expert on anything having to do with people planning something in their life is a good thing, too many people try to get through a day figuring out just that, how to get through the day. A plan is what others do, but not them, unless they are forced to."

"What do you do?" asked Barrett. "I'm a book designer," said Ariana. "I help authors come up with a cover and any other necessary visual designs for their book so hopefully it will be a best seller. Thus far after doing this for twenty years out of college I think I'm pretty good at it and the books I've been associated with, well many of them have been best sellers, but I'm not implying they are because of the covers."

"How did your visit to your, did you say your college roommate, how did that go?" Asked Barrett.

"It was great," said Ariana. "Yes, great I hadn't seen her for years or her spouse since I guess the wedding. Yes, we had a wonderful time, reminiscing and laughing about the silly things we did in college, she was a great roommate."

"I imagine it's good to maintain contact with people you met in college, but I haven't done a very good job with that over the years," said Barrett. "Occasionally I'll think of someone from college and attempt to locate them, but if it takes too much time I just forget it and do something else."

"Are you married?" Asked Barrett. "Do you have children?"

"No, I'm not married and no I do not have any children," replied Ariana.

"I've not had very many relationships with men lately, too busy with my work I suppose to get too involved with someone, anyway that's my excuse," said Ariana.

"How about you Barrett, are you married?" Asked Ariana.

"No, actually I am going home to an empty apartment. On my trip I received a call from my live in lady friend who informed me she was moving out because she found someone she preferred more than me," said Barrett. "We had lived together for, oh I think around two years or so, but strange thing about this is just before flying out I was thinking of breaking it off with her, but she beat me to it. I'm not sure about the why on my end, I guess I was getting tired of her, can't think of any other reason."

"I had a boy friend I guess you could say in college I really liked, but he dumped me for someone else and later married her." Said Ariana. "Actually, I haven't gone out much since college, as I said I don't usually think that much about it due to my work. I have girl friends I do things with. I don't even have a dog like many people do."

"I read recently where more and more people are remaining single longer and many are deciding to stay single rather than consider marriage, it's a changing phenomenon ," said Barrett.

"I can understand that," said Ariana. "For too long women were relegated to the kitchen, but as things changed we decided there were other rooms we preferred, like a corporate office. My opinion is that today time most women and I say most, are looking to find a job right out of college rather than finding a man to marry and look after them. Things have indeed changed."

"What do women even need men for now anyway?" asked Barrett. "You can make your own money, you can have kids without having husbands, you can have sex without men, what else is there to want men for?" Asked Barrett.

"I don't have a good answer for that one Barrett." Said Ariana.

"Some deep conversation we're having Ariana," said Barrett.

"Yea, I guess," said Ariana.

"Do you fly often," she asked.

"I do, about once a month, sometimes more depending on my work," he said.

"I actually work for a community college as an institutional effectiveness officer. I do these gigs, these strategic planning workshops by taking annual leave days. I have so many built up I can take several days, no problem. The reason I'm in demand is I created my own strategic planning system for our local college, then several colleges picked it up from state wide conferences and took it back to their schools and used it. Soon other colleges in other states heard about it and called me and asked me to come a make a presentation and I've been doing those now for oh about seven years. I normally enjoy it, but this last one was a bummer. The group didn't have a total buy in because the leadership didn't lend sufficient support at the outset so there was not the emphatic embrace of the model. It's OK; I got paid for doing it plus travel including this first class airline ticket." Concluded Barrett.

"But all in all you must feel pretty good being able to get other colleges to function under some system of checks and balances which is what strategic planning is anyway, isn't it?" Asked Ariana.

"Um, never thought of it that way, but yes, it's about accountability, problems and solutions, and yes checks and balances," replied Barrett.

"I want to hear more about you work. How did you get into book design?" He asked.

"Well, I've been creative all my life. As a child I always did well in art and many of my teachers told me year in and year out my work was head of the class. I won many awards in those years for my art work. In college I double majored in fine art and graphic design. It took me an extra year to complete all my course requirements. But at the time I was in no hurry," said Ariana.

"Out of college for a while I worked in a small bookstore near the college and over time became fascinated with the covers of all the books on the shelves. They were all unique and I thought what an interesting job, to come up with a cover to help sell someone's book, especially if it becomes a best seller and the author becomes well known, on TV talk shows and making the rounds selling books, I just thought, why not, I'm an artist and a good one." Said Ariana.

"It's been a good career. My long term objective is to start my own book design company, hire several employees and oversee the operation rather than design myself." She said.

"We'll see, I'm in my early forties and if I start this business I'd like to have it in place at least by the time I'm fifty." She said.

"No kids and no husband for you," Barrett asked.

"No kids for sure, too old for that, and probably no husband, I feel no pressure for that one," she said.

"I'm enjoying talking to you Ariana; can I order us a drink?" Barrett asked.

"Sure!" she said.

"Are they going to serve lunch on this flight?" she asked.

####

About The Author

Charles White is a retired educator. His professional education career spanned forty years as a high school social studies teacher, a coach, and a community college administrator. He has a bachelor's degree in economics from N. C. Wesleyan College and advanced degrees in education from Campbell University and California Coast University. He lives near Pittsboro, North Carolina.

Other Books by the Author

Memoir from the Flash

The Glass Ceilings Tile Company

Matt and Lizzy Suicides in Warren County

Remembering Sports

Short Stories from a Small Town

The Glass Ceilings Tile Company

