Just My Luck
Chapter 8

Copyright© 2010 by Barneyr

I seemed to think, in some dream or other, that someone was next to me in the bed, but I was just too tired to care. I did wake up close to noon on Sunday, but I lay there trying to get my bearings. The way the bed was messed up, I couldn't tell whether or not someone had lain next to me during the night. I finally decided that I needed to get back among the living, so I crawled out of bed, grabbed some clothes, and went in to shower. Once done, I noticed it was time to shave again, so I shaved before dressing in slacks and a t-shirt. I stumbled out into the hall and into the kitchen to see if there was any coffee so I could maybe really wake up. There was what looked like a fresh pot of coffee, so I poured myself a big cup and sat at the kitchen table. I kind of glanced around to see if I could find something to eat, but nothing seemed to be out. I scooted the wheeled chair over to the fridge and looked inside. I didn't see anything that I could eat right away, so I closed it again and saw Tammy standing there.

"I see you are back among the living, were you looking for something to eat?"

"Yeah, but I didn't see anything easy."

That's because your breakfast is in the oven. Let me get it for you." Tammy went to the oven, turned it off, and using a hot pad, brought out a plate of pancakes, a plate of bacon and eggs, and an empty plate. She sat the empty one in front of me and proceeded to pile bacon, scrambled eggs, and a couple of pancakes on my plate. She then got the butter out of the fridge and slathered butter on the pancakes and then added syrup and some fresh blueberries from a container in the fridge. She then said, "Eat up, Boss, you got places to go today and we want you bright-eyed and bushy-tailed tomorrow."

I just nodded my head and dug in. The food was terrific, the bacon was just right, the eggs were hard, not runny, and the pancakes were divine. After I ate all the food out on the dishes, I think I actually felt human again. I rinsed all the dishes and silverware and put them into the dishwasher. I wandered into the office and saw all three talking.

"Hey, old man, I wondered when you were coming out of hibernation. Was Oxnard really as bad as the girls told me?"

"Actually, it was probably worse. By the time I got there, they had cleaned up a lot of the glass from the broken monitors, straightened up some of the tipped over racks, and stopped the water leak in one of their Liebert's. It really looked like what the guys coming back from the sand pile told me a war zone looked like. I'm sure the girls told you about my part in trying to make some sense out of all of this. If not, that is a story for around the fire on a winter evening. Right now, I'm more interested in what you are doing here, Mike?"

"Well, we are holding a little impromptu class of sorts, but they are teaching me more than I am teaching them. You got some really sharp ladies here, old man. They already have things more shipshape than when we first started and you were still gung ho about the paperwork. They found files I wasn't even sure still existed. Tammy here has a spreadsheet of every one of our clients, going back to when you first got started. She also has a list of every website you ever did and has them listed by client. Nicole has been dissecting them to see how you wow the clients. She updated your original design for the new client in Dayton based upon your other designs, but she has some questions about some of the program lines. I think those are your back doors and security lines, but since I was never one to read code, I'm not sure. But, old man, I think I can safely ride into the sunset now and know you are in especially good hands. Just don't ever piss either one of them off. I don't think you would like the consequences."

"I take it that you two quiet ones have nothing to add to that?"

I saw two heads shaking as an answer. "So, were my business practices really that screwed up? Tammy, you are, I guess, our new office manager by default and IT guru for the servers and programs to help us muddle through life. Nicole, you apparently are my apprentice website designer and builder, right?"

"You bet, Boss." They said in unison. This could get distracting.

"OK, Nicole, you first; walk me through your design for Dayton." Nicole sat me down and proceeded to tell me what she got for information from Tammy and from the cryptic notes that I took by talking with Mary. Then she called Mary and they talked some more to get more information, she then designed her own website and then compared it to mine. She then revised her design, utilizing some of my designs that would suit this client. Then she had Mike and Tammy go over it separately, and they found a couple of glitches which she ironed out. What I saw now was the finished product, so far. I was very impressed. What she had right now, was a couple of generations above my usual preliminary designs that I use when I meet with the client and see what direction they want to go and that I can usually revise accordingly. But this looked very good and refined. I would definitely bring this to the table tomorrow.

I then got with Tammy and she showed me all the neat things she had been up to. All my files were stored by client, cross-referenced by design, date, and contact name. I may sometimes forget who the client was, but I always remembered my contact's name. She said she could also add the city to the sort list if I wanted. I told her to go ahead. Tammy had also put the business checking and credit card accounts online and secured them behind my firewall. Those files were also locked and encrypted, so we were pretty safe against hackers. I could not get over how fast these girls worked and what brilliant minds they had.

"Ladies, we are now the new RHR Consulting. We three will be a force to be reckoned with in the IT area. Now, I want you two to go over the plans I have of the new house and business area. I have a server room sized to hold a minimum of a double rack, a small Liebert, and a back-up generator of 12kw, plus the UPSs inside the room. I have a suite, consisting of a bedroom and half bath, for those who have to stay overnight while I am gone. I also have a house built in front of the business end, with three bedrooms on one side of the house and the master suite on the other. There will be an office opposite the three bedrooms so children are not disturbed anyone working after hours. In the center of the house are the great room and the kitchen. The house is situated about two hundred feet back from the road and there are flowering bushes along the ditch next to the road. There are giant oaks on the west side of the house and we will be planting Arizona ash on the east side. I have over thirty acres fenced and I want to have some horses, and maybe some longhorns, too. That way we can claim the Ag exemption. The garage will have five bays for cars, a single bay for the motor home, and a three bay workshop for woodworking. When I retire, I want to make wooden reindeer, sleighs, Santas, witches, and pumpkins for display in the yard. I may even get into selling them online. Oh yes, there will be a barn for the horses in winter and the rainy season, and I want you two to be a part of this adventure. What do you say?"

 
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