Chapter 11: On My Own Again

True to his word, when I completed my third year, Bud started me on my management training program. No more shovel work for me. Now it was planning and logistics and procurement and budgeting and ... well, you get the picture. I was gradually introduced to all the facets that went into running the service part of the city. I learned how we evaluated equipment replacement and how we chose vendors for supplies and new equipment. It was a complex and comprehensive process and I began to see just what I had chosen as my new career. It was going to be much more involved than I realized.

Over time, I began to recover from the sense of loss of my relationship with Shelly. It still hurt, but as each month passed, the hurt was a little less. I didn't even consider finding a replacement for her. I didn't think it was possible. I was resigned to casual dating. I would date, but usually only the same girl once or twice. There wasn't anything wrong with any of them, but I was in no mood to commit myself to another. I'd been burned twice now, and I began to wonder what it would take to recover and earnestly look for a new potential mate.

I didn't even consider the Halloween Ball in the fall of my final year. It would have brought back too many painful memories and I wasn't ready to deal with that. I tried using the less than ordinary destinations with the girls I did date, but it wasn't the same. Few of them had the same interests, and some mentioned that this wasn't what they wanted to do. I usually apologized and took them home before I disappointed them.

Christmas came and went and I was now in the home stretch of my college education. By mid-May, it would be all over and I would have a diploma to prove I could do it, but nothing more. Don't get me wrong. I was still anticipating going to work for the city as a full time employee. I had been in training for a year and when I looked back on it, I could see the wisdom of Bud's plan. I had a pretty good idea of how each department worked and some sense of how all the various elements came together to form a cohesive operation. I was impressed with how efficiently it ran, much against the public's general opinion of us. I also knew this was a department with no glory. We did what we had to do and did it the best way we knew how. We would let the complaints and politics roll off us because that was the role we played.

Six months after I had graduated and started my career, I informed my parents I was looking for a place to live. I didn't recognize just how traumatic that might be ... particularly for Mom. I was the only child left at home and now I was suggesting it was time for me to move out. I was well paid and was enjoying the benefits of a city vehicle for my use. My title was Assistant Manager, and I felt it wasn't very proper for me to be still living at home. Well, proper probably isn't the right word, but I didn't think it looked right.

"Ian, why do you have to leave," Mom said, close to tears.

"Mom, I'm a management employee of the city and I'm twenty-three years old. It's time I was out on my own."

"I don't understand why you're so anxious to go," she said, still fighting back tears.

"Mom, I know you're upset, but you must have known this day would come. I have a new life and I'm ready to live it. It doesn't mean I won't see you again. I'm not going to be very far away. If you bribe me with Sunday dinner, I'll be here," I smiled.

Later that night, after Mom had gone to bed, Dad came downstairs to talk to me.

"Your mother is having a hard time with your leaving, Ian. Don't worry about it too much. She'll get used to it. We've known for years that it would happen, but you've been such an important part of this family that she's having difficulty dealing with it. It will take you a while to find a place, so that will give her some time to get accustomed to the idea. Just a suggestion, but when you go to look at a place, invite us along. That will help your mother be part of the decision and we can give you the benefit of our experience too. I think that will make it easier for her."

"Thanks, Dad. That's a good suggestion. How did you get so smart after all these years?" I chuckled.

"I hung around you," he smirked and went back upstairs to bed.

It took almost until Christmas before I found a place that both my parents and I approved of. It was in a new townhouse development in the south-east part of the city, not far from the river. It was a two bedroom, one-and-a-half bath unit on two floors with a decent sized living area and kitchen, but limited storage. The one car garage was suitable for my city vehicle. It was better than any bachelor pad I'd seen and I liked the surrounding area.

I moved in January 2^nd with Dad's help, along with a couple of my old friends from the yard. It didn't take long. I brought my bed from my room as well as the dresser and night table. Other than that, I had to buy everything else. I had enough money and income to afford to purchase reasonable quality furniture along with a TV and kitchen appliances. My frugal lifestyle had allowed me to save quite a bit of money over the years and now was the time to put it to use.

I had no place other than the street to park my truck, so I considered selling it. Dad said I wouldn't get much for it and perhaps it might come in handy for both of us in the future. We agreed I would park it at their home and see if was useful now and then. I was surprised when a month later I arrived at my parents' home and saw my truck. Dad had had it painted and cleaned up. It looked terrific in a bright metallic red with newly painted wheels and a set of fabric seat covers. I was sure Dad had no intention of selling it now.

Because my complex was new, it took a while to get to know the neighbours. There was quite a mix of young couples, seniors, bachelors like me and "others." I didn't meet them all, but got to know the people on each side of my unit and found we got along pretty well. I was grateful none of them tried to test the so-called "sound-proof" walls. There were a few kids in the complex, all of them living in the three bedroom units behind us. As I settled in, I decided this was a good choice and I should be happy here.

I made it a habit to have Sunday dinner with Mom and Dad, and that continued into the spring of the following year. I was twenty-three and a confirmed bachelor. My Superman days were well behind me, and I hoped they would remain there. I learned that Shelly had accepted a position at a local hospital as an assistant in the Department of Kinesiology. I was happy that she had found what she was looking for, but sad that we had parted under such unhappy circumstances.

Believe it or not, Chug Tanner did get a tryout with the Kansas City Chiefs, but was cut before the exhibition season. He quickly moved back to Canada and caught on with our deadly rivals, the Edmonton Eskimos. I wondered if he remembered how cold it got late in the season in Edmonton, but I was happy for him. I wrote him a note to congratulate him and got an immediate response. We promised to get together as soon as we had a chance. Apparently, that would be in July, when Edmonton had an exhibition game at BC.

My job was progressing to the satisfaction of my new boss, Rory O'Bannon, an expatriate Irishman from Galway. His thick Irish accent was a source of entertainment to me, but I had to listen carefully to catch exactly what he was saying. I was working in the logistics department and it was fascinating. I likened it to juggling eight or nine balls in the air at one time. I knew this was going to be a challenge, but I loved that about it. I had so much to learn and for the first time, I was intimidated by just how much that was.

In early July, Chug arrived in town with the Eskimos and was staying at a nice hotel in the city. I dropped down to see him after work one evening and we had a couple of beers while we caught up on each other's lives.

"The smartest thing I ever did was take that scholarship, Soup. I got a college degree and a good paying job doing what I love to do. I've got a hot girlfriend that wants to marry me, but I'm biding my time. I don't need to rush into that. She's nice, but I'm not sure she's a keeper. In the meantime, I'm getting all the pussy I can handle," he grinned.

"Good for you, Chug. I'm glad you got what you wanted. Too bad Kansas City didn't work out."

"Yeah, well, here's a news flash, Soup. I was never going to make it there. They are too big, too tough, and too fast for me. Up here, I can cope. I'll never be an all-star, that's a fact, but I can make a good living and get myself a start on life after this is all over. I just have to find the right woman to make it all come together, you know."

I was shaking my head. "You amaze me, Chug. You are so much smarter than I remember. You've got it all planned out, and I think you're going to be a big success."

"Yeah, well I got a lot smarter at college. I actually went to all the classes. I didn't make the dean's list, but I was there and I listened and I learned. I'm going to be okay, Soup. I'm going to be okay."

I slapped him on the shoulder and took him by surprise. I was expecting the same from him, but he just raised his beer glass and saluted me. We spent the next hour wondering where guys like Pigpen were and what they were doing. We had lost contact with them and now, years later, we regretted not staying in touch.

The visit with Chug did me a lot of good. It took me back to an earlier time before my life got complicated. He reminded me how much fun we had as kids and how simple our lives were. He reminded me of how nice Mrs. Usher was and how Mr. Ullman had followed me from middle school to high school like he was stalking me. Chug was very interested in my career and was surprised that a summer job had turned into a career in management. He was sure I would end up running the whole city someday.

It was my twenty-fourth birthday and Mom and Dad and some of my friends had joined us for a birthday luncheon Saturday noon at the steak house at the bottom of the hill by the river. I was being driven by my friend, Bill Masters, a neighbour who didn't drink and was the designated driver for anyone who we thought shouldn't drive. I had no intention of getting drunk, but I wanted to have a couple of pints with my friends and family to celebrate the occasion.