Chapter 61: Turning 28

April 6, 1991, Chicago, Illinois

“I need a nap,” I said after I greeted my wives.

“Up late last night?” Elyse smirked.

“You could say that!” I agreed.

I went to see the kids who were either in the sunroom or the great room. Jesse wasn’t there, and Kara said he was taking a nap at Jennifer’s insistence. I spent about five minutes with the kids, then went upstairs and got into bed. I wasn’t surprised when my wives joined me, and I slept for about three hours, which I hoped was enough to get me through the night.

“Did you have fun at the game last night?” Jessica asked when I woke up.

“It was a nail-biter, but yes, it was a lot of fun! That evened the series at a game apiece. Now they move to New Jersey for two games. The Pens need at least a split there to regain home-ice advantage.”

“How were your meetings?”

“With the staff and the client, great. The interview with the guy from Father Basil’s church was basically a waste of time. He’s average, at best. We can do a lot better, I’m sure. But I fulfilled my commitment.”

“Why were you up late?” Kara asked.

“Guess!” I chuckled.

“Mario’s girlfriend’s sister?”

“Right the first time!” I said.

“It sounds like you enjoyed yourself, Tiger.”

“I did. And I might have a shot at seeing the Penguins again if they make the Stanley Cup finals. The client we were with yesterday has a friend who does legal work for the owners of the team.”

“When would that be?”

“Sometime in May. Hopefully, before our trip to the UP. I’m not going to miss our vacation for a hockey game. I do have my priorities straight!”

“We should probably get up. You and Jesse need to put together the Pascha basket for tonight.”

“How did it go yesterday?”

“Fine. He complained a bit when he came home that it wasn’t the same. He certainly prefers the small church to the Cathedral.”

“Me, too,” I said. “We owe Dave and Julia a favor.”

“Absolutely!”

We got out of bed and got dressed, and I went downstairs to find Jesse waiting for me.

“Aunt Elyse said you were sleeping! Were you tired?”

“Yes, from my trip. Did you watch the game on TV?”

“Yes! We saw you! You were sitting next to a man and a girl! In your Penguins shirt!”

“Wow! I didn’t know I was on TV! The next game is tomorrow. We could watch together if you aren’t too tired.”

“Yes!”

“Let’s go put our Pascha basket together,” I said.

He followed me into the kitchen, and we got to work.

April 7, 1991, Chicago, Illinois

“Christ is Risen!” Father Basil said as he greeted us at the party following the Pascha service.

“Truly, He is Risen!” we all replied.

“We missed you on Friday,” Father Basil said.

“Yes, I’m sorry. I had to go to Pittsburgh for the day. Dave and Julia took Jesse to church at the Greek cathedral.”

“I like this church better!” Jesse said firmly.

“Well, that’s good to hear!” Father Basil said with a big smile. “Did you interview Will?”

I nodded, “I did. We’ll compare him to the other candidates we interview at the local universities starting later this month, and Dave, Tasha, and Zo will decide which ones to make offers to.”

“Thanks. All I could ask is that you interview him. Enjoy the party!”

He moved on to speak to others.

“You said you weren’t impressed,” Tasha said quietly.

She’d surprised me by showing up just before the service started. The bigger surprise was that she had Zeke in tow.

“That’s true, but I don’t make the decisions. And it’s true, we will compare him to the other candidates. I didn’t want to give offense, so I just told Father what he needed to know. I did keep my word to him.”

“Steve’s a master at saying the right thing,” Zeke said.

If only THAT were true, I wouldn’t have pissed off Tara in Pittsburgh! He was right in that I was usually very careful about what I said and how I said it, but every once in a while, I really put my foot in my mouth as I had with Tara. Fortunately, her desire to go to bed with me overrode my momentary jackassery.

“I was surprised to see the two of you here,” I said.

“It was a last-minute thing,” Tasha said. “I talked to Andrei, and he convinced me to at least come to Pascha.”

“What did you think, Zeke?”

“I don’t have much use for ‘smells and bells’. It’s not my thing. I’m firmly in the agnostic camp with you.”

“You do have to admit the ceremony is beautiful,” Svetlana interjected.

“From a purely aesthetic point of view, yes,” Zeke said. “But it’s really not my thing. I’ll come with Tasha if she wants to come next year, but otherwise? No thanks.”

“We’re struggling, too.” I said. “With everything that’s happened, especially with Nick, the pendulum has kind of swung back the other direction.”

“You’re going to stop coming to church?” Andrei asked.

“No, we’ll bring Jesse occasionally, as we do now. But we probably won’t make time for Holy Week the way we tried to do last year.”

“Did you know Vasily now lives in Lincoln Park? He took a job with a brokerage firm in the city and moved. He might be able to bring Jesse sometimes.”

“Yes! I like Mr. Vasily!” Jesse said.

“I’ll talk to him later on and see what he has to say. Jesse, remember, your moms have to agree.”

“I know,” he sighed. “They don’t like church.”

“But they let you go,” I said. “So you should be thankful for that.”

“Dad, can I go sit with Mr. Vasily?”

“Sure,” I said.

He got up and walked over to where Vasily was sitting with several adults. Vasily picked him up and put him on his lap, then turned to look at me. I nodded my approval, he smiled, and then turned back to his friends.

“Have you set a date?” Kara asked Svetlana.

“18th of May,” she said. “Here at church, and then reception in trapeza.”

“That’s the church hall,” Andrei added helpfully. “It won’t be a big service, just people from the Church, and Svetlana’s mother.”

“Father is dead,” Svetlana said. “Killed by Communists for being Orthodox.”

“He was sent to a gulag, and his wife and Svetlana were exiled,” Andrei said.

I sighed, “Well, it looks as if that is over and done with, though not without great pain and suffering by the Russian people.”

“It is always the way. The Tsars, the Communists, and whoever comes next,” Andrei said. “The Russian people always suffer. But enough about that! Did you enjoy the hockey game Friday night?”

“I did indeed. I could have done without overtime, but they won, and that’s all that matters in the end.”

“I watched the game and thought you were probably having a heart attack when the Devils scored that goal so quickly after the Penguins took the lead for the first time.”

“The entire arena went from joy to despair in the space of a minute,” I said. “But Jágr took care of that in OT.”

The food was finally set out, and after Father Basil gave the blessing, everyone got in line to fill their plates. I ate and drank and danced. Jessica wasn’t drinking, so she’d drive home, which let me drink vodka with the men. I silently thanked Vanya Voronin for the practice, and managed to keep up with some serious Russian drinking.

When the party wound down around 5:30am, the four of us got into the car, and Jessica drove us home. We delivered Jesse to his moms, and then Jessica, Kara and I went to bed. I set the alarm to get up to watch the Penguins with Jesse, and then quickly fell asleep.

The third game of the playoff series was wild, with the Penguins taking a 3–2 lead into the final six minutes, and having a powerplay. Unfortunately, Doug Brown scored a shorthanded goal for the Devils to tie the game. Then, with 1:22 left, the referee waved off what the Devils claimed was a goal when he lost sight of the puck under a sprawling Tom Barrasso. The Devils claimed the puck was in, but the official ruled ‘no goal’. Thirty seconds later, Mark Recchi scored the game winner when the Devils defenseman, Eric Weinrich, misplayed the puck.

“Yes!” I shouted as the referee pointed at the net to signal the goal.

“Yay!” Jesse agreed.

“Looks like they’ll be up 2–1, Tiger,” Jessica said.

“If they can hold them for 50 seconds!” I said. “That didn’t work the other night!”

But they did, and the Penguins took the lead in the series, two games to one.

April 13, 1991, Chicago, Illinois

“This is a ‘must win’ game,” I said, as everyone gathered in the great room to watch the Penguins-Devils game.

The Devils had won games four and five, and now held the advantage, three games to two. The Penguins had to win this game in East Rutherford, and then win the seventh game in Pittsburgh, or their season would be over. The Blackhawks were facing elimination as well, down three games to two against the Minnesota North Stars, but their game wasn’t until Sunday.

“Jesse, I have a gift for you,” I said.

“A gift? It’s not my birthday or Christmas! What is it?”

I reached behind the couch and pulled out a padded envelope that Mario had sent me. I handed it to Jesse, who eagerly tore it open.

“A Penguins shirt!” he exclaimed. “Just like yours! Can I put it on?”

“Yes! We can root together!”

“Not taking any chances like with NASCAR?” Kara asked.

“Exactly! I learned THAT lesson! Speaking of NASCAR, I read in Winston Cup Scene that they’ve relented on the dumbest parts of the new rules. It looks like only the alternating pit rules under caution, and the speed limit will stay for now, and eventually, the alternating rules will be replaced by only allowing the lead lap cars to pit on the first lap under caution.”

“Do you agree with those?” Kara asked.

“I don’t know any reasonable alternative to the speed limit rule, and limiting the first pits to cars on the lead lap makes some sense, but sometimes you can get out in front of the leader by only getting gas or changing two tires, then a lucky caution allows you to come all the way around. We’ll see how it works out.”

Another close-fought game ended with the Penguins coming out on top 4–3. Lemieux was held scoreless again, but two goals by Kevin Stevens, and one each by Jaromír Jágr and Ron Francis, were enough to give the Penguins the game. While the goal scoring was impressive, the true star was Frank Pietrangelo, filling in for an injured Tom Barrasso. He made the save of his life when Peter Šťastný was alone in front of the net, and I and everyone in the room, and probably the stadium, thought the shot had gone in. Somehow Pietrangelo ended up with the puck in his glove, and the game was saved.

Everyone cheered when the game ended, with Jesse and I cheering the loudest.

“When is the next game?” Jesse asked.

“Monday night. We can watch together again!”

“Yes!”

“Jesse, let’s take you to the coach house and get you ready for bed,” Jennifer said. “You had a VERY long weekend.”

He was about to object, but he saw my look and acquiesced.

“OK, Mom,” he said.

April 15, 1991, Chicago, Illinois

“I need to walk to the Post Office and hand over my tithe to the feudal lord,” I said to Elyse.

She laughed, “You always wait until the last minute!”

“I make sure I don’t give Uncle Sam an interest-free loan every year! Because I have to write a check, I keep my money until the last possible minute! And you do your part by making sure I under-withhold, but not so much that the penalty rate would apply.”

“You know, if they made everyone send in the full amount of their taxes on April 15th, there’d be an instant revolution,” Elyse said.

“Yep. They put the frog in cold water and boil it slowly. Though, as I understand from Kurt, that’s total BS. But it’s a cool aphorism, anyway.”

Elyse laughed, “Sometimes being smart ruins the fun. It’s like when people prove that Socrates didn’t say something we all think he did. Or Ben Franklin. Or Mark Twain.”

“For me, if the saying conveys truth, I don’t care if it’s ‘apocryphal’ or not. Anyway, I need to get over to the Post Office and deposit this. I’ll be back in less than fifteen minutes.”

“Want some company on the walk?”

“Sure!”

We grabbed our light jackets and set out for the Post Office in the cool Spring air. Elyse reached over and took my hand and squeezed it.

“How are you doing?” Elyse asked. “I mean, really doing?”

“Pretty well, I think. I had a brief moment in Pittsburgh where I was doubting myself, but I thought it through, and everything seems to have turned out OK.”

“What was that? You didn’t mention it on Tuesday night.”

“When I was deciding if I was going to have Tara come back to my room. It really boiled down to having worried about what the client might think that I sort of worked myself into being a jackass to Tara. She called me on it, and I thought it through and figured it out.”

“And then you fucked her into next week?” Elyse laughed.

“Something like that! She was fun, and we also spent some time talking.”

“You and your talking,” Elyse sighed. “Sometimes it’s better just to shut up!”

“In this case, no. We talked about relationships, sex, the differences between men and women, and the differences between High School, college, and older guys. She had some interesting things to say about age differences that might come into play in the future.”

“The ‘creepy’ factor?”

“Exactly. I’m not surprised you guessed it, given the whole thing with Sean.”

“That was just a bad situation all around. But I’ve worked through it all. Before I forget, do you want a party for your birthday?”

“Not really,” I said. “Jess, Kara, and I are going out with Kathy and Kurt on Sunday night, and we have the family dinner on Monday.”

“Would you mind if I made cupcakes for the Rap Session?”

“No, I wouldn’t mind. Just don’t make it a big ‘to do’, please.”

“It won’t be, but that way Jorge, Henry, Trish, Becka, Claire, Leslie, and a couple of other friends in your circle can wish you ‘Happy birthday’ without feeling obligated to get you a gift.”

“You would think by now everyone knew I didn’t want gifts,” I sighed.

“It’s in some people’s DNA — they HAVE to give gifts, even if the recipient says they don’t want them.”

“If the Penguins win tonight, that’ll be a nice early birthday present!”

“Who would they play next?” Elyse asked.

“The Capitals, I think. It’s too bad the Hawks were eliminated last night. The North Stars surprised everyone.”

“Dave and Terry were crying in their coffee and commiserating this morning!”

“I missed that,” I said.

“Because Kimmy brings you your coffee. You don’t go to the kitchenette with everyone else to get it!”

“True. But if I told her to stop, she’d be very upset with me!”

“True! She can’t make love with you, so she makes you coffee, gets your lunch, and does all the little things she can for you.”

I chuckled, “It’s not the same!”

Elyse laughed, “If you thought it was, I’d worry about you! But you knew what I meant.”

“Yes, of course. And it’s her way of being intimate with me, within the bounds of what her relationship with Gary will permit.”

We arrived at the Post Office, and I waited in line for about five minutes so that I could get a ‘proof of mailing’ receipt, and then we headed back to the office.

“Aunt Jennie asked if it was OK to visit in June. She and Kent are going to be in Milwaukee for something, and they wanted to stop by on their way home and stay one night. With the kids, of course.”

“They’re always welcome. You know you don’t need my permission!”

“Who says I was asking? I was telling!”

We both laughed.

“Got it! Just mark it on the calendar, please.”

“I will.”

When we arrived back at the office, Keri told me that Mr. Jenkins had called and asked that I return his call. I went to my office and dialed the number he’d left. His assistant put me right through.

“If they make the finals, and they open at home, they have a spot in their box for you for game 2. If they open on the road, then for game 3. Forget the first game, or any game where they have a chance to clinch.”

“Beggars can’t be choosers!” I said. “Thank you! I’m curious; does this firm use any computer software to track cases?”

Ned laughed, “No, believe it or not. Only their secretaries and paralegals have computers, and only for doing briefs. No electronic mail, no case management. Nothing. I’ve talked to them about it, but they aren’t ready. When they are, I’ll make sure they call you.”

“Thanks. Did Mario let you know that we’re working with Nelson, Reed, and Pulver on a proposal to convert their office from Law Office Manager to NIKA Legal?”

“He did. Thanks for everything. If the Pens make it that far, give me a call, and I’ll get you all the details.”

“I appreciate it. I owe you a favor.”

“Someday, I’ll collect!” he said.

I hung up and made a note on my calendar to call Ned if the Penguins won the third round. Not that I’d forget, but that way both Kimmy and Elyse would know I had potential plans for a trip to Pittsburgh in May.