Chapter 12

‘What was that thing about a frying pan and the fire. I was in it now!’ I thought. Why didn’t I just say NO to Heather and Jessica. I was so confused. That was why! Sheila, Ashley and Brenda were now 1,000% improved. They were doing as good as, no even better than I could. Maybe there was another reason? One I did not want to admit to. Maybe that was it?

No! This meeting had me thinking more like my Dad and acting more like Jess. Age and experience just might be the difference. I was starting to look at things in a different way. I asked myself: ‘Could it be Jess and Heather had been right all along?’ My male ego did not want that to be true, but...

One thing would be to discuss things with Vince and Tony more. He already knew the answer but did not want to hear it. He had seen things in Heather, In her own way Jessica ran to the same drum beat. They both gave life everything they had, It was like playing Red or Black and seeing the ball land on green ‘00’, They played to win but took defeat with a shrug, picked themselves up and started over. It was a game to them, they played to win. He was never like that, the picking up. If life handed him a bowl of lemons he picked up his ball and went home to sulk; they made lemonade to sell with the lemons. His entire life was playing near the water, never getting wet or going for a swim. It was like making the trip to Nepal, viewing Mt Everest but never trying to climb it.

Maybe that was what Vince and Tony saw. Why they placed Jessica into his life. He had made certain that would never work, didn’t he? Ashley and Sheila no longer needed him, they were fine, teamed with Brenda they were quite formidable themselves. Perhaps Nick should just sit back and retire early. Would that be a kick. Tony would break something or someone and Vince would go ape-shit. As tough as she was, ‘Our Thing’ would never accept a Jessica into the Inner Circle. What to do?

As slow and indecisive as Nick was, Vince, Tony. Jessica and Heather were now going super-sonic. Nashville was now close to dying. GM, Ford and the New Chrysler had gone under. Saturn announced when the last car was off the line, the plants would close. There would be no need for their Multi-Billion Dollar Sports efforts in Nashville now. The entire Economies all across the world were changing. Well at least the legal things. Crime, Politics and Warfare never suffered much no matter what. Nissan would not put life back in the city.

It would not be long, 2025 at the latest that the roaring Tiger, China would be the new World leader. More than 2,300 Submarines would dwarf those ships of all the sea-going counties combined. Manufacturing was already over there. Who wanted to pay $40, $50, $60 an hour to watch the Union workers drink coffee until it was all over-time rates, a Union man’s God-given right, don’t you know.

Yep! Things were not working out quite that way. Too many countries had worker rates at 1, 3 and 5 dollars an hour who actually worked. Europe was finding that out too. The dream of a united EU was fading fast.

Is the sky falling? Inquisitive minds wanted to know!