Chapter 13: Acquisitions Rule

“Well, are you pleased with your latest acquisition, Ricky?”

“Pleased? All it’s done so far, is cost me every cent two years of my intense labor painstakingly scraped together. Worse, I’m in debt because of it and committed to a difficult to maintain payment schedule during the next two decades. No debt relief! I’ll be pushing forty before I’m debt free again. Pleased? I can only be pleased with my decision which I think was a well considered one. I’m hopeful of being pleased in the future. If the investment pays off, returns value greater than it’s initial cost, then I expect to be quite pleased. Very!.”

“There’s an object lesson in ownership. Possessions and property dictate your life. You can be wealthy or free but not both at once. Acquisitions are always encumbered with obligations. Buying a horse to serve you as non-salaried labor, in effect your slave, does an reversal and you are suddenly the servant, bringing him his dinner, paying his veterinary medical bills, washing his back, currying, combing and dressing his hair. I think you understand how saddled with real estate is somewhat similar too”

“I see your point. What’s the solution, Mr Moses? Is there one?”

“Caution. Vigilance. Awareness AND wariness. Be certain you aren’t serving a dead or dying horse!”

“Did I buy a white elephant? A dead horse?”

Mr Moses shrugs, a tacit confession of incompetence as a clairvoyant prophet.

“This property will never pay for itself”

“Then it IS a foolish investment!”

I vehemently interject, angry at my naivety again.

“Please let me finish? I should have said, the property will ONLY pay for itself if you MAKE it pay. Do you have plans on HOW to make it pay? Do you have other uncommitted income or funds, enough to cover the mortgage payments if the expected income from the property doesn’t materialize or is insufficient?”

“My crabbing income is sufficient to cover the monthly installments, provided I am not prevented by poor health, or a failed market, or one of a dozen other possible disasters.”

“You’re worried?”

“Resenting the heavy weight of new responsibility and obligation, I think is more apt than worry. Adjusting to carrying that burden, well, I’m too slowly feeling my way into a proper grip for managing it. I’m not comfortably settled to it yet. I sense I’m staggering and stumbling beneath an unbalanced unstable top-heavy load.”

“Ancient phrases come to mind, trite but apropos. Finding your sea legs? Catching your stride? And don’t feel insulted, “Walk like a Man!”? You are an extraordinary young man, Rick. You’ll manage.”

“Thanks Mr Moses for your encouragement. Do you have a run for the beast? I’m ashamed I burdened you with my troubles. I’m certain you only expected a cheerful response to your friendly greeting.”

“No, no hauling needed at the moment, but I’m interested in doing some horse-trading. Good deals for both of us? Interested?”

“Interested in listening. Let’s see if we can find a couple chairs and sit under the pavilion. It’s the most attractive feature around here.”

“Is the city going to move this sorted out junk to the new dump site?”

“No sir, I had to buy it ‘As Is’ as the man said. Clean up and disposal is my problem.”

“Then, I think you have a gold mine on your hands.”

“Really?”

“First, to my needs, I want those out on the table. I have accumulated a large collection of farm equipment and machinery. I’m spending a fortune at various storage sites across a three states region. A convenience to me, having them all gathered in one locale with a single bulk storage rate, would ease my load considerably. Is any of your property here available for rent to me for that purpose?”

“How much acreage would you want, and how near the front gates does it need to be?”

“A small area just inside the gates as a show area. Display a machine with a specific buyer coming to see it, without asking him to walk through ranks of depressing unloved equipment. A large area, several acres I imagine, for ranking the stored units. It could be totally in the rear, I suppose, if an access road exists to the front display lot?”

“I believe I should like to rent you storage a quarter way back. A lot the entire width of the property with a center access road that bisects your lot and gives me access to the unrented land behind yours.”

“Interesting, and convenient not to move so long a distance between parking and display, I like it. I’m curious why you offer it.”

“Screening. Your bulky farm machinery will hide whatever unsightly crap I decide goes all the ay to the rear. In addition, if you need more acreage in the future, we move your rear boundary father back. I don’t have to shift stuff in front to allow you to expand forward.”