A Ten Pound Bag
Knucklehead House Press
Chapter 26: Enter Tom
We left early the next morning; just as soon as the morning routine was finished I announced we were going on a short road trip and would be back around lunch.
Over breakfast I had tasked Sonya for hunting down and finding an outdoor sink and hopefully a shower attachment to go with it; I really didn’t want people tracking into the camper every time they needed to wash their hands while we were camping or hunting. The trailer had hot and cold-water spigots available under the gooseneck so a couple of hoses and a bucket under the drain would be all I needed.
Michelle and I headed out for St Joseph which was fifty odd miles away and shouldn’t be a difficult run, weather was forecast as clear and wonderful and the traffic was forecast as non-existent. What an incredible relief after the hell of commuting in Southern California.
It was pleasant driving with Michelle, she was easy to talk to and didn’t babble at me non-stop – yet. I brought up the topic of Oscar’s farm and suggested that I was considering making an investment; I reasoned to her that she was a specialized small farmer and that I could use her insight. Lively discussion ensued after I made that point and we were still kicking the idea around when we arrived at the breeder’s house outside of St. Joseph.
It wasn’t an exciting transaction by any means; non-descript house, non-descript breeder and an energetic young cat. He came with papers, harness, carrier, and most importantly his balls. After a short negotiation we shook on the deal. The only sticking point was when I tried to pay cash: the dealer preferred electronic payment – boy, the world had changed lately.
We stopped at a convenience store on our way out of town and bought some bright bows and coffee, Michelle stuck the bows all over the carrier. I drove us home.
On the way back I called David on the speaker phone and let him know I was going to make a few investments in specialty farms for my private fun; he wasn’t surprised by the idea or the numbers I tossed out. He patched me through to the investment professional who would handle those for me. Michelle was surprised the ease at which I instantly moved that much money.
I turned to Michelle and said, “Honey, it looks like you just got a business partner.”
Michelle went from surprised to flat out stunned.
I gave her about a few minutes to contemplate and then said, “Honey, we’re friends and I trust you. So this simply means you have a silent partner and are no longer operating with debt hanging over your shoulder.”
“It’s still your show,” I continued, “but the business income, assets and risks are shared.”
“I don’t understand,” she said, “it’s so much money.”
“It’s less than I earned in interest alone this month my dear,” I reminded her, “I have a lot of money.”
I gave her awhile for that to sink in and then followed, “You will be debt free by the end of the day tomorrow and have a significant amount of operating capital available to you. For me, I will simply know that my close friend is secure and I’ll see this investment as a single item on a rather complicated quarterly financial report.”
“Thank you,” she murmured. “I think.”
“Look,” I followed, “I do expect a discount on any further horses I purchase from you, so don’t get too thankful.”
With that she smacked me lightly on the arm and giggled.
“However,” I said, “I fear this will be a much more difficult conversation with Oscar.”
At that point she laughed out loud.
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