Chapter 12

I awoke Monday and went to the gym, sensing the area on my way. I exercised, practiced my huku using the heavy bag, did a light workout on the weight machine, and then did my yoga routine. When finished, I showered, dressed, went to the kitchen for breakfast, vitamins, and protein drink, then drove the golf cart to the practice range. I got two buckets of balls, practiced, then played another round by myself and focused on my approach shots and putting. I shot a four under par and was happy driving home.

Mom left a note that she was at the clubhouse, so I ate lunch and went to my workshop. I took out the mineral stones, spare motherboard, processor, and memory. I spent the afternoon matching the right wires to the motherboard, the processor, and the memory. The mineral stones went in between the motherboard and the processor. It is the same for the memory and video card, but I kept the video card the same for now. Finally, I ensured all the connections were solid, put everything away, locked up, returned to the house, cleaned up, and sensed Mom was near. I waited in my room until Mom called, then went to the kitchen.

We ate chicken fried steak dinners from the All-America Diner. Mom asked me what I did today, and I said not much, but I studied and did my first lessons of the new semester. Mom said she emailed UCLA’s proposal to Todd Brown for his review. Todd said he would call on Thursday with his recommendations. We finished dinner, played poker for an hour, hugged goodnight, and went to bed. I fell asleep and was used to the thumping when it began and tingling all over my body. Then it stopped, and I drifted into a deep sleep.

On Tuesday, I woke up early and exercised, practiced my huku, sensed the area, grabbed my walking staff, and took off running my route, keeping a steady speed and stride. When I reached my turnaround point, I increased my pace on the way home. After stretching, I showered, dressed, went to the kitchen for breakfast, vitamins, and a protein drink, and then waited for my car. It showed up 15 minutes late, but we made it to the studio on time. Tammy introduced me to Tom Jordin, the director for the ad shoot. Then I was taken to the wardrobe, and there wasn’t much privacy. I had a dressing screen for below-the-waist changes, but all the others were in the wardrobe room.

We started with running apparel, and the director had me running down the street and through a park with camera vehicles in front and rear filming. I had to do wardrobe changes in a van trailing the camera vehicles. The filming of the running apparel lasted till 1 p.m. Then we broke for lunch, and after, we were supposed to start gym apparel but ran into problems. It took place in a gym on the studio lot, and it took time to move the wardrobe, cameras, and people into position. By the time we started, it was 3 p.m., and we shut down at 5 p.m.

Finally, I arrived home at 7 pm, tired and hungry. I told Mom about my day and how I burned off everything I ate. Then I said I don’t see the shoot finishing on Wednesday. Mom said you don’t worry if it goes over. They pay for another full day, even for a few hours. Be sure to drink plenty of fluids, too. What are the other two segments? I said swimming and casual apparel. Mom said shit, I hate to miss the swimming and laughed. I said I’d autograph a picture just for my perving mom so you can hang it in your office, and we laughed. We finished dinner, hugged goodnight, and I went to bed. I fell asleep and was used to the thumping, but it was stronger tonight than when it began and tingling all over my body. I never noticed when it stopped, and I drifted into a deep sleep.

I awoke Wednesday and went to the gym, sensing the area on my way. I exercised, practiced my huku using the heavy bag, did a light workout on the weight machine, and then did my yoga routine. When finished, I showered, dressed, and went to the kitchen for breakfast, vitamins, and a protein drink, and then the car pulled up on time. We arrived early, and it was organized chaos because they decided to change the set and camera angles. We started shooting at 10 a.m. and finished at 2 p.m. after a 30-minute break for lunch.

Then the swimming wear and I knew I would regret doing this part. There were twelve swimsuits and cover-up combinations, so we didn’t finish. The causal apparel was to be shot at the beach so that we would finish the swimsuits there tomorrow. I arrived home before 7 p.m., and Mom had Italian takeout for dinner. Mom asked about the shoot as we ate, and I said we finished the gym apparel at 2 p.m. So, we have another half day of swimwear, then casual apparel. Depending on the director, it will be a full day on Thursday and maybe more. But we shoot at the beach tomorrow, so it’s anybody’s guess.

Before you ask, the swimsuits were made of a material that hugged the body when wet. Judging by the comments on set, I will be really popular with the girls and ladies. Tammy had a message for you. You’ll regret not coming to shoot in between laughing. Mom was laughing, too, when I was telling her about it. So now you’ve had your laughs about my modeling what’s going on at the clubhouse. Mom said construction and fixtures are complete. The final cleaning started today and will finish tomorrow. Furniture and appliances are scheduled for Friday and Saturday. Food, tablecloths, uniforms, and supplies are Monday and Tuesday. Wednesday and Thursday are training and dinner for the employees.

Then the big event is on Saturday night. I said, It sounds like your plate is full by Saturday. So, we hugged goodnight and went to bed. I fell asleep and was used to the thumping, but it was still stronger tonight than when it began and tingling all over my body. I never noticed when it stopped, and I drifted into a deep sleep.

I awoke, exercised, practiced my huku, sensed the area, grabbed my walking staff, and took off running my route, keeping a steady speed and stride. When I reached my turnaround point, I increased my pace on the way home. After stretching, I showered, dressed, went to the kitchen for breakfast, vitamins, and a protein drink, and then waited for my car. It showed up at 7 a.m., and we made it to the beach on time. They had four large white tents set up, ready to start at 8 a.m. We started with the casual apparel and finished before noon. Then we finished the swimwear by 3 pm, and they wanted some beach shots with the running apparel, and we finished at 5 pm.

I had to ride in the front on the way home. The Nike crew boxed up all the clothes, shoes, and accessories in boxes for me. They filled the trunk and backseat on the ride home. The driver was glad to get rid of me because he quickly got the boxes out and left. I brought everything into the laundry and opened the clothing boxes to let them air out. Mom came in and said shit, that’s a lot of clothes. I said look at it this way. They all will go to the Goodwill in a few months, so it’s temporary. They all fit my exact size now, so any growth and they will be too small. They gave them to me because they aren’t standard sizes. The only standard sizes are the shoes and accessories.

We ate dinner, and Mom said Todd Brown called back about the UCLA proposal. He rewrote it for us to return to them but said the original proposal was a maze of traps you couldn’t escape. UCLA wanted to okay all your outside activities so they didn’t reflect badly on the university. So, I sent Todd’s proposal to UCLA with a note take it or leave it. I don’t expect a response, but you never know. I told Mom I expected it but hoped they would see the benefit of my attending. We hugged goodnight and went to bed. I fell asleep and was used to the thumping, but it was still stronger tonight than when it began and tingling all over my body. I never noticed when it stopped, and I drifted into a deep sleep.

I awoke Friday and went to the gym, sensing the area on my way. I exercised, practiced my huku using the heavy bag, did a light workout on the weight machine, and then did my yoga routine. When finished, I showered, dressed, went to the kitchen for breakfast, vitamins, and protein drink, then drove the golf cart to the practice range. I got two buckets of balls, practiced, played another round, and focused on my complete game. After three days off, I wanted to take it easy for the first day back. I shot a two under par and was happy driving home.

When I got home, Mom’s note said she would bring home dinner, so I ate lunch. Then I went to my workshop and took out my new computer. I built stands for the mineral rocks, then carried the motherboard into the stash room and put it on the shelf. I elevated the motherboard off the shelf and then hooked up the power supply, hard drive, DVD/CD ROM, keyboard, and mouse. The moment of truth, I powered it up, programmed the bios, then loaded Windows 11 and left it to load. I ran cables through the wall for the internet and the network. Outside would be only a fake PC to fool intruders. I would have a hidden switch to turn on the secret computer.

Once I connected to the internet, Windows started downloading updates, and I looked on Newegg. I bought a USB hub with a switch and dual HDMI switch, and it was set. The updates were complete, so I shut down my new computer, locked it up, returned to the house, and went to the laundry. I put a new load in the washer and dryer. Then, I folded the clean clothes and took them to my room. I sensed Mom was near, so I waited. Finally, she yelled dinner and came to the kitchen, and we ate pizza from Tony’s.

Mom said everything is ready for tomorrow night’s Country Club Grand Reopening. She was going over at 4 p.m., and I could drive the golf cart at 6 p.m. Suit and tie, and it’s catered because of the volume of people expected. She was excited, so I let her enjoy the moment. I then asked if she had invited Mr. and Mrs. Barton. She looked shocked, then made the call and thanked me for reminding her. We finished dinner and watched CNN. Dad won by 703 votes. I hugged Mom goodnight and went to bed. I fell asleep and was used to the thumping, but it was still stronger tonight than when it began and tingling all over my body. I never noticed when it stopped, and I drifted into a deep sleep.

I awoke, exercised, practiced my huku, sensed the area, grabbed my walking staff, and took off running my route, keeping a steady speed and stride. When I reached my turnaround point, I increased my pace on the way home. After stretching, I showered, dressed, went to the kitchen for breakfast, vitamins, and a protein drink, and then drove the golf cart to the practice range. I warmed up and played a round by myself again. I practiced hitting for the rough and sand traps, then my long putting. I didn’t keep score, but I was close to even par and drove home. Mom left a note saying she would be back at 3:30 p.m. She was having her hair and nails done.

I ate lunch, went to my workshop, powered up the new computer, and checked the benchmarks. I yelled yes, it worked, and now I need one more for the hard drives, but that could wait. I wanted to research moving or altering the pathways in the mineral stone. Before leaving our home planet on vacation, I had been studying and doing that very thing. I was going to use a passive X-ray and electrical current to start. Now I have to see what’s available here. So, I decided to use the three rejected mineral stones. one for jewelry and the other two for experiments.

I would use one mineral stone to cut a necklace for Mom and a couple of smaller stones for rings for Mr. Tanicka and me. Then, I would cut the rest of the stone into pieces and get Mr. Tanicka to sell it. Sensing Mom was near brought me out of thought, and I locked up and went to the kitchen for a bottle of water. I was drinking the water when Mom rushed into the kitchen and went to her room. So, I finished the water and went out to get the mail. There was a large envelope on our porch from UCLA and no shipping information, so it was hand-delivered. I put the mail on the kitchen table and relaxed in the den, watching golf on ESPN.

Mom came out 30 minutes later, said to bring your tie, and I’ll do it at the clubhouse and left. At 5:30 pm, I got ready, drove to the back of the clubhouse, and entered through the service entrance, and there were people everywhere. So, I went through them and to the dining hall, where I found Mom on the stage. She tied my tie and asked me to find the Bartons when they arrived and seat them at our table, pointing to one by the stage.

Standing by the front door against the wall, I saw them walk in and said here for the free dinner, and they laughed. Mrs. Barton said she was there to get an autograph from the young man on the billboards. I groaned, and they laughed as I directed them to our table. I told the Barton’s that was the only shirtless moment in the film, and they picked it to use on the billboards. I told Mom, and she laughed and said it was to attract females to the movie. Mrs. Barton said it was genius marketing on their part, laughing again. I told them about my Nike shoot, and the billboard looked tame compared to the Nike swimsuit ads.

I told them Nike’s fabric looks great dry, but when wet, it clings to your body, causing them to laugh. I said Nike would have to airbrush some of those photos, or it would create a shitstorm for them. Mom walked up as I talked and said she requested photocopies of the shoot, but Nike said no. It was filmed for commercials, and when they select stills for print ads, they’ll forward us copies. Mom said she was so disappointed after hearing about the shoot, laughing with the Bartons. Everyone laughed when I told the Barton’s to see what I must deal with.

The Grand Reopening was a success; everyone we talked to said the clubhouse looked great, and Mom did a great job. We said goodnight to the Barton’s, and I stayed until Mom decided to leave. When we got home, we hugged goodnight and went to bed. I fell asleep and was used to the thumping, but it was still stronger tonight than when it began and tingling all over my body. I never noticed when it stopped, and I drifted into a deep sleep.

I awoke Sunday and went to the gym, sensing the area on my way. I exercised, practiced my huku using the heavy bag, did a light workout on the weight machine, and then did my yoga routine. When finished, I showered, dressed, went to the kitchen for breakfast, vitamins, and protein drink, then drove the golf cart to the practice range. Today, I decided to return to my old schedule and practice only, so I got two buckets of balls and practiced, then returned home.

Mom was still asleep, so I took the e-bike to the PO Box and had two small packages shoved in the box. So, I retrieved them, stopped by Carl’s Jr. for lunch, and returned home. Then, sensing Mom was still asleep, I went to the workshop and opened one package. It had a small, thin camera the size of a credit card and three times as thick on a lanyard. Also, it had a USB cord to charge and transfer files and two MicroSD memory cards. The second box had a pocket-sized LED Flashlight and a Stun Gun. It also included an a/c recharging cord and a 12-volt car charger. It looked like a flashlight so I could put it in my suitcase or golf club bag. They were cool toys, so I took them to my bedroom and put them away.

I went to the refrigerator for a water bottle, sensing Mom was up. I sat at the kitchen table and went through the mail when she entered. Mom says thank goodness that’s over now, and we return to some normality. I slid the large envelope from UCLA to her and said it was lying on the porch yesterday. Mom opened it, and they signed our proposal, and we laughed, and then I asked what had happened now. Mom said she’d call Todd Brown on Monday to ask how we should proceed. She said a formal agreement needed to be signed before it was done, and we want Todd involved in that process. But it looks like you’re a Bruin now instead of a Wildcat laughing.

I ask what’s a Bruin, and Mom says a brown bear. They’re cute and cuddly and go perfectly with your persona with billboards and Nike ads laughing. I said I’m just glad if I need to take a physical class or do research, I have a place to do it close to home. Mom said she was also, but let’s get everything signed before getting too excited. They buckled under too quickly, making me suspicious we forgot something. We need to sit down and talk to Todd about this right away. I agreed and started going through the other mail when the doorbell rang. A FedEx truck was leaving when I opened the front door. It was my new pants and publicity photos from Titleist.

The photo looked sharp and classy, according to Mom. I stood next to a Titleist golf bag with a seven iron in one hand. I told her I didn’t remember ever posing for photos. Mom said they had a photographer follow you at the last tournament to get some that looked natural, not posed. Then we had to go to my room and collect all my clothes that no longer fit. We filled two trash bags and took them to the Goodwill collection bin. On our way back, we stopped for Mexican takeout.