Chapter 2

Mark drove back to his condo to shave and change clothes. He went to lunch with the CEO of the company he was considering in investing in and it went well. Mark liked the CEO’s enthusiasm about his small company and what he envisioned the future to be. He offered a tour of the factory which Mark accepted. The company was making small wind-driven electrical generators that were being marketed to the residential community. The goal was to have one mounted on each home, much like outdoor television antennas were on the roofs of homes before cable came along. While these generators could not supply a household’s total need for electricity, they could supplement the need. With the cost of energy rising and the emphasis being on renewable energy, Mark thought this could be a good investment and was going make a large purchase of this company’s stock for his mutual fund.

Later back at the condo, Mark was dining on some KFC and thought he would stay in for the evening to rest up from the workout he had had with Trish. He wondered about what to do the next day since no visits to businesses were scheduled. He decided to take advantage of Jim Stanford’s offer of golf at the county club where Jim was a member. The club was only about twelve minutes’ drive away. Jim had called and cleared Mark’s use of the facilities with Bob Storm, the general manager of the club. He had also made arrangements for Mark to charge any expenses incurred to Jim’s account since no transactions at the club were done in cash. Mark knew he would leave a check with Jim for his charges, even though Jim told him not to. Playing a round of golf in this nice weather would be a refreshing change from the record snows Chicago was receiving this winter.

The round of golf was surprisingly good. If it wasn’t for three putts on the first hole, Mark would have broken eighty. He played with another member and his two guests. They were all older than Mark and were either retired or would be retiring shortly. Their golf games weren’t great with their scores being just over one hundred. They were pleasant company and highly complimentary of Mark’s golfing ability. Mark had accepted their offer to meet with them in the club for a drink after the round.

The lounge in the club was rather empty and the three playing partners had not yet come in. Mark went up to the bar and placed an order for a pitcher of beer with a good looking female bartender who appeared to be around his age. She turned her back to Mark, bent to open a door from the back cooler where she took an iced pitcher and started pouring the beer from a tap that was on the back bar.

Mark was frozen. He was staring at the bartender’s backside which was encased in a set of jeans. The jeans fit her like a second skin. It was a perfect fit on a perfect bottom. Her bottom in those jeans was mesmerizing. He couldn’t take his eyes off her backside. He didn’t think he could describe it if asked, but it was like a magnet drawing his eyes to it.

“How many glasses?”

“How many glasses?”

“Uh.”

Mark reluctantly raised his eyes from her butt and saw that she was looking at him via the mirror on the back bar as she was pouring the beer. There was a little smile on her face. Mark thought he felt a flush of embarrassment as she had caught him appraising her backside.

“I said how many glasses do you want?”

“Ah... , four would be right.”

She finished pouring the beer and Mark signed the bar bill. The other three players had now entered the lounge and all of them sat at a table and discussed the round of golf.

One of the golfers asked Mark what he did for a living.

“Well, I am a portfolio manager for a mutual fund company headquartered in Chicago. I came down here to look at some companies we are considering investing in and maybe do a little relaxing in this nice weather.”

One of the guest said, “You are an expert in an area I am ashamed to admit I don’t know that much about. I will be retiring in six months and am going to have to make some major financial decisions that are causing me not to have a good night’s sleep.”

“What financial decisions?”

“When I retire I need to decide how to invest my 401K money as well as the large lump sum I will take instead of a pension. To me, that is a lot of money and something that is going to need to last for me and my wife’s life times. I don’t want to make a mistake in how I invest those funds. It would also be nice to leave something to our two kids.”

“Investing isn’t that complicated nor that difficult to learn. You have time to do some studying. Go to your public library and do the reading on investing in the books that are there. One book I would recommend is called ‘Capital Growth’ written by N. Barton. It is a well written book and there is a chapter in there on retirement investing. Our firm has three mutual funds that are similar to the principals advocated in that chapter. We call our funds, “Retirement Portfolios I, II and III. Portfolios I and II are closed to new investors but Portfolio III is still open to new money. Simply put, the Portfolios allocate 40% of the money into stocks and 60% into income-producing instruments. Most of the stocks selected are dividend-paying stocks that have a history of increasing their dividends every year. Ten per cent of the stock money goes into small-capitalization companies which in our opinion have significant growth prospects. The growth of the stocks can help offset the effects of inflation. That is the main reason I am down here, to interview a few of these small companies to see if they will grow and we should invest in them.”

“The money that goes into income-producing instruments is more than just investing in bonds. Yes, a good amount goes into bonds, but investments are also made into preferred stocks and bank loan funds to name a few. It has been proven that proper diversification reduces market risk and yet it doesn’t reduce return on the investment. I think if you read the book ‘Capital Growth’ you will feel more comfortable in making your decisions.”

While Mark was talking he noticed that the other three men at the table, while listening to him, had their eyes directed above him. He turned and saw the female bartender was standing there with a bowl of peanuts in one hand and a bowl of popcorn in her other. She must have been listening to Mark in what he was saying.

“I thought you fellows would enjoy something to munch on.” She placed the bowls on the tables and returned to the bar.

All four pair of eyes were on her backside as she walked back to the bar.

The member said, “She must be new here but oh... , to be young again.”

One of his guests responded, “Ed, that is more woman than you could ever handle even if you were young again. Mark here could probably handle her but I wouldn’t make a bet on it.” That brought a chuckle from all at the table.

“Getting back to investing, five years ago when we started our first Retirement Portfolio, a friend of my father’s made a substantial investment in Portfolio I. He has been able to take out five percent of his investment a year while his principal has grown seven percent a year. In a nut-shell, his original investment is now worth 35% more than what is was worth five years ago and the funds he has withdrawn coupled with social security and his wife’s pension have given them a very comfortable lifestyle. Of course the usual disclaimer of past performance being no guarantee of future performance applies.”

The conversation at the table continued with Mark being thanked for his insights and advice on investing. The pitcher of beer was empty and Mark offered to buy another one but the others begged off. They had to get back home as their spouses were expecting them back sober for them to go to an early-bird dinner theater. Mark said goodbye and shook their hands.

Instead of heading back to the condo, Mark went up to the bar, took a seat and ordered a club sandwich as he hadn’t had much today for breakfast and no lunch. He was eating the sandwich and drinking a diet soda while at the same time he was studying the bartender. He laughingly thought some people would call this multi-tasking.

The bartender was about five feet seven inches tall with dark brown hair that probably came down to just past her shoulders but now was up in ponytail. While he was impressed by how her bottom looked, he had to admit that her ample breasts were also an eye-catcher. A few freckles on a pretty face gave her an All-American girl look. She was actually quite attractive. He though it was somewhat odd that she was working as a bartender but who was he to say anything about her job.

Thoughts of what he would do for dinner came to mind. No one else was sitting at the bar and Mark said to her, “Is there a restaurant around here you would recommend for dinner?”

“What are you looking for?”

“Good food, casual atmosphere and you don’t need to wait for a table. Maybe something like a family-type restaurant.”

“The food at the restaurant here in the club is very good. Tonight is the sea food buffet but they do require a jacket and tie for evening dining. ‘Marie’s, ‘ about two miles down the main drag is what you’re looking for. I like it a lot.”

“What time should I pick you up?”

“What do you mean?”

“I said, what time should I pick you up?”

“You’re asking me out but I don’t know you.”

“How are you going to get to know me if you don’t go out with me?”

She hesitated for a minute, smiled and said, “You have a point there.”

“Come on, let’s just go for dinner. I and I think you need to eat. I am single, alone and just down here for a short time from Chicago. I am harmless. Jim Stanford, who is a member here talked with Bob Storm the manager here and vouched for me. Bob has allowed me to put my charges on Jim’s account. Please come to dinner with me. Sitting at a table by yourself in a restaurant is uncomfortable and doesn’t make the meal enjoyable no matter how good the food is.”

“I know Bob Storm well, and if he has authorized you to use the facilities here, well... , that’s good enough for me. Okay, I get off at six and you can pick me up here.”

“It’s a date. I am going to go back to my condo and get out of these golfing shorts and will be back to pick you up then.”

Back at the condo, Mark showered and shaved. He put on tan slacks and a button down black linen shirt. A little spray of Realm cologne finished his preparation. He was back at the club at six. She saw Mark, waved at him and said something to the replacement bartender before she came over to Mark.

The drive to the restaurant was very short. Mark introduced himself to her as they drove. She introduced herself to Mark. She said her name was Nancy Barton and she was born and grew up here. Not much more was able to be said as they were already at the restaurant. There was a good crowd but Marie herself was handling the patrons and seemed to know Nancy. Marie greeted Nancy with a big smile and a hug. They were immediately seated at a nice table which overlooked a large body of water.

Drink orders were placed and while they waited for the drinks, Mark said, “So how long have you been a bartender?”

“About three days.”

Mark gave her a questioning look with his eyes. She smiled and gave a little laugh.

“I came down to visit my parents for the holidays. I have know Bob Storm a long time and stopped in to say hello to him. While I was visiting him, his regular daytime bartender Phyllis, came in to tell him there was a death of a dear friend. She asked if she could have three days off to attend the funeral in Naples. Bob didn’t know what to say. Since I had some free time I volunteered to be the substitute afternoon bartender if that would help. Bob knew I could tend bar. We got to know each other when I was on the high school girl’s golf team and this club was our home course. Bob gave me a summer job as a cart girl. I then moved up to beverage cart girl when I was in college. For extra money, Bob let me tend bar here when there were functions such as weddings and banquets. The money I earned during the summer helped me out while I was going to college even though I had a golf and an academic scholarships.”

“Can I ask you what you do?”

“I am an associate professor at a university’s business school in New York. It’s between semesters, so I come down to visit my parents and spend the holidays with them.”

“Nancy Barton, Nancy Barton... , Are you that N. Barton who wrote the book, Capital Growth?”

“Guilty as charged.”

“We were talking about a chapter in your book when we were at the club.”

“I know as I overheard you. Thanks for the nice comments.”

“Some of your other comments in the book about mutual fund loads and their expenses, CEO pay and bonuses, the value of financial analysts and brokerage commissions shook up the industry and weren’t perceived as being complimentary.”

“They weren’t meant to be. John Q. Public has been taken advantage of by an investment industry that in spite of what they say is largely unregulated as to business ethics. Charging a 12b-1 fee when the fund is closed to new investors just doesn’t make sense. How about the CEOs who get an obscene salary and expect a large bonus when they have an average year? What do they think they got the large salary for to start with? Golden parachutes when they retire, why? Board of directors members who are on each others’ boards? That’s business incest! I could go on and on about these abuses but until they get hit in the pocketbook or regulated, nothing will change.”

With a stern look on his face he said, “I don’t want you to hold back. You should say what you think.”

She was silent as she weighed this remark and she just laughed when she realized he was kidding her. Mark thought she had a very charming laugh.

“Not changing the subject, but what is your educational background?”

“I have two Masters Degrees, one in economics and one in computer science, and a Ph.D. in economics from the University of Florida.”

“You mention the golf team. How good was your golf game?”

“I played to a two in college but there are a lot of girl golfers that play to a two or less.”

Time had passed so fast while talking with Nancy that before Mark knew it, he had finished dessert and was on his second cup of coffee. While he didn’t want to end the conversation he paid the bill when it was presented and they left the restaurant.

On the drive to Nancy’s townhouse, Mark said, “Now that we have gotten to know each other, will you let me take you to dinner tomorrow? I would like to take you over to a nice restaurant in a hotel that I understand is locally referred to as the Pink Palace.”

“That’s the most expensive restaurant in the area. Why spend that kind of money.”

“To give you and honest answer, my meals are covered on my expense account and if having dinner with the notorious and insightful N. Barton to get investment ideas is not a legitimate business expense then I don’t know what is. We can always discuss other things too.”

“The other things are what concern me. Tonight all we talked about was me. If I go out with you tomorrow you have to promise me that some of the conversation will be about you. Do we have a deal?”

“You have a deal. I will pick you up at seven.”

Mark was treated to watching Nancy walk up the well-lighted stairway to her townhouse and the beauty of her swaying hips.

The next day Mark visited a small company that was using recyclables to make other products such as colored mulch, small ice coolers and automobile floor mats. The head of R&D was enthusiastic about their future and gave Mark a tour of the factory. He told him about other products they were planning on manufacturing as well as plant expansion. Mark liked what he saw and heard and put this company down as a buy.