Chapter 41

So far today has been amazing. Raul and I had found him work, I had made a deal on pasteurization equipment, committed to expand the milking operation, and we were now going to have dinner or supper with Benson and family. Today had been so busy that I really could have used a walk around the mountain for a while. Mom collared me instead; "Michael, can you fire up the wood stove real quick? We could use it to warm things and bake some rolls."

After kissing Millie and tickling John, I went to the summer kitchen and fired up the wood stove. I took the time to wash everything off real quick, since this had become such a busy room. The eggs were washed, buttermilk made, and butter was churned here, and lots of traffic went in and out as this was where access to the pantry was.

When I was finished with the summer kitchen, I went back outside to check on the smoke houses. I ran the chipper to chop up a bunch of hickory and filled all of the hoppers. I slathered more honey on the meat as I checked the room temperatures. This had become a very easy operation. You had to make sure the fires stayed lit and the hoppers were full, but you didn't have to do much other than to empty the ashes.

That made me think of what a guy had told me about using a compost pit. If I needed a way to dispose of sawdust, that would take care of it. When we finished distilling the pomace, we could feed that to the hogs or put it on the compost pile. We could probably build up the small fields on the other side of the mountain. I would talk to Doroteo about it. The other thing we could do is to mix the ashes from the smokehouse with the compost, or just lightly dust it on the fields, since its alkalinity would help balance the generally acidic soil and water in these mountains.

D said he was going to investigate bottling our wine. He seems to think there might be a portable bottler in the area. That would be neat if someone could bring equipment here and bottle our product for us so we wouldn't have to haul the barrels to a bottler, or worse yet, have to invest in the equipment and the housing it would require to bottle it ourselves. I sure hoped that would work out; it would be just what we needed to be able to sell bottles of our product to those people in New York.

My mind was wandering as I walked around to the back of the barn and was rubbed on by the strange deer who insisted on staying around. I really expected to come back here any day and to find he has a couple of does grazing in the pasture. Speaking of pastures; I wondered how far the fencing people have gotten on the new pasture area. I would need to check on that in the morning, and to take some seed out to the little meadows to overseed them. If I did that a couple of times a year, those meadows would feed a lot of stock. There needs to be some water troughs; probably one near the top and at least one near the bottom. I'd have to look where water was available to figure out where to put another trough. I was going to have to make up my mind if I was going to try to graze cattle in the area all year or just during the spring and summer, or if I really want to become involved in yet another endeavor. If I kept cattle there all year, I would have to build some form of shelter for them. The winter can be too severe to make them stay out all the time. If I had gates on both sides where the road is, I could easily get hay back there for them. That's a lot of extra hay. I'd have to work on that. The idea of making cattle another profit center for the farm was a little daunting. I could buy organic feeds, but a large quantity of hay could be a problem. Raising stock from calves or getting some of my own breeding stock was the way to do it, but I didn't think I had enough acreage to do that right. I needed to talk to the men down at the market and get their opinions.

I was walking back to the house, when D came towards me with one of the sweet Latina girls. It was Carla, the little girl who wanted to live in the area. D said, "Carla wants to ask you a question, and she feels that your answer will be good information." D waved his hand in front of her to go ahead and ask.

"Mr. Grayson, you have often been a good adviser for all of us. My question may not be easy to answer, as it is difficult to ask. The man who drives the other bulldozer with Jet, do you know him well?"

"You're talking about John Howard, aren't you?"

Carla blushed, but said 'Yes' as she nodded her head.

"I don't know him really well, Carla. He was in the Army before coming to work here. Jimmy probably knows him as well as anyone. You should ask him what he thinks of the man. Do you know him very well?"

The girl said, "I go with Consuela and Anita to give the workers lunch everyday. I talk to him while he eats his lunch and he has come to dinner at our house a couple of times. He speaks Spanish very well, so he is easy to have with us. I think he likes me and I like him a lot. I know he doesn't see any of the new girls that are with D, and he goes home alone with a couple of the others. He says the other two men prefer each other's company and do not look for girls."

"Well, Carla, eat supper with us tonight. First, though, go tell Bea that I want you to eat with us and to figure out how to seat you next to John. Run do that right now."

The girl was really flustered now, but ran off toward the house. D said to me, "You just made that girl's day. I think she anticipated that you would ask her to supper since she is wearing a nice dress instead of work clothes."

I smiled at D before saying, "Well, good. We'll get all of these young men and women together and probably have to build an apartment building down there instead of houses. We might even think of something like that down near the road yard."

D said, "It is good for these girls to find men to trust and love. I hope they all work out. I know the girls all want stability, and the men are not kids any longer. The fact that they have experience in the world is good and should help them be stable."

The two of us walked back toward the house, "I think you're right, D. These couples might work out and that would be very nice."

Sheryl was already at the house, helping with the meal and talking to Bernie at the same time. I wonder if those two got together. They would make an interesting couple.

The road men and D's girls were chatting as they all set the table. I noticed Carla close to John as they helped with the tables. Bottles of wine were being brought out.

The only people who had not arrived yet were Benson and his family. Exactly at that moment, I heard the guinea hens make a racket. Karen and I slipped our boots on and went out to greet them. Benson was in his usual good mood. Mrs. Benson gave me a hug and told me, "You are so good for my B. Since you came to town, he's had a friend, and of course, a business partner. I can't tell you what a different person he's been since you came."

Benson was smiling at what his wife said. He told me, "Don't let it give you a big head, but this community now has some life in it, and your contribution is helping everyone take some pride in it."

The guineas were making noise again, so I was surprised to see Gene driving up in the cable company truck. He got out and ran around to other side of the truck to open the door for Maude. When they got out, he said, "When I heard Benson was coming, I called Bea and asked if I could bring Maude. Your mom never turns anyone down for a meal."

The expanded dining room was going to become too small if we kept having more people in. I wondered how long it would be until Mom decided to get some kitchen help. I suppose she already did that with the food she ordered from the Mount Sterling restaurant for the last big dinner.

We all went into the house and followed protocol by everyone removing their shoes. The newcomers mixed with the others in the house, and Mom came to me while we watched all the people. In a low tone, she said, "Isn't this wonderful, Michael? We have so many friends, and look at all of the people we've gotten together. Even little Carla has chosen one of the men. She told me you told her to come tell me. John seems to be a nice boy, and I hope they make a couple. Do you see the interaction between Bernie and Sheryl? I think they may have gotten together by the way they are rubbing on each other. It makes me want to rub on D."

I chuckled, "You had better plan a vacation soon so that you can test those waters."

Mom slyly looked at me, "How do you know we haven't already tested those waters?"

I shrugged my shoulders and smiled at Mom, saying, "It's none of my business, Mom, other than I hope it was and will be good."

She elbowed me with a laugh and went to join everyone as they began to be seated. Millie and I were the last to sit as she had just put the now very active John into his playpen.

As we ate, the conversation became fixed around Benson announcing that the county had approved Gene's plans to begin the new upscale development. Jimmy already knew a little about the project and told the men, "We're going to be busy handling the road maintenance and building the new roads for the development. We're actually going to be able to try out all of our new technology. We may have to get a few more guys to help us out."

I saw Mom look up at me and grin. My immediate thought was, 'Just what I need, a bigger road crew.'

Gene announced to all of us, "This lady sitting next to me and I have an announcement. Maude has agreed to become my wife." At that announcement, Maude held up her hand to display a nice ring on her finger, which resulted in some cheering and a lot of applause.

Gene continued, "I also want to tell the cheap sponsors of this new development that you won't have to worry about me soaking you guys for big wages for a while. The cable company asked me to stay on here and run this operation that will include Pine Ridge and Mount Sterling. I'll be double dipping with the development company while I do my regular job."

Benson looked at Maude, "You're going to have to come up with some tricks to keep Gene from paying way too much in taxes. He'll be making good money from both of his employers. No wonder you wanted to hook up with him."

That brought a small fresh baked roll to sail across the table and hit Benson on the forehead. Maude exclaimed, "I'll have you know that our combined income is going to put us into Obama's targeted small business families, which is great! I'd rather make the money and pay the tax than not make the money. I think I will have to hire a helper very soon. Mike, I'm going to need your construction guys to build me an addition to my office. Gene might need one too, but we're going to stay right where we are because I own the place. It was my folks', my grandparents', and my great-grandparents' home, so I'm staying."

As D stood to serve some dessert wine, Mom, Marita, Millie, and Karen began serving some special cannoli that Rodrigo had taught her how to make over the phone. D said to us, "I will be gone for a couple of weeks. I plan to spend some time on the San Juan Islands in the Pacific Northwest. It's still cool up there, and we want to experience viewing the whales in their natural habitat."

Mom was putting plates with a chocolate syrup covered cannoli on them in front of people. She announced, "So that you don't wonder who the 'we' is, D is taking me to see something I've always wanted to see. I understand he's instructed his girls about what to do for a couple of weeks, and I know the ladies in this household will take care of Mike, as well. He really doesn't need his mother around except to show him the way."

Everyone had a laugh at that. My goodness, Mom was really going to see if she and D were compatible. She is an adventurous soul and knows how to take care of herself. I hoped D was aware of how headstrong a woman he was messing with.

With Mom gone for a week or two, maybe the house might get back to some form of reclusiveness. There would always be a multitude of visitors whenever Mom is around. The family is still coming on weekends, so that kills some peace and quiet while they are here. Oh well, who needs solitude? The answer to that is easy, me. I still fantasize about being somewhat of a recluse.

It was almost funny to see how all the young men rushed through clearing and cleaning the tables and washing the dishes. Gene even became embroiled in the activity, as the road guys knew what to do and directed him on how to help. D, Benson, and I had some of the special grappa that D told us would bring a premium in New York. He bragged as to how he would make our small vineyard an almost national monument with people trying to obtain some of our product.

Benson said, "Stick with Mike, D. The man brings good things to all those who stick with him. He came to me for a simple job with the lady who sold him this property, and look what I fell into. Look at Gene, he's now the architect for our development and is going to make untold thousands to get this thing on the map. Mike's road guys are all assured of work beyond the scope of working on the local roads. They will be road construction men, not just repairmen. This is a big deal, D. The wine is also a big deal, but I'll bet you almost get frustrated that Mike doesn't spend enough time learning the business from you. But in the end, he's made another season of great wine."

D just nodded, "Yes, you're right. He has surprised me, but a lot of it has to be dumb luck. This is his third season coming up, and we'll see how he does this year."

When the guys finished the dishes, Gene migrated toward us as the guys began spiriting their women out of the house to either go for a drive, a walk, or to some unknown place. Carla and John sat on one of the couches talking, while the women remained at one of the tables, drinking coffee and talking about whatever women talk about.

As we sat together, Gene said, "I've kind of figured out that you're the influence or money behind all of the development, Mike. How did you save up so much while you were in the military?"

"I didn't, Gene. The money I represent is in a trust of which I was named as one of the administrators. Benson and I are the two who have to make sure the trust is used correctly and the way the originators want it to be used. We're attempting to do a lot of good for the community, as well as many of the residents. I think that, in time, everyone within the county will have felt the benefit of what the trust is doing."

Gene looked up at me, and then at Benson, "Okay, but I just feel like you're the key person for a lot of things that are happening around the county. I think it's a good thing, and I know Maude is totally fascinated with the workings of the trust, but she won't even let me in on the how everything works. She tells me that it's just a trust that is using money for the good of the community."

"Gene," Benson said, "I can tell you that Mike and I look at everything before we sign off on what the trust will do. The supply of cash isn't endless, so increasing it is what the development company is supposed to do. If done correctly, we can add to the trust deposits to ensure there is money for projects in the future. Think of it another way. The developments will require increased sewage disposal, so the trust will rebuild the city's and county's sewage facility to more than double its present size. That will benefit the community for years to come. I think the trust's donations toward the community's infrastructure will have a long term effect."

"It will do that, you guys. I'm just terribly curious as how this trust came about. Oh well, if it makes everyone, including Maude, happy, I'm happy too."

I told Gene, "I have benefited from all of this because you have been able to help me get more paths to clear and get the John Deere ATVs that we have. I think with the advent of the developments, we will be able to use any ATVs we can get our hands on in the future. Being able to buy them at half price is a definite benefit. Paying for ATVs directly out of the path work proceeds has been an easy way to pay for them. These last ones are a mix of two and four seat models. The two seat models have a hell of a cargo capacity. I can see where they will have a big benefit for a lot of our activities."

Gene responded to me, "I watch and listen for the sales and rotation of those, Mike. You have to remember how big the cable company is. They supply cable to customers in twelve states and are trying to move into more. The last couple of years I only told you about a tenth of the ATVs that were being rotated out of service. I'll let you know when the next bunch is being traded out." Gene sat back, thinking he was going to continue to contribute to the new company he was going to be involved with.

D had gone over to speak with Mom, and the two had gone into the office together. I figured they were working out the itinerary for their trip. Their voices came from the office and you could tell the two were not happy about something. The level of their voices increased until both walked out of the office. Mom pulled D over to where Benson, Gene, and I were sitting, and said to me, "Will you tell this man that your father left me with more than enough money to finance this trip and many more. He just doesn't understand that I want to spend some of my money instead of letting it just sit there waiting for a bunch of kids to fight over it."

D sort of huffed and puffed, "Mike would never fight over a deceased relative's money. Don't include him in that."

"D," Mom pleaded, "I don't think the other two will fight over it either, but they all want me to enjoy the money that their father and I made working our farm. They know how hard we worked to make the farm successful, and to raise and teach them to be independent. All three of my kids turned out to be something special, and you can see how Mike turned out. Let me use the money that is supposed to be for my happiness to pay for our pleasure."

D shook his head before commenting, "It is difficult to reason with a woman who states her case so eloquently. I feel as if I should be the one to sponsor the trip and bear the costs. Mike has paid me well from last year's harvest, so I feel I should do this. I will concede, but you will have to let me subsidize our next trip."