Chapter 19: Home and Beyond

The days Sandy was here were really fun. The girls let her decide what she wanted to do and when she wanted to do it. She definitely spread herself around a lot, but I think when she took off to go back south, she was looking forward to some rest.

For me it was almost like the old days, but there were times when it wasn't all that pleasant. She and I talked about a lot of things, but we could only do that when the others weren't around. It wasn't difficult, we just went for walks in the forest but it just gave me more of a guilt complex for not sharing things with at least Mel and Hailey - at this point. Jessi later. There was no choice and realistically I shouldn't feel guilty about it.

Sandy packed her little car and, having said her "see-ya laters", off she went. The four of us just looked at each other sadly. We'd miss her, but we had things to do and we'd be seeing her again in a couple weeks.

She called the house about 7 hours later letting us know that she'd arrived back home safely. Mel answered and they talked for a few minutes before hanging up. Mel turned around with a big grin and said, "Sandy says she misses us already. She told me to give her a call when we made the next show and she'd try to take a couple of her 'days off' during our visit."

We'd had a blast at the second show and according to Mel's tally we did over $750K for the 9 days! I had to make one special order to my supplier who came through and scheduled it to be delivered first thing the next morning. Fed Ex was there at 7am sharp. It couldn't have worked out better.

Hailey and I had to hump butt to print up a few hundred extras that we had almost run out of. Thankfully Mel's sheets told us what we were short on so that I could order appropriately. I didn't like over ordering for the overnights because the shipping charge was exorbitant, and my supplier didn't have to scramble to come up with something he may have been short. This time it was all standard types of product he carried by the ton so it was just pack and ship.

By 10:30am that 7th day inventory was back in the black. We'd printed about 200 extra because the trending lines showed me they were the hottest sellers and I really didn't want to have to print more here at the show. I still had a few hundred blanks, so it wouldn't have been impossible, just a pain in the ass to do more prints so close to the end.

Thankfully none of it needed to be dyed. Doing the tie-dye was at least a 3-day process and required a lot of water. That part of doing a faire was just a show. I did some twice a day to show how it was done. Mel came up with an idea that we'd have to kick around for next year's shows, because there was no way we could ramp up for this year. She didn't agree, but deferred to my judgment.

She wanted to hold tie-dye "classes for the masses" about three times a day where we supplied everything someone would need in a "kit". They would do the set, the tie and the dye at the show and take it home for the rinse with some special soap. If they were going to be at the show the next day they could leave the project with us and come back next day to rinse during one of the days classes. My objection surrounded the requirement for water and setting up more deep sinks for rinsing.

That may be next year, after some detailed planning sessions. It wasn't only the logistic of numerous deep sinks and the water supply for rinsing, but we had to create the kits. Mel was already working that angle and had two vendors that were willing to kit the dyes, set and other items. All we would have to do is supply the blank shirt, workspace and rinse facilities. I had to chuckle because Mel just wasn't taking "no" for an answer, but in doing all of her checking, sourcing and planning she understood why I said no for this year.

The reason I didn't slow her down or try to stop her is that I knew she would come to the conclusion she did, but she needed to collect the data herself and see the logistical nightmare she was creating. She learned a valuable lesson in the exercise and those educational processes were going to be invaluable at some point in her life.

When we left LA that trip we were almost cleaned out, but it felt good. Everyone took the ride north this trip, even Jess. She had some projects to finish up when we got home.

Mel had the re-order requirements all ready and printed. She'd forward them to the distributors as soon as we hit the house so it gave them a few days to come up with our needs. It was the largest order I'd ever placed. As usual, we'd pay cash and this time didn't have to dip into the bank for any funds.

So after show number two we had grossed $1.25M for the two shows and I was shocked because the profit, after all the expenses were figured was a very sizable number.

You have to keep in mind the audience in LA. Those people will pay outrageous money in the name of ego and supposed recognition. I charged $90 for a simple T-Shirt and couldn't keep them in the trailer. Those tiny skivvies with silk-screened "things" on them, they bring $45-$60 a pair in LA.

Who am I to deprive someone of their stupidity? I laugh all the way to the bank. Goofy shit but in LA that's the way it is.

Mel was shocked when she ran the numbers, but gave me a big grin when she showed me the deposit slip for show number two after purchasing all the replacement stock, inks, plastics etc., including Jessi's project.

I paid the girls their 9 days wages plus a day because we had worked the Thursday prior to the show all day. I also gave them a bigger percentage as bonus for this show as well giving each a 100% share this time. When I gave them the checks their mouths dropped open. They started jumping up and down squealing to each other, "Do you believe this?"

I just sat back and smiled. They had earned every penny. All three had worked extremely hard all week, and the sales numbers showed that. If anything needed to be done, someone would jump on it immediately without having to be asked, and rarely needed instructions. They took care of business and it meant I was free to do some additional designs that we'd worked on between shows but hadn't had the opportunity to finish or print. Most sold really well, so they were added to the "standard" fare for the next show. Hailey had a lot of screens to make and supply to our vendors.

Between shows this time we did some work in the trailer making room for Jessi's new bins, which actually took up less space than the usual boxes. Each bin held at least two boxes and in the small and medium sizes took way more than two and a half boxes. We still had boxes to replenish the bins, but when we got to the next venue, we only had to set up the bins and keep them stocked.

Jess had found a vendor for the bins from the hotel one evening while we were relaxing. They not only had the bins but a "system" that we would use for setting them up to display. When she had made her design decisions and found the system, she "called a meeting" to solicit any inputs from the rest of us. Hailey and I just nodded our heads as she explained the whole thing but Mel had a couple questions, and one suggestion.

Jess slapped her forehead and said, "Why didn't I think of that," to Mel's suggestion.

Mel just smiled and shrugged her shoulders. Teamwork wins again.

The bottom line was that she was given the okay to order what we would need and had it delivered to the house so it would be waiting for us when we got there. She had already tried a few of the units in a test, which worked very well.

We were fairly sidetracked the first day or two after we got back from show #2. We knew Sandy would be here sometime in the afternoon so we needed to get work done. We got done what we needed and when Sandy arrived it all came to a screeching halt anyway.

We had a great first night with Sandy as you already know, but when we got up that morning we had to start working on the preparation for the next show. Sandy sat back and watched while the four of us did what we needed to do.

We had a lot of work to do getting prepared for the next venue, but we also had plenty of time. We relaxed for about an hour after breakfast and headed down to the barn to start striping out the trailer.

Since too many cooks spoil the broth, Hailey and I concentrated on stripping things from the trailer and setting them aside for re-installation. Jess unpacked and checked out the new bin system to see what needed to be done to get it set up in the trailer so we could deploy it with the least amount of extra labor. Sandy let us know that she was available with an extra set of hands any time we needed it.

While the three of us were busy doing the trailer, Mel was working on coordinating the re-stock ordering and setting up the jobs with the printing vendors. Somehow all the chosen vendors had packaging machines and would package the product with an insert in thin plastic for a minimal additional cost. The plan was to have over 500,000 units packed into the trailer. A far cry from "Bobby doing a few thousand between shows" - I couldn't believe we were going to carry more than half a million units. Mel is amazing.

The good part was that by schedule we'd have 14 or 15 days before the next departure to get the trailer packed because all the vendors would have the stock to us in plenty time due to Mel's coordination.

The printers already had all the screens they'd need, so Mel ordered the inks and the product stock to be drop shipped to the printer rather than having us play middleman. She even ordered the rolls of plastic that they'd need to do our wrapping.

While she was in ordering mode, she calculated the number of new screens we'd need over the next few shows. She contacted the printing vendors to find out what sizes, mesh and types would work best for them in their machines.

Using all that collected data, she ordered screens and the special emulsion we used and had it delivered to the shop here at the condo. We use a special emulsion on our farmed screens so that the printer can get close to 50,000 prints from a screen before it needs to be recovered and redone. Hailey was an expert at screen recovery, emulsion application then printing the screens. The girl is an incredibly quick study.

Our vendors knew to let Mel know when the screens were wearing so that we could make and ship replacements. Screens don't last forever and as I said, Hailey was in charge of re-supplying the vendors with replacements or any new designs. She applied the emulsions in such a way that getting the maximum results from our printers was the rule and not the exception.

A couple of the printers lamented to me one day that they wished all of their clients were so diligent in supplying what was needed. I just told them I was too picky to leave it to chance, and not one of the vendors ever took that as an affront.

When there was a new design that Hailey was shipping screens for, she'd let Mel know so that it could be added to the Database and then added to an order. This way Mel could ensure there was enough stock at the vendors shop to support the new design, and if not, she could order the appropriate blanks and get them shipped to the printer. Teamwork wins again.

Drop shipping the blanks saved three to four days of processing and the printers were staged and ready when the jobs hit their back door. They appreciated the coordination, and we appreciated the fast turnaround. They also appreciated immediate payment, which was also part of Mel's overall system.

I never wanted any of my vendors waiting for my money; it wasn't fair to their business. There was no "net 30" in our system. It was 25% deposit and the balance when we received the product. If the vendor was set up for electronic fund transfer type payments, Mel had it done within a few hours of receipt - day or night. Data doesn't hold normal office hours.

Mel kept the printers advised on ship schedules and tracked the entire product to their back door. They knew when it would arrive, how much there would be and in how many packages.

With all of that we still made the next shows easily on time, totally restocked and ready to do the specials that were left over when we got there. It was being run more like a business and it was still a kick in the ass for me.

I was still doing things pretty much as usual, but the business side was now organized and ready for action. We were all having a blast, the girls were getting an education and we enjoyed each other's company immensely.

I know I haven't mentioned it much, but Sandy was part and parcel to our antics at the rest of the LA shows. She was unable to arrange to do the Las Vegas show with us - this year. Just because she doesn't get much mention here lately, doesn't mean she's not an integral part of our menagerie's shenanigans.

I was going to be pretty bummed out when Jessi left us to return to school. I'd already talked to Liz about accelerating her last classes so that she could start going to college early next year.

We'd already worked through Mel's finals so even working the shows, she was able to challenge and pass a years worth of high school in about six weeks. I was so proud of her when she finished the last test that we all took a day away from the third LA show to celebrate. Our booth was closed on the Wednesday with the approval of the promoters and we all had a "Mel's day".

I told Jess that we'd have the same kind of celebration when she had finished her last tests and was ready to start her classes at the local college. I also told her that I was confident that her grades would come up with the test scores. I didn't know, she was already making great progress, but had sworn Mel and Hail to secrecy.

She smiled at me nervously and said, "I'll do the best I can Bobby."

"I know honey. In case you didn't already know it, all the rest of us are behind you 100%, so if you need any help don't hesitate to ask."

She nodded her head, "I know and I really appreciate it."

So a couple days later I finally noticed that Jessi had her nose in some books when we got back to the room and it continued through the rest of the shows as well as most of the time in between. What I didn't know was that she was already more than half way through her challenges. She had only the last semester of her senior year left to do.

I also didn't know that Liz had set it up so that she was taking her tests online, and they were graded immediately so she knew the outcome right away so she'd just move on to the next one.

Seems there was a lot of shit going on that I wasn't aware of. "Need to know", so I guess it's my fault because I'd impressed that on all three of the young women.

Getting close to the end of the Las Vegas show, Jess hadn't had her face out of the books or the laptop during any of our free time for a couple months now, mid show three to be precise.

Mel mentioned something about it briefly, but we knew not to disturb her and just did our thing, sometimes leaving Jess in the room while we went out to do something.

She did take a few evenings to keep her place on the schedule and it helped her to relax. I only assumed she was working on a few classes, but had no idea what she was really up to. I just knew she seemed really uptight and stressed at times but wouldn't come to me for help.

Yeah, it bothered me, but I had also told her that she could come to me. The few times I made comment, she just smiled and said she was okay, so I had to let it pass. I wasn't going to force myself on whatever it was she was doing. I just made sure she understood that I was always available for help.

By the end of the Las Vegas show Jessi was four months along and definitely starting to show her condition, she just glowed. A pregnant woman is one of life's most beautiful things I've ever seen. There seems to be such a sense of contentment, it's uncanny.

I thought the changing hormones were part of her emotional turmoil.

How wrong I was!

So it was that the last Friday of the 16-day Las Vegas run, which was also the last show of the summer show season, Jess came into the room late in the evening just beaming. We all looked up at her with questioning looks. Hailey's sparkling eyes betrayed something, but I didn't know what it was.

From behind her back Jessi pulled out a large Fed Ex cardboard envelope and handed it to me.

I looked up at her questioning, "Jess this has your name and address on it, why are you giving it to me?"

With a gleam in her eyes she said softly, "Open it Bobby."

I pulled the cardboard zipper and pulled out the papers that were inside and when I saw what it was, I looked up at Jess with a huge smile and said, "Congratulations Jessica. Good job, Sweetie. You don't know how proud this makes me. I am so proud of your accomplishment. Wow!"

It was her High School Diploma. Not a GED, Liz had made sure that if she completed the required classes, that her school would award the Diploma. She was also given the option of participating in the ceremony that following June.

She had done almost the same thing Mel had done, in about the same amount of time. She had successfully challenged her entire senior year of high school. The second sheet was her registration for classes at her local community college where she was signed up for 16 units.

I looked up at her, she was bubbling over with pride, and as Mel, and Hailey looked at the papers they jumped up to hug Jess and give her their congratulations as well.

Hailey spent a little more time with Jess, and their kiss was long and meaningful.

When their kiss was finished they held hands and smiled at Mel and me. Without a word, they walked to one bedroom area and closed the door behind them. It wasn't latched shut, but it was obvious they wanted some private time together.

I looked at Mel who had a big smile and asked, "Did you know about this?"

Mel looked at me with her smile and nodded, "Hail helped Jess through a bunch of her classes and they got very close."

I nodded with a grin, "Apparently."

"Bobby, that piece of paper means more to Jess than anything right now. She did this whole thing for you. For herself as well, but it was for you that she busted her ass to get it done before we finished the season."

I gave Mel a shocked look, "You knew this was going on?"

Mel nodded, "Yup. Hail and I promised to keep it to ourselves. If you'd have found out it would have been ok, but she wanted more than anything else to surprise you so that you'd be proud of her."

"Oh Mel, I can't tell you how proud of her I am. Well, I don't need to tell you; I'm just as proud of you."

"I know Bobby, but make sure you let her know ... often!"

"I'm proud of all of you Mel. You did the same thing earlier in the summer.

"Bobby, I didn't have to work as hard as Jessi did. This stuff is easy for me; it's not for Jess. Hell, even challenging the courses wasn't all that challenging for me. Jessi worked her ass off!

"This means an awful lot to her, and whether you have sensed it or not you have done wonders for her self-image. You have allowed her to excel and grow where she hadn't previously had any incentive. She had no reason or purpose in school."

After a short pause Mel continued, "She's never been the best student though she's always been super smart. Shit, in some things she's a lot smarter than Hail and me!