What Do I Do Now, Mom?
by: E Walk
(© 2009-2011 by the Author)
 

The author retains all rights. No reproductions are allowed without the author's consent. Comments are appreciated at...

Chapter 59 

Successful Open House

When I woke up on Saturday morning, I heard someone moving about.  I decided to go help the guys with the morning chores.  I had the milking well underway before the gang surfaced. Billy looked at me and scolded, “Dad, we can take care of our chores.  You need to get ready for the open house, tomorrow.”

“Billy, lest you forget, it was your grandmother’s idea to have the open house.  I have no idea what she has in mind.  I’m guessing that she’ll be making her grand appearance before too long.”

When I went into the house, someone was taking a shower.  Since I had been with four of the five oldest and Randy was standing looking at the logo on the van with Tim and Witt.  That left only one person, since the three youngest couldn’t manipulate the shower controls by themselves yet.

Wade and I started to fix breakfast, we were fixing small ham and cheese omelets since one was all the three littlest would be able eat.  We made enough so the older people could have two omelets if they so chose.

Nearly everyone was assembled, when Michael appeared, “Mr. Adler, I used some more of the special shampoo and soap.  When I woke up this morning, I still had some unwanted guests in bed with me.  Is there anyway to clean the sheets to get rid of them?”

“Michael, sit down and eat breakfast, we’ll take care of your little friends after we eat.”

“But, I only have this towel wrapped around me.  What if someone should come to visit?”

“Who would be coming to visit us at this ungodly hour of the morning?”

We had just settled down to consume our meal when we heard the sound of a car stopping in front of the house.  Billy looked at me, “Dad, it sounds as if your parents have arrived.  I wonder what Grandmother is planning now.”

The door opened, and lo and behold, not only were my parents, but also Dr. Hubbard were standing there.

Dr. Hubbard started the dialogue, “The Adlers took me to breakfast.  We decided to come help you get ready for tomorrow’s open house.  Michael, how many clothes did you bring with you?

“I only brought the clothes I was wearing, because I wore the same thing every day back in Chicago.”

Mother asked, “Michael, do you have clothes in Chicago or do we need to get you some new threads?”

“I haven’t bought many new threads, as you call them, since mother died. I used what little money, Dad would give, me to buy cigarettes and food.  It took a lot of money to keep the hog gassed so I could party with the crowd.”

Bobby looked totally confused, “Why would you need to keep a pig gassed so you could do things?”

Dr. Hubbard was laughing, “Bobby, what Michael was saying is that he used his money to put fuel in his motorcycle.  Michael, where is your mother’s car?”

“You mean my car don’t you.  Dad gave it to me since it wasn’t flashy enough to impress his la-ti-da friends.  I didn’t drive it very much either, because it is a plain old black car.  It stays pretty much in the garage.”

Witt asked, “What kind of car do you have?”

“It a black 2009 Toyota Camry.”

“What the kids around here would give for such wheels.  What else do you have in Chicago, if you have a motorcycle and car?  The next thing that you’ll be telling us is that you have semi-truck.”

Michael frowned, “I don’t have a semi but have a drum set that cost me a pretty penny.”

Wiley asked, “What’s a drum set?”

Michael looked around for help.  Mother came to the rescue, “Wiley, a drum set is a group of drums and other instruments set up together.  One person can play all of them at the same time.”

Bobby asked, “If the person is playing all the instruments at the same time, how can he walk?”

Michael answered, “Bobby, there is no way that you can move when you’re playing a complete drum set.  People play them for dances, concerts or for fun.”

Walt asked, “Are you any good on the drums?”

“We had a small band and did several gigs.  People said we were really good, but we started to drink in between our sets and no one would hire us.”

Willy was really confused, “Why would you hide between your drums to drink?”

Walt answered, “Michael wasn’t talking about hiding behind the drums.  He was talking about going someplace and taking a drink after they played so many songs.   I think we need to get these dishes done and see what the Grandparents want us to do for tomorrow.”

Michael hesitated, “Guys, remember I’m not dressed.  I need to go get some clothes on.”

“Michael, I’m an old lady.  You probably don’t have anything that I’ve never seen before,  “Leon, Bill, Hank and Randy, let’s go out so we can plan what needs to be done to get ready for tomorrow while the boys do the cleanup and Michael gets dressed.”

When we were out of hearing range, Mother frowned, “Bill, I didn’t see a teenager with a problem.  I think all he needs is some guidance.  Perhaps Hank and Randy can take him in.”

Randy shook his head vehemently, “Mother, I don’t think that Michael is ready to be assimilated into a family where he isn’t going to be the center of attention.  Remember, there are six or seven, if you include Tim, other young males who will live here and require equal time and attention.”

Dr. Hubbard agreed, “If we tried to force a new life on Michael, he would probably rebel.  There is already a difference from when he arrived last night.  Any drastic changes need to be initiated by him.”

Mother must have stayed up all night drawing plans for the open house.  She had an area set aside for the petting zoo and riding area.  The produce stand was relocated, in case there were a lot of vehicles, but it was still easily accessible.  She pulled the first frog out her bag, “The refreshment stand will be located at the picnic table under the big oak tree.”

Witt asked, “What are we serving for refreshments?”

“We’ll have cups and bags that cost a nickel each and the guest can have as many refills of lemonade and pop corn as they want, but they have to keep their same containers.”

Michael had returned and piped in, “That sounds like something I might be able to handle.  Will someone take me to get some clothes that fit me, please?”

Dr. Hubbard looked around, “Leon, if you could drive us to someplace to buy clothes, perhaps Walt can go with us, since I have no idea what teenagers wear in Nebraska.”

By the time the parents left at three o’clock, there were a lot of pooped young people, as well as the adults in the area, and we still needed to do the chores.  I came up with a brainstorm, “Guys, you go swim at the swimming hole while Dad Randy and I take care of the chores.”

Michael piped up, “Since I don’t know how to swim, I’ll stay here and help your Dads.  They‘ll have to show me what to do, though.”

Dr. Hubbard nodded, “I’ll help your dads.”

By the time the guys returned, the chores were almost done, and they disappeared into the house on command.  Fortunately, someone had started a humongous casserole in the roaster oven.  By the time everyone was present and accounted for, dinner was magically ready.  Dr. Hubbard, Randy and I watched as Michael brought our plates.”

What a difference a day makes.

I announced, “We’ll need to go to early church to make sure we’re here when people start arriving for the open house, if any do.  Dad Randy has a Church school class to teach.  We may have to make our own sandwiches, but we can’t mess up the kitchen because that's one of the things people will be interested in looking at.  Dr. Hubbard, will you be going to church with us?”

“No thanks, your parents asked me to breakfast, again.  They are planning to go to the early service.  They didn’t say anything about going to church school class.  I’ll be at their mercy.  Tell you what, don’t worry about lunch.  We’ll stop and get enough Subway sandwiches to make sure that nobody starves.”

As we were eating breakfast, Michael asked, “Guys, do I have to go to church.  I can’t remember how long it’s been since I’ve been to church.”

Witt answered, “Mike, it’s a good way to meet people.”

“But they’ll all be dressed in their best clothes.”

Walt answered, “Mikey, try it.  You might like it.  You don’t have to go back again if you don’t want to.  I can introduce you to some of other musicians.”

We did go to church, and Michael went with us.  He was amazed at how informal the people were dressed.  When we arrived at home, Michael commented, “It sure would be easier if I had my car here.  It’s a zoo trying to get everyone organized to go to the some place at the same time.”

I reminded everyone, “Sandwiches will be coming.  Make sure that you leave your rooms so that people don’t see anything that you don’t want them to see.”

Dad, Mother and Dr. Hubbard pulled in with a big sack of sandwiches and chips.  They also had six gallons of lemonade and two large containers of popcorn. 

Dad looked around, “Guys, everything looks fine.  Witt and Randy, you need to be at the other house to answer questions, Hank, you need to be available here, since you’re the owner.  Since everyone else has a job, I guess I will be the person who transports people between farms.  Bill, it’s too bad you can't drive.”

“They took my license from me because I’ve lost most of my peripheral vision.  I’d be afraid to drive for fear of hitting someone.  I’ll just meander around the area and make sure the guys’ operations are going as planned.  Meg can be the official greeter.”

It was a good thing that everyone was in place early, because visitors started to arrive a whole hour early. 

Wiley came and asked, “Daddy, is that all the people who are coming?  The guys aren’t going to have much business.”

“Wiley, it’s still early.  There are some people who always come early to see if they can get any good deals.  By two o’clock, people started to arrive in droves.  Controlling parking became difficult, since we had to keep the vehicles off the roadway. Fortunately, one of our sheriff’s officers arrived to help with traffic control.  Officer Godey did a nice job controlling the traffic flow away from the kiddy activities.

There was a big influx of families with young children at two o’clock.  Michael came and whispered, “We’re going to run out of juice, popcorn and supplies.”

I went to find Mother to find out where they had gotten the things.  When I told her what was happening, she was off like a flash.  She returned in the nick of time, because Michael had already gone through the 200 cups and nearly all of the lemonade.  Fortunately the leftovers wouldn’t go to waste. 

The last of the visitors finally left and everyone just collapsed.  The animals were put back in their pens.  Witt looked around, “We’ll do the cleanup tomorrow.  Everyone, get ready; get dressed to do the chores.”

Michael asked, “What do we do with the money we have from the things where we collected money?

 

Billy answered, “Give it Dad Hank.  We’ll count it after dinner and divvy it up.”

Mother looked at me, “Henry, go start the grill.  We’ll be right back with the things for dinner.  Randy, set out the accouterments for hot dogs and hamburgers.  Come on, Michael, you can help us.”

Randy whispered, “Your Mother is hatching another scheme.  Be careful.”

After dinner, the guys counted how much money they had made.  The concession stand made $27.80.  The horseback ride made $35.00 and the produce stand had sold over $90.00 of items.

Michael asked, “What happens to the money.”

I answered, “We’ll put the money all together and divide it equally so each of you guys will get the same amount.”

“Then what happens?”

Walt answered, “If we need money for something, we’ll keep some out.  Otherwise, we put it in the bank.”

Michael frowned, “Do you mean that you have to work all the time like you do and don’t get paid for it?”

Witt answered, “Of course we get paid for it.  We have a nice place to live and sleep, and lots of food.  If we need something our Dads or Grandparents make sure we get it, if it is something we really need.”

“You mean your Dads tell you what to do?”

“That’s not what I said.”

“What do you do for fun?”

Walt answered, “We keep ourselves too busy to worry about fun.  You already know that I’m going to be the drum major for the band and play the trumpet.  Wade is trying out for the football team, and Witt is too busy being a big shot to have time for fun.  He’s the Junior Class President.”

It didn’t take very long for everyone to get settled.  Randy was already lying in bed when I crawled in.  He pulled me close, “Score one for your Mother.  I would have never thought we would have had somewhere in the neighborhood of four hundred people go through the houses.”

“It will be interesting to see how many calls for jobs I get out of the open houses.  Heck, even Witt had several offers to buy his farm”

I rolled into Randy’s arms, “It's going to be like going on a vacation when I go back to school, tomorrow.”

I wanted to be at school to make sure that I was ready for the teachers when they arrived.  I was just a little bit nervous, since this was my first attempt as a principal.

I was surprised when Wade, Walt and Michael were all ready to go with me.  Walt had his trumpet with him.  “Why are you taking your trumpet when you’re practicing for a parade? You can’t carry it and your staff at the same time.”

“Mr. Swags told me to bring it.  He wants to try something.”

I dropped the guys off at the high school and wondered what Michael was going to do while the other guys practiced.

When I walked into the school, Gloria and Ted were already there.  Ted came up to me, “Good morning, Mr. Adler.  I have a big pot of coffee started in the media center and brought four dozen doughnuts.  I hope that’s enough.”

“Thanks, Ted.  We’ll make it be enough.  How was your vacation?”

“We had a great time.  It cost a little more than I planned, because of the price of gasoline.  We’re not the only people feeling the cost of gasoline prices.  The people on the west coast really have it bad.”     

 Ted suggested, “Why don’t we go check the outside and make sure there isn’t anything that needs to be taken care of.”

“The P.T.O. had a work day on Saturday, so it should be in pretty good shape.”

As we were walking around we heard music approaching.  The band was coming down the street behind the school.  We moved to where we could observe them pass by.

When Walt strutted by, Ted asked, “That’s one of your boys, isn’t it?”

“Yep, that’s Walt.”

We were about to go back into the building when something caught my eye.  When the bass drum was coming by, Michael was playing it and seemed to be doing very well.  I’ll have to find out what’s going on. 

To be continued...

Editor's Notes:

I am quite surprised to see how Michael has improved his attitude.

Perhaps he will finally see that he is not the center of the universe.

I have the feeling that he just might want to stay at the farm.  Henry is a pretty good influence on people of all ages and types.

Let's hope that this is a good sign and that things will get better for everyone.

I am ready for more.

Darryl AKA The Radio Rancher

Posted: 06/17/11