It was Saturday morning and the shop was closed, officially, although Chase was there working. Lloyd was at home with me, but in his office, just like any other morning, checking his emails, paypal, text messages, voicemail and facebook page.
I was thinking about the yard. The lawn needs to be fertilized, aerated, and over-seeded. We could go to Home Depot or Lowes and buy what we need and spend a little time out there. Lloyd had a different plan. Seeing the men working on the yard across the street, he walked over there and asked if they could do our yard next. They could, so he came back and pronounced that he had taken care of the yard, so we would be free to go to Baltimore to pick up a One More Time CD jukebox that a seller was quite anxious to be paid for.
"Ok," I thought, "we are going to Baltimore today. Maybe we can find something fun to do there after we pick up this jukebox." Lloyd already had the thing sold before he ever left home to go get it. Hmmm... I would rather be taking our grandchildren to the Maryland Science Center or the Baltimore Aquarium, but this is how the bills get paid, so....
I could not leave until the afternoon. We rely on caregivers to help with my daughter and the young woman who was scheduled to come in had gone into labor and was having her first baby. The second shift of help was not scheduled to arrive until 12:30pm, so I had to be at home. The seller was nervous, not sure he was getting as much as his machine was worth, so he repeatedly called Lloyd about coming to pick up his jukebox. Lloyd was starting to worry that the machine would get away from him, so he called his son and purchasing manager, Ben, to see if he would go pick up the machine. Ben agreed and we met him at the shop in Hagerstown to give him a check for the purchase. Lloyd's daughter (and new Marketing Director), Amanda, was there when we arrived. She was in the mood to go antiquing. I guess it runs in the family!
She joined us in our truck, and off we went to explore some local antique stores, hoping to find a bargain that could be resold.
Success! Lloyd found a great neon sign for refrigerators and an advertising clock. Meanwhile, Ben was pulling the One-More-Time out of a mobile home, and barely squeezing it through the door of the place. Later, He met up with the three of us in downtown Frederick, MD where we enjoyed a fabulous dinner at The Tasting Room, our favorite place to dine in Frederick. I used to tell Lloyd and Ben to quit talking business when we were visiting with Amanda, but now that she is part of the business, she is as into it as the other two.
I told Lloyd that there is more to life than jukeboxes. He said, "Yes! There are pinballs, video games, and slot machines too!" "Life needs balance," I said. He has heard that before, more than a few times. He says I don't get it, that I'm not a collector. I have a dozen antique purses! He says that doesn't count because I'm not obsessed. Well, that is true. I'm not.
On our way back to the truck, we passed a band playing on the street, their version of "Pink Cadillac", and we stopped to dance on the sidewalk for a few minutes before heading home. Although we didn't go to the Science Center or work on the yard, it was a pretty good day anyway.
I was thinking about the yard. The lawn needs to be fertilized, aerated, and over-seeded. We could go to Home Depot or Lowes and buy what we need and spend a little time out there. Lloyd had a different plan. Seeing the men working on the yard across the street, he walked over there and asked if they could do our yard next. They could, so he came back and pronounced that he had taken care of the yard, so we would be free to go to Baltimore to pick up a One More Time CD jukebox that a seller was quite anxious to be paid for.
"Ok," I thought, "we are going to Baltimore today. Maybe we can find something fun to do there after we pick up this jukebox." Lloyd already had the thing sold before he ever left home to go get it. Hmmm... I would rather be taking our grandchildren to the Maryland Science Center or the Baltimore Aquarium, but this is how the bills get paid, so....
I could not leave until the afternoon. We rely on caregivers to help with my daughter and the young woman who was scheduled to come in had gone into labor and was having her first baby. The second shift of help was not scheduled to arrive until 12:30pm, so I had to be at home. The seller was nervous, not sure he was getting as much as his machine was worth, so he repeatedly called Lloyd about coming to pick up his jukebox. Lloyd was starting to worry that the machine would get away from him, so he called his son and purchasing manager, Ben, to see if he would go pick up the machine. Ben agreed and we met him at the shop in Hagerstown to give him a check for the purchase. Lloyd's daughter (and new Marketing Director), Amanda, was there when we arrived. She was in the mood to go antiquing. I guess it runs in the family!
She joined us in our truck, and off we went to explore some local antique stores, hoping to find a bargain that could be resold.
Success! Lloyd found a great neon sign for refrigerators and an advertising clock. Meanwhile, Ben was pulling the One-More-Time out of a mobile home, and barely squeezing it through the door of the place. Later, He met up with the three of us in downtown Frederick, MD where we enjoyed a fabulous dinner at The Tasting Room, our favorite place to dine in Frederick. I used to tell Lloyd and Ben to quit talking business when we were visiting with Amanda, but now that she is part of the business, she is as into it as the other two.
On our way back to the truck, we passed a band playing on the street, their version of "Pink Cadillac", and we stopped to dance on the sidewalk for a few minutes before heading home. Although we didn't go to the Science Center or work on the yard, it was a pretty good day anyway.
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