The Ladies

[d_marsh]

DISTANCE!!

How does it go, curiosity killed the cat?

 

[Weedygarden]

I was thinking that when you got married last week, that would be the end of the book or the screenplay, but I had been thinking that there is also something anti-climatic in stories. Yes, whatever happened to Dentist and his now ex or to be ex have a piece to add. She, like others have done, could have drained him financially, left him with debt, and drove off into the sunset with a new luxury vehicle, and maybe an expensive home, all at his expense. Karma has bit him, and may bite her eventually as well.

I wonder if her name is still on the dental business and if they are still working together. She has greatly damaged him in more ways than one.

 

[d_marsh]

Agreed. I really want the details and may have to go into spy mode and do some surveillance / sleuthing. The lady doesn't seem to care enough to reach out, she has thoroughly moved on. The daughter however has a spark of interest. I wonder if she will respond to his message?

Today the ladies are dragging me to go see pops and have an early Thanksgiving. The retirement center he lives in is having a turkey meal both today and tomorrow for residents and their families, although they opted to go today and ruin date night in the process. They both seem to be excited about going for reasons I don't understand. The girl is even bringing a framed photo of herself, as requested by pops, and keeps joking that she's going to call him grand-pops.

I also just found out the lady called him to let him know we were married last weekend and apparently they have talked like 3 times since we went to see him last. Makes sense that she would somehow instantly have a better relationship than I have with him. I guess he was pretty positive on the phone and congratulated her and welcomed her to "the family", when she said she had taken our last name as well he seemed downright happy. Apparently it takes a pretty woman to soften the otherwise surly Marsh men. She called him again last night to confirm our plans to come up there and to remind him to be on his best behavior with the girl. He agreed and said he would be nothing but a proper gentlemen. We'll see if that holds true.

 

[Weedygarden]

I also just found out the lady called him to let him know we were married last weekend and apparently they have talked like 3 times since we went to see him last. Makes sense that she would somehow instantly have a better relationship than I have with him. I guess he was pretty positive on the phone and congratulated her and welcomed her to "the family", when she said she had taken our last name as well he seemed downright happy. Apparently it takes a pretty woman to soften the otherwise surly Marsh men. She called him again last night to confirm our plans to come up there and to remind him to be on his best behavior with the girl. He agreed and said he would be nothing but a proper gentlemen. We'll see if that holds true.

This is so special! Sometimes it does take certain people to forge better relationships.

 

[d_marsh]

Chapter 1123:

After some time in the Audi, thanks to heavier than expected traffic, we arrived at pops. The girl asked a ton of questions in the car and seemed excited to meet him and he has had made it pretty clear that he was excited to meet her, something I didn’t really understand. We gathered up the goods the lady just had to stop to buy for pops before she texted him that we had arrived. He was waiting for us with the door wide open. He was clean, shaven and dressed up in a cardigan and slacks and the lady went straight in for a hug. She introduced the girl and he got a hug from her too. As I put some stuff away and stacked other items on the counter, pops came over and congratulated me on getting married and thanked me for the food, bourbon and other items that apparently were not available from the grocery store that delivers to him. It was obvious that he was indeed planning on being the proper gentlemen that he promised he would be.

The apartment was even cleaner than during our last visit and we were all invited into the living room to visit for a while. There was a lot of generic conversation before the lady told him all about last Thursday’s event. He said it sounded awesome, but also made a few cracks about me being a “smooth operator” and joking that he thought the lady was way too smart to fall for it. He also told her she “must be a very special woman to get an old war monger to trade in his rifle for a wedding ring”. The lady of course received the compliment and then commented how fortunate she was to have found a man like me. “Yeah, I suppose so” was his response.

Eventually pops turned the conversation to the daughter and asked her a bunch of questions, which she happily answered. She presented him with the framed photo of herself which he seemed overjoyed about before placing it on the end table next to his chair where he could see it and so could anyone who came to visit. The girl told him she was going to call him grand-pops, which he loved. Then he presented her a small redish wooden box and told her to open it. Inside was a ring that he referred to as “black hills gold”. It was yellow gold with gold vines, light pink and light green “leaves”, was colored black in between the vines/leaves, and featured a round brilliant diamond in the middle. It was clearly older, different and very shiny like it had been recently cleaned and polished. He told her it was the ring he presented my biological egg donor when he asked her to marry him. She said she really liked it and put it on her index finger even though it was a touch loose. He told her she could keep it, sell it, trade it in, melt it down, or just pull the diamond out of it. She said “no way, I’m keeping it!” thanked him a couple times and gave him another hug. He let his forced good behavior slip for just a moment when he said “I’ll be dead soon enough and this way I don’t have to worry about some ******* EMT stealing it” but it was pretty obvious that it meant something to him and he wanted to pass it on to someone who would appreciate it and perhaps think of him when she looked at it.

We all walked over the community center about 2 hours before we normally eat and we were seated at a large round table with a few extra chairs we didn’t need. The room was about 2/3rds full of people, a mixture of residence and people who came to visit. There was a woman playing piano softly and the place was decorated in a Thanksgiving motif. The meal was buffet style but there were also a few employees who would make up plates for those who couldn’t or didn’t want to go through the line and waiters/waitresses who provided a variety of beverages, filled water glasses and bussed tables. The food wasn’t bad, nothing was instant or fake, and there was even a ‘chef’ who sliced turkey roast at the end of the buffet and placed it on your plate. Pops said it was on par with most meals but he preferred just eating alone in his apartment. Once we finished eating and the table cleared they started to bring around push carts with desserts. You had your choice of pumpkin pie, apple pie or cheesecake, with whipped cream or caramel drizzle.

After dessert pops drug the girl from table to table introducing her to a number of ladies in their 60’s & 70’s, all of whom I presume he was chasing or had already caught. Eventually they returned and a few people came over to our table to meet pops’ family. I couldn’t help but feel like he announced we were coming to his fellow retirement complex friends and associates. He even introduced me “and my wife” to a few people. It was like he enjoyed saying “wife” in front of me. I found out later when he was introducing the girl to people he referred to her as his “new granddaughter”. Of course she liked it and was very pleasant and friendly to everyone.

Eventually we returned to the apartment and I performed a few tasks for him while he continued to visit with the ladies. He told the lady he was sorry he didn’t have a gift for her from “the boy’s mother” but she had taken everything of value when she “walked out on us”. Then he laughed and said “well, I guess you did get one thing from her” before pointing in my direction. She laughed and said she was very happy with her “handsome gift”. The conversation then rolled into the lady talking about her father and his situation; to which pops expressed sympathy over and said “old *******s like us can be a real pain in the ***”. That rang true in my mind. I missed the next 15 minutes or so as I was out of earshot performing more tasks, but I am sure I didn’t really miss anything important.

When it was time to go pops got another round of hugs and a few kisses before he invited us to come back in 3-4 weeks to celebrate Christmas. The lady gave me a look that said “just be nice” before she responded with “we would love to”. He seemed happy and said “good, send me your Christmas lists” then chuckled, looked at me and said “except you, I gave you life so we’re square”. I started to make a sarcastic comment but the lady squeezed my hand firmly so I just kept my comment to myself. He thanked her again for picking up the goods we delivered before we did the whole “how much do I owe you” dance after which he accepted our gift and said thank you again. Then the girl took a selfie with him and said she would only share it with friends before he slipped a $100 bill into her pocket and winked at her. This was the same man who wouldn’t give me $5 to go on a field trip in the 7th grade. Anyway after that we were off.

Back in the Audi the girl said “So that’s what it’s like to have a sober grandfather” and commented that he wasn’t near as foul or grumpy as I described him. The lady said that he was on his best behavior because of her presence and she said “oh, then I guess I better come with every time”. The ladies talked about the ring and asked me about it, but I had never seen it and didn’t know it even existed until that day. The girl asked if it bothered me if she wore it and I said “not in the least”. The lady announced she had fun and that we would have to make a point of coming up at least once a month. I could feel her squeeze my hand again when she made that comment. I just focused on driving and never said another word about it. Fortunately the conversation turned to other topics.

I think it’s fair to point out that was the least interesting and least confrontational visit I have had with pops that I can remember. He held it together better than I thought he could/would and seemed to be very friendly with the lady and even more so with the girl. I can only presume he was missing something from his life that the two of them provide. Meanwhile the lady seems dead set in him being part of our ‘family unit’.

 

[Weedygarden]

Inside was a ring that he referred to as “black hills gold”. It was yellow gold with gold vines, light pink and light green “leaves”, was colored black in between the vines/leaves, and featured a round brilliant diamond in the middle.

Is there a South Dakota connection in your family?

South Dakotans know all about Black Hills gold. I have a BH gold cross necklace pendant. Daughter bought it for me after my uncle closed his jewelry store in SD and all of his children, grandchildren and great grandchildren got to pick a piece of BH jewelry from his store collection. He had given daughter a ring many years ago, but I never got anything from his store. I told daughter how sad I was not to get a piece of BH gold jewelry from his store, because he was such a special person to us. He and his wife came to see us shortly after I bought my house. He was a corny guy, and continued to go to work in his store every day until he was around 90 years old. Daughter adored him. So she bought me the cross a couple years ago for Christmas. Daughter has some BH gold jewelry that her grandmother gave her.

 

[Snowman]

Chapter 1123:

After some time in the Audi, thanks to heavier than expected traffic, we arrived at pops. The girl asked a ton of questions in the car and seemed excited to meet him and he has had made it pretty clear that he was excited to meet her, something I didn’t really understand. We gathered up the goods the lady just had to stop to buy for pops before she texted him that we had arrived. He was waiting for us with the door wide open. He was clean, shaven and dressed up in a cardigan and slacks and the lady went straight in for a hug. She introduced the girl and he got a hug from her too. As I put some stuff away and stacked other items on the counter, pops came over and congratulated me on getting married and thanked me for the food, bourbon and other items that apparently were not available from the grocery store that delivers to him. It was obvious that he was indeed planning on being the proper gentlemen that he promised he would be.

The apartment was even cleaner than during our last visit and we were all invited into the living room to visit for a while. There was a lot of generic conversation before the lady told him all about last Thursday’s event. He said it sounded awesome, but also made a few cracks about me being a “smooth operator” and joking that he thought the lady was way too smart to fall for it. He also told her she “must be a very special woman to get an old war monger to trade in his rifle for a wedding ring”. The lady of course received the compliment and then commented how fortunate she was to have found a man like me. “Yeah, I suppose so” was his response.

Eventually pops turned the conversation to the daughter and asked her a bunch of questions, which she happily answered. She presented him with the framed photo of herself which he seemed overjoyed about before placing it on the end table next to his chair where he could see it and so could anyone who came to visit. The girl told him she was going to call him grand-pops, which he loved. Then he presented her a small redish wooden box and told her to open it. Inside was a ring that he referred to as “black hills gold”. It was yellow gold with gold vines, light pink and light green “leaves”, was colored black in between the vines/leaves, and featured a round brilliant diamond in the middle. It was clearly older, different and very shiny like it had been recently cleaned and polished. He told her it was the ring he presented my biological egg donor when he asked her to marry him. She said she really liked it and put it on her index finger even though it was a touch loose. He told her she could keep it, sell it, trade it in, melt it down, or just pull the diamond out of it. She said “no way, I’m keeping it!” thanked him a couple times and gave him another hug. He let his forced good behavior slip for just a moment when he said “I’ll be dead soon enough and this way I don’t have to worry about some ******* EMT stealing it” but it was pretty obvious that it meant something to him and he wanted to pass it on to someone who would appreciate it and perhaps think of him when she looked at it.

We all walked over the community center about 2 hours before we normally eat and we were seated at a large round table with a few extra chairs we didn’t need. The room was about 2/3rds full of people, a mixture of residence and people who came to visit. There was a woman playing piano softly and the place was decorated in a Thanksgiving motif. The meal was buffet style but there were also a few employees who would make up plates for those who couldn’t or didn’t want to go through the line and waiters/waitresses who provided a variety of beverages, filled water glasses and bussed tables. The food wasn’t bad, nothing was instant or fake, and there was even a ‘chef’ who sliced turkey roast at the end of the buffet and placed it on your plate. Pops said it was on par with most meals but he preferred just eating alone in his apartment. Once we finished eating and the table cleared they started to bring around push carts with desserts. You had your choice of pumpkin pie, apple pie or cheesecake, with whipped cream or caramel drizzle.

After dessert pops drug the girl from table to table introducing her to a number of ladies in their 60’s & 70’s, all of whom I presume he was chasing or had already caught. Eventually they returned and a few people came over to our table to meet pops’ family. I couldn’t help but feel like he announced we were coming to his fellow retirement complex friends and associates. He even introduced me “and my wife” to a few people. It was like he enjoyed saying “wife” in front of me. I found out later when he was introducing the girl to people he referred to her as his “new granddaughter”. Of course she liked it and was very pleasant and friendly to everyone.

Eventually we returned to the apartment and I performed a few tasks for him while he continued to visit with the ladies. He told the lady he was sorry he didn’t have a gift for her from “the boy’s mother” but she had taken everything of value when she “walked out on us”. Then he laughed and said “well, I guess you did get one thing from her” before pointing in my direction. She laughed and said she was very happy with her “handsome gift”. The conversation then rolled into the lady talking about her father and his situation; to which pops expressed sympathy over and said “old *******s like us can be a real pain in the ***”. That rang true in my mind. I missed the next 15 minutes or so as I was out of earshot performing more tasks, but I am sure I didn’t really miss anything important.

When it was time to go pops got another round of hugs and a few kisses before he invited us to come back in 3-4 weeks to celebrate Christmas. The lady gave me a look that said “just be nice” before she responded with “we would love to”. He seemed happy and said “good, send me your Christmas lists” then chuckled, looked at me and said “except you, I gave you life so we’re square”. I started to make a sarcastic comment but the lady squeezed my hand firmly so I just kept my comment to myself. He thanked her again for picking up the goods we delivered before we did the whole “how much do I owe you” dance after which he accepted our gift and said thank you again. Then the girl took a selfie with him and said she would only share it with friends before he slipped a $100 bill into her pocket and winked at her. This was the same man who wouldn’t give me $5 to go on a field trip in the 7th grade. Anyway after that we were off.

Back in the Audi the girl said “So that’s what it’s like to have a sober grandfather” and commented that he wasn’t near as foul or grumpy as I described him. The lady said that he was on his best behavior because of her presence and she said “oh, then I guess I better come with every time”. The ladies talked about the ring and asked me about it, but I had never seen it and didn’t know it even existed until that day. The girl asked if it bothered me if she wore it and I said “not in the least”. The lady announced she had fun and that we would have to make a point of coming up at least once a month. I could feel her squeeze my hand again when she made that comment. I just focused on driving and never said another word about it. Fortunately the conversation turned to other topics.

I think it’s fair to point out that was the least interesting and least confrontational visit I have had with pops that I can remember. He held it together better than I thought he could/would and seemed to be very friendly with the lady and even more so with the girl. I can only presume he was missing something from his life that the two of them provide. Meanwhile the lady seems dead set in him being part of our ‘family unit’.

 

[d_marsh]

Is there a South Dakota connection in your family?

South Dakotans know all about Black Hills gold.

Not that I know of. I didn't even draw the comparison from black hills gold to black hills South Dakota until I read your post. Makes sense though, they did pull a lot of gold out of there are one time I believe. It's not that far away from here and I know a lot of people travel there for Sturgis, Deadwood and to see Mount Rushmore. Pops doesn't talk much about the egg donor but perhaps they went there and that's where the ring came from. Or maybe it was popular all over the region back in the 70's and he just got it here.