Holy, crap! I hadn't posted since the first.

I do not understand why people don't just read.

"What's this warning mean?"

"What's it say?"

"I don't know; I didn't read it."


...

She was going to be flying out to Chicago the next morning and she wanted to take some of our better marketing materials with her. The notice she afforded me was mere hours when she could have giving me days.

We print a lot of the better pieces on an as needed basis and only a couple at a time; because some pieces are costly to produce and, in the business of real estate, things like prices and amenities can change frequently.

I had just handed her the last of the pieces at a half hour until midnight. She was telling me how good she felt about the materials and that the large development company would be impressed with it.

I was mostly silent. It's a huge deal which could gross the company six million dollars. I would like to get excited about six million dollars but I don't because of that one small word - gross.

She goes on to mention that by the end of September we should gross $200,000 from one project and then by the end of the year another $500,000 from a different project. I still offered no reaction. I've heard promises of money before; sometimes they happen and other times they don't and still other times they happen but then the money gets swallowed up by expenses.

She also mentioned a couple other things that should produce another quarter of a million dollars. I tried to look a little enthused but I'm pretty certain I failed at it.

There are still no guaranties; things are still just talk, even with signed contracts.

When she called me from Chicago, she let me know that the deal was done and that things went very well and that folks wanted to meet the "creative genius."

I think I might be dead inside because I wasn't the least bit excited at a multi million dollar deal and praise from well respected and successful people in the business.

...


They come in every once in awhile, never before four o'clock. They always sit at a table. They always get margaritas.

"Two margaritas, please."

"What?"

"Two margaritas, that's what those old ladies standing around looking for a table are going to get."

"Oh, your girlfriends are here?" she said while straining he neck a little to find were they were. When she found then she said "No, that's not them."

"Yes it is."

"I think you're wrong."

The ladies finally settled on table eleven even though they would have preferred something further from the bar. I turned to the waitress and said that I would pay for the two margaritas if that was what their order was going to be.

The bartender and I watched as the waitress talked to the ladies. She turned and smiled and when she out of ear shot she said "It looks like Timmy is buying two margaritas." I turned to the bartender and smiled and once she stopped rolling her eyes, she said "Maybe, this time you'll get lucky."

I don't know how old they are but one of them has told me that they are retired. My guess is that they have been retired for a long time.

They will spend the day shopping and then go for drinks. More than once, I have sent margaritas over to them. One usually will wave a thank you and then later the other one will walk over to say thanks. It's always the same one that walks over.

She again told me that she was retired. I said that it was good to see them, commended her on her faithful patronage and that I was also a fan of margaritas.

It was slightly awkward, for me anyway.