I am the book keeper by D.A.Sanford - HTML preview

This next one is actually one of the ones that I favor. It sits on just an ordinary shelf but one of the people mentioned in this one is actually is one that the gods pulled from the room and are watching.

A cheap two dollar ring

From childhood, I was just an ordinary gangly boy. I did have a few girls that caught my eye. Plenty of unrequited loves. Combine my awkwardness with my families status and you have absolute female repellent.

There is always those that, if you were not the exact ideal, you would never have a chance. I remember that I, because of my lack of funds, when I came into a fortune, two dollars found, I bought a fake ring. It looked like it was gold with a ruby stone.

I was in middle school and I wore it. I was naive. I just wanted to show that I was someone. Not that poor kid that had a new pair of shoes for the beginning of the school year and had those same shoes at the end but with cardboard inside to hide the hole in the sole. A girl cozied up to me and I was flattered. That did not take much. After a few days of passing notes in my homeroom desk, she asked if she could wear my ring. That was a very big step for me. A great moment.

The very next day, she threw it back at me and made a big deal about letting everyone know that I wore a cheap trinket. “Stay away from him, he is poor.” That was the end of my middle school romance.

Highschool was just as dismal. I had other interests but anytime I would talk about them, no one was interested. I knew of a lot of old abandoned dumps. Most of them were on lands that were abandoned for a long time.

The whole area that I lived in had a lot of old farms. When a car or truck was being replaced, it was just driven into the woods and left. There were the odd motometers. Those were the radiator cap that showed the temperature of the engine. Hood ornaments and such. Our basement had a hoard of odd old things.

Any part that I could remove that was not rotted I would store but I leaned towards the trim items and handles. I did not know what I was going to do with it but if it caught my eye I got it.

I will say that my parents were wonderful. I had a bench and would clean, repair and polish the treasures. Then I would wrap them up with a label. They would go on shelves that I had made with salvaged lumber.

There were a lot of things that I found. I learned how to repair pocket watches but knew that some were worth more if all I did was to clean them. One was a souvenir Hindenburg watch. There was a lot of things that I collected

By the time I went into the service, I had quite a collection. My parents assured me that they would look after my treasures. But…

While I was towards the end of my hitch, I received a letter from my father. It seems that he had a friend looking for a part for a car he was restoring, My father knew that I had the part so he took that friend and they found more parts that he was looking for.

That friend asked if he could bring a friend who dealt with these things. That friend’s jaw dropped. After looking at an assortment he made an offer, a very generous offer. It seems that most of what I had was extremely rare.

My father told me that I now had an account in the bank close to fifty thousand. He told me that, when I came home, there was a list of things he was looking for that he would buy but would like to have first choice on what I collect.

Needless to say, I left the service.

With what I had saved and what my collection got, I bought the land that had most of the old places on. Most of those old cars. Now I know more about those old cars. I went to one that I knew that that person would love. I had an old truck and trailer. I cleared the path and winched the car onto the trailer, A quick clean and tarped, I met him at his home. He immediately said that, even though the Auburn normally would be a parts car, they now are being restored.

He offered and I took another really good price. Now is the time to strike.

“How about I sell you a piece of property I own. Like to take a ride. I am sure that you will love this land.” I gave him the trailer and he got into the pickup.

Once on this seemingly ordinary wooded area, we walked. One by one the treasures came into his sight. There were the ordinary cars and trucks but there also were some that made him drool. After the tour, he offered a mil to close today. I took it and he had a firm come and guard the site.

We closed but he did say that I had a nose for this business. “Come to me first and we both will be rich.” What I did not tell him was that I know of a lot of areas like this. I do tell him that I have wanted to wander.

This is going to be a great partnership. Over a matter of a few years and quite a few special requests. We are now back into the hobby because I really did not need more money. I still found the odd things. It seems like I have a sixth sense for them.

Now the requests come with expenses upon success. I just know where to look. I never questioned how I find these things. They just seem to call me out. I just look for those old house foundations, the abandoned areas. I can see the signs. Like I found, these old farms just had places where they would dump.

Between the service and my wanderings, I no longer am that gangly child. I have become tanned and buffed. That does not mean that I am muscle bound but I do turn the heads. The thing is now I need to watch myself. There are women that try to hitch a ride with a rich farm boy.

My past has shown me just who those are and why. That middle school ring.

I did find one woman. It was at my twentieth high school graduation reunion. I haven’t gone to others in the past but that intuition told me to go. I refused to wear the stick on badge. Up front were all the year book photos.

One of them caught my eyes. She was one that did not stick out. Shy, but like me, was poor. She did have a few friends. I saw that she was there but now all alone at a table. I have decided.

On my way over to her, the middle school ring girl was trying to hang on me. I obviously was not in shoes that had holes in them. I cleaned up nice and looked like someone that did suit her taste. Being polite I said to her that I was here to see one person.

I pointed to that single woman.

Now that middle school girl came out.

“She is nothing but a poor librarian. A spinster. Never married.” She said in in such a way as to question as to why I would not choose her. She was more in suit to my station than that poor excuse of a female.

Without a word, I brushed her off and asked if I could sit down with that alone woman.

She is still shy and has the look of how are you going to humiliate me in front of that one that is still staring at me.

I ask her to really look at my face as I put that paper badge in front of her. She looks at me, then the badge. The smile that was on her face, I knew then that I had found my one. I asked her if she wanted to go somewhere else.

“How about you and I go to a really good restaurant and have a meal. We need to talk.”

Arm in arm, we walk out as the now trail of those women who, as school girls, went out of their way to make our lives miserable. Their jaws are now clenched as they see my car brought up by the valet. It is that restored Auburn.

After I opened her door and she got in, I turned to that crowd.

I still had it. I lifted up my key ring. There was that ring she threw at me. I leaned up against the car and proudly told them exactly who I am.

“I’m that kid who you made my life miserable from middle school up to our high school graduation. I came here to show you that I no longer have those holes in my shoes. I no longer need to work. I now just wander where I please. Now I have a date with this nice woman. We will be flying to a nice place in Spain in my private jet.”

Now they do recognize me. They do know that I am not just boasting. They know I am loaded but all are stunned when I holler “You judged me as worthless. I’m still that poor boy that collected junk. Today I found my best find. You showed that you are just worthless trash. No salvageable value.”

The lone woman in the passenger seat is now my wife. She still is a librarian but now the library she works at loves her even more. I can find rare items for their collection. They even have some very rare first editions. People come from far off to be able to read those books and look at those historical objects on display.

What else is money for other than helping others have real joy. That is true wealth.

That book is one of many that I have reread many times. It is one on my favorite shelf. I do love those ones that the person manages to pull themselves up to prosper. They do not get physical with those who taunt them but the show those just what they missed. By the way, ring girl is now very bitter. She plots on how to get back at him. I do know that her book has been moving. It is now on a shelf by that door. I just know that I will be moving that one to the drop door.