Story You have 24-hours to spend $1-million
- Thread starter Lake Lili
- Start date
Lake Lili
Veteran Member
I looked at the lawyer in stunned amazement.
“Let me make sure I understood correctly,” I said to Mr. Moser. “Aunt Jillian has left me $1-million and I have to spend it all in the next 24-hours.”
Aunt Jillian had been my only remaining relative. She had taken me in after my parents were killed when I was twelve. She had always lived in the small clapboard two bedroom house along the slightly seedier edge of a middle class area of town. She had driven the same car for 40-years… a car she had bought second hand… it was old and puke green and ugly but ran like a dream. She worked full-time, at something she would not discuss, and was not around much. So I had spent a lot of time on my own or with friends’ families. Aunt Jillian’s house had a huge garden and she put me in charge of it. From the gardeners at my friend’s houses, I learned all sort of tips and tricks – sometimes they even came by and gave me a hand and later a part-time job. I had gone to college on a scholarship and studied horticulture with a minor in market gardening. I had dreams of having my own ten acres someday, but mean while I worked as a manager at the local garden centre. I had been out on my own for 5 years now, but I still kept her gardens, though I rarely saw her. I did see Aunt Jillian once a month for a Sunday dinner and for holiday dinners, but never once had she said, alluded to, or appeared ill, let alone sick and dying. Her dying so suddenly had been a huge shock… and this was one more.
“Correct,” he said, “in 24-hours, you have to come back here and show me the receipts for the $1-million spent. Here is the money. Have fun.”
I wait for him to laugh and say April Fools, but he stacked 10 packages of $100,000 on the desk in front of me. I looked at him and he was seating and I think I was having heart palpitations. I had never, ever, ever, seen that much money… in cash… holy shirt… I sat back down in the chair and tried to clear my stuttering brain.
“Holy shit!” I said out loud. I paused again and took a deep breath, “When does the clock start?”
“As soon as you leave this office,” said Mr. Moser.
“Can I print a few things off and make a couple of phone calls and then leave?” I asked.
He smiled. “Sure thing.”
I printed off my dream list.
I then made three calls.
“Anna,” I said. “Your mom still trying selling the family homestead up off Harris Road for $550K?”
“Yes,” she said laughing, “and still not having much luck.”
“Call her now and tell her that I will come by and give her $450k cash in half an hour if she wants to sell. Then call me back.”
“Is this some joke Judy?” Anna demanded.
“No. Call them. I am not negotiating. If I don’t hear from you in 10-minutes the deal is off and won’t be coming back.”
Mr. Moser looked aghast.
“Oh, don’t look at me like that!” I said. “You know good and well that Angela Harris has been trying to unload that place since long before she unloaded all three of her husbands. She has no money in beyond taxes paid. A group of us went up during college and reroofed it and shored up a corner that had been sagging. One of the guys used it as his year-end construction project. I had it valued and the land is worth $450k, and the log house is fire wood in terms of valuation, but it‘s structurally sound and I like it.”
Mr. Moser nodded in agreement.
The second call was to my bank manager, a former classmate.
“Gail, I am in Frank Moser’s office. Aunt Jillian has left me a $1-million dollars but it has to be spent within 24-hours. [pause] I agree its nuts. And I have no idea if it is even legal. Did she bank with you all? {pause] She didn’t? Weird… I’m about to put Mr. Moser on the horn and he is about to tell you that I am going to deposit $500,000 cash in my account and that I am going to need to have it available on credit card to be spent immediately. So sort out any issues with VISA for me please. [pause] Yeah, here he is.”
I let Gail Johnson and Frank Moser deal with the legalities of what was happening. He then handed the phone back. “We’re good to go?” I asked her. With Gail’s affirmative response, I told her I would be there within the hour.
Anna called back and said her mother would be waiting. I asked if she would be there to witness and said that I was bringing the lawyer with me. I would be there in 20-minutes.
I then called Stan down at the used car lot. “Hey love, you still got that 1987 Chevy Silverado on the lot? [pause] Yeah the burgundy and silver one. [pause] You still asking $17k for it. [pause] Great. Clean her up and check to make sure the fluids, belts, tires, etc are all good to go. I’ll be by before close. Cash on the barrel head. [pause] Yeah love you too.”
I stood up. “Okay Mr. Moser, you are on retainer for me. Let’s go buy the farm.” I peeled off $10K from the pile but he waved it away saying that the Estate would cover it.
He laughed. “Best just call me Frank now… you don’t let grass grow do you girl?”
“Clock has not started and I am committed to $467k… $533k to go.”
***
So began a 24-hour count down of insane consumerism. With the purchased farm as is [although I told Anna if she wanted anything to meet me up there tomorrow evening to collect it] and the keys handed over, the banking sorted and VISA on side, and the truck picked up and my old hatchback traded in to be donated to some kid in need for a first car.
I went over to the cable office and arranged to have wifi installed at the homestead (cost $8k paid up front) and the power company (buried lines, done in conjunction with the wifi $8k), the well digger – he would go out at the end of today to look at the existing well (max $4k), appliance store for propane fridge, stove, washer and dryer ($9k with delivery next week). Then I stopped in at Kevin’s Construction and spoke with the man himself about building a screened in porch and storage/work room onto the cabin. He quoted me $30k and I gave him $50k to get started ASAP – he said he would sort out the permitting.
I then went to the big box store and asked about their pre-fab garages. I looked at them and then at the sheds… I went with a flat pack garage that was 15 by 20. I bought two and they agreed to haul them up to the farm and have them set-up for me in the morning. I then went to U-Haul and rented a cube van and then to Costco and did some serious food shopping.
By the time I sat down for dinner - a pizza ($18) - I had spent almost $120K. I then went online and bought every book I had ever wanted to read and a few I just wanted to look at. I bought an incredible wardrobe. I bought… I bought… and I bought some more. About 2am I decided it was time to go to the 24-hour Cabelas. I bought two rifles and two hand guns and ammunition, targets. I bought archery and fishing equipment. I bought the propane BBQ and smoker. I bought the canoe I had always wanted – an old flat bottomed aluminum one they had had on display. I bought wool blankets and down duvets. I went online and bought an ESSE 990 WD wood stove. I went online to First Dibs and Anthropologie and ordered furniture and linens… I went online to the ATV dealership and bought one with a plow attachment, a skidoo and a trailer for them. I bought all the power tools and hand tools I was likely to ever need. I might have been getting a bit silly when I called and booked a week’s vacation on the coast of Maine. I also called the admissions office for the local college I had graduated from and said I wanted to take a diploma in sustainable agriculture with a certification in wood lot management, and pay for the 2-year program upfront. They were very happy to take my money.
As dawn broke, I had approximately $175k left to spend and I was getting loopy and 6-hours to spend it. Who knew it would be this difficult. At 8am I called the dentist and booked in for all the dental work I had been putting off. Then I called the high school principal and asked for an appointment to create two scholarships. Both were to be $50k in the kitty and hand out $5k annually. The first was in my aunt’s name for the top student in English. Aunt Jillian had loved English literature. The second was in my name and was to be the staffs’ choice to go to the nice kid, the oddball, the shy kid, the one who due to circumstances needed to know they were valued. I went and had a big breakfast and then went to the primary school and donated the last $50k – with $25k going for the playground and $25k going to buy instruments for the kids to learn to play.
So here I am bleary-eyed sitting in the waiting room of Frank Moser’s office. I have a new home, a new-to-me truck, food, clothes to wear, protection, an educational opportunity, a vacation, good teeth, and I have given back to my community. Pretty solid for 24-hours. I gave thanks again to Aunt Jillian.
Frank Moser smiled as I laid out the receipts.
“Jillian would have been very proud.” He said. “Having completed the required component of her will, I am now authorized to say that your aunt left you a further $5,000,000 for you to spend as you see fit. I think that the challenge was her way of getting the shock of inheritance out of your system so that you are responsible with the rest of your inheritance.”
“Well,” I said, “that was an insane way to do it, but I doubt it will be touched for a while. Thanks Frank.”
I left the lawyer’s office feeling secure for the first time in my life. Bless Aunt Jillian.
“Let me make sure I understood correctly,” I said to Mr. Moser. “Aunt Jillian has left me $1-million and I have to spend it all in the next 24-hours.”
Aunt Jillian had been my only remaining relative. She had taken me in after my parents were killed when I was twelve. She had always lived in the small clapboard two bedroom house along the slightly seedier edge of a middle class area of town. She had driven the same car for 40-years… a car she had bought second hand… it was old and puke green and ugly but ran like a dream. She worked full-time, at something she would not discuss, and was not around much. So I had spent a lot of time on my own or with friends’ families. Aunt Jillian’s house had a huge garden and she put me in charge of it. From the gardeners at my friend’s houses, I learned all sort of tips and tricks – sometimes they even came by and gave me a hand and later a part-time job. I had gone to college on a scholarship and studied horticulture with a minor in market gardening. I had dreams of having my own ten acres someday, but mean while I worked as a manager at the local garden centre. I had been out on my own for 5 years now, but I still kept her gardens, though I rarely saw her. I did see Aunt Jillian once a month for a Sunday dinner and for holiday dinners, but never once had she said, alluded to, or appeared ill, let alone sick and dying. Her dying so suddenly had been a huge shock… and this was one more.
“Correct,” he said, “in 24-hours, you have to come back here and show me the receipts for the $1-million spent. Here is the money. Have fun.”
I wait for him to laugh and say April Fools, but he stacked 10 packages of $100,000 on the desk in front of me. I looked at him and he was seating and I think I was having heart palpitations. I had never, ever, ever, seen that much money… in cash… holy shirt… I sat back down in the chair and tried to clear my stuttering brain.
“Holy shit!” I said out loud. I paused again and took a deep breath, “When does the clock start?”
“As soon as you leave this office,” said Mr. Moser.
“Can I print a few things off and make a couple of phone calls and then leave?” I asked.
He smiled. “Sure thing.”
I printed off my dream list.
I then made three calls.
“Anna,” I said. “Your mom still trying selling the family homestead up off Harris Road for $550K?”
“Yes,” she said laughing, “and still not having much luck.”
“Call her now and tell her that I will come by and give her $450k cash in half an hour if she wants to sell. Then call me back.”
“Is this some joke Judy?” Anna demanded.
“No. Call them. I am not negotiating. If I don’t hear from you in 10-minutes the deal is off and won’t be coming back.”
Mr. Moser looked aghast.
“Oh, don’t look at me like that!” I said. “You know good and well that Angela Harris has been trying to unload that place since long before she unloaded all three of her husbands. She has no money in beyond taxes paid. A group of us went up during college and reroofed it and shored up a corner that had been sagging. One of the guys used it as his year-end construction project. I had it valued and the land is worth $450k, and the log house is fire wood in terms of valuation, but it‘s structurally sound and I like it.”
Mr. Moser nodded in agreement.
The second call was to my bank manager, a former classmate.
“Gail, I am in Frank Moser’s office. Aunt Jillian has left me a $1-million dollars but it has to be spent within 24-hours. [pause] I agree its nuts. And I have no idea if it is even legal. Did she bank with you all? {pause] She didn’t? Weird… I’m about to put Mr. Moser on the horn and he is about to tell you that I am going to deposit $500,000 cash in my account and that I am going to need to have it available on credit card to be spent immediately. So sort out any issues with VISA for me please. [pause] Yeah, here he is.”
I let Gail Johnson and Frank Moser deal with the legalities of what was happening. He then handed the phone back. “We’re good to go?” I asked her. With Gail’s affirmative response, I told her I would be there within the hour.
Anna called back and said her mother would be waiting. I asked if she would be there to witness and said that I was bringing the lawyer with me. I would be there in 20-minutes.
I then called Stan down at the used car lot. “Hey love, you still got that 1987 Chevy Silverado on the lot? [pause] Yeah the burgundy and silver one. [pause] You still asking $17k for it. [pause] Great. Clean her up and check to make sure the fluids, belts, tires, etc are all good to go. I’ll be by before close. Cash on the barrel head. [pause] Yeah love you too.”
I stood up. “Okay Mr. Moser, you are on retainer for me. Let’s go buy the farm.” I peeled off $10K from the pile but he waved it away saying that the Estate would cover it.
He laughed. “Best just call me Frank now… you don’t let grass grow do you girl?”
“Clock has not started and I am committed to $467k… $533k to go.”
***
So began a 24-hour count down of insane consumerism. With the purchased farm as is [although I told Anna if she wanted anything to meet me up there tomorrow evening to collect it] and the keys handed over, the banking sorted and VISA on side, and the truck picked up and my old hatchback traded in to be donated to some kid in need for a first car.
I went over to the cable office and arranged to have wifi installed at the homestead (cost $8k paid up front) and the power company (buried lines, done in conjunction with the wifi $8k), the well digger – he would go out at the end of today to look at the existing well (max $4k), appliance store for propane fridge, stove, washer and dryer ($9k with delivery next week). Then I stopped in at Kevin’s Construction and spoke with the man himself about building a screened in porch and storage/work room onto the cabin. He quoted me $30k and I gave him $50k to get started ASAP – he said he would sort out the permitting.
I then went to the big box store and asked about their pre-fab garages. I looked at them and then at the sheds… I went with a flat pack garage that was 15 by 20. I bought two and they agreed to haul them up to the farm and have them set-up for me in the morning. I then went to U-Haul and rented a cube van and then to Costco and did some serious food shopping.
By the time I sat down for dinner - a pizza ($18) - I had spent almost $120K. I then went online and bought every book I had ever wanted to read and a few I just wanted to look at. I bought an incredible wardrobe. I bought… I bought… and I bought some more. About 2am I decided it was time to go to the 24-hour Cabelas. I bought two rifles and two hand guns and ammunition, targets. I bought archery and fishing equipment. I bought the propane BBQ and smoker. I bought the canoe I had always wanted – an old flat bottomed aluminum one they had had on display. I bought wool blankets and down duvets. I went online and bought an ESSE 990 WD wood stove. I went online to First Dibs and Anthropologie and ordered furniture and linens… I went online to the ATV dealership and bought one with a plow attachment, a skidoo and a trailer for them. I bought all the power tools and hand tools I was likely to ever need. I might have been getting a bit silly when I called and booked a week’s vacation on the coast of Maine. I also called the admissions office for the local college I had graduated from and said I wanted to take a diploma in sustainable agriculture with a certification in wood lot management, and pay for the 2-year program upfront. They were very happy to take my money.
As dawn broke, I had approximately $175k left to spend and I was getting loopy and 6-hours to spend it. Who knew it would be this difficult. At 8am I called the dentist and booked in for all the dental work I had been putting off. Then I called the high school principal and asked for an appointment to create two scholarships. Both were to be $50k in the kitty and hand out $5k annually. The first was in my aunt’s name for the top student in English. Aunt Jillian had loved English literature. The second was in my name and was to be the staffs’ choice to go to the nice kid, the oddball, the shy kid, the one who due to circumstances needed to know they were valued. I went and had a big breakfast and then went to the primary school and donated the last $50k – with $25k going for the playground and $25k going to buy instruments for the kids to learn to play.
So here I am bleary-eyed sitting in the waiting room of Frank Moser’s office. I have a new home, a new-to-me truck, food, clothes to wear, protection, an educational opportunity, a vacation, good teeth, and I have given back to my community. Pretty solid for 24-hours. I gave thanks again to Aunt Jillian.
Frank Moser smiled as I laid out the receipts.
“Jillian would have been very proud.” He said. “Having completed the required component of her will, I am now authorized to say that your aunt left you a further $5,000,000 for you to spend as you see fit. I think that the challenge was her way of getting the shock of inheritance out of your system so that you are responsible with the rest of your inheritance.”
“Well,” I said, “that was an insane way to do it, but I doubt it will be touched for a while. Thanks Frank.”
I left the lawyer’s office feeling secure for the first time in my life. Bless Aunt Jillian.
Texican
Live Free & Die Free.... God Freedom Country....
An old guy that I helped often due to his health passed over. I was with him during his last days and showered in his bath so he would not be alone.
I was the only one at his funeral to say good by.
Got a call from an law firm, Cheatem and How. Who were the most notorious attorneys in Texas which was an understatement. Had a meeting the next morning at 10 am.
At the meeting I was told that the old guy had left me a $1,000,000 in cash to spend in twenty four hours and whatever I purchased was mine if done in 24 hours which started when I left the office. I then told Cheatem and How, I had to make a couple of phone calls and when that was completed that both would put the time that I left on his letter head and sign it and have it notarized. I let Cheatem and How see the 1911 under my duster in a hip holster.
Thought for a few minutes and made two phone calls. Cheatem and How signed the letterhead and had it notarized by this blond bombshell of a secretary. The letterhead showed the time as 11:22 am. I left the office and went down the exit stairs and out the back exit door from the high rise which I had parked next to. Ospec is always a way of life.
I went to the armored car company and meet with the armored car company manger carrying my case in my left hand. Informed him that he would have to guarantee up to $1,000,000 for pickup and safe keeping of precious metals for at least two months less his cost. I wanted four guards armed with sidearms and 308's with multiple magazines. He stated that the cost would be $25,000. I opened the case and pulled out $25,000 in cash and told him that he would be given the cash once he did the receipt and provided a written guarantee on the safe keeping of the precious metals. This was done. He asked me if I was concerned about carrying that much cash and I smiled and opened up my duster. He asked me what type of body armor that I was wearing and told him Level 4. He said no wonder you look so massive.
Meet the armored car with four guards at the largest coin shop in Dallas. Had the owner of the store come out of his store. I told the owner that I wanted $975,000 in gold and silver coins and bullion which he got a shocked look on his face. I then showed him the cash in the case and the owner's eyes got even larger in surprise. I told him that armed guards were coming in with me and that I was armed and he would not have a problem with this or I would be going to his competitor. He stated no problem.
We walked in. I carried in the case containing $975,000 in cash and two guards armed with sidearms and 308's with 30 round magazines. My 1911 was on my hip under my duster. The manager escorted two customers out of the store.
The owner's staff brought out gold and silver in coins and bullion which totaled up to $975,890 and each was tested for weight and purity. I informed the manager that the coins and bullion were ok, but the total would be $975,000 or I would go to his competitor. The shocked look on his face was precious and he revised the bill to $975,000 and he was paid and he signed the receipt. The coins and bullion were put into the armored car company locked bags.
Checked on the armored car backed up to the front doors and both guards were waiting and opened the rear doors and the bags of coins and bullion were loaded. The head guard signed the receipt that he had received the coins and bullion. I followed the armored car to the armored car company and the manager signed the receipt that he had received the coins and bullion and made copies for his files and filled out a company receipt for the same.
Arrived at the Cheatem and How offices at about 4:22 pm and walked in and the blond bombshell really smiled at me and said she would have Mr. Cheatem and Mr. How come to the conference room.
I was seated in an overstuffed leather office chair in the far corner of the conference room when Mr. Cheatem and Mr. How walked into the conference room and saw me sitting in the corner and looked at me with no kindness in their eyes, but there expressions changed when they realized that the right side of my duster was behind me. I told these two that there were two receipts in the amount of $1,000,000. They were to sign and have their signatures notarized and have the secretary make a copy for their records. The secretary would also give me a copy of the will.
I was provided a copy of the will and I was the only beneficiary and was named executor. I looked at Cheatem and How and told them I wold be given a the original the files and all billings made to the estate. The will included several trusts that owned real estate, corporations, businesses that went on for over one page.
Cheatem and How started to object and I stood up with my right hand resting on the 1911 and just smiled at them and their demeanor changed.
I scanned the estate file and the billings and my eyes flashed with just a little bit of anger. Asked Cheatem and How if they preferred to pay back the estate for the over billings or go to jail and have all of their assets seized. They both decided that they would return all of the over billings.
The blond bombshell prepared the necessary paperwork and Cheatem and How signed the paperwork which was notarized and provided personal checks to cover the overcharges which they did once the blond bombshell got their check books out of their offices. They also signed paperwork to be removed as executors which was also notarized. What they didn't yet know, I will be meeting with the probate judge overseeing the probate and bringing charges against Cheatem and How. Would like to be there when the DPD showed up and they realized that they have been cheated and how badly.
I left with all of the estate files and as I was leaving, the blond bomb shell asked me if I would like to go out sometime which is another story.
Texican....
Edited for clarity.
I was the only one at his funeral to say good by.
Got a call from an law firm, Cheatem and How. Who were the most notorious attorneys in Texas which was an understatement. Had a meeting the next morning at 10 am.
At the meeting I was told that the old guy had left me a $1,000,000 in cash to spend in twenty four hours and whatever I purchased was mine if done in 24 hours which started when I left the office. I then told Cheatem and How, I had to make a couple of phone calls and when that was completed that both would put the time that I left on his letter head and sign it and have it notarized. I let Cheatem and How see the 1911 under my duster in a hip holster.
Thought for a few minutes and made two phone calls. Cheatem and How signed the letterhead and had it notarized by this blond bombshell of a secretary. The letterhead showed the time as 11:22 am. I left the office and went down the exit stairs and out the back exit door from the high rise which I had parked next to. Ospec is always a way of life.
I went to the armored car company and meet with the armored car company manger carrying my case in my left hand. Informed him that he would have to guarantee up to $1,000,000 for pickup and safe keeping of precious metals for at least two months less his cost. I wanted four guards armed with sidearms and 308's with multiple magazines. He stated that the cost would be $25,000. I opened the case and pulled out $25,000 in cash and told him that he would be given the cash once he did the receipt and provided a written guarantee on the safe keeping of the precious metals. This was done. He asked me if I was concerned about carrying that much cash and I smiled and opened up my duster. He asked me what type of body armor that I was wearing and told him Level 4. He said no wonder you look so massive.
Meet the armored car with four guards at the largest coin shop in Dallas. Had the owner of the store come out of his store. I told the owner that I wanted $975,000 in gold and silver coins and bullion which he got a shocked look on his face. I then showed him the cash in the case and the owner's eyes got even larger in surprise. I told him that armed guards were coming in with me and that I was armed and he would not have a problem with this or I would be going to his competitor. He stated no problem.
We walked in. I carried in the case containing $975,000 in cash and two guards armed with sidearms and 308's with 30 round magazines. My 1911 was on my hip under my duster. The manager escorted two customers out of the store.
The owner's staff brought out gold and silver in coins and bullion which totaled up to $975,890 and each was tested for weight and purity. I informed the manager that the coins and bullion were ok, but the total would be $975,000 or I would go to his competitor. The shocked look on his face was precious and he revised the bill to $975,000 and he was paid and he signed the receipt. The coins and bullion were put into the armored car company locked bags.
Checked on the armored car backed up to the front doors and both guards were waiting and opened the rear doors and the bags of coins and bullion were loaded. The head guard signed the receipt that he had received the coins and bullion. I followed the armored car to the armored car company and the manager signed the receipt that he had received the coins and bullion and made copies for his files and filled out a company receipt for the same.
Arrived at the Cheatem and How offices at about 4:22 pm and walked in and the blond bombshell really smiled at me and said she would have Mr. Cheatem and Mr. How come to the conference room.
I was seated in an overstuffed leather office chair in the far corner of the conference room when Mr. Cheatem and Mr. How walked into the conference room and saw me sitting in the corner and looked at me with no kindness in their eyes, but there expressions changed when they realized that the right side of my duster was behind me. I told these two that there were two receipts in the amount of $1,000,000. They were to sign and have their signatures notarized and have the secretary make a copy for their records. The secretary would also give me a copy of the will.
I was provided a copy of the will and I was the only beneficiary and was named executor. I looked at Cheatem and How and told them I wold be given a the original the files and all billings made to the estate. The will included several trusts that owned real estate, corporations, businesses that went on for over one page.
Cheatem and How started to object and I stood up with my right hand resting on the 1911 and just smiled at them and their demeanor changed.
I scanned the estate file and the billings and my eyes flashed with just a little bit of anger. Asked Cheatem and How if they preferred to pay back the estate for the over billings or go to jail and have all of their assets seized. They both decided that they would return all of the over billings.
The blond bombshell prepared the necessary paperwork and Cheatem and How signed the paperwork which was notarized and provided personal checks to cover the overcharges which they did once the blond bombshell got their check books out of their offices. They also signed paperwork to be removed as executors which was also notarized. What they didn't yet know, I will be meeting with the probate judge overseeing the probate and bringing charges against Cheatem and How. Would like to be there when the DPD showed up and they realized that they have been cheated and how badly.
I left with all of the estate files and as I was leaving, the blond bomb shell asked me if I would like to go out sometime which is another story.
Texican....
Edited for clarity.
Last edited:
Siskiyoumom
Veteran Member
Tracy got a phone call from her out of state third cousin twice removed Margaret Petranova in Texas.
Up to this time they had only corresponded by snail or email and had connected in 1999 on Rootsweb due to their interest in genealogy. Tracy did not recall giving her land line number to Margaret.
In their joint sleuthing efforts they debunked a lot of unsubstantiated family history and both had reached a few brick walls in their quest.
Margaret had shared lots of hard earned wisdom in her ninety-one years on earth and Tracy felt very blessed to have Margaret in her life albeit from a great physical distance. Both of them were too poor to travel cross country for an in person visit.
Margaret told Tracy that she was getting her worldly affairs in order and they discussed family trusts, durable powers of attorney and end of life care.
Margret was the last living person in her direct family line and all of her adult great nieces and great nephews never paid her no mind even though they lived in the same town in rural Texas. She asked Tracy how she was doing financially and Tracy reassured her that she and her husband Donald were still out of debt and saving up for a parcel of woods and farm land that had been sitting on Zillow for the past five years. Steadily rising in price.
The parcel was in Idaho and a long drive from their home in Fresno California. They were diligently adding tools and equipment in their large barn at their current home on the outskirts of Fresno. The area once was farms, orchards and ranches. But suburbia had grown out from the city like a blight on the once beautiful area.
Margaret asked a lot of questions about the property and the types of crops and farm animals on it. She was very curious on the water sources and the nearness to medical services and fire services. After chatting for an hour or so they ended the call Tracy continue her day working as an at home retired lady.
A week later a knock was heard at the front door and when Donald answered it a stranger stood there in a nice suit and tie carrying a lap top bag and briefcase. The dapper elderly man said hello and asked if this was Tracy and Donald Simpson’s home. Donald said yes and what is it that you need?
The gentleman asked to come in to discuss a legal matter regarding the estate of one Mrs. Petranova of Texas. Donald invited him in and went and got Tracy who was working out in the back yard in her herb garden. The gentleman followed Donald out back and heard Donald say Honey we have an odd duck visiting us about your cousin Margaret.
Tracy looked up from herb bed she was weeding to see the fella behind her husband smiling broadly. She noticed he had on cowboy boots, a western style suit with a bolo tie and had a ranchers sun kissed faced with a band of white skin where a cowboy hat would rest on his noggin.
She got up wiped her soil covered hands on her apron and reached out with her still slightly soiled covered hand to shake his hand. He had a strong grip and he politely shooks hers then Donald’s hand. She invited the men to go inside to sit for a spell at the kitchen table after directing them to wash up for afternoon tea. She washed her hands and set the 1950s style table with dishes and tall chilled high ball glasses from the freezer. She put a small cutting board on the table, a sharp knife, jar of Cowboy Candy, a tub of her delightful homemade cheese spread, smoked salmon slices and homemade sourdough baguette.
Mr. Smith had genteel hill country accent and he began speaking about his client Margaret. He was her second attorney. His dad had been her legal representative until forty years ago when he passed the account to his son. Tracy asked if would prefer black sweet tea or her thirst quenching green tea. He said green sounds just right.
Over the next two hours they discussed in generalities about Margaret’s overall wishes about estate helping others. After eating they continued the conversation while touring the Simpson’s six acres of suburban farmstead. They had a small fruit and nut orchard, vegetable garden, herb garden, chickens and geese, rabbits and bees. Mr. Smith asked a lot about the assorted vintage farming implements in the barn and what the couple’s hopes and dreams were for the next stage of their life.
He took them out to eat that evening at Angelina’s steak house and asked them if they could continue their visit in the morning. He had not yet gotten to go over with the couple the gist of why he had come calling on their door step.
After he left Tracy tried calling the phone number of Margaret. She got on her computer to email her and the email bounced back. She went to her Ancestry to message Margaret but she discovered the account deleted. Now she was worried for Margaret.
The next morning Mr. Smith knocked on the door and said we have a lot to discuss and a short amount of time to do so. I am sad to inform you that Margaret has passed on and she has tasked me with guiding you both on her gifting you the entirety remains of her estate. She has bequeathed a lot of it to others. It has been placed in a limited revocable trust under the condition that once I leave your home you have a scant twenty four hours to spend the funds down to zero. Now the only work around I see is that I stay with you here to provide guidance in how to legally disperse the funds, then after transferring the funds to your accounts I take my leave and you get to using the funds. As a co trustee I will have access to your trust accounts to determine if the funds were spent within the required time line. If the fund is not spent in its entirety you forfeit any remaining balances and I will have to ask you to return as much of what you spent as possible.
The first question Tracy asked was why did Margaret choose she and Donald to be her heirs.
Mr. Smith replied that Margaret had grown fond of Tracy over the course of their friendship, that they were distant blood kin and she felt both Tracy and Donald had good heads on their shoulders. And they deserve much monetary sweetness in their middle age.
Donald asked how did Margaret acquired such an estate. Smith replied that she had sold her family ranch in 2007 and invested the proceeds in precious metals and banked the rest. She rented a tiny house near her doctor and parked a portion of the funds in her farm bureau credit union until the markets improved. She purchased a long term health plan and funeral plan, then moved into a step down assisted living community in her town. She bought a top of the line computer and self taught herself the ins and out of investing. She invested in crypto currency and rising fledgling tech companies. She did a lot of secret angel donations to folks and groups over the ensuing decades.
At one point her net worth was in the 500 million range. When she turned eighty years old she decided to spend her estate down to a fraction of that. Tracy timidly asked how much is that?
Mr. Smith grinned and said a cool million.
Both Donald and Tracy had looks of shock. Tracy had a minor anxiety attack and then she said I am not at all at ease with being her heir. Surely there is someone closer to her who needs those funds. We are doing o.k. and we are saving to move out of our home state of California. Donald agreed.
Mr. Smith went over with the how much Tracy had impressed Margaret in regards to their faith, practical frugal living, helping others and her and Donald’s farmsteading life. As well as their endurance in facing medical woes and their hope to one day have a farm that used the old ways.
Smith said that they could refuse the funds and the funds would be donated to the Dallas Childrens Hospital benevolence fund. Donald looked at Tracy and she gave him a thumbs up. He said to Mr. Smith that they would greatly appreciate the funds going to the hospital. They chatted for a bit about it and Smith confirmed that was their wishes. He had paperwork on his lap top for the couple rerleasing themselves from the estate and he called a traveling notary to come to the house to witness the documents being signed.
Mr. Smith bid them goodbye and Tracy gave him a big hug and loaf of her zesty carrot bread to tide him over at the airport. After Mr. Smith left Donald noticed Mr. Smith had left a large envelope on the kitchen table. It was addressed to he and a Tracy.
Inside was a full and clear deed to their dream farm in Idaho, a check purchasing their California house with title work transferring it to the local, crisis pregnancy care group, a check for a moving company, prepaid credit cards to the businesses they would need to buy farming supplies up in Idaho, keys to three safety boxes at a credit union in Idaho and a list of resources up there. And a note from Margaret thanking them for making a solid loving choice. And for them to have fun opening the safety deposit boxes. Both Tracy and Donald had tears of joy knowing they were on their way home to Idaho.
Up to this time they had only corresponded by snail or email and had connected in 1999 on Rootsweb due to their interest in genealogy. Tracy did not recall giving her land line number to Margaret.
In their joint sleuthing efforts they debunked a lot of unsubstantiated family history and both had reached a few brick walls in their quest.
Margaret had shared lots of hard earned wisdom in her ninety-one years on earth and Tracy felt very blessed to have Margaret in her life albeit from a great physical distance. Both of them were too poor to travel cross country for an in person visit.
Margaret told Tracy that she was getting her worldly affairs in order and they discussed family trusts, durable powers of attorney and end of life care.
Margret was the last living person in her direct family line and all of her adult great nieces and great nephews never paid her no mind even though they lived in the same town in rural Texas. She asked Tracy how she was doing financially and Tracy reassured her that she and her husband Donald were still out of debt and saving up for a parcel of woods and farm land that had been sitting on Zillow for the past five years. Steadily rising in price.
The parcel was in Idaho and a long drive from their home in Fresno California. They were diligently adding tools and equipment in their large barn at their current home on the outskirts of Fresno. The area once was farms, orchards and ranches. But suburbia had grown out from the city like a blight on the once beautiful area.
Margaret asked a lot of questions about the property and the types of crops and farm animals on it. She was very curious on the water sources and the nearness to medical services and fire services. After chatting for an hour or so they ended the call Tracy continue her day working as an at home retired lady.
A week later a knock was heard at the front door and when Donald answered it a stranger stood there in a nice suit and tie carrying a lap top bag and briefcase. The dapper elderly man said hello and asked if this was Tracy and Donald Simpson’s home. Donald said yes and what is it that you need?
The gentleman asked to come in to discuss a legal matter regarding the estate of one Mrs. Petranova of Texas. Donald invited him in and went and got Tracy who was working out in the back yard in her herb garden. The gentleman followed Donald out back and heard Donald say Honey we have an odd duck visiting us about your cousin Margaret.
Tracy looked up from herb bed she was weeding to see the fella behind her husband smiling broadly. She noticed he had on cowboy boots, a western style suit with a bolo tie and had a ranchers sun kissed faced with a band of white skin where a cowboy hat would rest on his noggin.
She got up wiped her soil covered hands on her apron and reached out with her still slightly soiled covered hand to shake his hand. He had a strong grip and he politely shooks hers then Donald’s hand. She invited the men to go inside to sit for a spell at the kitchen table after directing them to wash up for afternoon tea. She washed her hands and set the 1950s style table with dishes and tall chilled high ball glasses from the freezer. She put a small cutting board on the table, a sharp knife, jar of Cowboy Candy, a tub of her delightful homemade cheese spread, smoked salmon slices and homemade sourdough baguette.
Mr. Smith had genteel hill country accent and he began speaking about his client Margaret. He was her second attorney. His dad had been her legal representative until forty years ago when he passed the account to his son. Tracy asked if would prefer black sweet tea or her thirst quenching green tea. He said green sounds just right.
Over the next two hours they discussed in generalities about Margaret’s overall wishes about estate helping others. After eating they continued the conversation while touring the Simpson’s six acres of suburban farmstead. They had a small fruit and nut orchard, vegetable garden, herb garden, chickens and geese, rabbits and bees. Mr. Smith asked a lot about the assorted vintage farming implements in the barn and what the couple’s hopes and dreams were for the next stage of their life.
He took them out to eat that evening at Angelina’s steak house and asked them if they could continue their visit in the morning. He had not yet gotten to go over with the couple the gist of why he had come calling on their door step.
After he left Tracy tried calling the phone number of Margaret. She got on her computer to email her and the email bounced back. She went to her Ancestry to message Margaret but she discovered the account deleted. Now she was worried for Margaret.
The next morning Mr. Smith knocked on the door and said we have a lot to discuss and a short amount of time to do so. I am sad to inform you that Margaret has passed on and she has tasked me with guiding you both on her gifting you the entirety remains of her estate. She has bequeathed a lot of it to others. It has been placed in a limited revocable trust under the condition that once I leave your home you have a scant twenty four hours to spend the funds down to zero. Now the only work around I see is that I stay with you here to provide guidance in how to legally disperse the funds, then after transferring the funds to your accounts I take my leave and you get to using the funds. As a co trustee I will have access to your trust accounts to determine if the funds were spent within the required time line. If the fund is not spent in its entirety you forfeit any remaining balances and I will have to ask you to return as much of what you spent as possible.
The first question Tracy asked was why did Margaret choose she and Donald to be her heirs.
Mr. Smith replied that Margaret had grown fond of Tracy over the course of their friendship, that they were distant blood kin and she felt both Tracy and Donald had good heads on their shoulders. And they deserve much monetary sweetness in their middle age.
Donald asked how did Margaret acquired such an estate. Smith replied that she had sold her family ranch in 2007 and invested the proceeds in precious metals and banked the rest. She rented a tiny house near her doctor and parked a portion of the funds in her farm bureau credit union until the markets improved. She purchased a long term health plan and funeral plan, then moved into a step down assisted living community in her town. She bought a top of the line computer and self taught herself the ins and out of investing. She invested in crypto currency and rising fledgling tech companies. She did a lot of secret angel donations to folks and groups over the ensuing decades.
At one point her net worth was in the 500 million range. When she turned eighty years old she decided to spend her estate down to a fraction of that. Tracy timidly asked how much is that?
Mr. Smith grinned and said a cool million.
Both Donald and Tracy had looks of shock. Tracy had a minor anxiety attack and then she said I am not at all at ease with being her heir. Surely there is someone closer to her who needs those funds. We are doing o.k. and we are saving to move out of our home state of California. Donald agreed.
Mr. Smith went over with the how much Tracy had impressed Margaret in regards to their faith, practical frugal living, helping others and her and Donald’s farmsteading life. As well as their endurance in facing medical woes and their hope to one day have a farm that used the old ways.
Smith said that they could refuse the funds and the funds would be donated to the Dallas Childrens Hospital benevolence fund. Donald looked at Tracy and she gave him a thumbs up. He said to Mr. Smith that they would greatly appreciate the funds going to the hospital. They chatted for a bit about it and Smith confirmed that was their wishes. He had paperwork on his lap top for the couple rerleasing themselves from the estate and he called a traveling notary to come to the house to witness the documents being signed.
Mr. Smith bid them goodbye and Tracy gave him a big hug and loaf of her zesty carrot bread to tide him over at the airport. After Mr. Smith left Donald noticed Mr. Smith had left a large envelope on the kitchen table. It was addressed to he and a Tracy.
Inside was a full and clear deed to their dream farm in Idaho, a check purchasing their California house with title work transferring it to the local, crisis pregnancy care group, a check for a moving company, prepaid credit cards to the businesses they would need to buy farming supplies up in Idaho, keys to three safety boxes at a credit union in Idaho and a list of resources up there. And a note from Margaret thanking them for making a solid loving choice. And for them to have fun opening the safety deposit boxes. Both Tracy and Donald had tears of joy knowing they were on their way home to Idaho.
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We have some really fine writers here. I think you need to post more of these prompts, Lake Lili, to bring out the shy ones.
kyrsyan
Has No Life - Lives on TB
Elise woke up early and headed into the day. There was much to do and never seemed to be enough time to do it in. So she headed outside for the morning chores and walk. While walking she notice extra cars around a Jerry's home. When his daughter came out she waved and kept walking. Whatever was going on, they didn't need more nosey people around. Over the next week she noticed the family coming and going a lot more often than was normal, and she didn't see Jerry. A few weeks later there was a large dumpster and an auction agency cleaning out the "spare" house and tagging things. In her heart she knew that she would not see Jerry again.
Time went on, as it does, and Elise wanted to go down for the auction but life conspired otherwise. A few months later, when she was walking by again, Elise saw Jerry's daughter there. So she stopped this time and asked. Alena told her that everything had been sold but the house. And that Jerry had a quirk in his will that they were trying to figure out before they could sell the house. She smiled and said that Jerry did have a tendency for quirks occasionally and that she was going to miss him. Elise talked with Alena about how Jerry helped her one year when her health got bad. And he'd always stop and chat when they crossed paths while walking. Or wave and smile when he drove by. Until he started having problems walking and switched to biking. But they'd always chat when they saw each other. Jerry was a good person with a giant heart. They both went home with good memories foremost in their minds, always a good thing.
A few days later Alena stopped by to chat. Elise found it kind of unusual because the Alena actually drove to her house. It made Elise sort of jumpy because she wasn't comfortable with unexpected visits. And Alena had brought someone she didn't know. They sat on the porch and talked for a bit and then Alena told her that they had finally figured out the quirk. Jerry had left a one time gift for "a neighbor down the road", whose name he didn't remember. Jerry always was bad with names, as was Elise, so she just smiled at the thought. Anyways, all the family had was Jerry's descriptions which weren't very helpful either because they were descriptions of things that Jerry and Elise had done together and conversations they had. Not physical descriptions. So his family really had no clue who the neighbor down the road was until Elise stopped to talk to Alena. When Alena got home, she was discussing Elise with her husband. Their son overheard and piped in that he had been there for one of those things, and physically described Elise. That provided the final confirmation that the family needed.
The quirk in the will? $1 million dollars but Elise had to spend it in 24 hours.
Elise had a bit of a panic attack and had to get her breathing under control. She followed that up with a call to a friend to please come up and help her. And a call to another friend, an attorney, to verify that this was real. Within an hour, with the help of two friends, Alena, and the Jerry's attorney, Elise had a grasp on things. The money was in an account. The 24 hours would start as soon as Elise's name was put on the account, but she had no more than another 24 hours to get the account changed to her name. The account would have a instant access debit card for her when it was signed over to her. Elise agreed to meet the attorney first thing the following morning to go to the bank. Her two friends stayed for a while and made sure that she was grounded and stable. There was a lot of discussion about what Elise needed and how they could all go about getting it done. Number one was that her friends, and a few others, would come back the next morning to help her pull it all off. In Elise's mind, they would all be paid well for the time because.
Now, yes, Elise had 24 hours to spend $1 million, but she didn't have to spend it all. If she didn't spend it, she just lost it. She didn't have to give anything back. And any funds she didn't spend actually wouldn't go back to the family. Elise wasn't told what would happen to the funds if she didn't spend them all. She didn't ask. More important questions had been could she use escrow accounts, trusts, gift cards, etc. Did the purchased items have to be received within the 24 hour window? Could she have helpers? Etc.
By the next morning, when everyone arrived, she had her tablet set with online orders for quite a few things, to be put through as soon as she had the access to the money. Some were splurges. Some were filling gaps. There were a lot of both common and rare plants that would soon be headed her way. And others were preset payments to be Paypaled, Venmoed, whatevered to the people that were helping her. They were going to have a really nice paycheck to help their families.
There was an appointment to meet with the owners of her rental house to buy it. Elise probably wouldn't keep it long term but it was needed for now. There were also two properties to go look at as soon as Elise left the bank. Three hours in, she had completed all the online orders and purchased her rental house. She was on her way, with her attorney friend to check out the two properties she had found. Neither turned out to be what she was looking for and she was mentally debating just saying f'it and picking one when they saw a small for sale by owner sign and she pulled in. It didn't take long to see that the house tucked back behind the trees was pretty close to what she was looking for. And an even shorter time for them to arrange to meet the owner that evening, after a home inspector did a run through. Bonuses for the friend because they knew a good inspector who was more than willing to take a look, and rapidly. By that evening, the house was bought with the seller having 30 days to vacate. Although Elise would be more than happy to give them some extra time if needed. It was going to take time to move her small homestead to it's new location. In truth, the seller had already been in the process of moving and figured that they would be completely out within a week.
Through friend of friend contacts, there was a good trustworthy contractor who could add a real glass greenhouse to the new homestead. And he had a quote for the work ready by that evening as well. That was really the only thing the new homestead had been lacking.
She had also located, thanks to online car sales, a certified use Chevy pickup truck. She also found one with a dump bed. Three vehicles total seemed like such a splurge but they each had different uses. And all the mini-farming equipment she could think of needing. And contacted sellers for specific breeds of chickens, goats, rabbits, and pigs that she had been researching for years. The purchases were made with the delivery date to be made in the future. One the flip side, she also contacted local farms and purchase whole animals of all those same animals to be butchered and processed.
In a rare splurge, she got a towable camper, a regular trailer, and an enclosed trailer. Again, to be delivered.
Meanwhile, back at the rental, her other friend was meeting with a fence agency and some contractors to handle some repairs and having a much more sturdy fence installed. Ouch, this was getting expensive. And no amount of available money could stop the winces at hearing the prices. But the funds were put into lawyer handled escrow accounts to be paid out when the work was done, with partial payments upfront. Elise had learned her lessons about paying up front and chasing down services.
Some funds were put into trusts for the future care of her nephews and son. And then she started what she considered the more fun part. She paid off her parents' mortgage. And her brother's. Then she signed for a small house in the area that her other brother said he wanted to live in but hadn't been able to find a house that he could afford. She paid off mortgage's for two dear friends that had always had her back. And a car loan for the third. It was then that she remembered that it might be a good idea to pay off her vehicle loan, and student loans, and those few small medical bills. Which then led her to go online and get a good health insurance plan, and pay it off for the next five years in advance. Which she followed up by doing for all the utilities on her house, and the vehicle insurance, and internet access for both homes. She'd do that for the new homestead's utilities in the morning, although she had wind turbines and solar panels ordered for installation at both locations, and Tesla batteries after a long talk with her Dad proved that those would actually be the best option for what she needed.
By the time evening rolled around, she had torn through a lot of the bequeathment and was just struggling to figure out how to spend the rest. Elise decided to balance things among the friends, so the third friend got a late night phone call, which turned into a conference call with a contractor friend. Elise placed and online order for the supplies and her friend would wake up in the morning to a construction crew to build on that screened porch that she had wanted for years.
And then Elise decided to find a small plot of land in BFE TN that she could slowly upgrade as place to go camping and still be away from people. It would be a good place to use with the camper and she could add things as she desired. She was surprised that she could actually get it sight unseen, but it was barren land. She did arrange to have a well driller get out there and take care of making sure there was a working well on the property. And, just in case, a large "tiny house" shed. And RV connections for using with the camper.
She was torn on the rest. There were causes she wanted to help but she had no faith in the organizations that were in place to help those causes. So on that last morning, she met with the heads of the local food banks, Alena, and Jerry's attorney. Together, they evenly divided the balance contributed all the remaining funds to the food banks.
When it was all done, Elise was just exhausted. She knew it would take time to recover but now she had the time. So she slowly started working on her goals in getting her homestead moved. She knew that most of it would be done over the winter, when she didn't have plantings and gardens to attend to. About a year later she ran into Alena again and they talked. None of them had ever figured out why Jerry had made the quirky request, but Elise was grateful for it. But it did finally occur to Elise to ask if the family had been hurt by the bequest. It was something that preyed on her mind occasionally. Alena assured her that not only had the family not been hurt by it, but the family wouldn't have received their inheritance, or been able to settle the estate, if they hadn't found Elise. Alena explained that all of Jerry's kids had some serious money of their own, and most of the money that Jerry left had went to various charities, including those same foodbanks that she had donated too. His family was more interested in keeping his memories, their memories of him and him in their lives, and they had done that. So maybe Jerry had seen Elise as one of those charities that needed help. Maybe it was just one last game to play with his family. Either way, everyone had new pathways forward and Jerry was fondly remembered by many.
Time went on, as it does, and Elise wanted to go down for the auction but life conspired otherwise. A few months later, when she was walking by again, Elise saw Jerry's daughter there. So she stopped this time and asked. Alena told her that everything had been sold but the house. And that Jerry had a quirk in his will that they were trying to figure out before they could sell the house. She smiled and said that Jerry did have a tendency for quirks occasionally and that she was going to miss him. Elise talked with Alena about how Jerry helped her one year when her health got bad. And he'd always stop and chat when they crossed paths while walking. Or wave and smile when he drove by. Until he started having problems walking and switched to biking. But they'd always chat when they saw each other. Jerry was a good person with a giant heart. They both went home with good memories foremost in their minds, always a good thing.
A few days later Alena stopped by to chat. Elise found it kind of unusual because the Alena actually drove to her house. It made Elise sort of jumpy because she wasn't comfortable with unexpected visits. And Alena had brought someone she didn't know. They sat on the porch and talked for a bit and then Alena told her that they had finally figured out the quirk. Jerry had left a one time gift for "a neighbor down the road", whose name he didn't remember. Jerry always was bad with names, as was Elise, so she just smiled at the thought. Anyways, all the family had was Jerry's descriptions which weren't very helpful either because they were descriptions of things that Jerry and Elise had done together and conversations they had. Not physical descriptions. So his family really had no clue who the neighbor down the road was until Elise stopped to talk to Alena. When Alena got home, she was discussing Elise with her husband. Their son overheard and piped in that he had been there for one of those things, and physically described Elise. That provided the final confirmation that the family needed.
The quirk in the will? $1 million dollars but Elise had to spend it in 24 hours.
Elise had a bit of a panic attack and had to get her breathing under control. She followed that up with a call to a friend to please come up and help her. And a call to another friend, an attorney, to verify that this was real. Within an hour, with the help of two friends, Alena, and the Jerry's attorney, Elise had a grasp on things. The money was in an account. The 24 hours would start as soon as Elise's name was put on the account, but she had no more than another 24 hours to get the account changed to her name. The account would have a instant access debit card for her when it was signed over to her. Elise agreed to meet the attorney first thing the following morning to go to the bank. Her two friends stayed for a while and made sure that she was grounded and stable. There was a lot of discussion about what Elise needed and how they could all go about getting it done. Number one was that her friends, and a few others, would come back the next morning to help her pull it all off. In Elise's mind, they would all be paid well for the time because.
Now, yes, Elise had 24 hours to spend $1 million, but she didn't have to spend it all. If she didn't spend it, she just lost it. She didn't have to give anything back. And any funds she didn't spend actually wouldn't go back to the family. Elise wasn't told what would happen to the funds if she didn't spend them all. She didn't ask. More important questions had been could she use escrow accounts, trusts, gift cards, etc. Did the purchased items have to be received within the 24 hour window? Could she have helpers? Etc.
By the next morning, when everyone arrived, she had her tablet set with online orders for quite a few things, to be put through as soon as she had the access to the money. Some were splurges. Some were filling gaps. There were a lot of both common and rare plants that would soon be headed her way. And others were preset payments to be Paypaled, Venmoed, whatevered to the people that were helping her. They were going to have a really nice paycheck to help their families.
There was an appointment to meet with the owners of her rental house to buy it. Elise probably wouldn't keep it long term but it was needed for now. There were also two properties to go look at as soon as Elise left the bank. Three hours in, she had completed all the online orders and purchased her rental house. She was on her way, with her attorney friend to check out the two properties she had found. Neither turned out to be what she was looking for and she was mentally debating just saying f'it and picking one when they saw a small for sale by owner sign and she pulled in. It didn't take long to see that the house tucked back behind the trees was pretty close to what she was looking for. And an even shorter time for them to arrange to meet the owner that evening, after a home inspector did a run through. Bonuses for the friend because they knew a good inspector who was more than willing to take a look, and rapidly. By that evening, the house was bought with the seller having 30 days to vacate. Although Elise would be more than happy to give them some extra time if needed. It was going to take time to move her small homestead to it's new location. In truth, the seller had already been in the process of moving and figured that they would be completely out within a week.
Through friend of friend contacts, there was a good trustworthy contractor who could add a real glass greenhouse to the new homestead. And he had a quote for the work ready by that evening as well. That was really the only thing the new homestead had been lacking.
She had also located, thanks to online car sales, a certified use Chevy pickup truck. She also found one with a dump bed. Three vehicles total seemed like such a splurge but they each had different uses. And all the mini-farming equipment she could think of needing. And contacted sellers for specific breeds of chickens, goats, rabbits, and pigs that she had been researching for years. The purchases were made with the delivery date to be made in the future. One the flip side, she also contacted local farms and purchase whole animals of all those same animals to be butchered and processed.
In a rare splurge, she got a towable camper, a regular trailer, and an enclosed trailer. Again, to be delivered.
Meanwhile, back at the rental, her other friend was meeting with a fence agency and some contractors to handle some repairs and having a much more sturdy fence installed. Ouch, this was getting expensive. And no amount of available money could stop the winces at hearing the prices. But the funds were put into lawyer handled escrow accounts to be paid out when the work was done, with partial payments upfront. Elise had learned her lessons about paying up front and chasing down services.
Some funds were put into trusts for the future care of her nephews and son. And then she started what she considered the more fun part. She paid off her parents' mortgage. And her brother's. Then she signed for a small house in the area that her other brother said he wanted to live in but hadn't been able to find a house that he could afford. She paid off mortgage's for two dear friends that had always had her back. And a car loan for the third. It was then that she remembered that it might be a good idea to pay off her vehicle loan, and student loans, and those few small medical bills. Which then led her to go online and get a good health insurance plan, and pay it off for the next five years in advance. Which she followed up by doing for all the utilities on her house, and the vehicle insurance, and internet access for both homes. She'd do that for the new homestead's utilities in the morning, although she had wind turbines and solar panels ordered for installation at both locations, and Tesla batteries after a long talk with her Dad proved that those would actually be the best option for what she needed.
By the time evening rolled around, she had torn through a lot of the bequeathment and was just struggling to figure out how to spend the rest. Elise decided to balance things among the friends, so the third friend got a late night phone call, which turned into a conference call with a contractor friend. Elise placed and online order for the supplies and her friend would wake up in the morning to a construction crew to build on that screened porch that she had wanted for years.
And then Elise decided to find a small plot of land in BFE TN that she could slowly upgrade as place to go camping and still be away from people. It would be a good place to use with the camper and she could add things as she desired. She was surprised that she could actually get it sight unseen, but it was barren land. She did arrange to have a well driller get out there and take care of making sure there was a working well on the property. And, just in case, a large "tiny house" shed. And RV connections for using with the camper.
She was torn on the rest. There were causes she wanted to help but she had no faith in the organizations that were in place to help those causes. So on that last morning, she met with the heads of the local food banks, Alena, and Jerry's attorney. Together, they evenly divided the balance contributed all the remaining funds to the food banks.
When it was all done, Elise was just exhausted. She knew it would take time to recover but now she had the time. So she slowly started working on her goals in getting her homestead moved. She knew that most of it would be done over the winter, when she didn't have plantings and gardens to attend to. About a year later she ran into Alena again and they talked. None of them had ever figured out why Jerry had made the quirky request, but Elise was grateful for it. But it did finally occur to Elise to ask if the family had been hurt by the bequest. It was something that preyed on her mind occasionally. Alena assured her that not only had the family not been hurt by it, but the family wouldn't have received their inheritance, or been able to settle the estate, if they hadn't found Elise. Alena explained that all of Jerry's kids had some serious money of their own, and most of the money that Jerry left had went to various charities, including those same foodbanks that she had donated too. His family was more interested in keeping his memories, their memories of him and him in their lives, and they had done that. So maybe Jerry had seen Elise as one of those charities that needed help. Maybe it was just one last game to play with his family. Either way, everyone had new pathways forward and Jerry was fondly remembered by many.
accountant
Contributing Member
I loved Miami. I loved the sunshine. I loved the beaches. I loved seeing the women in their bikinis walking the boardwalks. I loved the different varieties of street food everywhere.
What I didn’t love was the crappy job I had stocking shelves at Mr. Hooper’s corner grocery store or the fact that I had hardly any money left over when all my bills were paid.
I walked into the crappy 2nd floor apartment that I shared with my best friend, George. He and I had been best friends since high school in Newark, New Jersey. We both hated the cold Jersey winters and as soon as we had finished high school, we came south planning to hook up with some sugar mamas and enjoy our lives in the Florida sun. That didn’t work out, and after 5 years, I ended up working for Mr. Hooper and George continued trying his luck with one hustle or another.
As soon as I opened the door, I knew there was something wrong. Maybe it was the two big guys standing in my kitchenette, or maybe it was the sound of George having the crap beat out of him in the bedroom.
Seeing me, one of the guys put his finger to his lips and moved his jacket out of the way, showing me the pistol in his waistband, while the other closed and locked the door behind me. I was pushed into the living room and onto our sofa. All I could do was sit there and listen to the pounding that George was taking.
Finally, the bedroom door opened, and a man came out. I could see George sprawled out on the bedroom floor.
“Get me some water, would you, Jimmy?”, said the man as he sat down on the sofa with me.
One of the guys came back with a glass of tap water for the man sitting on the sofa.
“No bottled?”, asked the man of Jimmy, “Never mind.”
“And who might you be?”, asked the man, turning his attention to me.
“Me? I’m nobody.”, I squeaked.
The man chuckled and said, “Everybody’s somebody. Who are you?”
“My…My name is Joe Fisher. I’m George’s roommate.”, I stammered.
The man smiled and said, “See, that wasn’t so hard now was it.”
He pulled out his phone and made a call.
“Yeah, it’s me…. We found Georgy boy….No, he’s in no condition. He has a roommate, name’s Joe Fisher….Okay…Yep…Will do.”, I heard him say before hanging up the call.
The man sighed, looked me up and down and said, “So here’s the thing, Joe. George has a big mouth. He made some promises to our boss that he couldn’t keep. Our boss doesn’t like it when that happens. A man’s word is his bond, you understand, Joe?”
I nodded.
“We want you to do something for us and if you don’t, we’re gonna take George deep sea fishing. You understand what we’re saying, Joe?”, he asked.
Again, I nodded.
“Good. In that bag over there is $1 million dollars. You’ve got 24 hours to invest all of it for us. We don’t care how or where as long as it can’t be tracked. So, no depositing it into any bank, or anywhere else the feds can track it. Also, no cutting into the boss’s other investments, so no investing in guns, drugs, gambling, strip clubs, or hookers. And the boss wants a return on his investment of $25k every week.”, said the man.
“You invest it all within the 24-hour window and follow the rules, and George stays out of the water and after a year, both you and he are free and clear.”, continued the man.
My mind was spinning. What was I going to do? George’s life depended on me, but I was just a stock-boy. How was I going to invest $1 million in cash in untraceable transactions?
“Now, you’re not in this alone, Joe. Jimmy, Travis, and I are gong to help you. I’m Mike, by the way.”, said the man, holding out his blood-speckled hand.
Not knowing what else to do, I shook Mike’s hand.
“Let’s think about where you can invest this money, Joe. Where do you work?”, asked Mike.
“I work for Mr. Hooper. He owns a corner grocery store just up the road.”, I reply.
“Great. Do you think Mr. Hooper could use some extra cash?”, he asked.
“Yeah, everybody can, I guess.”, I said.
Mike let out a little laugh and said, “Sure, everybody can, you’re right. Is there a neighborhood bar you and George go to sometimes?”
“There’s a sports bar we go to sometimes. It’s called The End Zone. It’s a couple of blocks away.”, I said.
“Hey Jimmy, the End Zone. Is that one of ours?”, asked Mike.
Jimmy just shook his head.
“See Joe? There’s two. Is there any coffee shop or anything like that around here?”, asked Mike.
“Well, there’s a Dunkin’ close by, but we probably want to stay away from that. There’s an independent place three blocks down, close to the beach called Tastee Donuts we could try.”, I said.
“Now you’re thinkin’.”, said Mike, with a smile, “Let’s get moving. You’d be surprised how fast 24 hours goes by.”
With that, Mike stood up and Jimmy and Travis went into the bedroom to get George.
“Umm, can I use the bathroom first?”, I asked, showing Mike the blood on my hand.
Mike smirked and said, “Sure, go ahead. Just leave the door open.”
I went into the bathroom, washed my hands, and splashed some cold water on my face.
What was I doing? Could I do it? I had to otherwise they were going to kill George. I had to.
When I came out, Mike was on the phone, Jimmy was holding up George, and Travis was already gone.
Finishing his call, Mike picked up the bag, smiled, and said, “Let’s start.”
It was a little after 9 so I knew Mr. Hooper would be in the back of the store checking the day’s receipts. I unlocked the door and let myself and Mike in before locking it behind me.
“Mr. Hooper? It’s me, Joe.”, I called out.
As Mike and I walked towards the back of the store, Mr. Hooper popped his head out the back office.
“Joe, what’s going on and who is this man?”, he asked, confused.
“Mr. Hooper. My name is Mike. I’m a friend of Joe’s. We’d like to talk to you, if you have a few minutes.”, said Mike as we came to the door of the back office.
“Joe, what is this?”, asked Mr. Hooper.
“You see, Mr. Hooper. Joe came into some money and would like to use some of it to invest in your grocery store.”, said Mike, not allowing me to speak.
“Joe, is this true?”, asked Mr. Hooper, searchingly.
“Yes, Mr. Hooper.”, I responded.
“I’m sorry, Joe. I don’t think I would be interested in you offer. I’m happy with the way things are.”, said Mr. Hooper, warily.
“Well, that’s disappointing, Mr. Hooper. Joe was so looking to being partners with you in your establishment. But, before we go, can I show you something?”, asked Mike, “Let’s go out back.”
Mike, Mr. Hooper, and I made our way to the back door of the store which opened up to the alley where Mike’s SUV was standing. When Mike opened the door, Jimmy opened the back door of the SUV. Mr. Hooper was able to see George’s battered and bruised unconscious body in the back seat.
“Mr. Hooper.”, said Mike, quietly, “This is the last person who declined our offer. Shall we go back inside and continue our negotiations?”
Soon, the negotiations were completed. Mr. Hooper would sell me 40% of the shares of the corporation which owned the grocery store for $100,000 cash. The shares would be sold for a nominal price of $1 which would appear on the contract between Mr. Hooper and myself. Mr. Hooper would pay me 30% of all cash received in the store with a minimum payment of $3,000 per week. Mr. Hooper was concerned that he wouldn’t be able to come up with $3,000 every week, but would sign the shares over, nonetheless. Mike had a notary public come to the store, prepared and printed off copies of the share sale agreement, and notarized them. Mr. Hooper kept one copy, I received another, and Mike had the third.
The next stop was the End Zone sports bar. We spoke to the owner, Janice Coltrane, about the sale of shares. At first she declined, but again after seeing George, she complied. She received $150,000 cash for 40% ownership and the agreed weekly payment of $7,500.
We were successful with Tastee Donuts for $75,000 and weekly cash payments of $2,500 for $30% ownership.
As we were driving, I noticed a small nightclub called Blue Moon.
“Let’s try there.”, I said.
Sure enough, it was owner operated and received leads from some of the boutique hotels in the area. When we arrived close to midnight, it was teaming with tourists and drinks and cash was flowing.
Within an hour, I had invested another $350,000 with weekly takes of $10,000 cash.
When we walked out of the nightclub, I saw an ice cream truck parked on the street with a long lineup of tourists.
“That one.”, I said to Mike, my confidence building.
A half hour later, I had invested $20,000 in Kreemy Ice cream for a weekly take of $400.
On and on it went through the night, with 12 more food truck owners on the strip getting injections of cash of between $20,000 and $30,000.
We were also able to negotiate that all the companies would buy their meat and produce from Mr. Hooper’s store with a 5% discount for paying by cash.
By 6 in the morning, I was able to negotiate all the money away except $105,000 and guaranteed weekly takes of $29,000. I was exhausted, sitting in the back of the SUV next to George.
“You did good, kid.”, said Mike, “but you still need to get rid of the rest of the cash.”
“I’m tapped out, Mike.”, I said, “We were able to lock in the $25,000 weekly. Can’t you just give the rest back to your boss?”
“That’s not how this works, Joe. The boss needed to get rid of the whole million.”, said Mike.
I slumped down in my seat and sighed.
“I like you, kid. You’ve got gumption, so I’m gonna help you out. I’ve got a cousin who owns a high end place and he’s looking to expand. I say we give me the rest of the cash, he gets you a couple of food trucks, all licensed up. You bring in a couple of his sous-chefs to work it. He pushes catering and other jobs to you. He takes 30% off the top and you keep the rest. Does that work for you?”, asked Mike.
And that’s how I became the food truck king of Miami.
A year goes by without me knowing it. Mr. Hooper’s store is much busier with the additional cash sales to all my food trucks. Cash was flowing. Some of my “partners” actually paid more than the guaranteed minimum weekly payments. A few times, a couple of them decided that they didn’t want to make their weekly payments. I had to bring in Mike and his associates, for a fee, to convince my partners to make their payments. On occasion, a partner would have difficulties like a broken down truck, an ice machine that needed repairs, or scratches and dents on their vehicles. Being a good partner, I took care of all of these items. I had gotten George involved with the catering business and he was running it pretty smoothly. It was doing well, we were able to do a few high profile gigs, and I even had my picture taken with some celebrities. George wanted to start living the high life, getting a more upscale apartment, and partying. A quick conversation with me and Mike changed his attitude. I still worked at Mr. Hooper’s grocery store, but instead of stocking shelves, I was more involved with ordering product for my food trucks and counting the cash. I even invested some of my extra cash into a couple of tourist shops that sold t-shirts, cheap sun glasses, flip flops, and knickknacks to out-of-towners.
As I was making my weekly payment to Mike, he suggested we go for a drive. He said the boss wanted to talk.
I sat in silence on the drive to a large estate on the water. Pulling into the front of the house, Mike stopped and one of the boss’s men opened the door for me.
“Go through the house, he’s waiting for you out back by the pool.”, was all the man said.
The house was immaculate with glistening marble floors, a circular staircase leading to the second floor, and a high end kitchen looking out onto a beautifully manicured and landscaped private back yard.
Making my way outside, I saw a man sitting on a chaise lounger. There was a second lounger beside it with a small table between them. On the table was a pitcher of some kind of cocktail and several glasses.
Hearing me walk out onto the patio, the man looked up at me and smiled.
I was expecting a large man, but what I saw instead was a man, about 5’8” tall, and 160 lbs, in his late forties with short black hair wearing a cotton polo shirt, long shorts, and leather flip flops.
“Ah, you must be Joe.”, said the man as he rose, “Please come and sit. Would you like a margarita?”
Without waiting for an answer, the man poured me a glass of the concoction.
“Joe, we’ve been watching you and we like what we see.”, said the man, after taking a sip of his drink, “You stayed quiet, and under the radar. You’ve got a good head on your shoulders. I liked your business model of investing in cash businesses. I liked is so much I copied it in Tampa, Orlando, and Lauderdale.”
“Thank you, sir”, was all I could think of saying.
“Please, call me Vince.”, said the man, even though I already knew his reputation, “When we started this little experiment, we said that it was only going to last a year. Well, the year’s up and you’re done.”
Vince took a sip of his drink and I just gulped to keep from puking.
“Umm.. What does that mean?”, I asked, softly.
“It means you’re done, you’re out. You sign over the shares of your corporations to one of my companies and you walk away with whatever cash you’ve got left over. You can keep the novelty shops, those weren’t part of the original agreement.”, said Vince, “Or…”
“Or?”, I ask.
“Or you stay on with me, on the legit side of the business, of course. We start a holding company with would hold the shares of your corporations and the shares of the other corporation in the other locations. You would get shares of the holding company and one of my other associates would get the rest of the shares. We pitch the business model with all actual financials to a private equity firm, which I know would be more than happy to spend their cash, actually my cash, to invest in it for additional shares. You would run the consolidated company as CEO and hire a team to manage it. I want to expand the business across the country. Wherever tourists spend cash at independent food trucks, coffee shops, sports bars, or night clubs, I want a cut of the action, legally of course.”, explained Vince.
And that’s how I became the food truck king of America and got my picture on the cover of Fortune magazine.
What I didn’t love was the crappy job I had stocking shelves at Mr. Hooper’s corner grocery store or the fact that I had hardly any money left over when all my bills were paid.
I walked into the crappy 2nd floor apartment that I shared with my best friend, George. He and I had been best friends since high school in Newark, New Jersey. We both hated the cold Jersey winters and as soon as we had finished high school, we came south planning to hook up with some sugar mamas and enjoy our lives in the Florida sun. That didn’t work out, and after 5 years, I ended up working for Mr. Hooper and George continued trying his luck with one hustle or another.
As soon as I opened the door, I knew there was something wrong. Maybe it was the two big guys standing in my kitchenette, or maybe it was the sound of George having the crap beat out of him in the bedroom.
Seeing me, one of the guys put his finger to his lips and moved his jacket out of the way, showing me the pistol in his waistband, while the other closed and locked the door behind me. I was pushed into the living room and onto our sofa. All I could do was sit there and listen to the pounding that George was taking.
Finally, the bedroom door opened, and a man came out. I could see George sprawled out on the bedroom floor.
“Get me some water, would you, Jimmy?”, said the man as he sat down on the sofa with me.
One of the guys came back with a glass of tap water for the man sitting on the sofa.
“No bottled?”, asked the man of Jimmy, “Never mind.”
“And who might you be?”, asked the man, turning his attention to me.
“Me? I’m nobody.”, I squeaked.
The man chuckled and said, “Everybody’s somebody. Who are you?”
“My…My name is Joe Fisher. I’m George’s roommate.”, I stammered.
The man smiled and said, “See, that wasn’t so hard now was it.”
He pulled out his phone and made a call.
“Yeah, it’s me…. We found Georgy boy….No, he’s in no condition. He has a roommate, name’s Joe Fisher….Okay…Yep…Will do.”, I heard him say before hanging up the call.
The man sighed, looked me up and down and said, “So here’s the thing, Joe. George has a big mouth. He made some promises to our boss that he couldn’t keep. Our boss doesn’t like it when that happens. A man’s word is his bond, you understand, Joe?”
I nodded.
“We want you to do something for us and if you don’t, we’re gonna take George deep sea fishing. You understand what we’re saying, Joe?”, he asked.
Again, I nodded.
“Good. In that bag over there is $1 million dollars. You’ve got 24 hours to invest all of it for us. We don’t care how or where as long as it can’t be tracked. So, no depositing it into any bank, or anywhere else the feds can track it. Also, no cutting into the boss’s other investments, so no investing in guns, drugs, gambling, strip clubs, or hookers. And the boss wants a return on his investment of $25k every week.”, said the man.
“You invest it all within the 24-hour window and follow the rules, and George stays out of the water and after a year, both you and he are free and clear.”, continued the man.
My mind was spinning. What was I going to do? George’s life depended on me, but I was just a stock-boy. How was I going to invest $1 million in cash in untraceable transactions?
“Now, you’re not in this alone, Joe. Jimmy, Travis, and I are gong to help you. I’m Mike, by the way.”, said the man, holding out his blood-speckled hand.
Not knowing what else to do, I shook Mike’s hand.
“Let’s think about where you can invest this money, Joe. Where do you work?”, asked Mike.
“I work for Mr. Hooper. He owns a corner grocery store just up the road.”, I reply.
“Great. Do you think Mr. Hooper could use some extra cash?”, he asked.
“Yeah, everybody can, I guess.”, I said.
Mike let out a little laugh and said, “Sure, everybody can, you’re right. Is there a neighborhood bar you and George go to sometimes?”
“There’s a sports bar we go to sometimes. It’s called The End Zone. It’s a couple of blocks away.”, I said.
“Hey Jimmy, the End Zone. Is that one of ours?”, asked Mike.
Jimmy just shook his head.
“See Joe? There’s two. Is there any coffee shop or anything like that around here?”, asked Mike.
“Well, there’s a Dunkin’ close by, but we probably want to stay away from that. There’s an independent place three blocks down, close to the beach called Tastee Donuts we could try.”, I said.
“Now you’re thinkin’.”, said Mike, with a smile, “Let’s get moving. You’d be surprised how fast 24 hours goes by.”
With that, Mike stood up and Jimmy and Travis went into the bedroom to get George.
“Umm, can I use the bathroom first?”, I asked, showing Mike the blood on my hand.
Mike smirked and said, “Sure, go ahead. Just leave the door open.”
I went into the bathroom, washed my hands, and splashed some cold water on my face.
What was I doing? Could I do it? I had to otherwise they were going to kill George. I had to.
When I came out, Mike was on the phone, Jimmy was holding up George, and Travis was already gone.
Finishing his call, Mike picked up the bag, smiled, and said, “Let’s start.”
It was a little after 9 so I knew Mr. Hooper would be in the back of the store checking the day’s receipts. I unlocked the door and let myself and Mike in before locking it behind me.
“Mr. Hooper? It’s me, Joe.”, I called out.
As Mike and I walked towards the back of the store, Mr. Hooper popped his head out the back office.
“Joe, what’s going on and who is this man?”, he asked, confused.
“Mr. Hooper. My name is Mike. I’m a friend of Joe’s. We’d like to talk to you, if you have a few minutes.”, said Mike as we came to the door of the back office.
“Joe, what is this?”, asked Mr. Hooper.
“You see, Mr. Hooper. Joe came into some money and would like to use some of it to invest in your grocery store.”, said Mike, not allowing me to speak.
“Joe, is this true?”, asked Mr. Hooper, searchingly.
“Yes, Mr. Hooper.”, I responded.
“I’m sorry, Joe. I don’t think I would be interested in you offer. I’m happy with the way things are.”, said Mr. Hooper, warily.
“Well, that’s disappointing, Mr. Hooper. Joe was so looking to being partners with you in your establishment. But, before we go, can I show you something?”, asked Mike, “Let’s go out back.”
Mike, Mr. Hooper, and I made our way to the back door of the store which opened up to the alley where Mike’s SUV was standing. When Mike opened the door, Jimmy opened the back door of the SUV. Mr. Hooper was able to see George’s battered and bruised unconscious body in the back seat.
“Mr. Hooper.”, said Mike, quietly, “This is the last person who declined our offer. Shall we go back inside and continue our negotiations?”
Soon, the negotiations were completed. Mr. Hooper would sell me 40% of the shares of the corporation which owned the grocery store for $100,000 cash. The shares would be sold for a nominal price of $1 which would appear on the contract between Mr. Hooper and myself. Mr. Hooper would pay me 30% of all cash received in the store with a minimum payment of $3,000 per week. Mr. Hooper was concerned that he wouldn’t be able to come up with $3,000 every week, but would sign the shares over, nonetheless. Mike had a notary public come to the store, prepared and printed off copies of the share sale agreement, and notarized them. Mr. Hooper kept one copy, I received another, and Mike had the third.
The next stop was the End Zone sports bar. We spoke to the owner, Janice Coltrane, about the sale of shares. At first she declined, but again after seeing George, she complied. She received $150,000 cash for 40% ownership and the agreed weekly payment of $7,500.
We were successful with Tastee Donuts for $75,000 and weekly cash payments of $2,500 for $30% ownership.
As we were driving, I noticed a small nightclub called Blue Moon.
“Let’s try there.”, I said.
Sure enough, it was owner operated and received leads from some of the boutique hotels in the area. When we arrived close to midnight, it was teaming with tourists and drinks and cash was flowing.
Within an hour, I had invested another $350,000 with weekly takes of $10,000 cash.
When we walked out of the nightclub, I saw an ice cream truck parked on the street with a long lineup of tourists.
“That one.”, I said to Mike, my confidence building.
A half hour later, I had invested $20,000 in Kreemy Ice cream for a weekly take of $400.
On and on it went through the night, with 12 more food truck owners on the strip getting injections of cash of between $20,000 and $30,000.
We were also able to negotiate that all the companies would buy their meat and produce from Mr. Hooper’s store with a 5% discount for paying by cash.
By 6 in the morning, I was able to negotiate all the money away except $105,000 and guaranteed weekly takes of $29,000. I was exhausted, sitting in the back of the SUV next to George.
“You did good, kid.”, said Mike, “but you still need to get rid of the rest of the cash.”
“I’m tapped out, Mike.”, I said, “We were able to lock in the $25,000 weekly. Can’t you just give the rest back to your boss?”
“That’s not how this works, Joe. The boss needed to get rid of the whole million.”, said Mike.
I slumped down in my seat and sighed.
“I like you, kid. You’ve got gumption, so I’m gonna help you out. I’ve got a cousin who owns a high end place and he’s looking to expand. I say we give me the rest of the cash, he gets you a couple of food trucks, all licensed up. You bring in a couple of his sous-chefs to work it. He pushes catering and other jobs to you. He takes 30% off the top and you keep the rest. Does that work for you?”, asked Mike.
And that’s how I became the food truck king of Miami.
A year goes by without me knowing it. Mr. Hooper’s store is much busier with the additional cash sales to all my food trucks. Cash was flowing. Some of my “partners” actually paid more than the guaranteed minimum weekly payments. A few times, a couple of them decided that they didn’t want to make their weekly payments. I had to bring in Mike and his associates, for a fee, to convince my partners to make their payments. On occasion, a partner would have difficulties like a broken down truck, an ice machine that needed repairs, or scratches and dents on their vehicles. Being a good partner, I took care of all of these items. I had gotten George involved with the catering business and he was running it pretty smoothly. It was doing well, we were able to do a few high profile gigs, and I even had my picture taken with some celebrities. George wanted to start living the high life, getting a more upscale apartment, and partying. A quick conversation with me and Mike changed his attitude. I still worked at Mr. Hooper’s grocery store, but instead of stocking shelves, I was more involved with ordering product for my food trucks and counting the cash. I even invested some of my extra cash into a couple of tourist shops that sold t-shirts, cheap sun glasses, flip flops, and knickknacks to out-of-towners.
As I was making my weekly payment to Mike, he suggested we go for a drive. He said the boss wanted to talk.
I sat in silence on the drive to a large estate on the water. Pulling into the front of the house, Mike stopped and one of the boss’s men opened the door for me.
“Go through the house, he’s waiting for you out back by the pool.”, was all the man said.
The house was immaculate with glistening marble floors, a circular staircase leading to the second floor, and a high end kitchen looking out onto a beautifully manicured and landscaped private back yard.
Making my way outside, I saw a man sitting on a chaise lounger. There was a second lounger beside it with a small table between them. On the table was a pitcher of some kind of cocktail and several glasses.
Hearing me walk out onto the patio, the man looked up at me and smiled.
I was expecting a large man, but what I saw instead was a man, about 5’8” tall, and 160 lbs, in his late forties with short black hair wearing a cotton polo shirt, long shorts, and leather flip flops.
“Ah, you must be Joe.”, said the man as he rose, “Please come and sit. Would you like a margarita?”
Without waiting for an answer, the man poured me a glass of the concoction.
“Joe, we’ve been watching you and we like what we see.”, said the man, after taking a sip of his drink, “You stayed quiet, and under the radar. You’ve got a good head on your shoulders. I liked your business model of investing in cash businesses. I liked is so much I copied it in Tampa, Orlando, and Lauderdale.”
“Thank you, sir”, was all I could think of saying.
“Please, call me Vince.”, said the man, even though I already knew his reputation, “When we started this little experiment, we said that it was only going to last a year. Well, the year’s up and you’re done.”
Vince took a sip of his drink and I just gulped to keep from puking.
“Umm.. What does that mean?”, I asked, softly.
“It means you’re done, you’re out. You sign over the shares of your corporations to one of my companies and you walk away with whatever cash you’ve got left over. You can keep the novelty shops, those weren’t part of the original agreement.”, said Vince, “Or…”
“Or?”, I ask.
“Or you stay on with me, on the legit side of the business, of course. We start a holding company with would hold the shares of your corporations and the shares of the other corporation in the other locations. You would get shares of the holding company and one of my other associates would get the rest of the shares. We pitch the business model with all actual financials to a private equity firm, which I know would be more than happy to spend their cash, actually my cash, to invest in it for additional shares. You would run the consolidated company as CEO and hire a team to manage it. I want to expand the business across the country. Wherever tourists spend cash at independent food trucks, coffee shops, sports bars, or night clubs, I want a cut of the action, legally of course.”, explained Vince.
And that’s how I became the food truck king of America and got my picture on the cover of Fortune magazine.
hiwall
Has No Life - Lives on TB
I was ready when I saw Earl pull into my place. I walked out so he did not have to get out of his Jeep.
“Happy Birthday!”
“Yup. Another year down.”
It was my birthday today but that was not why Earl was picking me up. It was Thursday and a few of us old guys met for coffee every Thursday afternoon at McDonalds. I did not drive anymore so Earl always picked me up because it was not out of his way at all.
Three of the other guys were there today. We were all old and often one or more of us missed a day because of feeling poorly. It was all part of getting old. As they say “getting old is not for sissies”.
We had the normal BS session and complained about our worthless government. I found out Bill had broken his hip so he would be gone for a while. Towards the end of our “meeting”, Earl was the one who gave me the tickets. Each of them had spent a dollar to buy me one of the new lottery tickets. It was for “Be a Millionaire for a Day” game. The drawing was tomorrow so I would find out if I won or not then. They always had the winning numbers on the news.
It was a new game where the winners only won a million bucks and had to spend it in one day, hence the name. The winner was followed around by a camera crew and the resulting footage was edited down to fit in a half-hour TV show.
I almost had a heart attack when one of my tickets was the winner. The next day I called the phone number on the ticket and they told me what I had to do for verification. When I called Earl I think he was more excited than I was. I asked if he would give me a ride to get the ticket verified and his answer was, “Yes, Your Highness.”
It seemed like a long ride because Earl was riding me pretty hard for the twenty minutes of the ride to the place I had to go to. We got inside the place and they verified my ticket and then spent about an hour with me
signing different forms and being told all the rules and about the filming and blah blah blah. We got the date set up and they would provide a limo for me and the film crew would be following in their van. The rules said I had a full twenty-four hours but I would never last that long. They suggested I study the stack of rules in the papers they gave me and mentioned that some people hired a lawyer or an accountant or a financial advisor. I thanked them and I and Earl got out of the place.
On the way home, we stopped for lunch and I was nice enough to pick up the tab. Earl said it was mighty big of me to pay for his sandwich. He asked if I wanted a ride to a lawyer or anything and I told him I didn’t think so but first I had to read all gobbledygook in the stack of papers. I thanked him and he took off.
I read the papers over the next few days. I also made many phone calls to different places. I also called the game show place had had their guy explain a few things I was not clear on in the papers. I saw no sense in paying a lawyer. The day before the big day I went to bed very early. It didn’t help because I don’t think I slept any more than on a normal night.
The limo showed up right on time but like the plan said I had to give an interview both before and after the fateful day. Luckily the first interview had been two days earlier so I wasted none of my twenty-four hours.
In the limo were the two guys from the game show who would be paying for everything today. The first stop was the car dealership. They had been kept updated by me and they were ready when we arrived. The vehicles were sitting all together inside the showroom and had obviously just been detailed because they really shined. Two four-wheel-drive pickups and two four-wheel-drive SUVs.
The paperwork was all ready and the sale was very fast. Each vehicle also included three years of complete maintenance. The vehicles would be delivered tomorrow so the camera crew could film my kids getting the new rides.
From the dealership, we drove to a post office where I was filmed putting the twenty grand check into an envelope and dropping it in the slot at the post office. Later the film crew would film a segment on the cemetery council getting the check. The money would be for cemetery upkeep where my wife was buried.
The next two stops were at coin dealers. Again this was not a surprise visit and things were all set up in advance by me. The first place had a set amount of mixed gold and silver US minted coins ready in the amount I specified. The transaction was smooth and the film crew got some good shots. The second coin dealer stop took a little longer because the amount I was to buy there depended on the current prices of the precious metals. This stop used almost all the remaining money.
From the second coin shop, we had plenty of time to get to my bank. Inside I rented two safe deposit boxes and the crew filmed me putting the precious metals into the two boxes. The bank had been informed of this ahead of time and was accommodating me so they could get the free national advertising on the game show.
That was it. Not even an eight-hour day and I had spent all the million dollars. The bank episode was strictly to show any robbers that the precious metals would not be inside my home. Only I knew that in a week or so the coins would be removed from the safe-deposit boxes and safely stored at the homes of my kids.
My kids would be getting some cash when they sold their current vehicles and started driving their new rigs. I had called both of them and they had picked the colors for each rig. The coins they could sell or keep at their homes as their situations demanded though at this point they did not need the money and both would just bury it on their properties with each knowing the spots each would put the coins. The kids trusted each other completely.
When the show aired that I was in, it seemed a little boring compared to many of the previous shows. That was fine with me. I had stupidly thought the show would air the week after I got the money spent but it was two months later. I was just able to watch the show before I went to the hospital.
Edited:
My dad died two days after he appeared on TV. He had already paid completely for his funeral and to have his name and dates added to the headstone he had bought when Mom died. He was buried next to her. He had known he was dying and had lived longer than the doctor expected. I think he waited just to see himself on TV.
“Happy Birthday!”
“Yup. Another year down.”
It was my birthday today but that was not why Earl was picking me up. It was Thursday and a few of us old guys met for coffee every Thursday afternoon at McDonalds. I did not drive anymore so Earl always picked me up because it was not out of his way at all.
Three of the other guys were there today. We were all old and often one or more of us missed a day because of feeling poorly. It was all part of getting old. As they say “getting old is not for sissies”.
We had the normal BS session and complained about our worthless government. I found out Bill had broken his hip so he would be gone for a while. Towards the end of our “meeting”, Earl was the one who gave me the tickets. Each of them had spent a dollar to buy me one of the new lottery tickets. It was for “Be a Millionaire for a Day” game. The drawing was tomorrow so I would find out if I won or not then. They always had the winning numbers on the news.
It was a new game where the winners only won a million bucks and had to spend it in one day, hence the name. The winner was followed around by a camera crew and the resulting footage was edited down to fit in a half-hour TV show.
I almost had a heart attack when one of my tickets was the winner. The next day I called the phone number on the ticket and they told me what I had to do for verification. When I called Earl I think he was more excited than I was. I asked if he would give me a ride to get the ticket verified and his answer was, “Yes, Your Highness.”
It seemed like a long ride because Earl was riding me pretty hard for the twenty minutes of the ride to the place I had to go to. We got inside the place and they verified my ticket and then spent about an hour with me
signing different forms and being told all the rules and about the filming and blah blah blah. We got the date set up and they would provide a limo for me and the film crew would be following in their van. The rules said I had a full twenty-four hours but I would never last that long. They suggested I study the stack of rules in the papers they gave me and mentioned that some people hired a lawyer or an accountant or a financial advisor. I thanked them and I and Earl got out of the place.
On the way home, we stopped for lunch and I was nice enough to pick up the tab. Earl said it was mighty big of me to pay for his sandwich. He asked if I wanted a ride to a lawyer or anything and I told him I didn’t think so but first I had to read all gobbledygook in the stack of papers. I thanked him and he took off.
I read the papers over the next few days. I also made many phone calls to different places. I also called the game show place had had their guy explain a few things I was not clear on in the papers. I saw no sense in paying a lawyer. The day before the big day I went to bed very early. It didn’t help because I don’t think I slept any more than on a normal night.
The limo showed up right on time but like the plan said I had to give an interview both before and after the fateful day. Luckily the first interview had been two days earlier so I wasted none of my twenty-four hours.
In the limo were the two guys from the game show who would be paying for everything today. The first stop was the car dealership. They had been kept updated by me and they were ready when we arrived. The vehicles were sitting all together inside the showroom and had obviously just been detailed because they really shined. Two four-wheel-drive pickups and two four-wheel-drive SUVs.
The paperwork was all ready and the sale was very fast. Each vehicle also included three years of complete maintenance. The vehicles would be delivered tomorrow so the camera crew could film my kids getting the new rides.
From the dealership, we drove to a post office where I was filmed putting the twenty grand check into an envelope and dropping it in the slot at the post office. Later the film crew would film a segment on the cemetery council getting the check. The money would be for cemetery upkeep where my wife was buried.
The next two stops were at coin dealers. Again this was not a surprise visit and things were all set up in advance by me. The first place had a set amount of mixed gold and silver US minted coins ready in the amount I specified. The transaction was smooth and the film crew got some good shots. The second coin dealer stop took a little longer because the amount I was to buy there depended on the current prices of the precious metals. This stop used almost all the remaining money.
From the second coin shop, we had plenty of time to get to my bank. Inside I rented two safe deposit boxes and the crew filmed me putting the precious metals into the two boxes. The bank had been informed of this ahead of time and was accommodating me so they could get the free national advertising on the game show.
That was it. Not even an eight-hour day and I had spent all the million dollars. The bank episode was strictly to show any robbers that the precious metals would not be inside my home. Only I knew that in a week or so the coins would be removed from the safe-deposit boxes and safely stored at the homes of my kids.
My kids would be getting some cash when they sold their current vehicles and started driving their new rigs. I had called both of them and they had picked the colors for each rig. The coins they could sell or keep at their homes as their situations demanded though at this point they did not need the money and both would just bury it on their properties with each knowing the spots each would put the coins. The kids trusted each other completely.
When the show aired that I was in, it seemed a little boring compared to many of the previous shows. That was fine with me. I had stupidly thought the show would air the week after I got the money spent but it was two months later. I was just able to watch the show before I went to the hospital.
Edited:
My dad died two days after he appeared on TV. He had already paid completely for his funeral and to have his name and dates added to the headstone he had bought when Mom died. He was buried next to her. He had known he was dying and had lived longer than the doctor expected. I think he waited just to see himself on TV.
larry_minn
Contributing Member
I think a blond bombshell working at a crooked lawyers office when I came into tons of money. Even if horny 20 yr old I would avoid.
