A Surprise Lunch Crush

We had a great time and my visit to Pattaya Bay and City brought back distant memories of when my ship made a three-day liberty call here. There is no pier so the water taxis put their bows up on the sandy beach (talk about hitting the beach for liberty gave a whole new meaning). I learned to love Thai brandy in Pattaya, about half as strong as California brandy, but still tasty. I had been a brandy drinker since before I was even legal to drink. Wisconsin's unofficial state drink is a Brandy Old-Fashion.

We left Beam with tearful eyes, and I asked her to come to New Zealand with us, if she had time. In one week, all three of us fell in love with Beam and I think she loved us, too.

New Zealand was a trip. We had a ball, catching up and attending many welcome back parties. About a week later, there was a knock at our bungalow door and it was Beam coming to visit. Happy tears all around. Beam was a big help for me, as I did not have a nanny, so either I brought the kids with me to XYZ childcare or I had to find a sitter. Beam filled the nanny slot very well and enjoyed it. Beam really shined in correcting our sloppy-speaking Thai.

The most humbling moment was when Beam spotted Kerri on the mantle. Beam teared up, gently touched the urn, clasped her hands in prayer, briefly bowed her head, then motioned her prayer hands to her head, throat, and heart, closed her eyes and completed a silent prayer. I recognized her Buddhist prayer. Chrissy watched in fascination, as religion had not been a topic in our home. I did not object to religion, but it did not govern me other than for the Golden Rule of 'do unto others as you would have them do unto you.' I was sure Chrissy and Beam would be having many private discussions. Later that week, a gold sitting Buddha statue appeared next to the urn.

Beam accompanied us to Japan for the week. Japan was also one of her favorite vacation destinations. We took the trains all over Japan, seeing the sights, even taking the bullet train past Mt. Fuji. We had a good time, but it was hard to leave Beam at Narita airport.

I took the kids to Disneyland, Knots Berry Farm, Sea World, and the San Diego Zoo, they were all big hits. We had to rest a day or two between biggies, as it was getting exhausting for this old goat. I got a special tour of 32nd Street Naval Base, showing them Pier 7 where my ship had docked. My old ship's last duty was being a target sinking to the bottom of the Marianas Trench. Sad ending to a ship that took so many into harm's way and back.

We finally arrived in Milwaukee, at General Billy Mitchel Field-MKE and drove home.

The kids jumped out of the SUV at the gate, running into our field to see their grazers calling all by name. Grandma Carol was ready for us and had a meal cooked and waiting.

I stated, "I love G'ma Carol, but G'pa Frank needs some work,"

That got me a slug in the shoulder, with the retort, "Who the hell do you think took care of your grazers."

I said, "Take that up with your grandkids."

Frank shoved a duplicate two-finger snifter of Dalwhinnie on the rocks into my hand, and we saluted each other. I proclaimed I needed a vacation from my vacation! We all loudly chuckled... Then I said, "Next time you two do it," getting a hearty, haha, but I quieted down when I saw Carol get dreamy eyes, as I didn't want to ruin Frank's upcoming surprise by Carol. Before our trip, Carol asked me if they could take the kids to Disney World and Universal Studios over the upcoming Easter spring break? Hell YES.

Chrissy was Skyping Beam almost every day, and often, I was called to her room to talk to Beam adding another hour or more to the Skype call, but our conversations were more adult-type topics and sometimes required headphones and a turned monitor.

Chrissy just started eighth grade and Dale Jr skipped a year when coming from New Zealand to now be starting seventh grade, both at the same junior high school. Chrissy was trying out for cheerleaders and JR for football. G'ma Carol chauffeur services would be very busy.

Just after Halloween, I got a call at work from Beam. She asked if she could join us for the Christmas and New Year's two weeks. I answered, "Only if you stay at our home and I'll even spring for your airfare." That put a new giddy-up in my step and the kids went bonkers. Chrissy could not wait for her next scheduled Skype call with Beam to start making plans.

I slipped it to Chrissy to get Beam's coat and boot size, as we needed to get her some winter clothes like a very warm coat, gloves, scarf, boots and more. Beam has never lived in snow, or even seen freezing temperatures.

Chrissy said, "Oh my god, Beam will freeze. Yes, yes we must get her good clothes, "as Chrissy and JR started coyly laughing, as this being their third Wisconsin winter making them experts, ho-hum. Of course, our muck-room (mudroom) now had two sets of coats, gloves, boots and hats for everyone; one for the farm and one for school/public (which of course remained cleaner).

Soon, we had the traditional Thanksgiving at our G'parents', next door. We just hopped on our ATVs and screamed over to their house. Packers won, da Bears(still suck) and Cowgirls lost - it was a great T-Day.

Since Chrissy would be driving in two years, I had used that excuse to get a new deluxe four-wheel-drive F-250 Crew Cab for the farm. I'd take the F-250 to work and Beam could use my four-by-four SUV.

I set up our ensuite guest room with a desk and portable floor heater for Beam. We all went to pick her up at MKE. She came out of the tunnel to the luggage carousel and we swarmed her with hugs and kisses. Beam actually jumped into my arms for a grand hug. Then JR picked her up and wouldn't put her down, until I gave him the eye which had us all laughing hysterically. JR was now a full head-plus taller than Beam and Chrissy, and his shoulders were nearing my size - lifting weights will do that. During the busy school days, the kids only go to the dojo once a week.

The following day, we loaded up in the F-250 and went Christmas tree hunting. Chrissy and Beam took over decorating our home for Christmas. G'ma Carol took the girls to Brookfield Mall for a whole day of girls' shopping. My credit card got some serious dinging. Frank and I taught JR how NOT to get in the way of women at work - we hid out in my man-cave playing pocket-pool, (my man-cave is a remodeled and heated barn 100' from the house). Safety in distance!

Beam drove over to UW Madison to visit a few professors she had already set up appointments to see. When she came back from her day trip, she was giddy, almost bouncing off the ceiling. That evening, I had my first official date with Beam. I took her out for a candlelit supper at Weissgerber's Golden Mast, then to the BlueSky Jazz Lounge for some live piano music and dancing. I was falling for her, but saw problems all over the place in a long-distance 8,500-plus-mile, twenty-five-hour flight romance.

At the end of the night, she had me. On the dance floor, she pulled my face down to kiss me, my heart melted. I was no longer seeing Kerri in Beam's face, I only saw Dr. Beam, who is a living, loving, complete woman. We both had glassy eyes, but we could not let go of each other.

I nibbled her earlobe and said, "pom rak kun" (I love you).

Beam whispered, "chan rak kun" giving me a tight hug.

I asked, "What should we do next?"

She said, "The kids are at Grandma's for the night, so there is no one home, right?"

That was it, I paid the tab and off we went for home. This lady had lit my jets, the first jet-start since Kerri passed almost eight years ago. I was ready for what I thought I'd never experience again.

We raced into the house and directly to my master bedroom. We slowed down and cuddled while removing our clothes. We were both naked and she was truly beautiful. We hugged and kissed and made loving coitus. We wore each other out and being totally sated, we drifted off to sleep wrapped in each other's arms.

We awoke to Carol's ringtone, "General Quarters all hands man your battle stations, gong, gong, gong," on my cellphone. She asked if it was okay for the kids to come home. We asked for another hour-and-a-half-more reprieve. Beam giggled at my morning wood deflating so fast when the phone rang, apparently she was studying it up close as to how to attack it. We took a fun shower together in my big walk-in shower with multiple Kohler rain-heads.

We then went to brew coffee, as we needed caffeine to get our brains moving. I told Beam 'pom rak kun', but I did not know how we could make it work with 8,500 miles between us. She was giddy with smiling eyes.

"I need to ask if you can find me a place to stay for next year and a half."

"Of course." I was confused but I had an idea this vixen was pulling one - her tease was on. "Where do you need to be for next year?"

She said, "Madison would be ideal, but not really necessary."

"Okay, I'll bite, why?"

"I'll be a guest adjunct professor for the year.

"With the online classes newly established due to Covid, I can conduct classes and lectures over the web or at any UW extension location to students in the UW system. Office hours can be by Zoom, Skype, GoToMeeting. They told me I could use the UWM Waukesha campus, if my home web speed is inadequate. They even have an office for me. One of the UW Madison professors will by taking my place at the Ubon University."

I stated, "That really means you could live here and do short commutes or work from home, you do not need an apartment. You do know I have a T3 line run to the house?"

"Yes, I noticed." She asked if she could work from my home.

I said, "YES, your new home, if that is what you want."

Beam jumped across the table and into my arms kissing me all over my face, just then the kids walked in, catching us, with Carol and Frank in tow, all with bright smiles.

Of course, Chrissy asked if what she saw means what she thinks it means.

I looked into Beam's eyes and asked, teasingly, "Does this mean what Chrissy thinks it means?"

Beam asked Chrissy, "Well what do you think it means?"

Chrissy was almost panting with frustration at our non-answers, our moment of adult fun. Of course, Carol had to screw it up (saving her goddaughter from a self-inflicted heart attack) by asking Chrissy if we were frowning. Then JR piped up, "GIRLS!" shuffling off to his bedroom.

Later that morning, we had a family sit-down to clearly explain what was going on. We told the kids of Beam's and my feelings, and asked if they had any problems with that? Both jumped Beam and welcomed her into our family. Not long after, Chrissy started calling Beam - mommy, Beam had serious happy tears and glassy eyes. JR took a few days but came around.

My family, Carol, Frank, with Lizzy and a few others had a fun New Year's at my home, as we watched midnight fireworks over the lake. My cathedral windows facing the lake let us see it all from the comfort of a warm, wood-fired living room. We had a joyous New Year's. As of this New Year, Beam moved into my master bedroom, I was one happy camper.

I converted our guest room into Beam's new home office. Beam had her friends, colleagues, and family pack up her stuff and send it to our Singapore office, for them to ship it to our New Zealand plant and then to XYZ corporate headquarters all on my dime, but at company rates. As I doubted Beam would be returning to Thailand anytime soon.

I asked Chrissy to help me find the perfect engagement ring. Chrissy broke down crying telling me she's so happy I found a loving life mate. She has been worried I'd never find another great love like her mother Kerri. All I could do was hug Chrissy tighter and kiss the top of her head until I slid down and gave her a chilly-willy. "Oh yuk! get off me you brute," as she mock fought free of my grasping hug. We laughed so hard we both cried.

Epilogue:

The same New Year's group was at our house for the Fourth of July fireworks. At the big fireworks finalé, I dropped to a knee and asked Beam to marry me. Beam jumped into my arms screaming, "chi chi my chi!" Beam was hoping I'd ask sooner, but I still surprised her. Chrissy and Carol dragged Beam and the other women to the kitchen for the major pow-wow. I told all the men, including JR, to make tracks for our man-cave.

All the men were married; they harmonized in saying, "You got that right."

I explained to JR that my only function now was to say, "Yes, dear," and get out of the way. All the men were cracking up, laughing, slapping my back, toasting, and chanting, "Another one bites the dust..." But they could not get the smile off my face.

Later that night, Beam and I made our own fireworks. In the morning, Beam woke me with a hot cup of coffee, a big smile, and a long kiss - life does not get much better!

We were married Labor Day weekend and honeymooned for a month on the island of Kauai, with the kids joining us for the last week. The following June, Beam blessed me with twin girls, as she took a sabbatical to raise our perfect little angels. Chrissy was ecstatic to have sisters, becoming our willing babysitter. JR was my quiet reserved sidekick with a huge heart and is very protective of his sisters.

I assisted Chrissy and JR in setting up a small business for their alpaca wool, breeding, miniature-goats, and sale of winter mucked manure. The profits they have made cover the annual costs of their grazers and then some. They received a few show prizes and 4H awards for their dedicated efforts. JR sure loves mucking out the stalls with the little Bobcat front-loader (I got second hand).

Chrissy has made comments about wanting to become a cancer researcher doctor, as I suspect Kerri's cancer death still lingers in her mind. I just tell her anything is possible if she wants it, but she needs to get the grades (she's a 4.1 GPA savant) and I'll cover all her education/living costs.

JR is harder to read, but he has shown interest in my techno-hobbies when I built a 6060XL-CNC and an Ender 3D-Printer. The learning curve required to operate and make designs to carve and print really interests him. I've missed the hands-on engineering and troubleshooting I used to do - it looks like I may have planted an engineering seed in JR. We shall see what develops, it's all up to him.

Just after the twins turned three, Dr. Beam went back to teaching but remotely from home. She wants to raise our daughters and is willing to teach if it did not burden her motherhood. UW was more than happy to accommodate Dr. Beam, as she has published many papers during her maternity sabbatical. Beam told me she will retire when I do, as we do not need Beam's income; Beam only teaches for the love of teaching and publishing. Beam and I have sworn to each other that our family comes first, always.

JR and I took up archery and we get our deer every season. Over the years JR and I enjoy our North American hunting and inland fishing trips, where we can tell dirty jokes, drink a beer (or two), and enjoy the wilderness. JR has become very good at sporting-clays, often beating me. We have even done some winter wilderness camping. I bought two quarter sections of unimproved woodland adjacent to the National Forest near Glidden, for us to go grouse hunting every year. Deer hunting went to crap just after 1985, when the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (WDNR) released timber wolves back into Wisconsin. But WDNR forgot to tell the wolves they could only eat the restored elk and not deer that are far easier for the wolves to take down.

Even though the lake in front of our home is beautiful, I bought a cabin on the water in Little Sturgeon Bay, Door County for my summer retreat. We replaced the very old cabin with a copy of our Kiwi bungalow plus a pier and bass boat. We still go to New Zealand every year for company audits and then to Thailand to see family.

Frank had a major stroke while shoveling snow and passed last winter. Frank, my closest friend, passing, took a lot of wind out of my sails, making me look at just how short life is and what my priorities need to be. My girls are either at Carol's or Carol is at our home every day; G'ma Carol lives for our girls. We got G'ma a golf cart to motor between our houses or our gator motors to G'ma's house daily.

Life is good, all the kids are healthy, and I'm hitting the big five-oh soon, so Beam is planning our early retirement. I continue to use Kerri's stock market principles in trading, and we have made many more millions over the years. What I now need to do is pass-on Kerri's financial brilliance to our kids, so they can make more if ever need but as of right now their children would live a good life if they never earned a dime.

And LIFE does go on, hooyah!

I hope you enjoyed my story. I'm sure holes and errors will be found in my grammar, crucify me. I'm sure the righteous will be appalled at something to some level - to them I say "sit-on-it" it's just a story. Thanks, OB

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