Surviving Retirement

December 9, Week 32, At the college

Tonight was the faculty Christmas party and the presentation of our play. It would only take about twenty minutes, but I had developed a last minute concern about the ending. This morning, I realized what I needed to change it, but I was reluctant to make the change for a couple of reasons. I fought with myself until I came home to clean up and dress for the dinner. When I got out of the shower and was drying off, Abby was already standing there dressed and said, "Something is bothering you. What is it?"

I replied,"Honey, I am afraid to bring it up because you always say to not add anything that we haven't rehearsed. I think I have a small change that would make the ending more powerful."

She asked, "Does it affect the dialogue or anything else that we have rehearsed?"

"No; it only affects you directly and Samantha indirectly."

"Tell me."

I held my breath as I said, "At the very end when you take her arms and give her a hug, I think it would be more powerful if you gave her a kiss. Not a peck on the lips and not a passionate open mouthed one. But one that holds the promise there might be something more to come." I finally took a breath and waited for her to reply.

I wasn't expecting what came next. She flew into my arms and said, "My God, that is perfect. I knew that you had good instincts. I'll do it. Don't say anything to Samantha about it. Her reaction will be more normal. She was on tour when she was younger and also shared time with other women. She will know exactly what is happening and will respond accordingly. You are so wonderful." Then she planted a very passionate kiss on my lips with a lot of promise for more later.

I felt better as we drove to the dinner. I was still apprehensive about how the faculty would receive it. We got there in time to have a glass of wine and enjoy the student's performance. Abby was proud of them because they were younger students. The dinner was one of the best that I had enjoyed here. Then the older students did their performance. The faculty applauded appreciatively for both of the student performances. Then dessert was served. I skipped mine and went to get things ready. There wasn't much time to prepare because the dessert and coffee were served quickly.

As agreed, I stepped out and said a few words; very few words. I thanked them for coming and hoped that they had enjoyed the Christmas gifts from the Theater Department. Then I told them that we had one final gift for them and went back to the control table. Everyone was surprised when Samantha stood up on the first row of tables and collected plates and silverware. A moment later, Abby stood up and did the same. Then they carried the plates towards the sink and I turned on the over head light. When they went behind the counter, I turned on the front lights focusing on them. Before any words were spoken, Samantha turned on the tap and water began to flow into the sink and the audience gasped. Then Samantha began to wash and rinse the dishes before she handed them to Abby. I turned on the mikes and they began their dialogue.

It was about two women, one the mentor for the younger one, who were talking about giving gifts at Christmas. The older woman was old school and advocated giving someone what they wanted and needed. Abby's character advocated giving something important to the giver as a sign of its importance and meaning. They went back and forth with a couple of humorous examples and a couple of tender ones.

One that got a lot of reaction was Samantha using a teacher giving students the gift of learning. Abby's character agreed but said that that wasn't personal. She paused and then said quietly, "I have a personal gift I would like to give you. Will you accept it?"

Samantha was washing the last dish as she said, "Of course. I would be glad to."

Abby took her arms like we had rehearsed and turned her while Samantha still held the dish in her hands and gently kissed her lips. Samantha's eyes opened wide for a moment and then slowly lowered them until they were closed. I lowered the lights at the same rate that her eyes were closing. The set went dark when they were closed.

They broke the kiss and went out in front as I turned the front lights back up for them. Samantha was drying her hands on a dish towel and the audience jumped to their feet and applauded vigorously. They accepted the applause for a moment and then both turned their arm towards me. I had never been recognized before like that and all I could do was nod to the audience. When the applause began to wane, I turned off the front lights and the room lights came back up. When I looked up Samantha was standing in front of me with a huge smile on her face.

"Abby said that you just put that in this afternoon. I hate myself for not thinking of that when I wrote it. It was perfect. We will leave it as a hug for younger audiences and this one for older ones. Thank you; you were just great." Then she was pulled away as faculty members crowded around both Abby and Samantha.

As we drove home, Abby couldn't stop talking about how much the audience loved it. She also said that Samantha had published four plays under her maiden name and that this was going to be in an anthology of short plays for both younger and older audiences that she had written. Abby is taking her shower now, but has promised me a major gift in bed tonight. Christmas can be a very wonderful holiday.

I am still numb about last night and Abby didn't help it any either. She attacked me with a passion that I had never felt before. Before we fell asleep, she had drained me of everything I had both physically and mentally. Now I have to go to the faculty lounge and clean up and store our prop and equipment. Abby had to give her last exam later and we were going to go to dinner to celebrate the end of the semester. Three of the music students would graduate in January including our musician, but he promised to be there for the New Year's shows. We spent the rest of the week saying goodbye to students and cleaning up the house. Our plan was to take the camper starting on the next Monday and take a leisurely drive down to Abby's parent's house. Megan and Bob were going to his parent's house first and then drive up to Megan's parents for Christmas Day. Cindi was going to spend Christmas with both her parents who were now living in the same place, but had not yet totally reconciled. Before she could ask, I told her to take the truck again. That got me a huge kiss which got Abby on my case about wanting a younger woman. I had to work hard that night to convince her that she was perfect for me.

We locked up the house and took four days to drive to her parents. We camped each night in a park or campground and had a wonderful time together. It was during one of these stops that she told me that I was her co-director for South Pacific. Before I could say anything, she said that I would be helping her cast the show and would then work with the men on everything, but the music and choreography.

We got to her parents this morning and I was warmly greeted. I really liked her father. Her mother was great, but her father had also started and built a business. He had sold it also, but he was fifty when he did and had already had plans of what he wanted to do. I admired him for that.

December 25, Week 34, In Northern California

Things wound down at the college after the students left. It is kind of strange really; the college is a busy beehive of activity all semester long and then poof, it s back to being a lazy quiet place. I guess that was the way it was when we were in college, but we didn't realize it.

I had been worried about going away with Abby to meet her parents. I shouldn't have. They were great especially her dad. He had built a business and sold it when he was fifty. I felt comfortable enough with him that I told him my own story with all of the details. He is the first person I have told. He understood and wondered if he would have known what to do at our age with all of that money. He had planned to sell his when he did and had already planned out a number of things to do. His main concern was about Abby. I told him that I was concerned about that too. I assured him that whatever happened next spring, I would not just walk away from her cold. He appreciated that.

I kept debating what to give Abby, but finally decided on a gift from my heart. I got her parents tickets to a concert in the spring in San Francisco. The concert had been sold out for almost six months and also included three nights at The Mark Hopkins hotel. They loved the gift and put the weekend on their calendar. I waited to give Abby her present until Christmas Eve when we went to bed. I lifted her night gown and put a very small waist chain around her waist with my initials on a heart. She loved it and then she cried when I told her that I loved her for the first time. When she stopped, I told her that I couldn't promise her anything permanent yet, but I slipped a small gold pinkie ring on her left little finger to remind her that I was just this far away from saying more to her. She cried again. We made very tender love and fell asleep.

We left the day after Christmas and drove directly back to school to be there the next day. We planned on leaving on the 28^th with the girls and Bob to go for their for New Year's performance. It took us driving all day to get there and the girl's excitedly told us their big news. Megan had heard from both the San Francisco and Seattle Opera's about potentially working with them this next year. She had called the agent and told him since they asked to have her agent call them. He was glad to hear from her because he also had heard from the Dallas Opera also. He also had three possible club dates for the two of them during the year at major resorts.

Cindi had already talked to him because he had gotten interest from a theater company to create a new musical in the fall in Chicago. The agent was going to come see them after New Years when he had more information on dates and bring a standard representation contract for them to sign. That fit well with Abby and my gift to them. We had arranged for them to have professional photographs taken in Seattle by one of the best show business photographers on the west coast. It would include the whole range of costumes, hair, and makeup. They were going to each have individual packages done as well as a duet package. They were scheduled to go on the 14^th of January for the makeover and the shoot was on the next day. Abby was going with them for support.

Their New Year's Eve concert was in the big hotel ballroom and we had to add a bigger amplifier and speakers to the sound system to fill the room. The audience loved the show and then stayed for the dancing and New Year's noise making. The five of us retired to our rooms with two bottles of champagne. We all celebrated together for a while before Bob and Megan went to their room for their own private celebration. Abby and I celebrated all over Cindi who had never received such a loving effort before. I made love with each of them twice and the girls made love to each other twice. We fell asleep at four in the morning. We had enjoyed our own fireworks together and were exhausted.

The drive back home was slow with Bob and I rotating the driving duties while we all took naps. When we got home, we were ready for a short break before classes would begin again. During that week, the agent came to visit with the contract for the girls which they signed. He brought them each a calendar of events for them to consider. Megan had dates to talk to Seattle and Dallas during the spring for fittings and promotional visits for fall performances. Cindi was wanted in Chicago in July to begin development of the new musical which would premier the fall. If it did well there, it would go to Broadway in December. He had three firm dates for the summer for a week at three resorts. One was in Phoenix, one in Florida, and one in Pennsylvania. The only conflict was the first one in Phoenix which was for the second week in June. Bob and Megan planned on getting married the first week. Bob solved that by saying that they would spend their honeymoon in Phoenix. Megan was thrilled. I also suggested that Bob consider becoming the personal manager for both of them. He would interface with the agent on the contractual things and then make sure that they were there when necessary. Bob liked that idea a lot as did both girls who wanted to perform and liked having someone look after the details. I promised that I would work with him during the spring to be ready. Since he was majoring in business and accounting, I felt that I would have very little to do to prepare him for his new job.

January 8, Week 36, At the college

Since Christmas, we have been very busy with the girl's New Year's shosw and getting ready to start school again. The biggest news was that both girls signed contracts with the agent and they both have a number of opportunities lined up after graduation. Bob is set up to be their personal manager. I have a good feeling about their future.

I had already begun talks with the Department Head on the budget for the coming year. And she wants to talk more this coming week. I don't foresee any problems, but we will see.

Today is my birthday and Abby planned a perfect day for me. We ate breakfast and then just lay around the living room and listened to music all morning. At noon she told me to get dressed. I was expecting the usual Sunday crowd of kids but that didn't happen. All afternoon long, small groups of them dropped by with a cupcake or an ice cream. Since most of them were music or theater majors, they each sang a song for me. One of the art students brought me a painting he had done. It was a very modern picture of the frantic things going on backstage during a musical. Abby had commissioned him to do it and I loved it. He had been on the crew of Guys and Dolls and had experienced the show along with me. It was both a very professional but also personal gift and I thanked him profusely for it. I thanked Abby for it later that night when we hung it over the fireplace. In fact, we made love in front of the fire tonight.

Things have really heated up since school started. I met with the Head of the Department and she approved my budget with no questions asked. Then she brought up her new issue. She asked if I would also take over the business affairs of the music and art departments. She said that their needs were a lot less than the theater department. They taught and worked during the fall and then during the spring, the each had a number of recitals and arts shows that needed to be organized. She was impressed with my ability to organize the theater in the fall and she felt that I could do the others with much less time and effort.

That led to a discussion about where the shows and recitals would be held. She said that this was a problem. The recitals had to be in the theater, but could be scheduled around the theater needs. The art shows were more of a problem. If the weather was good, they could be outside. But if it was bad, they had to set up in several different buildings around campus. I nodded and said that I would talk to the department heads and see what I needed to do. She said that she could make an office available for me here in the administration building if I wanted. I thanked her, but said that I preferred to be near the things going on and I would stay where I was in the theater. It was close to everything. She nodded.

As soon as I left her office, I went straight to the President's office and once again asked for a few minutes of his time. This time his secretary said, "No problem. He has wanted to talk you anyway. By the way, my husband and I loved the performance at the Christmas Party. That last one with Samantha and Abby was just perfect." All I could say was "Thanks." She showed me in.

The President rose and greeted me with a smile. We hadn't really talked since my last visit. This time he had nothing but complimentary things to say about how I was handling the theater affairs and had suggested to the Department Head that I take over the other departments too. He also said that the faculty was thrilled to have Abby on staff and he was already looking to get approval for her to become permanent. That made me feel good. He also thanked me for both he and Samantha for the Christmas performance. She had finished her book and it was on the way to the publisher. Then he finally asked what I was up to today.

"I want to build a combined performance hall for the music department and a gallery for the art students. Where can I build it?" The look of shock on his face was even greater than the one at our first meeting.

When he found his voice again he said, "The ground between the theater and the art and music departments is set aside for future development, but fund raising for the arts is weak as you might guess from the news."

"I don't read or listen to the news. It is mostly bullshit anyway. If I can use that ground, I'll put up the building and pay for it."

A smile broke across his face when he said, "It is yours. I will have to get board approval at their March meeting, but that will just be a formality."

"Good. I'll try to get you a conceptual drawing for that meeting so they can drool over it."

We shook hands and I went outside and got on my cell phone. I called Tim, my architect friend from my college days. It was a slow period for him and I told him to get up here as soon as he could because I had a project for him to work on. I think I made his day and maybe his year. He said that he would be here next week. I said to come on Sunday and stay for a couple of days. He could stay at the house with us and enjoy a Sunday afternoon with a bunch of students to get a feel for the college environment. He agreed.

Then I went to the Art and Music Departments and asked them about their spring plans. They were surprised that someone was there to help them, but quickly gave me their calendars. I asked a couple of questions and then left after telling them to just let me know what they wanted to do and when.

When I got back to my office, Abby met me and asked what I had been up to. I just said, "You know how it is, details." Then I laid out the music department schedule for the spring and we talked about how to work around their needs during the rehearsals for South Pacific.

January 22, Week 36, At the college

The past two weeks have been busy with the semester getting started. I was working out details for the Music and Art Departments as Abby was starting her classes. Tim came to town on Sunday morning and I drove him around the campus and showed him the site as I spelled out what I wanted. He asked his usual questions and then he asked about budget. I told him to design what we needed and we would worry about budget later. He nodded. As we drove to the house for the expected throng, I told him to just tell people that he was there to look at a future project and to leave my name out of it. He nodded and then found himself immersed in a crowd of hamburgers and students including music, art, and theater majors. Abby was pleased to meet an old friend of mine and welcomed him warmly to our house. She was acting as hostess with the help of Megan and Bob again.

When Tim left on Wednesday, he told me that he already had an idea that would be unusual, but which would solve a lot of the problems I had mentioned. I said to work it up and asked if he could prepare a conceptual drawing for the March Board meeting. He thought that he could make that deadline. I told him to just make it good. We shook hands and he left.