and it zipped upstairs to the bank. Seemed like a good and safe method until the Ames Depart- ment Store went bankrupt and Michael lost all his money. We planned to drive to Florida and Michael drove one of our cars and took his girlfriend, Marla, with him. Marla had gotten permission from her parents to come with us. We had a very scary moment on the road when Herman looked in the rear view mirror and saw Michael’s car weaving and then hitting the guardrail. It was early in the morning and we had just left the motel but Michael had fallen asleep at the wheel. The car was not damaged and Michael and his girlfriend had only minor injuries. I remember she bit her tongue. Stephen was in eleventh grade when we left so he had to cut some ties. But as soon as he saw the palm trees he was happy with the move. Wendy was in eighth grade and she still had some Junior High School to complete. I remember how all Wendy’s friends from school and elsewhere got permission from their parents to come to our house late on the night before we left and held a big going-away party for her. It went on till three in the morning. There was a lot of hugging and crying that night.
Wendy Joy Shooster - Call Me
THE BIG MOVE While we were considering the move to Florida my friend, Selma Dennenberg, told us that she put a bid on a little villa in Palm Aire, a South Florida community where she had an apartment. Selma had bid $85,000 but the owner wanted $90,000 and Selma didn’t want to go that high. I asked her for the address and told her that maybe it would be worth the extra expense for me because we would live there full time and Selma only wanted it for a vacation home. When Herman and I drove past the place we didn’t even get out of the car. We couldn’t believe Selma was even bidding on this little box of a house that looked like it belonged in Levittown. We thought she had lost her mind and started laughing our sides off at poor Selma. Three years later, after we had learned something about the Florida life-style, we put our own bid on a nearly identical place. The move to Florida affected our kids accord- ing to their ages. Frank was in college and when he came home he often had to share his old room with whomever was visiting or whatever proj- ect was taking up space. Frank knew he would soon be out on his own anyway so the move was fine with him. Michael started his own business selling novelty tee shirts and license plates and making keys. He was successful for a while but unfortunately his business suffered from one of the few times his father’s advice turned out badly. Worried that Michael might be robbed taking his daily cash to the bank Herman suggested he use the in-house bank of the Ames Department store where Michael’s shop was located. All he had to do was put the cash in a pneumatic tube
Stephen with Wendy in Hollywood Florida
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