Learn to be comfortable around girls.
Earn enough money to get a pickup truck.
Go to college with my friends Wolf and David.
Uncle John took each of us through our goals and helped us create a plan or road map. It was actually fun to do it as a team. For each goal, we brainstormed what all the steps were that it would take to reach the desired result. We wrote them down on sticky notes on the wall. There were several that were similar or duplicates that Uncle John helped us condense into either a single step or smaller ones.
He then had us figure out in what order certain steps had to happen and put time frames on them. It was basic Project Management 101.
What it did was get the three of us to buy into each other’s goals and understand how we might help each other achieve them. Uncle John had gone through the same process with me, and it was a good refresher. I felt a lot more confident in my ability to help my other friends do the same.
The one goal that created the most excitement was Wolf’s determination to start his own construction company.
“What’s your vision? You say you want your friends to be part of it,” Uncle John prodded.
“I want to start out small and grow it into something big. I can imagine doing some summer projects and learning all the different trades so I understand how everything works. Tim wants to be an architect, so I hope he would help design what we build. David is good at sales and management. He could handle that end,” Wolf said.
“Are you thinking homes or commercial buildings?” Uncle John asked.
“I’d think we would start with homes and then see where it takes us,” Wolf said.
“I would like to learn about building homes, too,” Tim said. “It can only help me as an architect if I understand how everything goes together.”
“That makes sense. You would want to have the practical knowledge to help you understand the theoretical and help you with the creative. With that foundation, you’d be able to recognize whether your designs could feasibly be built,” Uncle John said.
“You guys would want me to help with sales?” I asked.
“And management,” Tim agreed.
“You do have some leadership skills, and the ability to talk,” Uncle John said with a smirk.
In the back of my mind, I had an idea to jump-start this whole thing. I would make a call to see if I could get some help.
◊◊◊
We played two games at State again and split them. Without Justin’s pitching, we didn’t have enough depth. I also didn’t do nearly as well, going 1 for 9 at the plate. Moose took me aside after the second game and gave me a pointed talk about focusing on baseball for the rest of the year. I promised him I didn’t have any more trips or school projects planned or babies to be born.
◊◊◊
Chapter 33 – Goals and Plans Sunday April 17
I’d started to have weekly meetings with Caryn and Megan. They’d agreed to meet early Sunday afternoons if I gave them Friday afternoons off. I was entertained by their little work of fiction. They really didn’t have to work 40 hours a week yet. They were both on salary, so they were paid the same regardless of how many hours they worked. Mom and Dad told me that the two didn’t take advantage and seemed to get their work done, so I didn’t have any problems with it.
My odd work schedule meant that there were times when they might have to work seven days straight or weird hours. A good example would be when we were in LA and Caryn worked long days as my chaperone on set, in addition to handling her business manager duties. Hiring Caryn was one of the best decisions I’d made, and hiring Megan wasn’t far behind. Mom was extremely pleased with Megan. She seemed to be a wiz at computers and bookkeeping.
What I didn’t expect was that Dad decided to tag along. We sat down in the conference room, and the first thing Caryn did was hand me an envelope. I opened it, and it had an American Express card inside.
“Caryn and I agreed there are times you’ll need to buy something that your debit card won’t cover,” Dad explained.
I frowned.
“It’s not black,” I complained.
“The American Express Black Card is by invitation only. You have to be a member for at least a year and spend $250,000 or more. For the privilege of having one, they require a $7,500 initiation fee and then a $2,500 annual fee,” Caryn said.
That would be a big no. I didn’t need to spend that kind of money on a vanity card.
“Uncle John was thinking about another combine for the farm,” I teased.
Both Caryn and my dad flinched because they ranged from $300,000 on up. Fortunately, I began to laugh. I think if I’d kept my serious face on, they might have taken my new card away from me.
“We decided on the Platinum Card because it allows you to use their Global Lounge Connection at airports and because it provides other cool travel benefits,” Caryn said.
“Did you get Brook one?” I asked.
“Her mom is taking care of that.”
Megan came into the meeting.
“They’re here,” she announced.
I got up when Mary Dole and Granny walked in.
