promises and obligations.

About 25 years ago, I was looking for a car for my wife to drive. (I'd sold her other car out from under her, but that's a different story.) Anyway, I saw an ad in the paper for a '76 Monte Carlo with some 40,000 miles on it. I called, got an address, and went to look at it. A twenty-something gal came to the door and showed me the car. It was a sharp, clean car. She commented it had belonged to her brother, and he had died last month. In looking at the car, that kind of slipped by me. They even let me drive the car home and show it to my wife.

The were asking $3,000 for it. I offered them $2400, planning to negotiate. The gal's husband said his father-in-law would have the final say on the price and got him on the phone. I repeated my offer, and the gentleman slowly said, "Well, I guess I may as well take it."

While we were writing up some paperwork the rest of the story came out. The kid who owned the car had committed suicide, he had still owed $3200 on it, the father was living off of Social Security, and was stuck for the difference.

I have no idea if the kid was actually in the car when he self-destructed, and, thankfully, my wife apparently didn't give it a thought.

Like I said, if I'd have known at the start what I knew at the end, I'm not sure I would have gone near it. It was a good car, though, and my wife drove it for two or three years.

He moved to a small town in another part of Kansas after he'd graduated from college and got married. After living and working in the community a couple years a small 80 acre farm with a big old house and big old barns came up for sale. The old couple that owned it had been scraping by for years and the buildings, fencing and house were all in poor condition. The maintenance was just too much for them. All their kids were out of farming and none were interested in the place. The couple decided they'd had enough and wanted to sell out and retire "in town".

The place came on the market and my brother bought it and immediately went to work. A couple times a call went out and the in-laws and out-laws showed up at his place and spent a weekend roofing, painting and in general reversing almost 40 years neglect. He and his wife worked their tales off and in two years the place looked like a post card. Pastures were clean, roofs pulled back in line and shingled, buildings torn down or repaired and the house was as neat as a pin. The old couple showed up one day to look around and see what the old home place looked like. My brother proudly showed them all they work they'd done and how they hoped their children would appreciate growing up on the little spread.

The old couple went home and decided they'd been cheated; the place was way too nice for the price it had been sold for. They called their one son (who had passed on buying it) that stilled lived nearby and wanted to know if there was any legal recourse, he went to a lawyer who told him they didn't have a leg to stand on. So they started a whisper campaign telling anyone that would listen how this young couple had taken advantage of some poor old people. Most people knew better but there are always a few that regard strangers with suspicion and helped spread the word. They still live there but jealousy of the previous owner over their hard work and dedication has actually hurt their reputations.

Gene

In a different vein; I get calls for service regularly where the voice is obviously an older woman. I'll say "Ill have the technician call you back, what is your name?". They might respond "George Smith". And I'll ask quizically "When the tech calls back you would rather have him talk to your husband?". And surprisingly sometimes the response from the caller will be "Oh no. George died several years ago, have him ask for Martha".