Weasel takes a bath
Laurie loved my dog Weasel (almost as much as I did). Weasel was a smallish mutt-like dog that was a very intelligent dog. He would go out and get his own snacks from picnic'er leavings. Oh, I fed him regularly, but he liked snacks too. He got pretty dirty and smelly I guess, cause Laurie insisted that he be given a doggie bath. She brought over some dog shampoo one weekend, and I carried him, whimpering and wetting himself (and me... ick) down to the river. He didn't take too much to the idea of being put into the water. But we held him in the shallow part while Laurie soaped him up real good. I then tossed him out into the deeper part of the river. He then had to swim back to shore. He was a bit upset at us, so he swam to the opposite shore where he shook himself off, and trotted off to sulk. Laurie and I gave him several more baths in the future. He resisted less and less, until one very hot summer day I was leaving and saw him standing in the water, up to his shoulders. I noticed Weasel didn't smell too bad from then on. He had learned how to take his own baths.
Laurie and I clean up
There wasn't much in the way of city services way out where I lived, and one of the services that was non-existent was garbage pickup. David had been burning garbage in what at one time been a very large brick barbecue pit. Of course, David wasn't one to clean anything up, so he just kept throwing garbage onto garbage. This eventually led to the pit overflowing onto the ground. When this happened, David just put the garbage on the ground and burned it there. I thought this was dangerous as well as unsightly, so Laurie and myself cleaned out the pit... almost scrubbing it. It took almost an entire day to do it as the pit was very big, and very full. We dumped the residue ash out on the back part of the property where there was junk already. It was hard work, and sort of fun... David's reaction? He thought we were stupid for doing it. He would have continued throwing the garbage on the ground, but since we had cleaned up the pit, he decided to use it again.
I help Laurie fix her car
When Laurie still owned her Bel-Air, she had a problem with the blinkers on it. It seems that every time she put a fuse in the fusebox and turned on the blinkers, they would pop the fuse. She was told by a mechanic that the problem was faulty wiring inside the rear bumper which housed the rear taillights and the bumper would need to be replaced to correct the problem. Well, I knew a little about electrical circuits, so I took a look. Sure enough, the fuse would blow... but only after the blinker switch was operated. A closer inspection revealed that it was the blinker switch shorting the battery 12 volts to ground. We went to a junk yard and got another blinker module from a junk car, pulled the steering wheel on her car and replaced the faulty switch. I think we only paid $20.00 to $30.00 whereas the mechanic was going to charge two to three times that amount... and probably fix the wrong thing.
A cold winter memory...
Another memory from when Laurie owned her Chevy. We went over to her girl-friend Debbie's house. Debbie was, at that time dating a nice fella, and we decided to make it a double date night. We went out... I do not remember where... I think to a movie, or something. Debbie's boy-friend was supplying the wheels for the evening, so Laurie and I sat in the back seat and snuggled. It was in the winter, so it was very cold. One of the coldest that I remember in San Antonio. There was a bit of icy rain that night, and the temperatures were down into the low 30's, or upper 20's. Anyway, after we had seen the movie, we were riding back to Debbie's house (very late... after midnight). Laurie and I were in the back seat. Laurie insisted that I let her warm my hands... she put them close to her breast... of course I didn't resist... my hands weren't in that much need of being warmed, but I guess we were both feeling a bit frisky. Her breasts were very warm to my touch. I'm not sure if Debbie and her boy-friend were aware of what Laurie and I were doing, but I don't see how they couldn't know. We finally got back to Debbie's house, and then Laurie and I left for Laurie's house. I had left my bug there, and I had to go and get it so I could go home. We went up I-37 with Laurie driving. The roads were a bit wet, and the temperatures were very low. This is a bad combination for driving, as it usually produces icy roads. Well, we drove over several overpasses with success, and it looked like the conditions were ok, and no ice would be on the freeway tonight. That is, until we got to a very high and major overpass. Laurie was telling me (somewhat braggingly) about how she knew how to drive on ice, and how she had done so in Kansas... when we came up over the horizon and could see the freeway littered with cars and trucks skewed all over the place. Laurie started panicking, asking me what she should do... as the car lost traction and started skidding out of control. All I could think of was to tell her, more than once, in as calm of a voice as I could muster, to not hit the brakes. 'Let off of the gas', I continued. Well, she did so, but even at that, we were heading for the guardrail on the upper deck of a four deck overpass. I swear I could see all the way down, and felt that we would soon be plummeting over the guard rail. This is one of those occasions where you see the end of your life near, and wonder if you have made the correct decisions up to this point. Evidently, they make those freeways a bit more substantial than I realized, because the speed of the car had decreased to the point that we hit the guard rail with the cars' bumper and then skidded to a stop... sideways near the middle of I-37... with more cars coming at us out of control. Laurie went a bit hysterical, saying that since she was on a three year insurance probation, she couldn't get another traffic accident ticket... and would I change places with her, so that I would be the driver when the policeman got over to us. We were both under the impression, I guess, that there would be accident reports, etc. I agreed, and got out of the car. Laurie slid over in the seat to the passenger side, and I started walking... oops, make that sliding around the car to get into the drivers side. I happened to look up once and saw a car coming towards us, just narrowly missing pinning me to the side of Laurie's car, as it slid past. I shakily got into the car, and the officer approached. He asked us if we would be able to move the car ok. We said that we could (realizing that there wasn't much, if at all, in the way of damage done to the car), and he told us to get out of there, as quickly and as safely as we possibly could. They obviously had other more urgent problems and were trying to clear the freeway as soon as they could. I put the car into gear, and gingerly accelerated so as to be able to get proper traction on the tires. I got off of the freeway at the next exit. I drove into the first parking lot I could find. My legs were visibly shaking... Laurie asked if I was ok, and of course, being the macho type (yeah, right...) that I was, I answered that I was. I think I could have used a big reassuring hug right then. The shaking in my right leg finally subsided enough to allow me to drive, and we continued on our way to Laurie's house. We took the streets the rest of the way as opposed to the freeway. I know it may have taken us longer... but, well we weren't anxious to repeat the prior experience any time soon. When we got to her house, she mentioned that I should stay the night there. I was too tired and not ready to tackle the freeway again so soon, so I agreed. We both slept in her small double bed that night. I don't remember her ever bragging about her expertise in driving on icy roads after this.
The engine rebuilding...
During the lean days whilst looking for work, Rainey's father was in the garden tilling business. He would load up his Gravely tillers in an old '61 or '62 Chevy pickup and go to the customers' location and till their garden. Well, the engine on this truck was old and needing repair. He offered me $30.00 if I would rebuild it for him. This involved taking off the heads and having the cylinders re-bored, etc. I had never done extensive car work like this before, but I was in need of some income, so I agreed. I figured that I could use the experience in rebuilding a car engine. I also rooked Laurie into helping. She didn't mind... as she would be near me. While removing some of the bolts from the engine I came across a few that were rusted solid to the studs. I'm not Superman, so getting them off was going to pose a problem. In desperation, I asked Laurie to try to loosen one of them. With almost no hesitation, she did. I never knew she was so strong. Needless to say, whenever I came upon a difficult nut from then on, I just called her over. All in all, I think I spent more time than the $30.00 was worth. But I was able to be near Laurie.
I comfort Laurie...
A tender moment memory. During our relationship, Laurie's father got a divorce from her mom. I guess the pressures built up inside her... I'm not really sure what brought on her sudden reaction, but one time while Laurie was visiting me at my cottage, we were talking one minute, and the next thing I knew, bam... Laurie was erupting into tears babbling that her father and mother were divorced and all. I hadn't quite expected this from her. The only thing that I knew to do was comfort her... telling her to go ahead and cry and let it all out. She did. She must have cried on my shoulder for quite a while. Later, she told me that my reaction to her tears surprised her. She didn't think I would have responded like that. I told her that it was the only logical thing to say and do. After all, if I had told her to stop she wouldn't have been able to. Right? (shades of Mr. Spock logic.) She agreed that she wouldn't have been able to stop crying. I suppose I'll always remember this as one of our more tender gentler moments together. I wonder if she remembers it? Probably not.
I get sick...
Once while working at Southwest Research, I got really ill. I mean 'just lay on the couch and groan' sick. Laurie was working at... well, I don't remember, right off, I think it was Smith Office Furniture... or something. She actually took off from work and drove over to my cottage to take care of me. We didn't know what I was ill with, she was thinking I might have something like... well, I don't know what. She was asking if I had had this or that disease when I was a child, and I couldn't remember... much less answer, I was so ill. We both decided that I should call my mom. I did. Talk about cold as ice. I was able to get past the introductions and handed the phone over to Laurie. She had guts! Man... she was talking to my mom for a bit, asking her all of the diseases that I had had as a child, etc. I don't think we were able to determine what I had... and later I got better, but I'll remember this time as one when Laurie wasn't afraid to go where no one had gone before. Talking to my mom over the phone... for the first time.
Laurie meets the family...
Another time that I remember Laurie having 'contact' with my family was when we were cruising around. One evening I asked her if she wanted to meet my family. I had, prior to this, been telling her a little of the history of my family... and how I got to living in the cottage, so she knew what the alligator pit was like. She (and I) finally got up the nerve, and we dropped by my mom's house. I think most everyone was there... kinda unnerving having five or six people sitting there cross-examining you and your girl-friend. She held her own though... I know _I_ was sweating profusely (a sign of extreme nervousness). We actually made it out of there alive, without any of the usual shouting matches that seemed to accompany my visits during this period.
New Year's Eve
One other pleasant memory deals with New Years Eve of 1979 (I.E. December 31, 1979). I had arranged with Laurie for her to spend the evening with me. She had been out of town for the holidays, visiting some relatives in Kansas. She was back in town, and we were going to get together. I went over to her house to pick her up in my bug. She wasn't quite ready yet. She was having her mother help her get ready... doing what, I was not aware of. I sat on the couch in the living room nervously, waiting for her to finish getting ready. She finally walked out of her room... the most gorgeous creature I've ever seen. She had shoulder length hair that her mom had helped put up in a bun. She was wearing a black low-cut dress that was showing plenty of cleavage. I was a bit speechless... she was asking the usual 'how do I look?', but I wasn't too coherent. I think she saw from my drool and bug eyes that I approved (very much so), because she just grinned (radiantly, I might add) and we got her things together to leave. She had even gone out and bought a set of two wine glasses and a bottle of pink champagne. We had a very pleasant evening that evening... she stayed the night at my cottage. A lot of kissing and necking. I still have those glasses, and think of her whenever I see/use them, or whenever I see pink champagne at the store. To this day, my wife doesn't know _exactly_ how I got them... only that if she ever breaks them, she's in _real_ trouble.
The first kiss...
While getting familiar with Laurie, I would always be kissing her on the neck, the cheeks, and when she would close her eyes, I would kiss her eyelids. For some reason, I guess I never would kiss her on the lips. Once while sitting out in front of her mom's house, necking, and kissing, she stopped me and asked why I wouldn't kiss her on the lips? Well, I couldn't really think of a good reason, so I gently kissed her on the lips. She responded immediately by putting her tongue into my mouth. At first, I was repelled by this. I withdrew as quickly and politely as possible. However, after thinking about it, I resumed my kissing her on the neck, the checks, and then back to the lips. Again, her tongue probed the inside of my mouth, searching for my tongue. This time, I responded in turn, with my tongue. We then continued our feeling each other, with our tongues engaged in their own form of probing romance. I had never kissed a girl on the lips before, much less French kissed one. I think it was obvious that she _had_ kissed a guy before. Or else, she was a quick learner. She French kissed very well.
The red bra...
I remember one time while with Laurie and her girl-friend Debbie, we were strolling thru a local mall window shopping. We wound up in a Montgomery Wards store looking at dresses and such, when Laurie suddenly shifted into high gear with some purpose. She took Debbie by the arm and disappeared while making me stay in the dress section. She told me not to follow, and she would be back shortly. I was wondering what was up, but obeyed. After a few minutes, both she and Debbie returned, Laurie grinning from ear to ear and Debbie blushing a bit, looking down, not wanting to look me in the face... with Laurie clutching a new purchase hidden inside of a store bag. I was curious, but Laurie let me know that I would find out later what it was. I did. Later that evening (or the next day), she went into my bathroom and then returned after a few minutes. We started our kissing and necking, and I discovered (to my pleasurable surprise) that she was wearing a new red brassiere. Her grin widened as she said 'That's not all. Look closer at it.' I did, and discovered that it was a front hook style. She had never worn one of these before, and my excitement grew larger as I learned right then and there how to unfasten a front hook bra to release her beautiful pair. After this, my favorite bra to see her wear was this red bra. I still wonder why she needed help from Debbie at the store. I guess it was to get an opinion from a friend, although I sometimes wonder if it wasn't also to show off a bit.
The first time...
Well, one memory that I haven't related yet, and do so with some reservations, has to do with the 'first time' that we made love. For the longest time our intimacy had consisted of necking, petting, and a lot of kissing. I suppose all of this was bound to lead up to doing the actual thing. That is, actually having sex. I'm not sure when it occurred in the stream of things, but I do remember that it was an occurrence that I shall remember always. We had been involved in kissing, and petting and were laying on my bed (which consisted of a sleeping bag on the floor). There we both were, laying there naked, with me poised over her. I was kissing her, my member was very hard and ached. Up until this point I had no idea how things 'fit together'. It may sound a bit far fetched, but it's true. I had never actually been told how that a man and woman joined together to have sex. As I was kissing her, and feeling her, all of a sudden, things clicked mentally. It was like a light bulb being turned on. I knew how things went together. I, being at this point very excited, proceeded to act upon this new found knowledge and insert my member where I knew it would fit. Laurie was also excited at this point, but she was also more aware of the consequences of a badly planned encounter. So, while I was inserting my very hard member, she was saying 'No, please don't, I'll get pregnant' over and over, but at the same time, she was spreading her legs, opening them up wider, so as to allow my entry. I was so excited at this point by this new feeling that it didn't take long for me to reach my limits of excitement. I started to explode, but something inside me had listened to Laurie's pleas, and I withdrew from her where my member spilled its' contents onto her stomach. I think we both had not been expecting this to happen and Laurie was a bit frightened by the thought of becoming pregnant. We both cleaned up, and she went home. She was quite a bit out of sorts for the next few weeks, and we talked on the phone. She started telling me things over the phone about how pregnancies can occur, and I asked her if she had gotten this information by talking with her mom. She said no, that she had read it in an encyclopedia. It turned out that she wasn't pregnant, although her period that month was a bit late, which added to her anxiety.
The second time...
The second time that we had sex was just as exciting as the first... though I must say that any love-making with Laurie was quite exciting. I was laying on my bed, and Laurie was being the aggressive one this time. She went down towards my member, which was already very stiff, and she started licking it, and sucking it. Well, I had never had an experience like this before either, and so I was extremely excited. Her light brown hair was shoulder length and it would gently brush against my legs as she was moving around kissing and licking my member. I was lost in the good feelings, and didn't even notice, but she came back up to where I had laid my head and quietly whispered 'Ok, now you can enter me.' I was a bit puzzled at this, based upon our last encounter, but soon discovered that she had put a condom over my member while caressing it, and I hadn't even noticed. I was naive and wasn't sure what this was, but was reassured by Laurie that it would be ok, and so without any further prompting inserted my stiff member where it had been only once briefly before. Being inexperienced, it didn't take long for me to explode and it was over. I was very curious as to how Laurie had known about these things. It sure seemed like she had had some prior knowledge of such practices and procedures. I quizzed her about this, thinking that she must have had some sexual contact with a previous boyfriend. She assured me that I was the first and that any knowledge she had came from reading some Playboy magazines she had found in the bathroom at home that had belonged to her father. When it came to having sex, she was very creative and taught me much.
Stay tuned... Part 4 (and the last in this series) is coming up.