ch. 25 (cont. )
“Y’ all step on inside here and let me
show you around all the features.” Dan said
All Lee could say was wow as he climbed up
into the Gulf Stream as Dealing Dan made way for our party of three to come
inside .
Dealing Dan says to us “ Ann and I assume this
man is Lee , and you must be the wood
carver, love your statues at the entrance here and we need to talk as I could use a few at my
place. And your name
“Guy.” I answered and handed him a card
from my wallet. I said. “Well won’t make any promises as you can see I am a
little past my prime carving days. But then Lee here is an accomplished carver
and can handle anything I can’t. “
Lee said. “Learned from the master,
lately I have been coming into my own style though similar, and yes I would be
interested if Guy isn’t.”
Excuse me said Ann I forgot to introduce
you to everyone , this is Lee my husband
, and Guy who ‘is a friend of ours for some time. And this is Dealing Dan or
just Dan.
“Never just Dan, Ann, always a Dealing Dan.” and he laughed and went on with his sales
pitch from there . “Again let me show you the features of the Road warrior. It is
built on a Freightliner chassis and sports a 300 horsepower diesel engine made
by Cummins, a leading manufacturer of diesel engines for years and also has an
optional diesel stationary engine made by Kubota prized for its dependability
as a stationary power plant, and with a flip of a switch here in the cockpit
can be started automatically when needed. You have two rooftop air conditioners
and automatic leveling on this model. The sweet thing about this model is that
in 10 minutes you are set up with the tip outs extended and ready to camp , Including
an automatic awning requiring no cranking. You have an ample couch which
converts to a double bed in minutes and is also used as a table. I had this RV
set up for me and my family but have since divorced and is kind of an eye sore
and a bad memory at the lot. I have children I miss deeply so moving it off
the lot was just my way of moving on.” He said as he moved to the bath area.
Lee just said wow every time Dealing Dan showed us a feature.
The bathroom had tiles on the floor and on
the counter was Corian marble with
nickel plated fixtures sporting a
full size shower and toilet and another door leading to the rear master bedroom
with a queen size bed and plenty of storage with an additional tip out wardrobe
. The kitchen featured a side by side refrigerator and a good size sink and
three burner flat top stove. All the cabinetry face was hardwood oak strained a
dark cherry color and it also had skylights in the ceiling in all three main rooms providing a nice glow
to the interior but could be shaded by a button on the wall at a moment’s
notice .
Dealing Dan then took us out side and showed
us the rest of the features including storage under the coach portion, access
to the engine and generator and then the how easy it was to unhook the Escape .
Then he handed the keys to her new Ford
Escape and mentioned a few things to her like automatically adjusting foot
pedal height, and I pod docking station
on the new car. He said” I hope you notice filled up both and have 30 day tags on
both but have put a hurry on title work and should have the plates to you in
two days and I will send technician out
and have them install them for you. I think I have covered all your
expectations of me for the price I quoted and I also picked up a few groceries
and stocked your refrigerator and pantry. You might want to check and see what
you have before leaving on a trip.
All Ann could say now was wow. Better than
she thought as she never expected him to move so fast as it had been only
twenty four hours since she had seen him
last and here he is with everything her and Lee needed to go on the trip. I too
was taken in by the speed at which this man had moved but considering he was
making one hell of a deal, that just don’t
walk in off the street normally . He was
more than glad to make sure it happened and it was his motto ‘Dealing Dan gets
her done’ . I had seen so many of his tacky commercials I could almost recite
the lines in my sleep and if Ann had
asked me I would have had to say stay away from him but she didn’t and
for her and Lee’s sake I think she got a good deal . Ann was used to dealing
with people over large sums and in this case they both received what they
wanted , Ann got her trip to sequoia and Dealing Dan received his money both
were happy.
Dealing Dan reminisced about trips he had
taken with his wife and kids and how easy it was to camp their way across the United
States seeing one national park after another and just having fun together. Bu
the divorce was ugly as Dan and his wife were just growing away from each other
as they grew older. She took the kids and moved out of state, and for all his
alimony and support he pays on the children , he only gets to see them two
weeks a year and it is supervised by a nanny. Dealing Dan just sends them
lavish gifts like drum sets and electric guitars, and any other noisemakers he can find to his
kids till they are eighteen and on their
own and then he vows to make it up to them . Ann was impressed with his efforts
at trying to be a dad. He talked of all this while at the dealership but she
told us later.
Again as if on cue a black Escalade with
fancy chrome wheels showed up and Dan said if we didn't have any questions, the
brochures and manuals were in the glove box and he would be going now. We all
said goodbye and shook hands and then he hopped into the Escalade with the
tinted windows and a pretty blonde driving and soon was out the lane and gone
as we stood in awe of Ann’s purchase and then we decided to get out of the heat
and went inside the RV to relax and enjoy. .
Ann and Lee went to the store later in the new Escape and picked up a
few things they needed as they checked out their new car. We left the Road Warrior
in the front lawn and soon neighbors\s of mine were stopping to see it.
Eventually we had to move it to the rear of my
property alongside the river to keep the traffic down. But the rumor mill soon had people stopping anyhow.
finally we just loaded up on the pontoon and took a trip up river, just to
unwind from the day and bring us back to reality as we viewed other campers fishing,
and realized how lucky Ann and Lee were, to be able to afford such luxury and yet
how I was still someone they looked up to and why I don’t know. People say I am
well grounded. I just say I am ordinary. Nothing special, but I do admire my
friends at times, and envy their lives. With me never being settled for just
what I have, and always wanting more. Why is that? I have plenty but there is
always a hole there I need to fill and I think it is because I have no Ann in
my life, no one to turn to . I am alone.
We returned and decided along the way to
take a trip to a local park and try it out before taking off on a long trip. I
still had not decided whether I was going with them out west but would go along
on their maiden trip besides Lee’s leg was still screwed up and stiff so they
wanted me to drive the Road Warrior first. I obliged them most hesitantly.
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