Crime Control
an excerpt

Chapter 1 – Planning

Ginger poured boiling water over the tea bag in the large mug – then moved the mug to the small dinette table in the dining nook of her small house. There was already a plate of scrambled eggs, extra crisp bacon, raisin toast and sliced peaches on the table. She settled into one of the wooden chairs and looked around the room - - and smiled. It was a cold, but sunny afternoon – and the light was dancing across the great room from the crystal she had hanging in the window. She really liked her new home – she had worked very hard to get into her own house and out of the cheap apartment she had first moved into when she moved to Alabama. This house was not big – but she had bought it new and was able to pick all her own colors and things – and she had a very big yard. So big, in fact, that she had to buy a riding lawn mower to be able to cut it. It was over 2 acres. She frequently saw rabbits and squirrels in the yard – and the Audubon society would have been proud to see the collection of birds that nested in the woods in the back.

She took a bite of the scrambled eggs and toast on her plate, then picked up the large envelope on the table. Madison Travel was printed in the corner – and her name was scrawled in purple marker on the front. She opened the flap and pulled out a stack of papers – the top was an itinerary. She couldn’t believe she was actually going on a week long vacation. When she received the notice for her 10 year high school reunion, she at first just blew it off. But then she got a letter from her old high school buddy, Jan, saying she hoped she would come. So she had called her mom and dad to check and be sure there was “room” – never safe to assume when you had two sisters close in age. They were not planning to be visiting at the same time – so it was ok to stay with them. It is 1981 – and there is a travel agent on every corner. So she checked and found it was not as expensive as she thought to get a ticket and rent a car for a week, so she could drive herself around and visit people and go sightseeing. She got with her boss and asked about some time off work.
“You’ve been working here for 3 years and haven’t taken a vacation yet - - if you don’t take one you’ll lose the time anyway,” he’d said. So - she booked a flight for two days before the reunion, and planned a few days before and a few days after the trip to just relax at home.

Yesterday she drug out her old suitcase that she had gotten for graduation from her aunt Phyllis – it was very dusty. It had not been used in a very long time. After her trip to New York to interview for the bank job and getting stuck in the turnstile in the subway, she sort of felt like a “marked woman” every time she took out that suitcase. So she had acquired a duffle bag type shoulder bag for her weekend trips in the area. She frequently went camping in one of the many state and federal parks in the area – they were plentiful and beautiful – and the duffel bag was more appropriate. But for going through airports – these bags on wheels were the trick. She decided to call Jan before she went to work and let her know she was coming for sure and make at least some plan to visit besides at the reunion party.
“Hi Jan – it’s Ginger.”
“Hi! Oh – don’t tell me you aren’t coming!” she anticipated the normal Ginger reaction to an invitation.
“No – no – I am definitely coming. Just called to tell you I would be there on Thursday before the reunion – and I will be staying until the following Thursday.”
“Don’t tell me – let me guess – flights are cheaper on Thursdays?” Jan teased.
“Is being frugal a crime now?” sighed Ginger.
“You know me better than that,” said Jan. “My family was poorer than yours back then – remember?” Ginger did remember – while her own family was very tight on funds – Jan’s entire family of six lived in a 2 room apartment over a grocery store. Jan and Ginger never had to explain to each other about not being able to afford to do something that most of the other kids were doing. But Jan’s brother had started up a furniture business back when bean bag chairs were first becoming popular and it had taken off – making millionaires out of all of them. “I do the same things – better to remember where you came from, I always say. Give me a call from your folks house when you get in, and I’ll tell you whatever plans I have made for us. Just don’t make any plans on your own until after you arrive - - I promise not to book you more than a couple days. Oh – and be sure to bring your ski pants with you.”
“My ski pants? I have no ski pants,” said Ginger. “Not only that – I don’t know how to ski! Why WOULD I have ski pants??”
“What size are you - - maybe you can wear some of mine?” she said.
“I’m a small – somewhere in the 6-8 range – but you aren’t listening to me. I have never skied in my life. Why do I need ski pants?” Ginger pressed for an answer.
“Well – there is going to be a social gathering for the class up at Nederlands the day before – no spending the night – just driving up for the day – skiing, hanging out in the lounge. Almost everyone we knew is going to go there. You need to be appropriately dressed – and besides – they give lessons! Maybe it’s time for you to learn to ski! It’s in your blood.”
“Just because I have one uncle out of 4 that skis, does not mean it is in my blood. It means he exercised poor judgment. Maybe he should have listened to his brothers and sisters and not taken up such a risky hobby,” Ginger argued.
“Oh, come on Carmelita – you can overcome this challenge too,” teased Jan. She was calling back to the 4th grade when Ginger had been saddled with the Spanish name for Spanish class that traveled with her for the next 10 years….and beyond, apparently. In the 4th grade she had overcome buck teeth and the taunting of a very mean bunch of boys in school – not to mention the taunting of her own sisters, Jane and Joy. Ginger was the middle girl of 3 – they got the J names – she just got the J sound. Such is life. She always had something to overcome. “Maybe you can sneak some lessons before the event. But even if you can’t – you can borrow my old ski bib and wear one of my ski jackets. If you have a hat and some warm gloves you like, you need to bring them anyway. It will be snowing when you get here. But I have ski gloves you can borrow too.”
“Well – I’m not promising to go skiing, but I will definitely check out the lounge. This is Alabama – I think it has snowed twice in all the years I’ve lived here. There is sun in my blood now. I’ll let you know about skiing after I get there.” Ginger sighed. “You know, the ski patrol might not even let me out on the slopes if they find out I can’t ski.”
“Don’t talk like a dope - - it isn’t a crime to learn how to ski,” laughed Jan.
“Maybe it should be,” shuddered Ginger. They talked a few more minutes and then Ginger hung up and left for work at the factory. Two more nights at work and the weekend would be here and she could begin planning and packing for the upcoming trip. A few days off before hand would give her body time to adapt to dayshift hours too. Midnights are hard on the body….and the mind. She thought more about the possibility of skiing. Her great uncle Les always said it was fun. He ran a grocery store – but he went skiing a lot when he was younger. She could talk to him before she decided to try or not to try - - he was well connected in the social circles. He was always telling her mom when she was around incidents growing up - - not that she ever actually did anything wrong – she was just near a lot of things that went wrong. And he was always making sure the situation was cleared up properly afterward and that the family name was clear – he was crime control. Ginger always respected him for that – and unknowingly had always considered him a role model.