On The Plane (3)

Steve:  Heather sells handmade dresses and sweaters she buys in Mexico. Once a year, she flies to Acapulco on a working vacation. I suggested going with her as a second honeymoon, but she was against the idea. Supposedly, she would be too busy for us to spend time together.

Natalie:  What a shame!

Steve:  I really found out a lot about her when Heather bragged how little she paid for the clothes. She said the embroidery alone took the women four months to create... They were really beautiful. Heather paid $10 per dress and sold them in her shop for $800 or more.

Natalie:  $800! That's a huge profit.

Steve:  When I asked Heather if her conscience ever bothered her, she looked at me as if I were an alien from Mars. Her comment was, "It's cheap to live in Mexico; they wouldn't know what to do with more money." That conversation was a turning point for me. I was grateful there hadn't been children born to us.

Steward:  Excuse me, sir, have you finished?

Steve:  Yes, I think we are both through.

Steward:  For dessert, you may have a choice of chocolate cheesecake or raspberry sorbet. Madam?

Natalie:  I'd like the sorbet.

Steve:  I'll have the cheesecake. (The steward goes to the galley for their desserts.)

Natalie:  I know I want to have children someday… but we don't know since the accident if it will be possible.

Steve:  Do you want to talk about the accident?

Natalie:  It seemed like such a blur. I received a telephone call from one of the guys on his cell phone. I rushed to the construction site and a police officer tried to keep me from seeing Ken. I thought he was dead. But I saw him wave at me from the stretcher, and thought he would be all right. The emergency nurse told me he was being airlifted by helicopter to the nearest trauma center. There was no space for me to go with them.

Steve:  What happened then? (The steward is back with their desserts.)

Natalie:  Thank you, this looks delicious.

Steve:  Yes, thank you. The steward smiles and leaves.)

Natalie:  One of the guys, Gary drove me to the hospital. I guess I looked too shaky to drive myself. Anyway, Ken was in the hospital for two weeks, then we got the news that an orthopedic specialist from Germany would be at Stanford Hospital next month. Dr Valk is considered to be the best surgeon with the highest success rate for this type of injury.

Steve:  And probably the most expensive?

Natalie:  Yes, but we thought the insurance company would take care of all costs. I found out that wasn't true. So I made an appointment for Ken to see him next month and will find a way to cover the expenses later.

Steve:  (Looking at watch.) Wow! The time has really flown by. We should be in Chicago in an hour. I need to change the time on my watch, it's two hours later than San Francisco.

Natalie:  I guess I won't take another nap then. (Laughing.) What shall we do for the next hour? Do you want to tell me about your job?

Steve:  Sure, but stop me if you feel your eyes glazing over.

Natalie:  Now why do you say that? I like to listen to you talk.

Steve:  No one has ever said that before! (Laughing.) I'm sure most people find my speeches on the dull side.

Well, it's difficult to explain exactly what I do. I have a great boss who sends me to several of our holdings as kind of a trouble shooter.

Natalie:  What does that mean?