When I
lost Pam, I was temporarily paralyzed, and I stopped participating in overtime,
and started spending time with the boys. We were all, stunned, and confused,
and I was unable to perform at work. Bud Gibson told me I'd get over it, but I
know I never will. I take my leave, and go to spend time with my parents, who
have moved to Antelope California, and they have a 4 bedroom house, on 6 acres,
paid for in cash, from the proceeds of the berry ranch, in Snohomish.
I poured
an R.V. pad for the folks' trailer, to redirect my angry energy. Dave Joyce
stole my woman, and I can't stop thinking about it unless I drink a lot. So, I
drank a lot, and I felt bad my folks had to watch this. My angry energy was
sufficient to pour a 10,000 sq. foot circular driveway!
One day,
mom told me that I had a cousin in the area. Her brother, Wallace (Uncle Bud)
had a daughter that had married, and moved relatively close. Cameron Park. I
was unfamiliar with the area, and when I went to look them up, I got lost, and
had to go home without finding them the first night.
Mom said
it was Diana, and I was anxious to meet her again, as a child I had a crush,
and she was the finest looking girl I had ever seen. She was still beautiful,
and she had a daughter, equally beautiful, and I playfully asked her to marry
me.
Sherre
Diana 1-31-51 9-29-03
We hit
it right off, and Diana, married to Steve East, became my best friend. Steve
was a big shot, and was out of town a lot, and Diana, accustomed to being
lonely when he was out of town, now had company. I spent time with them when
Steve was home, and we went places together, when he was gone, and we became
closer every day, and they put up with my beer drinking, and we always had a
great time together.
Sherre
felt so comfortable around me that she didn't realize how disturbing, when she
hugged and kissed me like a brother. I felt equally comfortable with Diana, and
pretty soon, I love both these girls, more than I loved my ex-wife, and it was
so innocent, we had Steve's approval, and support.
The time
I spent with the East family, helped to heal my wounds, and I start to accept
responsibility for running Pam off. I still don't feel like I'll ever get over
her, but the pain is subsiding.
Steve
blew up his Toyota Celica G.T., a fuel injected rocket ship, and I tell him if
he wants, we can fix it, so with way too much faith in my ability, we set to
work, with beers in hand. Three days and as many cases of beer later, we got
his fire breathing dragon fired up, and he took me for a test ride on Bass Lake
Road, and made me pee my pants, by leaving earth for ridiculous air time, and
four wheel drifting around corners that needed to be taken at walking speed.
We
survive that and life goes on.
Steve
climbs steadily in his career, always in the right place at the right time.
They make a move to Miners Ravine, and I enjoyed them being close 'til they
made a prestige move to Half Moon Bay. I helped them move, but now they are
farther away from me, and I don't get to see them as often as before, but I
make the trip, every chance I get. Sherre, bless her heart, is very possessive,
and any girls that tried to get close to me, Sherre ran them off, so I go
without the female contact I most desire, and I grow to love the East family.
I was
separated from them when Lockheed called me back, and I missed them 'till my
father passed away. Mom needs me a lot, and I travel back and forth, always
visiting the East family, and they met Judy, when I remarried, and they met
Barbara, when I brought her here, to Antelope, to work on Dale's van, and they
met Denise when I brought her, and a couple friends, namely, Ben and Eve, to
one of the crab feeds that I hardly ever missed.
Sherre
and Denise clash instantly, but Diana is so cool, and soon she and Denise are
friends, plotting behind my back. When I finally bring Denise to live here in
Antelope, we saw a lot of each other, and I never dreamed how badly I would
need her, (Diana) when the whole world came crashing down.
When mom
passed away, I was lost. The whole world turned against me, overnight, and the
only friends Denise and I had was Easts, and we took a beating until we could
pull ourselves together, and turn our lives around. We started with nothing,
and took one day, and one battle at a time, until, with Diana's help, we
finally had a good roof over our heads.
Even
this distance apart can't stop us from seeing each other. Denise can see that I
love Diana, but she soon understands why, and in no time, Denise loves her as
much as I do.
I
remember when we got the trailer pulled together, but still had no power, and
it was 110 degrees in the shade. Steve, Diana, and Sherre came from 70 degrees
to visit us, and Steve suggests we go see a movie in one of the air conditioned
theaters, close to the house, so we moseyed on over to Vernon Ave. The theater
changes its name all the time, so I don't remember what they called it, but
it's like 8 or 10 screens under one roof. Steve got 5 tickets to see Zorro, and
we went in to sit down. It was warm in there, and we Watched Anthony Hopkins,
and sweated profusely, and that's the kind of luck that plagued Denise and me.
Diana
helped when she could, and we were invited, often, to crab feeds, and East
feeds, and just to get out of the sun and the heat.
She
realizes, one day, that my working days are over, so she gave me an opportunity
to pay her back, and one time, Denise was at her mothers, and Diana invited me
to come, and build a retaining wall, and excavate an area for a storage shed,
lay a foundation, and erect the shed. Their backyard is steeply inclined, and
the access is limited, so, excavation means shoveling dirt into the
wheelbarrow, and moving the dirt into the low areas. once excavation was
completed, and I looked back to see how many loads I had hauled, and I amazed
myself.
I have
picked up slovenly ways from Denise, so Diana has to remind me, that civilized
people, don't do this and that. I wore out my welcome, and Diana credited me
with most of my debt covered. I never thanked her as much as I needed to, and
when she got sick again, I was crushed.
We quit
seeing them as often as we were, and my contact with my soul mate diminished.
We visited once or twice, but never stayed long, because we could see how
uncomfortable she was.
I
remember the last time Denise and I travelled that way, Diana was undergoing
chemotherapy. She lost her hair, and she wasn't eating, and I had picked out a
salmon fillet, and several loaves of fresh homemade bread, made from frozen
dough, and real butter. It made me smile to see her scarf the homemade bread
and butter, and enjoy some fish, and one more trip, to see us, very briefly,
and the next time I saw her was the night before she passed away.
I was
sick when Sherre called me, and I hung up on her without saying anything. She
gave me a little time, and she called me back, to give me details. I felt lost.
It has been a long while since I have seen Sherre, and I really didn't expect
to see Steve much more, thinking he was probably relieved that I wasn't part of
his family anymore. We have gotten even closer, and poor Steve really needs
female companionship, and we watch him struggle to fill the hole that Diana
left behind. I see that this chapter holds promise to continue, so I will leave
the ending of this chapter open......................
So, I
was wrong. Steve didn't disappear. Sherre married Jesse England, and I hardly
ever see her anymore, but Steve runs each new girlfriend by us, and some I
like, and some are trouble, like the one that moved in with mom and two kids. I
went to a birthday party for Steve, and as usual, I got the day wrong, so I
arranged to at least say hi to Sherre, and while I was parked out front,
waiting for her, and Steve's girlfriend's mother came out, and ran me off.
Several
choices later, we meet Kimberly. Steve can't stop bragging about her
credentials as a professor at UCSF,
the leading university in the bay area,but all she is
showing us is that she is the most down to earth person we have met from the
coastal area. She overheard me saying something about big shoes to fill, and I
was shown what self esteem looks like.
Denise
and I are really struggling, now. We have no income at all. We received a sum
of twenty five thousand dollars on two separate occasions, a non-refundable
deposit, for the sale of my property. When the sale fell through, we went back
to wondering where our next groceries were coming from.
One time
when Steve was here in 2008, he suggested a loan of 1500 dollars per month
until I received my social security check, which was eight months away. I
jumped at the chance, thinking what good fortune this was. Starting with the
second check, I had to remind Steve to send me some money. He insisted I sign a
contract with him, saying that I would pay ten percent interest, backed up by
my property, and he would send me a check by the fifteenth of the month, so I
set up my bills to be paid around the fifteenth.
I never
received a check on time again, and all my bills got paid late, with a ten
percent late fee, and when my plants caught the spider mites, I had no money
for pesticides, and I lost over a hundred clones. I thought he was sorry he
made the deal, so I quit begging for my check, and when he asked to come visit,
I told him we couldn't have company, because we were broke, and out of food,
and behind on our bills, and he said he would come right away, and he gave me a
late check, and a little early check, and for one month, I was able to catch up
my bills, and get far enough ahead, where he couldn't hurt me again.
While
waiting for my 62nd birthday, and the February after, I submitted a request for
social security medical to my attorney, and he won some back money for me, so
as soon as I had everything I wanted, I started to pay Steve back. He came for
a visit, and brought an ipad. I asked how much he
wanted me to pay him back. He said fifteen thousand would cover the ipad and the ten percent interest, so I sent him the
fifteen hundred I had left from my settlement, and started sending five hundred
per month. About a year into repaying, Denise volunteered to help, and I
increased his monthly payment to one thousand dollars. I really expected this
to go smoothly, but, pretty soon, Steve is saving the checks to cash two at a
time, the ultimate kick in the balls, for paying him interest which he doesn't
seem too interested in, now. Now I think he has lost one, and if he doesn't
find it before 90 days passes, I will have to send it again, an even more
ultimate kick in the balls. The only help he can offer is for me to "take
your time". I'm truly
disappointed.
Just as
I thought. Here's an excerpt from my bank statement
Payee
(Payee Nickname): Steve East (Steve East) Payment Amount: $1,000.00 Payment
Send On Date:
My
feelings are truly hurt by his seeming indifference, until, one night when I
was watching 60 Minutes on T.V., an hour dedicated to Steve Jobs, and they
talked about a shoeless, un-bathed vegan, who was described by the people
around him as being in a "reality distortion field", a creation of
the creators of Star Trek. This makes things, at least, understandable, but no
less painful. Then I realize how distracted by his job and his travels, and I
promise to try to be more understanding.
As of
Jan 4, no end is in sight. This will continue in another volume. I want to
finish this before my 66th birthday. I will continue to write, but I
want to call this, finished.
It
is June twentieth, twenty thirteen. I have decided to make my autobiography
available online, and this is the last chapter waiting to be uploaded.
Steve
and Kimberly have become close friends, and they are of the few we look forward
to seeing. Steve dropped the interest charges, and made it easier to pay him
back. Once I got that done, I have found ways to pay the interest I owed. He
had problems with others he had loaned money to, so he was grateful that I had
done that.
When
they come, we always have a feast. They bring fresh produce, and I usually cook
up something.
They
are both so busy with their careers that we are grateful for the time they
spend with us.
New
developments;
I
will add excerpts from correspondence in the interest of brevity.
Email
to Kimberly;
Dear Kimberly,
I hope you will take the time to
read the document I have attached. I think of you as a friend, and I feel you
have a right to certain facts which you may accept or reject, as you so choose.
Sincerely,
Terry
Attachment;
Dear
Kimberly,
I
am in a quandary.
I
have wanted to share certain facts with you since 2018, but was
unable,
as a computer glitch erased my entire address book.
Denise
and I miss seeing you. We always enjoyed your visits as a
couple
with Steve, and I know that Steve terminated our
relationship
because he claimed the atmosphere was toxic,
because
of a situation he claimed that I was responsible for. I want
to
set the record straight.
At
the time, in 2016, You and Steve had some differences, and
weren’t
seeing each other. Denise and I were having problems also.
I
had invited my very first girlfriend from my teenage years to come
and
visit me from Newfoundland. Denise felt a need to find another
place
to stay, and Steve was one of many people she shared her
sorrow
with.
Steve
offered to rescue her from me, in a telephone conversation I
overheard.
He offered to take her home with him and informed her
he
was “on the way”. This was late in the day, and Denise said he
could
spend the night, but would have to share her bed.
Undeterred,
he arrived very late, and we had a conversation, ( one-
sided,
I.E. him offering me a lot of uninformed, unwanted advice, as
usual.)
After
listening to him rant, Denise set him up with her bed, and
slept
with me. He left angrily the next morning, alone, of course.
I
rescued Denise over 30 years ago, with honorable intentions,
unlike
Steve. She was homeless. I lived alone, and had a spare
room
with a bed, which I offered to her with no strings attached,
and
she accepted. We lived together 6 months before we ever had
a
sexual relationship. When I discovered that she was cognitively
impaired,
I made a promise that she could stay with me as long as
she
wanted.
We
have had serious differences through the years, and several
times
she has wanted to move out, but I have never, and will never
“kick her out”. Every time
we have problems, at least a dozen guys
offer
to rescue her from me, but, in the end, she realizes there is no
better
place than right here.
We
are NOT a couple, and she is free to have a relationship with
whomever
she chooses. As such, we lead separate lives as “best
friends”.
Several
years ago, I inquired of Steve was there some reason I
hadn’t
heard from him in a long while, and he replied, and I quote;
That
and uncertainty in my relationship with Kim at the time,
apparently
convinced both of you the solution was for Denise to try
to
jump in to bed with me.
Allow
me to bore you with all of the details.
On
September 30, 2018 at 10:34 AM Terry Peterson <
pete@thepetersonranch.com
>
wrote:
Hello,
long lost friend!
I
have been thinking about you a lot lately, wondering how you are doing. We
would love to see you again
if
you are in our area.
As
a fellow science fiction buff, I couldn't pass up the chance to share this
delightful sleeper. I think you
have
AMAZON PRIME. If so, paste the title "kin-dza-dza" in the search box. My face is tired from smiling!
Tell
everyone we said hello!
Terry
and Denise
After
no response:
On
Oct 3, 2018, at 2:24 AM, Terry Peterson <
pete@thepetersonranch.com
>
wrote:
IF
YOU ARE MAD AT ME, YOU COULD JUST SAY SO!
On
October 3, 2018 at 8:11 AM Steve East <
quasimodality@icloud.com
>
wrote:
Hi Terry,
Not mad, but sad that our last interaction was so disturbing that
I doubt I’ll ever be
back.
Last I saw you, you were making plans to bring an old girlfriend
into your house, in
essence telling Denise she’d be on her own. That and
uncertainty in my relationship
with Kim at the time, apparently convinced both of you the
solution was for Denise to
try to jump in to bed with me.
Wrong on so many levels.
Kim and I reconciled, addressed the issues that were driving us
apart and got married
in Jan 2017. We’re enjoying the stability of a committed
relationship and I cannot bring
her back into the situation, regardless of how you and Denise have
resolved your
issues.
I wish you well and hope you have gotten healthier and more clear
headed.
Steve
Re:
Repeat: thinking of you
Terry
Peterson
<pete@thepetersonranch.com>
10:26
AM
To
Steve
East
Wow!
Wrong on so many levels.
I thought you were a bigger man.
I'm
so sorry! I will really miss your friendship!
End
email
Had
Steve been as honorable as he would have everyone believe, he could
have
come in the morning, and returned without spending the night here.
(Just
saying.)
I
can’t tell you how disappointed I was that he was unwilling to
acknowledge
his
position in the situation, and chose to “throw me under the bus”.
I
am dreadfully sorry to reveal the truth, but I know Steve has spread this
story
to people I care very deeply for, Sherre, being one of them.
I
recently contracted covid and was very near death. I have come to terms
with
my mortality, but feared passing, knowing people had wrong feelings
about
me, and I am in the process of setting the records straight. Steve’s
word
would always be accepted over mine, and I don’t really care if anyone
believes
me.
I
hope this doesn’t cause you too many problems, but I thought you should
know
that you married a weasel!
You
are always welcome here. We would love to see you again.
Your
friend always,
Terry
The
correspondence speaks for itself. As of 1-28-2024, this is where we are at. I will
leave it!
end