Lead, Ink and Knives

Bo walks up the wooden steps to the large porch and turns around to see an older Ford pickup truck glide by. Beyond the road is a Diner set back a way near some trees and a dirt parking lot. A late lunch is on his mind and food being on the breeze, even smells good. Soon he thinks.  Bo enters the office setting off the hanging bells attached to the door he now closes behind him. "Howdy. I am Chet. What can we do you for Mister?" A tall lanky man comes out from behind a beat-up sheet metal desk extending his right fist for a pump. Bo can't miss the face mask hanging from one ear. "Hello, I am Bo. I wanted to see the home off Lake Road. The old Sea Captains home." This raises an eyebrow. Bo now thinks of the amazement he had spotting the For Sale sign walking around the lake watching young people learn to sail. He had taken the walk to get some fresh air, leaving the seminar behind until the next session later in the evening. Ever since he found out the meetings would be here; he was determined to visit the small town by the lake and walk by the old home. The drive out to the lake from the Hotel only took 15 minutes. Bo extends his right fist and pumps Chet’s, reminding him of some type of Superhero show he saw as a kid. "Do I need a mask?" The man removes the hanging mask from his ear and smiles. "Why don't we keep our masks off and have a seat." Bo smiles back, sits in front of the desk and glances around the room. Simple Real Estate office except for some lobster traps used as decoration. "So, you are wanting to see the 33013 Lake Road place. Nice Home with large grounds. Was recently painted and some wood floors restored. Removed old lead paint too." Bo looks back at Chet taking his eyes off some plastic lobsters caught in a wall net "Could I set up a time to see it today?" Chet looks at Bo for a moment. "Why not now? Let's walk there, incredible summer day." As they walk Chet asks Bo how he knew the home once belonged to a Sea Captain. "I stayed here as a boy for a few nights back in 1977. The family we visited told us of how the captain was buried in the cellar. They said it was a common practice in town way back in the 1800’s. They also said they had a ghost or ghosts. Funny, the stuff you remember as a kid." Chet laughed in a friendly way a this. "There are many stories of ghosts in this town and yes, some people were indeed buried in the cellars or on the property back in the 19th century." The two men entered the home and Bo walked the first floor in slow circles as Chet turned on some lights. Bo stood in amazement by the old cellar door in the kitchen. "I can't believe this. I forgot about the door jamb. There, right there…are the markings. " Bo pointed to the door jamb leading to the cellar door. Chet walked over. "Oh, the measurements. We wondered about those. We thought maybe they were quite old. You say 1970's you were here?" Bo stared transfixed in memory. "Yes, 1977. July 1977. There is my mark and my sister’s mark. The others are from the family we visited. They added our heights to theirs. Was a nice thing to do." Bo recalled standing in line to be measured while he worked on a Jolly Rancher green apple stick from the little store down by the lake.  Cost ten cents back then.  They used pocketknives and a school Sharpie pen, and his sister wanted to use her Cat pencil to make their marks on the wood. "The cellar has been closed off for a while now. Was filled in to help the integrity of the foundation some time ago. Did you go down there when you were a kid?" Bo did not recall going down into the cellar. He could recall looking down into it and being a bit scared. "No, I felt like I did though with the stories they told of furniture moving around. They kept a chain on the door back then. Not wanting kids to get down there and fall or something. They did say the chain was removed sometimes during the night and did not know how. Spooky stuff to a kid." Chet looked at the sealed door to the old cellar. "You still in touch with anyone from back then?" Bo looked up at Chet.  "No, death and divorce intervened. Odd to think of. Both families had divorce soon after our visit and a bit later their boy, who was my age, had some trouble after the Navy. He was a submariner and never really was himself again." Chet started to walk to the stairs. "Let’s see upstairs where the rooms are." Bo could hardly believe he was here. They had such a fun few days all those years ago. Here are the connecting large rooms the children stayed in. "I recall smoking a cigarette at night over there near the large windows. We were only 9 and 10 years old. Thought we were cool. That's when I thought I saw the Ghost." Chet stopped and looked at Bo. "Really. You saw one?" "Well, I thought I did. enough of a scare to hide under my blankets after thinking I was so cool smoking." Chet seemed intrigued. "What did you see?" "Well, it was a shadow. Looked like somebody slinking along the wall. There was a laundry room here back then and you could see through all three rooms. The moon was out pretty good I remember, and the shadow was easy to see. My eyes were good back then. Funny thing, the ghost had what looked like unkempt spikey hair and had arms out feeling along the wall. Could have been one of the adults up at night for some reason. With the stories of the cellar, in my head I think it was a bit much." Chet came over and put a hand on Bo's shoulder. "I knew once we started walking over here you were not going to buy or even really looking. The past weighs heavy sometimes don't it. I think this was a good visit for you. Wish I had a place to go and revisit another time." Bo smiled back at this. "Thank you for this. I would like to own a home like this by a lake someday. But you are right. This was kind of a selfish thing to do with your time. Meant a lot though. More than I knew it would." The two men walked back to town and by an old store now used for groundskeeping storage. One went back to an office with Lobsters and the other had a nice late lunch by some trees.