Anyone that lives at the lake knows you have to own a boat. We had a 28-foot pontoon boat that came with the house, but John wanted a Bass boat that he could fish from — having just moved and worked around all the expenses of that prohibited that sort of purchase. He snuck over to Lake City one morning to check out the inventory at a boat dealership. He found the very one; it was the one of his dreams. It was a seventeen-foot flat bottom bass boat. It had a 70 horse Evinrude motor, and it ONLY cost $10,000. He told me about it a week or so later. But there was no way we could afford it. He had to get a good job, and I had to adapt to not working for the first time in my adult life. I was quick to tell him that when we came up with an EXTRA $10,000, he could buy that boat.
Meanwhile, we used the pontoon boat for fishing. It was big, and if the wind blew, we would have to anchor behind one of the islands to stabilize it. That first year we became very popular with friends and family. I had to create a unique calendar to make reservations for all the company. That boat was great for going out with everybody. There was room for everyone to fish. We might get our lines crossed up when someone caught a fish, but it was still a lot of fun. We used it on Sundays during the summer to attend boat church. Then we would go out somewhere in a quiet spot and eat the lunch I had packed. It was great for those sorts of things, but it just wasn’t suitable if he wanted to go out on his own.
Time passed, and we had to find a new accountant to calculate our taxes. He completed our taxes, and we managed to file on time. But about July of that same year, the accountant called me. He said he had been reviewing our past tax papers and found something I might find to my liking. Back then, we were allowed to do what they called “tax averaging.” And when he averaged out ours, he estimated we were entitled to a refund of $10,000! I was so excited and could not wait to tell John all about the good news. I had several things I wanted for the house, and we could pay off a couple of bills. He let me go on and on about all the things I wanted to do with the money. Then he stated. You said that the first extra $10,000 that came into our possession, I could have to purchase that Flat bottom bass boat, and I think I will do just that! He didn’t waste any time buying it, and it is about 36 years old, has never developed a leak, and runs like a charm. It turns out to have been a great purchase. I could not even begin to tell you how many fish he has brought home in it.
I should not have been so quick in making him the promise of the first $10,000 that came in. There’s a right good lesson in there somewhere.
