Who’s Watching the Office

One of the shops I worked for had a number of different secretaries over the years.  One of the partners had been a patrolman.  Both the ex-patrolman and his partner were good people to work for.  The patrolman would tell interesting stories of his highway experiences.  He would tell stories of being a sheriff, a patrolman, and an FBI agent.  One story was about watching the burning of old currency.

Both of the owners were quite lenient about coffee break time.  For instance one time two of us went into our favorite coffee shop.  The other two electricians were already there.  About the time we were done with our coffee break, the two partners walked in.  While the two of them walked over to us the secretary of the moment came in behind them.  (The coffee shop was only a half a block from the office.)  The ex-police officer turned to his partner and asked; “I wonder who’s watching the office.”

The boss replied; “We better get back there.”

The ex-patrolman once told us the story of a time he was on Montana State Highway 24, on the way to Fort Peck.  It was a two lane road.  As he came up over one of the hills he saw that both lanes were blocked.

Two cars headed in opposite directions were stopped beside each other.  They had their drivers’ doors open and the two drivers were sitting on their running boards (yes, they had them in those days).  They were each having a cool one while visiting with one another.

It turns out they were both from Canada and had noticed each other’s license plate as they met on the road.  They had both stopped, positioned their cars next to one another on the road, and began to visit.

The patrolman pulled up behind one of them and then gently suggested that they should go somewhere else to visit.

Those were gentler times.