Without much pomp or circumstance, Dan turned the lock on the front door and opened the pizzeria for business Saturday morning at ten o'clock. He felt a little pride when he slid the sign down to show that the store was open. He paused for a moment to look at the sign and said, "Parker's Perfect Pizza is open for business."
Diana snapped a picture of the moment wishing that she had a camera that could take a whole sequence of pictures. The digital camera had an intolerable delay between pushing the button and taking the picture. The delay was so long that she worried that she had missed the shot. After checking the image captured by the camera, she said, "I got the picture!"
"We'll have to put that in the newsletter," Dan said making a joke. He had shown Diana the picture of Harold Derkins and him that had appeared in the Derkins newsletter.
Since there wasn't a line of people waiting to get in, Dan and Diana walked to the back of the pizzeria and took seats at the table occupied by Debbie. Diana said, "I'll put it in the newsletter."
Debbie, the waitress who was scheduled to work that morning, asked, "You're making a newsletter?"
"I don't think we're big enough to need a newsletter," Dan said.
"Of course we are," Diana said. She was wearing the t-shirt that identified her as an employee of the pizzeria. Pointing a finger at herself, she said, "I'm the editor."
"You don't even work here," Dan said looking over at her with a frown.
"Yes, I do. I'm your Igor," Diana said.
"You don't have a hunched back," Dan said raising an eyebrow.
"You're too pretty to be an Igor," Debbie said picking up on the Frankenstein reference.
When Dan rolled his eyes, Diana turned to Debbie and said, "I like you."
"Thank you," Debbie replied.
Turning to face her brother, Diana said, "I already gave my notice two weeks ago at the pharmacy. You're stuck with me."
"What?"
"I gave my notice two weeks ago so that I could help you with your business," Diana said. She wasn't going to take no for an answer. Seeing the shocked look on his face, she said, "I'll deliver pizzas, work as a waitress, or do what ever you need to have done. I want to help you succeed."
Dan would have fought her on that, but he realized how important this was to her. Nodding his head, he said, "Okay."
Debbie turned to Dan and asked, "What should we be doing now?"
"I think we should just relax for a bit. It will be a while before we have a customer," Dan said. He looked over at the door of the pizzeria. No one was beating on the door to come in. The helium balloons and signs advertising free bottles of soft drinks and cinnamon twists with every order helped give the place a little more of a party-like atmosphere to it although the basic décor already accomplished that.
Nodding her head in agreement, Diana said, "Ten o'clock in the morning is a little early for pizza."
"I know. I figured that I would use the slow time to get ready for the rest of the business day," Dan replied. He planned to get in at nine o'clock in the morning and start the pizza dough for the afternoon and evening. He would have to work on it for two hours before it would be ready for use. The dough for the morning would be some left from the night before. Knowing that spaghetti sauce always tasted better the next day, he would start the sauce for the next day during the afternoon slow time.
"So why aren't you running around doing things?" Diana asked amazed that he was actually just sitting around.
"I got here at a little after eight this morning," Dan answered with a shrug of his shoulders. Seeing that she still didn't buy it, he added, "I've done everything that can be done to get the pizzeria ready for the customers four times over. The bathrooms have been cleaned, the floor mopped, the tables wiped, and the food prepped. I've got my list and everything is checked off on it."
"You and your lists," Diana said dismissively.
Shrugging his shoulders, Dan said, "Keeping good lists of things to do allows you to focus on getting the job done rather than trying to remember what needs to be done. It is all part of getting control of your life."
"I know. I just haven't gotten into that habit yet. My life isn't as complicated as yours," Diana said.
Dan looked at his sister and said, "It is a good habit to get into while your life isn't complicated. Nothing is harder than trying to develop a new habit while you are busy doing other things."
"I believe you," Diana said. There was one major difference between her and Dan. She accepted the articles as good advice and tried to remember the concepts in it when she needed them. Dan had taken the concepts and incorporated them into every aspect of his life. Looking around at what Dan had accomplished so far, she began to wonder if his approach wasn't the better one.
Dan asked, "Have you started identifying goals yet?"
"Not yet," Diana answered. She hadn't formally written down a personal definition of happiness. She shrugged her shoulders and said, "The fact is that I don't know enough about my options to know what I want to pursue."
"Have you developed a personal definition of happiness?" Dan asked.
"Not yet," Diana answered.
Shaking his head, Dan said, "You have to do that. You won't get anywhere if you don't know where you want to go."
"I'm taking responsibility for my happiness," Diana said.
Shaking his head, Dan said, "No you're not. You think you are, but you aren't. You are using the facts of life to justify what you want to do. Your short-term actions may have long-term effects. You need to sit down and define what you mean by happiness. You need to establish some real goals for your life."
"I'll get around to it," Diana said.
"What are you two talking about?" Debbie asked.
Dan reached into his pocket and pulled out his wallet. From within it, he extracted a small piece of paper that had the facts of life and the URLs to the three articles printed on it and handed it over to her. He said, "A friend of mine gave me three articles about how to live a happy and productive life. I think everyone should read them. When you get a chance I suggest that you download them and read them."
"What is so special about these articles?" Debbie asked with a frown.
Looking over at Debbie, Dan answered, "I am twenty-one years old and graduated high school less than two years ago. I graduated completely lost concerning what I wanted to do with the rest of my life. I didn't know anything about jobs, women, or money. To tell the truth, I was pretty ignorant about everything. I felt that I had no choices except to spend the rest of my life as manual labor.
"My friend gave me those articles to read. As a result of those articles, my life is completely different. I am in control of my life and what I am doing. I am sitting here waiting for my first customer to arrive in my pizzeria. I live with two, possibly three, wonderful women. My financial situation isn't very good, but I am working to make it better. Every dime that I have is invested in this place.
"It might not sound like much, but compare where I am with where most people my age are at in their lives. A lot of my classmates are still in college wondering what they are going to major in and what kind of job they'll have when they graduate. Those who aren't in college are mostly working in minimum wage jobs that aren't careers."
Diana had watched Dan work to make this day happen. She had supported him in his efforts, but hearing him explain the magnitude of his accomplishment really drove home the point that he had taken control of his life. She thought about Tom and the fact that he was a personal assistant to one of his professors at the university. She knew that Tom was smart, but at the college he was surrounded by smart people. Still, he was already a rising star at the university and that was impressive.
Debbie had listened to Dan describe how he had taken control of his life and contrasted it with her life. She was five years older than him and she was still drifting through life. She earned minimum wage; drove a seven year old car; and lived in an efficiency apartment. The end of the month was always a struggling with respect to money. Her dates were strangers picked up in dance clubs after consuming massive quantities of alcohol. She was going nowhere and getting there fast. Looking down at the card, she asked, "These articles helped you?"
"Yes, they helped me," Dan answered.
Diana thought about what her brother had said. She realized that maybe she wasn't taking full advantage of the information in the three articles. There hadn't been any major real accomplishments in her life; at least in comparison to those in Dan's life.
He looked over at the door and said, "Oh, good. Our first customer has just stepped through the door."
Tom stopped by the pizzeria in the middle of the afternoon. It was quiet, but Dan was busy making spaghetti sauce for use the next day. After getting a mug of root beer, Tom went to the back kitchen and stood at the door watching Dan do his magic in the kitchen. He said, "You look pleased."
"I am pleased," Dan answered. The lunch crowd hadn't been very big, but he didn't expect that on a Saturday. He was hoping that the pizza and a movie crowd would generate most of his business that night. Although it was a grand opening, he never expected it to turn into a horde of people lined up to get into the door. The grand opening sign outside was intended to declare that the pizzeria was open for business rather than generate a party.
"Good," Tom said with a sigh.
"What's the matter?" Dan asked.
"Ellen called and let me know that she has a boyfriend," Tom said. It had been a very awkward conversation.
Seeing that Tom already had a root beer, Dan couldn't offer him another. Instead, he said, "I'm sorry. I know that you enjoyed your time with her."
"Yes. Of course, I knew that I was just scratching an itch for her," Tom said. The fact was that she had been scratching his itch as well.
"That doesn't mean that there weren't real feelings involved," Dan said knowing that Tom did care about Ellen.
Nodding his head in agreement, Tom said, "I think we'll remain friends. At least, I hope so."
"I'm sure you will," Dan said with a smile. He put the lid on the spaghetti sauce and turned away from the stove. He said, "She is a good person."
"I guess that I'm a little gun-shy after my experience with Susan Anderson," Tom said. He had run into her over the Christmas holidays and had been given the cold shoulder. He didn't know what he had done to deserve that kind of treatment.
Nodding his head, Dan said, "Alison told me about Susan. She thinks that Susan probably doesn't want to be reminded that she had sex with you. She's a little inhibited."
Tom looked at Dan with an odd expression on his face. He said, "I don't understand. She was really uninhibited in bed."
"Really?" Dan asked while washing his hands.
"She did all kinds of things that Ellen didn't do," Tom answered. Although she was restrained in public, it was a different in private. Once her clothes came off, she was insatiable. In bed she was a wildcat.
"Like what?" Dan asked. He couldn't imagine what kinds of things Tom was suggesting.
"I'd really rather not say," Tom said feeling that he had already said more than was appropriate.
"You're right. It is none of my business," Dan said with a smile. He dried off his hands and then started cleaning up the kitchen.
Tom watched Dan work in the kitchen. It amazed him how Dan never pressed anyone beyond their comfort level. Shaking his head, he said, "So how are things going with the women in your life?"
"I don't know," Dan said. He shrugged his shoulders and said, "I found out Thursday that I was moving in with Ann and Sally. They packed me up and moved me that morning."
"You're not living at home?" Tom asked. He was rather surprised that Dan would move out of his parent's house and open a business the same week.
"Nope," Dan answered. He wiped down the counter and stepped back to look at the kitchen.
"So what is like living with two women?" Tom asked.
"I don't really know yet. Thursday night I was so nervous about yesterday that I couldn't sleep. Last night I fell asleep on the couch," Dan answered. He suspected that there was a difference between living with someone and spending the night.
"When you figure it out, let me know," Tom said with a wink.
"I'll put that on my to-do list," Dan replied with a laugh. He looked over at Tom and knew that he was just making small talk to keep his mind off his other problems. He asked, "What are you going to do now?"
"There's a woman who works in one of the chemistry labs that might be interested in going out with me. I'll probably ask her out when I go back to work Monday," Tom said. He didn't place much hope on that working out. She seemed a little flighty to him.
"What is she like?" Dan asked throwing his towel into the bin. He looked down at his apron and noticed that the tomato sauce had splattered on it. He took off the apron and tossed it into the bin with the towel.
"I don't know. She's always talking about this or that plan. It seems to me that she changes her mind every time that I talk to her," Tom said.
"She probably doesn't know what she wants out of life yet," Dan said. He picked up his list and checked off another task. The spaghetti sauce would cook for the next four hours and then he'd put it in the refrigerator for the night.
Tom shrugged his shoulders and said, "You might be right."
"Don't worry. You've been focused on school work. You'll find someone soon," Dan said.
"I hope so," Tom said.
"Wishing doesn't make it so," Dan said looking over at Tom.
Tom sighed at the reminder and said, "I know. I guess I wasn't really all that motivated. Knowing that Ellen was around didn't make getting a girlfriend that important."
"I'll tell you the truth. I wasn't looking for a girlfriend when I ran into Alison at the movies. I wasn't looking for a girlfriend when I met Ann. I'm still not sure how that relationship developed," Dan said.
Diana walked into the kitchen where her mother was preparing dinner. Smiling, she said, "I got a letter from the Infinity Foundation saying that I won a scholarship."
Her mother had seen the envelope from the Infinity Foundation and had almost tossed it thinking it was some sort of charity organization. Surprised by the announcement, she asked, "What kind of scholarship? How much is it?"
"It is a full ride to the school of my choice," Diana said. She had been browsing the web after querying the name of the author of the three articles. After going through hundreds of hits that weren't relevant, she had come across the website for the Infinity Foundation. She had read the details about the scholarship, although it hadn't been worded in that manner.
"Really?" her mother asked. She was shocked at the news. For months, she had been concerned about paying tuition. Regardless of which school Diana chose of the schools that had accepted her, the tuition was a lot of money.
"Yes, I had to write an essay," Diana said. The Infinity Foundation had wanted an essay about what people needed to know in order to succeed.
"That must have been one hell of an essay," her mother said looking at Diana in amazement. Her choice of words provoked a laugh from Diana.
"I wrote one on the facts of life," Diana said. She had used Dan as an example of how knowing the facts of life had helped him to successfully open his own pizzeria.
"Oh," her mother said.
Diana looked at her mother thoughtfully and said, "I was thinking of the colleges that we've visited. I keep remembering when we went to Boulder Colorado and visited the school there. I really liked it there."
"So are you thinking of going to the University of Colorado?" her mother asked. Diana had been accepted in three different schools. She had gotten a good merit scholarship, but the out of state tuition would have been tough. This new scholarship meant that they could afford to send her there.
"Yes," Diana answered. She bit her lower lip while thinking about what she wanted. The fact was that she didn't like the suburban neighborhood where she grew up. She wanted to be in a more country-like setting. She wanted the land to have a bit more character than the flat plains that surrounded the city. She said, "I have to know if that's the right kind of place for me."
"It is a good school," her mother said. After the words were out of her mouth, it dawned on her that Diana was going to be moving away. Trying not to show how much the idea upset her, she said, "The dead line for confirmation of intent to register is due May first."
"I know," Diana said. She looked away for a minute and then turned back to look at her mother. In a soft voice, she asked, "What will Dan do without me to look after him?"
"He's getting along alright without your interference," her mother answered.
Diana shook her head and said, "I don't believe that."
It was almost eleven when Dan finally arrived at home to Alison, Ann, and Sally. He was feeling tired, but happy. His first day of business had ended with more than five hundred dollars in sales. He had dreamed of a better first day of sales during his grand opening, but the figure actually fit in with what he had predicted. He expected to get over his daily target of four hundred and fifty dollars in sales on Fridays and Saturdays, to meet his target on weekdays, and to be below target on Sundays.
The women greeted him with kisses that curled his toes. Ann asked, "How was your first day of business?"
"It was pretty good. I didn't have any large parties that stayed at the pizzeria, but a few families came in and ate. A lot of them wandered around the room examining the mural," Dan answered. He had framed the first bill given him by a customer and hung it on the wall behind the cash register. He hoped that it brought him good luck.
"So they liked it?" Ann asked.
"Everyone loved it," Dan answered. He hugged her and said, "I love it."
"I'm happy," Ann said. After Sue had declared it a masterpiece, she had lined up a couple of people to visit the pizzeria over the next week to see an example of her work. Dan had given her a place to demonstrate what she could do and now she was going to try to make a business of it.
"I was thinking that you might want to give me some of your business cards to hand out to people who might be interested in getting a mural painted for them," Dan said.
Ann smiled and said, "I already have a stack of them printed up. I was going to ask if you would mind if I had some potential customers come in and look at the mural."
"That would be great," Dan said. He thought about it and said, "I'm sure that there is a dentist or two who might consider having their ceilings painted to help their patients relax. Other restaurants might want to have murals, too."
"I didn't even think of a dentist as a client," Ann said looking at Dan. She had considered other restaurant businesses as being her primary client base, but could see how a dentist might want a relaxing scene painted on their ceiling. Doing a mural on a ceiling would be a bit of a challenge.
"One of the keys to happiness is creating the right physical environment. Some folks might not be able to achieve that in their homes. Perhaps the home market might be good too. We live in a flat area; maybe some folks would like to be surrounded by a beach, woods, or mountains. Your murals could provide that feeling they are where they want to be," Dan said.
"That's true," Ann said. She hadn't realized that Dan had given so much thought to her happiness.
"Look at our bedroom. When I'm in there, I feel like a prince with my two princesses," Dan said. He glanced over at Alison and noticed that she didn't display any sign of jealousy.
Sally listened to the conversation feeling like she was living a rather boring life. Dan and Ann were beginning new careers. She remembered the days when she was just starting out as a respiratory therapist. Alison was going to school. Her time in school had been exciting. She said, "It seems to me like you three are out doing great things and I'm stuck doing the same thing day in and day out."
"Are you happy?" Dan asked looking over at Sally. Of all of them, Sally was the most comfortable with her life.
"Yes, I am," Sally answered. She loved her job. Helping men and women breath easier was personally rewarding. She loved Ann and Dan. The introduction of Dan into her relationship with Ann had filled the last hole in her life. The fact was that she had spent years getting her life just like she wanted it. The article on pursuing happiness had only clarified what she had accomplished so far.
Dan nodded his head and said, "I wouldn't be too envious if I were you. We are still trying to achieve the happiness that you've already found."
"I didn't think about it like that," Sally said. A stray idea about going after a Nurse Practitioner's License flashed through her mind. She decided that she was going to have to think about it some other time.
Dan yawned and said, "I'm beat. It was a long day."
"You're sleeping with Alison tonight in our bed," Ann said.
"I am?" Alison asked surprised by Ann's announcement.
Seeing the surprised look on her face, Sally said, "Of course, you're going back to school tomorrow."
"Okay," Dan said. He had assumed that Alison would be returning to her parent's house that evening. He thought it was a nice gesture on the part of Ann and Sally to offer Alison the chance to spend the night with him. He asked, "Where will you sleep?"
"Sally and I will sleep on the sleeper sofa tonight," Ann said gesturing to the sofa on which Dan was seated.
"Are you sure that you want to sleep on the sleeper sofa?" Dan asked thinking that all four of them could crowd into the bed.
"There's no need to do that on my account," Alison said although she wanted a night alone with Dan more than anything. She said, "Dan and I can use the sleeper sofa."
"Don't be ridiculous," Sally said. She pointed in the direction of the bedroom and said, "Get to bed."
Uncomfortable on the sleeper sofa, Sally and Ann were finding it difficult to fall asleep. After thirty minutes of trying to fall asleep, Sally sat up and said, "This isn't going to work."
"What do you mean?" Ann asked. She was afraid that Sally was going to say that living with Dan wasn't going to work.
"We need a larger place if the four of us are going to live together," Sally said.
"You're right," Ann said sitting up. There was a bar that ran under the mattress at a point where it pressed into her spine. She rubbed her back. She said, "This is the most uncomfortable thing I've ever tried to sleep on."
"How are we doing with money?" Sally asked. They very seldom discussed their financial situation outside of covering the bills. The marriage laws put a major crimp in establishing them as an economic unit.
Frowning, Ann said, "Not very good. I've got some savings, but I'm going to need them to get by for the next year or two. I'm not going to make much money for a while if I'm going to try to make it on my own as an artist."
"I didn't think about that," Sally said. She had been entertaining the thought that they might be able to buy a house together, but Ann's situation made that impossible. Dan was already in debt with starting his business. She had managed to save some money, but it wasn't enough to put down on a house.
Ann looked in the direction of their bedroom and said, "Dan makes it look so easy."
"He's been planning his business for almost two years," Sally said.
Nodding her head, Ann realized that Sally had a very valid point. She had moved from thinking about painting murals for a living to actually doing something about it within ten minutes. She said, "Maybe I should do a little more planning before I try to start my business."
Sally said, "You might be right."
"I haven't quit my job yet. I was thinking that I wouldn't do that until I had a couple of commissions lined up," Ann said. She had a book cover to deliver and the deadline for that was rapidly approaching.
"That might be the smart thing to do. That strategy seems to be working for Dan," Sally said.
"Yes, it does," Ann said in agreement. That still wouldn't solve their housing problem. She asked, "So what will we do about our living arrangements?"
"I guess we'll have to look for a larger apartment," Sally said.
"Are you sure that Alison will want to move in with us?" Ann asked with a frown. There was a lot of difference between spending the night on occasion and living with them.
"I don't know. She's going to college. Her parents are paying her bills and I don't think they'll want to chip in some rent while she's here over the summer," Sally said.
"You're right," Ann said. It seemed to her that life had gotten a lot more complicated of late. She shook her head and said, "It sure would make everyone's life a whole lot easier if she does move in with us."
Lazlo Zalezac