Be Prepared

No, this blog is not about the season or about being a boy scout. As for the season, I’m feeling a little ahead of the game. The tree is up, the house is decorated, and there are plenty of lights outside. I’m sure my electric company would like to see more. I am behind on the shopping. Ok, I have not started but I have lots of ideas and know what I’m going to get. This knowing part is the good part. I’m partially prepared. So as I wander through the stores and weave between the shoppers that have no idea what to buy, I do. I am on a mission but always on the look out for an opportunity or some sales.

This is a nice segue into an opportunity for a sale. I was walking across a parking lot with a very large painting in tow. I had just removed it from a gallery that was closing. Hold back the tears; the story has a good ending. As I stepped off the curb with the face of the paining tucked to my side, my wife said, “Why don’t you turn it around so people can see it?”  My thoughts were if I’m bringing it out of a gallery that is closing because they can’t make the rent, what are my chances of selling it. But it was an opportunity for some unsuspecting people to see my art. I stumbled through the parking lot hoping not to ding cars and cause more damage to my ego. Then it happened; I walked past a black Range Rover. The gentlemen on the phone said, “Hey where did you get that painting?” Stunned, I replied, “It’s mine. I’m just picking it up.” And I continued to my car. Then that sound of opportunity hit me hard like a re-gifted fruitcake. I retraced my steps back to his SUV and proceeded to tell him about this fine piece of artwork I was holding. He graciously told the other person on the line he’d call them back because he was about to purchase a painting. Really?

We walked back to the gallery and completed the sale. I was still in disbelief and wondered if I could screw this up. But the sale continued to happen. He said, “All I have is a check.” To make the story better he assured me the check was good because he was the president of the bank. Really? I thought back, retraced my steps and concluded that this was way too good to be true. So I took the check and told him I’d deliver the painting Monday, making the best of an opportunity.

I drove home in amazement of the whole thing, how it all played out. I thought of all the Christmas presents I’d be able to buy, if I could just get to the stores. I was made aware of all the stores around me because of the large billboards on my drive home. One was for holiday shopping at the mall, another for Google luring me to shop online. The next billboard looked way too familiar, it was a friendly face that I had recently met telling me to put my money in his bank.

Moral of the story, be prepared…because not everything comes down the chimney.