Stretching a Dollar

Handsome has decided he needs to make some money, and he's going about it in a very unusual way. He's been asking me and his grandmother if there's anything he can do around the house. He doesn't want "chores" as such, but would prefer to be more like hired day labor, getting paid by the job as he does them.

Okay.

So he did a thing or two for my mother last night, and then he was hassling me for something to do for $$. I told him I have the same problem Grandmama was talking to him about: I do everything myself, and there's not a lot of work hanging about waiting for someone to do it. I did, however, have some laundry to fold and some to wash. So he folded a few clothes and got a load started in the washer, and I gave him a dollar. 

He was happy with the dollar. He was looking forward to getting another dollar. He pointed out some boxes that I had in my room that I've been meaning to get up into the attic, and asked if he could bring them up.

"Tomorrow," I said. "We'll bring them up tomorrow, and you can investigate the attic and make a buck at the same time."

He was good with that, so we went about our night. 

Occasionally, during the night, I would find a dollar laying about. On the kitchen table. Tucked into the couch. Lying on my bed. On the floor in the bathroom. And every time it was "Hey, Handsome! Is this your dollar?"

It always was. The same dollar, the one I had paid him to do my laundry, forgotten and left behind all over the house.

Again, this morning, I began to find the dollar abandoned about the house. I gave it back to him twice, but the third time I just put it in my pocket. Just to see if he'd notice.

He didn't.

So later that afternoon, Handsome and I moved those boxes up to the attic. He took a flashlight and fully explored the attic, moved a few boxes, and then came to me with his hand out like he's just carried my bags up to a very expensive hotel room.

I reached into my pocket, and what do you know, I found a dollar.

He took the dollar and boogied away, all happy to be one dollar richer and completely unweighed down by any kind of clue.

I started finding the dollar again, and after turning it over twice I pocketed it again.

... And started looking for other things to have him do. 

Oh, I'm keeping a running tab as to what I owe him, but for the moment ... I'm going to see just how far I can stretch this dollar.

Talk to you later!