by Bart Key
I had a strong hunch that David was just the person I was looking for. So I proceeded to describe to him the starting salary and benefits I had in mind for the person I hired knowing them to be on the generous side. I also asked what he thought about New York and whether he considered it the best place to work as an investment broker. He responded that it probably was if one wanted to be in the center of the action and get to know many of the players over time. While he loved living in the City, he looked forward to the day he could afford his own apartment closer to work. Presently, his commute was almost an hour each way.
I felt I had heard enough at that point and offered him the job suggesting that he take a day or two to think about it before calling me with his decision. In the meantime I wanted to tell him what I had in mind as a timeline.
I would have my attorney set up a new corporation with its sole purpose being to own and administer my securities portfolio. The company’s principal office would be in New York City. The necessary arrangements would be made for my current portfolio to be taken over and administered by the new company. I anticipated that very soon as the office was up and running I would be making substantial additional contributions for investment.
Should he accept my offer, he would need to finish up the second year of his internship before becoming manager of my new company. I would discuss with Brad the possibility of David’s working with him on matters related to my portfolio during that time. I would want David to plan on coming to Santa Barbara as time permitted during the remaining months of his internship so that we could establish a rapport and work together in setting up the New York office.
He called the next day and accepted. My jet picked him up the following weekend for a three day visit. In the meantime I contacted Brad, told him what had transpired and asked whether he could arrange it so that David could work with him on matters attendant to my portfolio while he finished up his internship. Brad was most cooperative and would gladly do so. No doubt he was aware that there might be future opportunities for him and his firm through David.
When my plane arrived after picking David up for his first visit, I was there to greet him. He had never been to California before and was wide-eyed as we drove to my beach house. As was not unusual for those who saw it for the first time, he was quite impressed. After moving his things into one of the guest rooms, I grilled some steaks on the deck for dinner and we started getting better acquainted.
The main topic of our ongoing discussions was finding office space and setting up our new office. David was little surprised when I told him I wanted his office to be located within the Wall Street area in a premiere office building. My justification was that image can be important when starting up an enterprise and that entering into a long term lease, if required, was something I had no problem doing. I had already established an account for my new established company with one of the larger international banks which my oil company did a lot of business with.
David was shocked when I told him that we also needed to improve his living situation. He would need to live closer to his workplace and I knew a way we might be able to kill two birds with one stone. What would he think about my purchasing a small condo either on or near Central Park where I could stay when I came to New York? Ideally, I would like to find one that was relatively rundown and needed remodeling. He could move into it immediately and live there rent free in exchange for being around while the remodeling was taking place and monitoring it for me. Not only would I be making a good investment but when David was in a position to find his own place after being in his new job for a while, I would have my own place to stay when in New York.
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How my life changed after visiting Sur in Santa Barbara that first time. It was almost like being in a completely different world. Sur’s beach house was unquestionably a great place to enjoy the good life. Thanks to my regular workout regimen, I was in good enough shape to hold my own in running the beach with Sur each morning. I found the runs to be incredibly invigorating and fascinating as well. The birds, the surf and the smell in the air were all new to me. No doubt June was a great time to be there. With only a few months remaining on my internship, Sur and I had lots of work to do setting up his new company’s office.
Before I arrived, Sur had already made arrangements with Brad for me to have access to Sur’s brokerage account so that I could become familiar with his portfolio. The second day I was in Santa Barbara, Brad drove up from Ventura and joined us for lunch. It was my first meeting with him in person. Brad cooperated in every possible way to make everything flow so that I could take over Sur’s portfolio almost seamlessly when I left the firm. I had no doubt that in the future I would have occasion to refer work to a larger brokerage firm. Brad would be at the top of my call list.
Sur knew of my current, shall we say substandard, living arrangements. He was determined that I be in a more comfortable setting when I started my new job. So, to my great surprise, he made the decision to invest in a condo where I could live until I could find my own apartment closer to work. When I flew back to New York, Sur came along too and went condo searching. When he found one he liked, he picked me up after work and took me to see it. Even though rundown, it was heaven compared to what I was used to and only two blocks away from the Park. Sur arranged to purchase it and a couple of weeks later I moved in. By telephone, Sur described to me generally what he wanted to do by way of remodeling and gave me a budget to get the work done. Rather than call him any time I had a question, he told me to proceed based upon what I thought should be appropriate as anything that met my specifications and tastes would no doubt satisfy him as well.
Between still working as an intern and carefully monitoring the remodeling of Sur’s condo, I was busier than I had ever been. On top of that each month until the end of my internship, I would fly to Santa Barbara for a few days or he would visit me in New York for a few days. Whenever we were together, we invariably would discuss in depth the day’s contents in the Wall Street Journal. He would pump me with endless questions about various markets and how they functioned. Clearly, Sur was a consummate learner and carefully listened to my takes on individual securities. He made me feel good about my education and my zeal to begin investing on his behalf.
The first couple of times Sur came to the City, we took time to look for office space and eventually found what we wanted in an upper scale office building not far from Wall Street. Sur put me in charge of making the arrangements to properly furnish and equip it. I was elated that the new office had a small bathroom with a shower as this would allow me to ride my bike to work and shower after arriving. When Sur visited me in New York, it was not always business and no play. One time the two of us took in a Broadway play and another time attended a Yankees game. Sur loved dining at fine restaurants and expected me to choose one and make the necessary reservations.
On my first visit to Santa Barbara, Sur showed me how to body surf which I couldn’t wait to do each time I visited him if conditions allowed. One time we drove to Ventura where he board surfed with two of his buddies, Ward and Cory. A third buddy, Jeremy, apparently would usually be with them but he was in Mexico working on some project. While the three of them surfed, I was perfectly content to sit on the beach and watch them while soaking up some sun. They invited me to share a joint with them and some of their surfer friends during one of their breaks but I passed. My highs would come from investing and making a pile of money for Sur. Life was good now that I had my own apartment fairly close to our office. When he came to the City now, Sur now had become quite comfortable staying in his newly remodeled condo.
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When David moved into our new office and took over management of my portfolio, I was quite confident that I had found the right person to manage my securities investments. Having recently sold my oil interests which I acquired prior to starting my own oil company, the substantial proceeds had promptly been deposited in my n
ew investment company’s New York bank account. This nice chunk of cash would be available to David for future investing. Both of us agreed that David should proceed slowly at first while he eased himself into the inner workings of the investment community. The two of us would plan to talk by phone every business day and I would continue visiting him regularly. My newly remodeled condo was a perfect place to stay when in town and handy for taking great runs in the Park whenever I visited New York.
Chapter 10
Wild Beach
Right after I returned are driving Li to Stanford, I learned about a very remote beach property for sale located on the Pacific side of the Mexican mainland. My curiosity got the best of me and I decided to check it out taking Jeremy with me as he could speak passable Spanish. After more than two hours of flying, we landed at a one-strip airport next to a small Mexican town. After quickly clearing customs, we rented a pickup and drove over gravel roads for about forty miles where the road terminated at a small village on the coast not far from the property. When we drove up to the caretaker’s house in the village, a teenage boy named Paco came out to meet us. Surprisingly he spoke good English and, after hopping in, he directed us through his village to a barely discernible dirt road which we followed for about two miles until it terminated at the top of a long bluff.
The view was spectacular. Below was a sandy beach stretching long distances in each direction. Next to where we stopped was a rundown beach house and not far away an even more rundown outhouse. Paco pointed out to us a creek off in the distance running through heavy growth into the ocean. He thought it might contain good water but had no knowledge of its ever being tested. The house was rarely occupied anymore and when the owners did visit, they always brought water with them. The inside of the house was very clean and tidy but in dire need of repair. We walked down a path to the beach and then walked to the property lines on both sides. Paco pointed out a couple of places where he and his little brother sometimes surfed. Jeremy’s ears perked up at hearing that. Paco told us that shore fishing generally was quite good from the beach and that seafood also was abundant in the area. Since we had brought provisions with us, he assumed we wanted to spend the night and asked if we needed anything else before he walked back to the village. I told him we’d be happy to drive him there but he said it wasn’t necessary as he was used to the walk. Before leaving, he showed us how to work the stove and lanterns.
With maybe a couple hours of daylight remaining, Jeremy and I brought rickety lawn chairs down to the beach and discussed our thoughts about the place. Quite obviously it was beautiful, secluded, private and wild. The house would need major repairs and modernization of course including electricity, indoor plumbing and a septic system. And yeah, I should buy it. When the sun went down, we returned to the house, made ourselves some sandwiches, drank some beer and smoked a little weed before calling it a night and crawling inside our sleeping bags on the only decent bed. The next morning, we were just making coffee when Paco returned. He joined us for breakfast after which we packed up, dropped him off at his house and returned to California. After engaging Mexican counsel, I made arrangements to buy the property.
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The night Sur and I slept in the creaky old beach house, it was dead quiet except for the sound of the surf. It was bitchin that Sur had asked me to come along. It took me back in time to when the two of us worked together on his Ventura beach house. When we returned to Santa Barbara, he asked me to lunch so we could start making a list of what would have to be done to remodel the place. Then out of the blue he asked me if I would honcho the project. He explained that I certainly was well qualified and could speak good enough Spanish to get by. I would need to find a place to live in the village while the project was ongoing. To get things started, he would hire an architectural firm in Mexico City to make necessary design and modification changes. Sur was up front in acknowledging that the project would not come cheap especially since materials and construction equipment would have to be transported to the area. I would have unfettered discretion to spend what I thought necessary in order to do a first class job. His one main request was that I do everything I could to avoid damaging the landscape as he hoped the place would continue to look as natural as possible. He suggested it might make sense to ask Paco to assist me when he wasn’t in school and maybe his little brother as well.
About a week later, I returned to the village and drove to Paco’s house where he introduced me to his mother Rosa and younger brother Miguel. Then he came with me while we looked for and found a small apartment to rent in the village after which we drove to the property where I described to him everything that was going to be done. The following day, Sur’s architect met up with us at Paco’s house. After driving to the property, the architect made a number of measurements, took many photos and collected a sample of water from the creek. When he was done and gone, I returned to Ventura and about two weeks later flew to Mexico City to meet with the architect and review the preliminary design changes for the beach home’s modernization. While there he introduced me to the owner of the construction company he recommended for doing the work. After I questioned him at length and satisfied myself as to his company’s reputation and qualifications, together with those of his recommended subcontractors, I hired his company to do the work. A couple weeks later I returned to the village finding that the road to the place had already been improved and that a small staging area and camp had been set up at the edge of the village. Onsite construction activities were scheduled to commence the next morning.
When not in school, Paco was usually at my side to assist. Sometimes Miguel came along too. Paco was only sixteen at the time and Miguel fourteen. Having recently purchased a new four-wheel drive pickup to use during the project, I taught both boys how to drive it, much to their delight. I also showed them how to read blueprints and how to inspect for defects in workmanship and materials. I had made it clear to my contractor when I was in Mexico City that I would not hesitate to reject work or materials that were unsatisfactory. When construction first started I showed that my bite was as bad as my bark when I rejected some substandard work. The message got through loud and clear and the work quality improved. I think the boys grew up some when they witnessed me ordering the foreman to tear something out and start over.
Being incredibly busy during the construction activities, I had little time for anything else and usually would just have a quiet dinner in the evening at one of the village’s small cantinas. Occasionally on a Saturday night I would have a couple of beers, maybe do some dancing with someone who caught my eye and possibly follow that up with more fun at my apartment. Sometimes on Sundays after the boys got out of church, I would pick them up and we would go surfing at spots they knew in the area. On Sur’s property there were a couple of places which often had good surf. So sometimes on work days after the workers had left for the day, the three of us would venture out for an hour or two. As I had had brought three of my shortboards with me from Ventura, the boys quickly learned how to use them.
Paco was the serious one. He was intelligent and always paid strict intention when I explained something. He quickly learned how to read blueprints and check work product. For his age, he exhibited amazing mental maturity and confidence. Miguel was smart as hell too but much more laid back than Paco. He would follow along behind Paco and me usually humming or whistling some song. As a surfer, he was more the hotdog type preferring to do tricks and goof off on his board. Since I knew a trick or two myself, I showed them all to him. When it was just the three of us together, we spoke English. But when others were around we switched to Spanish. The boys were indispensable in interpreting for me when I didn’t quite understand something spoken in Spanish. They loved teaching me Mexican profanity which was spoken non-stop by the workers at the site. In turn, I taught them the English versions which their mother was not too happy about.
After the beach house became semi-habitable, I started overni
ghting there occasionally. Sometimes the boys would stay with me when their mother consented. Over time, Rosa and I became good friends. She was a delightful woman, obviously well-educated and highly respected in the village. She never spoke of the boys’ father and they knew next to nothing about him or his whereabouts. But oh did they ever adore their mother.
It took several months before the project was completed and another week after that for all the new furniture and other household necessities to be delivered and put in place. When I returned to Ventura, I called Sur to let him know his place was ready for occupancy.
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The weekend after Jeremy called to let me know that the remodeling had been completed, we flew off for my first look. After landing, Jeremy led me to a small garage at the airport which he unlocked. Inside was a new Jeep station wagon which would be permanently garaged there for use by those visiting the property. We drove to the village and stopped at Paco’s house where Paco introduced me to his mother and brother. Paco now had possession of Jeremy’s construction pickup for use in his caretaker’s job. Taking Miguel with him, we followed behind them to what Jeremy and the boys now called “Wild Beach”. Sounded good to me so that became its name. The road, which used to be nearly impassable had been graded and graveled. Heavy steel security gates had been installed across it in two places. When Wild Beach was not occupied, the gates were kept locked. I was awestruck when we arrived at the house. It truly had been transformed. New specially treated wooden planks covered the exterior. There was little trace of the construction activities except at the back of the house and, even there, natural vegetation had been planted and was starting to take hold. The house was now electrified, plumbed and vented for central air conditioning. There were two small bedrooms in addition to the large master bedroom. The large bathroom was centrally located and had a large walk-in-shower. The new furniture was durable and appropriate for a beach house and down on the beach, a low wooden deck had been constructed toward the back of the beach with a large palapa in its center. After our grand tour, the boys told us to have a great time and drove back to their village.