If you hate cheaters and apparent non-consent isn't your thing, you might want to pass on this one. Sorry.
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The title may be a little misleading. there is a good bit having to do with environmentalism in this story but the climate change has more to do with my outlook on life and endeavors. It kind of reminds me of the 1919 release song written by Walter Donaldson entitled "How Ya Gonna Keep 'em Down on the Farm (After They've Seen Paree?)"
Since I'm 41 years old, you're probably wondering why I even know about a song not popular since the end of World War I. The reason is that my maternal grandmother lived with my family for several years when I was very young and she loved that type of music, even though it came out before she was born, and played in on our record player at least once a day as far as I recall.
If you're the judgmental type when you finish this story you'll probably think that I'm a piece of shit who deserves to have his pubic hairs pulled out one by one as an ant colony roams over his face and chest. I'm OK with that; but a bit of empathy too, please.
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I, Jeff Masterson, wasn't born and raised on a farm, but close to it. I grew up in a small town in a farming community. My father was the town's banker, and most of his customers, and folks living within a fifty mile radius, were farmers. I worked on a farm during the summers from when I was 14 β 18, and sometimes a little bit during the school year too; I was naturally big and farm work made me strong. Most of my friends were farmers' kids. The Reverend of the only church in town, which almost everyone belonged to, was a fire and brimstone type of guy that the parents went along with, so we had "Good Christian Values" drummed into us. There was no porn, and there were no teenage pregnancies.
I was a natural environmentalist, and wanted to become an environmental scientist or engineer one day, and read everything I could about it. I did very well in community college and got a scholarship to the state flagship school, but I decided to start my own business dealing with plants since I had a real green thumb.
One reason that I wanted to start work right away was because I fell in love my first year of community college and before I graduated married the former Mabel Wexton. Mabel was a pretty farm girl, big and strong with little fat. She grew up in a community almost identical to mine, one with the same conservative "Christian values."
Mabel and I moved to a small city (population about 35,000) in the same Midwestern state we grew up in. There were two other small cities in the same county. I started a landscaping business, added a nursery business, and an arborist business by the time that I was 41 β which was my age at the start of this tale. Mabel and I had two kids, a boy and a girl, nine and eleven as this story starts.
I had a good life with Mabel. I considered the sex good β but looking back on it, however, I came to realize that it was as vanilla as could be. Mabel's conservative values meant we did little more than missionary, and my conservative values led me not to push it, even if I knew what to push it to.
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Because of my green thumb, good business sense, and kindness to almost everyone I came into contact with, my landscaping-nursery-arborist business was extremely successful. I had a full time staff of 45 and 7 part timers (the part-timers were mostly housewives or college students). I felt the need to give back so in addition to giving money and expertise to the local garden clubs and like organizations when I was approached by the principal of the local High School β who was a client of mine β about participating in an Environmental Club at the High School I was receptive.
It turned out to actually be more than an after-school club that met once a week. It included teaching a class session twice a week, for which the kids got credit, in addition to providing information and guidance to the members of the Club, all of who were also in the class. I knew that teaching was hard, but since I was the big boss at work and had lots of capable employees, and had intimate knowledge of the subject, I was anxious to give it a try.
I was also told that there would be another person who would be co-teacher and counselor, a 31 year old woman by the name of Jezebel Peters.
Well, Jezebel wasn't really her first name β it was Kelley β but it should have been.
Since our city was small and because of my business I knew lots of people I had met Kelley several times, although I think that the sum total of our conversations was less than fifteen minutes. Many people that I knew well also knew Kelley. She was variously described by my acquaintances as a firecracker, volcano, and cyclone. Adjectives used to describe her were intense, volatile, energetic, and plasma hot.
Kelley aka Jezebel was also a young mother who worked as a fitness trainer out of her house. She had four year old twin boys that were in nursery school that she seemed completely devoted to. Her husband worked in some form of finance and they appeared to be wealthy by our city's standards. Kelley seemed to be very proud of her six pack and hard glutes.
Don't get me wrong, I strive for a six pack and hard glutes myself and almost have them, although my chest and biceps are more developed from all the work I did on the farm and weight training since then. I certainly appreciated Kelley's glutes and the rest of her trim body, but I think other things about a person are more important than appearance, and being known as a conservative straight arrow no one would ascribe the names or adjectives that my acquaintances used for Kelley to me.
Kelley was also a hard core feminist who thought that most males, aside from her husband, boys, and the principal, were chauvinists and pigs, probably including me from the fifteen minutes of conversation that I had with her. Based upon my short conversations and what her general reputation was, I saw Kelley as a godless rabble rouser who probably got through college solely on her parents' dime primarily enjoying sit-ins, demonstrations, and parties.
Anyway, once Kelley and I were paired to teach the Environmental Classes and oversee the Environmental Club we were like oil and water. She wanted to emphasize pollution and environmental policy in the curriculum, and I wanted to emphasize the natural environment and renewable energy. She didn't understand or appreciate biology and practical science; I didn't understand or appreciation politics or information science.