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Winter's Faith
Winter's Faith
Winter's Faith
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Winter's Faith

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This story depicts the adventures of a young man who was born in a humble beginning, and was reared by his mother as a single child upon his fathers demise when he was only three-years old.
He was raised in the proximity of the Connecticut Shoreline which was convenient, and allowed him to learn the nature of Tides, Ocean currents, and boats which he enjoyed and studied in great detail.

This young man eventually escaped his humble surroundings by volunteering to join the Army during the Korean War, and was quickly promoted to the rank of Sergeant because of his agility and natural abilities. These qualities in conjunction with additional specialized training, eventually allowed him to be inducted into a Special Forces unit of the United States, and earned him the Right to wear a Green Berea as a emblem of distinction.

The saga of his Orient adventures eventually led him to marry a young Korean girl for political reasons, and a termed agreement with her father, which enabled him to purchase a sailboat in Hong-Kong upon his discharge from the Army, so to travel across the Pacific Ocean to the United States with his inexperienced Korean wife.
Their adventurous journey included defending-themselves from Chinese Pirates along the way as they carried Six-Tons of Gold Bullion hidden in the Keel of their sailboat, and was used as Ballast.

The young man eventually built an empire, and allowed him to amass a fortune which he shared liberally with his loyal friends and various associates who aided him in his quest. Loyalty and honesty became the backbone of his carefully structured organization.
His vast fortune augmented over a period of time consisting of valuable land ownership, and high yielding stocks and bonds, and his agreement with his brides father allowed him to keep half of the Gold he had smuggled into the United States from the Far East. The finality of this young mans efforts became a striking distinction between his humble beginnings, and the financial empire he eventually built over a period of time.
LanguageEnglish
PublisherXlibris US
Release dateJul 30, 2013
ISBN9781483672410
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    Book preview

    Winter's Faith - Frank R. Jarnot

    WINTER’S FAITH

    134978-JARN-layout-low.pdf

    Copyright © 2013 by Frank R. Jarnot.

    All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the copyright owner.

    This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to any actual persons, living or dead, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.

    Rev. date: 07/26/2013

    To order additional copies of this book, contact:

    Xlibris LLC

    1-888-795-4274

    www.Xlibris.com

    Orders@Xlibris.com

    134978

    Contents

    Preface

    Chapter 1      The Cabin & Lake Area

    Chapter 2      Duty & Opportunity

    Chapter 3      Korean Deal

    Chapter 4      Hong-Kong

    Chapter 5      Unexpected Guests

    Chapter 6      The N.Y. Visit

    Chapter 7      The Connecticut Visit

    Chapter 8      The Boston Trip

    Chapter 9      The Dream-Team

    Chapter 10      Expansion Finality

    *** Preface ***

    This story depicts the adventures of a young man who was born in a humble beginning, and was reared by his mother as a single child upon his father’s demise when he was only three-years old.

    He was raised in the proximity of the Connecticut Shoreline which was convenient, and allowed him to learn the nature of Tides, Ocean currents, and boats which he enjoyed and studied in great detail.

    This young man eventually escaped his humble surroundings by volunteering to join the Army during the Korean War, and was quickly promoted to the rank of Sergeant because of his agility and natural abilities. These qualities in conjunction with additional specialized training, eventually allowed him to be inducted into a Special Forces unit of the United States, and earned him the Right to wear a ‘Green Berea’ as a emblem of distinction.

    The saga of his Orient adventures eventually led him to marry a young Korean girl for political reasons, and a termed agreement with her father, which enabled him to purchase a sailboat in Hong-Kong upon his discharge from the Army, so to travel across the Pacific Ocean to the United States with his inexperienced Korean wife.

    Their adventurous journey included defending-themselves from Chinese Pirates along the way as they carried Six-Tons of Gold Bullion hidden in the Keel of their sailboat, and was used as Ballast.

    The young man eventually built an empire, and allowed him to amass a fortune which he shared liberally with his loyal friends and various associates who aided him in his quest. Loyalty and honesty became the ‘backbone’ of his carefully structured organization.

    His vast fortune augmented over a period of time consisting of valuable land ownership, and high yielding stocks and bonds, and his agreement with his bride’s father allowed him to keep half of the Gold he had smuggled into the United States from the Far East. The finality of this young man’s efforts became a striking distinction between his humble beginnings, and the financial empire he eventually built over a period of time.

    Chapter 1

    The Cabin & Lake Area

    Nick stood casually in front of the large glass panels which formed the entire rear wall of the cabin and overlooked the lake, providing him with a clear and comfortable barrier between him and the cold harsh winter elements occurring outdoors.

    He stood peering out in the direction of the lake in an effort to detect any visible lights glowing from the small village located on the far side of the lake; but he could hardly see beyond the rear deck of the cabin because of the blowing snow.

    The electric power had failed approximately an hour ago within the cabin and included the loss of the telephone service as well.

    His initial reaction to the power failure was to inspect the fuse box within the cabin, where he found all of the fuses to be intact and in working order.

    He vainly peered out from his post in an effort to assure himself that the electrical failure had something to do with the weather, and was not a flaw in the electrical system of his newly built cabin.

    Nick casually lit a cigarette, and slowly blew its smoke from his lungs as the wind created a low moaning sound gusting around the end of the cabin.

    Christ, I’d hate to be out in that mess. he thought grimly to himself.

    The view of the blowing snow became melancholy to him, and brought back memories of some cold harsh experiences he had endured during his military service in Korea, to which he often described its chilling temperatures as being, Colder than a Whore’s heart!

    I should have left for home yesterday he mentally rationalized as he viewed the snow blowing past the rear of his cabin.

    Nick had left his apartment early that morning to drive to the cabin which was located on a small inland lake approximately an hour’s drive from the Marina where he lived, and was located on the Connecticut shoreline.

    He chose to use the Company’s Jeep to drive to the cabin that day instead of his personal sports car for the trip, and also took his dog ‘Twerp’ along to accompany him.

    Nick had not visited the cabin since his return trip from Hong Kong a few weeks earlier, and intended to stay at the cabin for only the day.

    The purpose for his visit was to briefly check on the operation of a new water heating unit which was recently installed in the cabin during his absence, and he hoped to have some additional time remaining to launch his ‘Ice-Boat’ onto the lake for some winter sailing, if the ice thickness and weather permitted.

    However, he had adjusted the electrical controls of the water heater late in the day, and decided to stay overnight at the cabin to assure himself the newly set temperatures were cycling properly.

    He heard the intermittent weather reports on the radio during his trip to the cabin, but paid little attention to them since there was no mention of any pending storm.

    The reports predicted partly cloudy skies, with a possible chance of some light snow showers during the evening hours.

    Nick initially stopped at a small farm at the lake area which was adjacent to his property, so to purchase some fresh eggs and several loafs of ‘home-made’ bread which he had promised to bring back with him so to be shared by his associates at the Marina.

    This particular ‘farm stop’ began during the construction of the cabin, and eventually became ‘routine’ whenever he visited the inland lake area.

    The ‘stop’ had a two-fold purpose to it.

    The fresh eggs and ‘home baked’ bread were very much appreciated by his associates at the Marina whom considered it to be a ‘special treat’ because of its taste and quality, and he also knew the elderly widowed woman appreciated the additional monies generated from these sales.

    Nick sincerely liked the old lady, and always ‘over-paid’ her for her goods, claiming he did not have the exact change for the purchase.

    Nick awoke the following morning to find the snow falling heavily outdoors, as he viewed it through his bedroom windows located upstairs in the cabin’s ‘loft’ area.

    He dressed himself, and walked downstairs from the bedroom as his dog followed.

    Nick was greeted with a cold winter’s blast of air as he opened the front door, and stood in the open doorway clad in only a ‘T-shirt’, dungarees, and stocking feet while he waited for his dog to relieve herself outdoors.

    Some weather report! he thought to himself critically.

    Nick estimate there was approximately 10-inches of ‘partly cloudy’ laying in his driveway at that point in time, and with more coming down.

    These ‘weather-guys’ would do better to look out a window once in a while, instead of reading a ‘script’ written by some ‘yahoo’ down in Washington! he judged critically.

    It was late-January, and his cabin’s first encounter with the reality of a New England Winter, which were known to be brutal at times.

    The cabin was a basic Norwegian ‘A-Frame’ style cabin which Nick had built with state-of-the-art materials, and was built with specifications which exceeded the normal construction standards.

    Nick insisted to have the lower floor of the cabin and roof areas reinforced with a double thickness of insulation to insure the interior warmth of the cabin during the winter months, and he further rationalized the additional insulation would also keep the interior of the cabin cooler during the summer months by diminishing the heat penetration of the sun’s rays through its massive roof area, and he spared no expense to make the cabin a place of genuine comfort which could be enjoyed throughout the seasonal changes of the year.

    Common Twerp! Nick shouted to his dog.

    Get busy! he commanded.

    The dog slowly sniffed the snow’s surface to find the ‘exact’ spot to be marked by her urine, then came bounding back to the cabin upon completing her task.

    Nick looked at the thermometer located just outside of the front door of the cabin which read 17-degrees Fahrenheit, and also took notice of the wind direction as he closed the door of the cabin.

    He considered the wind velocity to be ‘brisk’.

    He had finished a late breakfast that morning which consisted of several fresh eggs he had purchased the previous day, and was in the process of pouring himself a ‘second’ cup of coffee when the power failure occurred.

    The power failure wasn’t of great concern to Nick, and he considered it to be more of a ‘nuisance’ than a ‘threat’ since the majority of the cabin’s appliances were operated by Propane gas, and included the operation of the large ‘open’ circular fireplace.

    He lit the fireplace before going to bed the previous evening, and adjusted its flame height to reach a few inches above the clay logs which lay within it.

    Nick had the large circular coned-shaped dome of the fireplace constructed in a heavy gauged metal. He calculated the massive metal would retain much of the heat produced by the fire, and would be capable of generating enough heat for comfort within the cabin’s interior.

    He stood looking at the fireplace with his coffee in hand, and considered his options which were brought on by the storm and the power failure.

    I could leave now, and leave things just as they are. He thought to himself,

    Or, stay here, and ‘weather’ this thing out. he mentally debated.

    Nick rationalized the return trip to his apartment would definitely be ‘slow’, and would take him at least a couple of hours to get back to the Marina due to the deteriorating weather conditions.

    He considered the trip should be safe, since the Jeep was equipped with a 4-wheel drive system, and also had a CB radio in it.

    Why fight with that ‘mess’. was his final decision in the matter.

    There was no urgency which required his immediate return to the Marina.

    The Winter time-period was considered to be the ‘slow’ period of the year, with most of the boats having been ‘hauled-out’ of the water and stored under Tarpaulins for the season, and there was only a limited amount of labor activity in the outdoor ‘Yard’ sections of the Marina during this time period, and which only occurred when the weather permitted it.

    Nick was informed by his secretary prior to the power failure, that the restaurant section of the Marina was adequately staffed to handle the ‘week-end’ trade.

    He walked slowly towards the rear of the cabin again with his coffee in hand, to view the falling snow through the massive glass paneled walls. The snow swirling around outdoors reminded him of a liquid-filled glass sphere and its novel creation of a ‘snowy scene’ when it was physically turned on end.

    Nick knew the electric power would eventually be restored; however, he considered the inventory of food stock available to him at the cabin, as he stood looking at the snow blowing past the glass wall barrier.

    His stock of food included several cases of ‘C’ rations which he purchased from a local Army/Navy ‘surplus’ store several months earlier, and were stored in the attic section of the cabin for emergency purposes.

    The ‘Cold-War’ was in existence during this time period, and inspired many Americans to keep a reserved food supply in their homes in the event of a ‘Nuclear’ attack.

    It was a ‘scary’ time period in the world with no guarantee that a blinding flash of light could ‘light-up’ the horizon from an Atomic attack, without warning.

    Nick also considered his Propane gas supply, whose oversized tanks were recently filled, and was also utilized to operate the refrigerator, kitchen stove, and water heater.

    He knew the fuel in the large tanks would last a month’s time period or more, with all of the appliances running in ‘overdrive’.

    Hell, were in great shape! he thought to himself.

    The only thing which was lacking at the moment was the convenience of electricity to run the ‘Water Pump’ which was used to extract the water source supplying the cabin from a deep ‘Artesian Well’ which was located directly under the cabin.

    Nick rationalized he could easily overcome that problem with the small portable electric generator stored in his garage, which was initially used to ‘power’ various tools during the cabin’s construction, and now could be utilized on a ‘as-needed’ basis to run the Water Pump, so to fill and pressurize the entire water system.

    The wind created a low ‘moaning sound’ again as it gusted around the end of the cabin.

    I think were in for a ‘nor’easter’, Twerp! he said aloud.

    The dog who now lay sleeping near the large circular fireplace suddenly sat up rigidly upon hearing her name called, and stared at Nick with anticipation of a ‘command’ to follow.

    Go back to sleep, Twerp. Nick said smiling at the dog, and added

    We’re going to ‘hang-out’ here for the rest of the day.

    He paused for a moment while looking out at the swirling snow.

    And, maybe tomorrow as well… . he thought to himself.

    Nick was pleased with his decision to prolong his ‘stay’ at the cabin since his body was still in a ‘jet-lag’ mode from his recent trip to Hong Kong, and he could use this time to rest himself.

    He spent the balance of the morning working on a schematic plan to design an alternate 12-volt electrical system within the cabin, which would be powered and maintained by a Wind-Generator, identical to the system he had ‘aboard’ his sailboat.

    I should have done this a long time ago. he thought critically of himself.

    It was late in the afternoon when Nick decided to end his work for the day, and noted the peacefulness within the cabin.

    The silence within the cabin was profound, and was only interrupted occasionally by a low ‘moaning’ sound created by the wind blowing outdoors.

    Nick enjoyed the ‘peacefulness’ around lake area during the winter months, and after the ‘summer-crowd’ had evacuated the area.

    The small cottages which dotted the lake’s shore-line were all ‘boarded-up’ for the winter, and the population of the area dwindled to only a few permanent residence who lived along the winding lakeside road.

    This ‘closure’ also included the small lake-side motel which closed its doors after Labor Day, marking the end of the ‘summer season’.

    Nick walked to a chair near the fireplace, and sat into its comforting softness.

    He reached down under a small table standing next to it and extracted a magazine where he read a few ‘articles’ within it, then took a brief ‘nap’ while sitting in the chair.

    He awoke shortly afterward to notice the daylight was fading and prompted him to walk upstairs into the bedroom loft area of the cabin, where he extract two Kerosene oil lamps from a closet, and lit them.

    Nick strategically placed one of the lit lamps in the loft area, and carried the other downstairs to the kitchen area and placed it on a long counter which separated the working area of the kitchen from the living room.

    The glowing lamplight greatly improved the ambiance and visibility within the cabin.

    Nick then walked around the counter and into the kitchen to pour the ‘last’ cup of the morning’s coffee into his cup, which was continually warmed by the ‘pilot-light’ on the gas stove.

    The strong tasting ‘aged’ coffee was something Nick had acquired a ‘taste’ for during his military service.

    He also extracted a bottle of ‘Frangelico’ from the kitchen cabinet, and poured a small quantity of it into a bowl shaped ‘snifter’ type glass.

    This fine liqueur had been formulated centuries ago by some Italian monks, and Nick enjoyed ‘sipping’ it along with his coffee.

    Nick swirled the contents of the glass in a circular motion, and sniffed deeply into its bowl shaped interior inhaling its ‘bouquet’, and sat down into the comfortable chair next to the fireplace.

    He lit a cigarette before taking a sip of the liqueur, and then sipped his strong flavored coffee.

    He sat quietly in his chair near the fireplace while observing the falling snow outdoors, which was tranquilizing, and which prompted his mind to drift back to memories of his wife and other events which led him to this stage of his life.

    Nick wished his wife Kim had lived long enough to see the completion of the cabin, but his young Korean wife was taken from him by Cancer a year earlier.

    Too soon. he thought to himself sadly. Nick remembered she tried to console him before she died by saying, Death is but a doorway to eternal life.

    He sat there in a tranquilly state of mind watching the swirling snow blow past the glass paneled wall, when he was startled for a moment by what he thought to be a ‘flicker’ of light which appeared briefly on the tall sloping wall of the cabin, and thought may have been caused by a passing car driving on the road located near his cabin.

    He dismissed the thought immediately.

    Who in hell would be driving along these back-roads in this weather? he judged mentally.

    Nick placed his empty glass onto the floor, and stretched his legs out in front of himself while letting out a long breath of air from his lungs as he relaxed into the cradling comfort of the chair.

    His memories slowly wandered from his wife, to the beginning of his Korean saga, and the events which eventually led him to purchase a customized boat which he sailed across the Pacific Ocean with his young inexperienced Korean wife, and which included Six-tons of pure ‘Gold Bullion’ hidden in the boat’s keel for use as ‘ballast’.

    It was ‘helluva’ trip! he thought to himself as he smiled contently, and began to doze…

    Chapter 2

    Duty & Opportunity

    Nick’s memory drifted back to his Korean saga as he dozed and thought of its adventurous journey.

    He remembered joining the United States Army in the early part of year Nineteen-Fifty where he proved himself to have the discipline and physical abilities to warrant specialized training after completing his basic training, which would allow him to possibly become an Army Ranger.

    He willingly volunteered to accept this specialized training and was shipped to a classified military post where he was trained and harshly tested for several months to enhance his mental and physical skills for the privilege of wearing the distinctive Green Beret upon graduating.

    The Beret was considered to be a mark of distinction, since only one out of a hundred candidates would graduate the rigorous training and achieve its distinction.

    His qualifications upon graduating this intense training allowed him to receive yet further training, which eventually led him to be assigned to a Special-Forces unit in the Eight Army’s Intelligence Group stationed in Japan, and where he was deployed to an army group camped near the Demilitarized-Zone in Korea, for the sole purpose of gathering intelligence information from behind enemy lines.

    He considered his elite status was both a blessing and a curse, since the status allowed the ‘Special Force’ team members special privileges within the camp; however, the members were not allowed to socialize with any of the other personnel within the camp.

    The year was 1952 when Nick arrived at the Base Camp, and a fragile ‘truce’ was in place along the front lines at the time.

    The war at that point in time had scaled down from major offensive strikes against the enemy, to isolated skirmishes occurring along the Northern battle lines, as the United States and its Allies attempted to negotiate the location of a neutral Demarcation Zone with the North Koreans, and which would again divide the Korean peninsula into two areas.

    These ongoing negotiations did not stop the activities for gathering U.S. ‘intelligence’ within enemy territory, and which information was vital to the negotiating team and its process.

    Nick and four of his comrades were sent as a group to an infantry unit stationed directly on the front lines located a few miles north of the 38th Parallel line in Korea, where they were billeted in one small Quonset hut, and were deployed discretely to gather intelligence information.

    This intelligence included observing enemy forces in the area, weapon emplacements, and occasionally, to capture ‘live’ enemy personnel for interrogation purposes.

    All of the intelligence gathered was then coded and immediately transferred via radio transmission to ‘I-Corp’, located in Japan.

    These assignments were rotated among the specialized five-man group, and allowed Nick several days to relax and recuperate from his duties between each assignment.

    A major perk or reward received for these field-missions was to allow the team member a grant of a rest period after an ‘assignment’, and would not allow the member to be sent back into the field until the other four members complete their assignments.

    Nick found it comforting to know he would not have to go back into the field for a period of a week’s time or more, after he returned from any of his assignments.

    Each member of this elite unit was also responsible for choosing his own weaponry, ammunition, and the amount of rations to be carried with themselves for any of these selective assignments.

    Their choices in this matter required good judgment and much discipline, since some of these assignments could keep a team member hiding deep in enemy territory for several days.

    Another privilege enjoyed by all of the team members was a special-grant issued to them after they had completed an assignment, which elevated them to a ‘priority’ status for boarding any military plane leaving or returning to Korea.

    This priority status and its rendered privilege, allowed Nick to easily tag a ride on any Troop Transport or Cargo plane leaving or returning to Kimpo Air Base, located a few miles from Korea and included all connecting flights as well.

    The travel was free, and it was there for his asking.

    Nick thoroughly enjoyed that privilege, and which at times would allow him to ‘bump’ some high ranking officer off a flight, and take that officer’s assigned seat, simply to fly into Tokyo for some ‘Rest & Recuperation’, and treat himself to some great sex at one of his favored bordellos.

    Nick utilized these ‘mini-vacations’ to visit many places throughout the Orient.

    He loved that region of the world, and embraced its mysteries and culture.

    He often thought of his privileged seven-day ‘leave,’ was equivalent to the traditional ‘last meal’ offered to prisoners before they were executed.

    Nick rationalized these privileges which were issued to him by the Army was based on the high probability that he would not return from an assignment.

    However, Nick didn’t consider any of the dangers he encountered during his assignments to be greater than those which were faced by the ‘regulars’ in the base-camp.

    It was his opinion that anyone who had his ‘ass’ on the ‘front-line’, was also having a rough time of it.

    There were times when an assignment got ‘hairy’ as Nick often expressed it, and where ‘rationality’ would play with his mind, as the night he crept into a mine-field in enemy territory during one of his missions, and he had to navigate blindly in the dark while competing with a time factor of the approaching dawn and its daylight, which would definitely exposed his presents to the enemy, if he did not get through it in time.

    And, there was a close encounter he experienced with an enemy patrol during a cold winter night, which consisted of several North Korean soldiers, or ‘Gooks’ as he referred to them, whom decided to stop for a rest period just ‘yards’ away from him, and which forced him to lay in a prone position while shivering silently for more than an hour, and trying to hide any vapor from escaping his mouth which would have been seen by the enemy, and would pronounce his death or possible capture as a result.

    It was during these unexpected and tense experiences that his mind wrestled with him, for reasons of his being there.

    What in hell am I doing here? he would question himself angrily.

    Being captured by the enemy was unthinkable to Nick.

    Use your ‘.45 on yourself. many of the Army ‘old timers’ often remarked.

    It’ll be less painful.

    His Special Force unit and its members were purposely seperated from the rest of the army personnel at the base compound, and were ‘housed’ in a small portable hut which was commonly referred to as a ‘hootch’, located far from the other huts where most of the ‘regular army’ personnel were billeted.

    The purpose for this separation was to keep the team’s activities secret.

    None of the ‘regulars’ of the base-camp ever knew if one of the Special-Force’ team members were in the ‘field’, or on a assignment.

    Nick had recently completed one of his assignments, and was forced to spend his entitled ‘off-time, at the Base-Camp due to his financial status, which was nearly exhausted.

    He had a balance of twenty-three dollars in his pocket, and that limited amount of money had to last him until pay-day, which was a week’s time away.

    Nick lay on his bunk smoking a cigarette, mentally reviewing his spending sprees which normally occurred during his visits to Japan, and considered various ways he might moderate or ‘curb’ them to allow himself the option and financial means of taking additional trips, and not place him in a financial ‘bind’ before each pay-day.

    He had two ‘rockers’ on his uniform sleeves, which was the rank of ‘Sergeant First Class’, and earned him a decent pay in the Army. And, he also received ‘hazardous-duty’ pay which paid him an extra fifty-dollars each month.

    Nick tried to rationalize how his money was spent so fast, since food, lodging, and women were ‘cheap’ in Japan. And, ‘booze’ or gambling certainly wasn’t his problem.

    He strongly considered stopping his rental of Taxis for the entire day as he often did during his visits to Japan, and, as an alternative simply ‘hire’ a cab when he actually needed the use of one.

    However, Nick consider such lengthy Taxi rentals to be essential, since the drivers he selected spoke some English, and would act as his personal valet during his visits which included rendered talents of a ‘guide, interpreter, and instructor in both language and local culture.

    Also, these cab drivers always took him to the ‘better’ places for ‘whatever’ he was seeking.

    Nick considered this venue to be an ‘investment’, and he learned much from it as a result.

    The monies ‘exchange-rate’ during that time period was 360 Japanese ‘Yen’ for an American dollar, which gave the visiting G.I.’s a ‘helluva-bang’ for their ‘bucks’.

    The average working person in Japan earned approximately 4,000-Yen in wages per month, which was considered to be a decent wage by Japanese standards, and would allow such persons to live a comfortable middle-class type lifestyle.

    The only persons in Japan whom earned more than the average wage were businessmen, and professionals with specialized trades such as Doctors, Geisha, licensed Prostitutes, and Kabuki players whom had worked and trained for many years to achieve their ‘artistic’ skills and crafts.

    Nick normally carried a ‘roll’ of 1,000-Yen in one pocket, and a roll of 100-Yen denominations in the other, and would rarely ask for ‘change’ after making a purchase of any kind.

    Money didn’t mean much to him at the time.

    He considered it only to be a ‘score card’, which basically indicated if he was ‘ahead’ or ‘behind’ in life’s game.

    One of his Nick’s favorite expressions while visiting Japan was,

    Honey, I’ve got a ‘Yen’ for you.

    Prostitution was legal at that time in Japan, as it had been for thousands of years in the past. And, Nick visited these ‘Pleasure Palaces’ in Japan as frequently as he could.

    Prostitutes were highly respected in Japan, and their ‘trade’ was considered ‘honorable’.

    Some prostitutes were ‘revered’ by

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