The receptionist told me he would see me now. I walked in and took a seat at the long conference table and waited for the attorney to come in. He walked in, closed the door behind him and introduced himself. I pulled out the papers in a file I had kept to organize them and sat there as he slowly browsed through them. After a bit of time he looked up and asked, “How old are you?”. I said, I’m 24. He said you got a lot going on for a guy your age. I just shrugged and said, it’s not like I was asking for any of it.

At the time, I had three lawsuits pending. One of them consisted of a $10,000 note that was in default and had a demand for full payment. I had purchased a commercial cleaning business, who’s prior owner had an outstanding debt that he didn’t disclose to me prior to the sale. Once it was discovered the business was sold, they sued me, the new owner. The second was a sexual harassment claim on one of my supervisors from one of my employees. Apparently, while working for me the guy had grabbed one of the female employees in a manner that was inappropriate. So, she sued me, because I was owner of the business and it happened to her while on the job. The last and probably the easiest, involved a outstanding Workers Compensation debt owed due to incorrect employment reports. When you apply for Workers Comp coverage, you give an estimated payroll based on previous years numbers. I didn’t have that, and my estimation was grossly wrong. So I was sued by the States Workers Compensation Division and my business was in threat of being closed.

All of this happened within the first six month of me buying and taking over the business.

The prior owner admitted an “lapse of memory” and paid the demand on the promissory note. I settled the sexual harassment lawsuit for 10K, which was much less than the 80k they were asking, with “No fault”; which I insisted on, considering I literally had nothing to do with it. I came to an agreement with the State on the back balance owed on the workers comp; to the tune of 20k paid over a six month period while staying current on my current monthly workers comp premiums. I paid the entire balance on time and in full within that six month period.

Then…my attorney sued me for non-payment for helping me with all those lawsuits.

While all this was going on, I wasn’t paying any taxes. So, by the end of my first year in business I owed a solid year of personal and employee taxes. Which, when you realize that your employer MATCHES every tax that is paid by each individual employee, you realize by the end of the first year you’re royally screwed. I spent most of my second year on business learning about all the different types of taxes that need paid and when I’d need ta pay them. Let’s just say, I got a crash course in bookkeeping, bookkeepers, and payment arrangements with many tax divisions of the government. Most of the contacts at those places knew me on a first name basis.

Owned and operated that business for 15 years. Couldn’t even remotely put all I went through into this tiny blog. But I will say, during all of that business stuff, I raised two kids, got a divorce, dated a bit, met a lot of people, saw a few countries, and pretty much did every possible dumb or stupid thing a person could possibly do.

As a result, I kinda know a bit about a lot of different stuff. Some you can get from book learnin; and I have read a lot of books, but nothing quite beats what you can learn from the experience of actually going through it. There are just some things they don’t teach in books and you can’t prepare for.

Some would say, that what I went through was an invaluable education and I should be happy and thankful for having gone through it. Perhaps in some ways they are right. Perhaps, one day, I’ll be of the same opinion.

Personally, Ida been content to avoid all of it. People will sometimes ask me, “How do you know so much about so much stuff?”, and I tell them, because I have done a lot of dumb shit.

As a child I would hear my dad, a Pastor, speak of how Solomon prayed for wisdom, and how God granted him wisdom….yeah, I did that once. Not realizing that wisdom doesn’t just magically fall from the sky. Sometimes that wisdom comes through making mistakes and living through hard times. Not a bad way ta learn by any means. In fact, its’ quite effective. You ain’t gonna forget that shit. When the time for the test comes, you’ll be prepared and you will know the material. It’s the kinda knowledge that sticks with ya. So, be careful what you wish for….cause you might get it.

Copyright©2023 Jacob C. Larson All Rights Reserved

***Do I think God has the ability to let people know in advance? Give them wisdom of a situation or circumstance that allows them to avoid a conflict of adverse situation? Sure. Speaking from my experience, I can honestly say that I was given numerous opportunities to avoid much of what I went through. But, being young and impulsive as I was was, I felt I knew better; so I needed that solid smack up aside the head that the teacher of experience gave me. It was necessary, in my case….be smart enough to listen, so it’s not necessary in your life to learn that way.

****I had planned on writing about how those days are all past now, I don’t have the debt load now that I was carrying back then or the amount responsibilities, or people depending on me. But I’ve thought better of it. I know how life can be….and how “the fuckening” is just one arrogant breath away. So ya…I continue to pray a lot.

https://youtu.be/953pSxnhoZc