Home Depot Guy Remembers: Carter and I met one summer afternoon at the Home Depot. I was preparing to move out of a three bedroom house and into something closer to campus. Carter had just moved into town and showed up at the Depot (he really loved that place and more importantly he loved helping folks with their projects). I worked in the electrical department and ran into Carter and helped him around the store. Carter casually mentioned that he had just moved into town and jokingly asked if I knew anyone he needed to use a moving van. I actually really did need a van to move all my stuff across town to my new apartment. I thought I would call Carter's bluff and asked if he would help me. He wasn't bluffing, though, and didn't hesitate to help me move. Here I was: a total stranger (minus the shared enthusiasm for all things home improvement) and Carter helped me move and refused gas money. We had a lot of time to talk and get to know each other while moving my stuff. I think that is where the seed was planted for him to work at the "Homer" depot. That is what I called it and that is how I thought of Carter working there. Carter was the goofy and funny "Homer" at the Depot. Carter actually started out working with me in the electrical department. We immediately had several store improvement projects that we worked on together. The first was a set of wooden security doors for a tool display that experienced a lot of theft. Carter and I came up with the plans together: no paper plans, just a grand mutually shared vision of the best darn security doors two guys could build using tools and materials from a home improvement store. The second project was painting the floor with markings to measure electrical wiring. Sam also started working at the Home Depot at the same time as Carter. I noticed Sam right away, and Carter noticed that I noticed. He would say to me that Sam was a special girl. Sometime later after we were all mutual friends and helping Sam improve her house, Carter and I worked together on some smaller projects within 824 Trust. We pulled a new circuit for the bathroom's heated floor and ran new plumbing for Sam's washing machine. Carter crawled under the house into the crawl space to plumb new gas pipe. He expressed to me how he really didn't like being under the house, but he did it anyway. Sam experienced daily headaches after Carter ran the gas pipes and was worried there was a leak. We knew there was a leak when she got the gas bill the next month. Carter really didn't want to go back down there so I volunteered to check for leaks. I eventually found it: in a place Carter used a "tee" for an elbow and the plug wasn't tightened enough by just one turn causing a very slow leak. Carter wouldn't normally use the wrong part for a job, but in this case Carter told me that Lowe’s and Home Depot were out of elbows and Sam really wanted to get her dryer working. The tee was a good substitute. The three of us didn't hang out too much together. It was usually Sam and myself, Carter and myself, or Carter and Sam. I was a good substitute for Carter, but not like the original; I wish the original was still here. I eventually left the Depot to work for Lowe’s. I think it is funny that Carter also eventually ended up working for Lowe’s. Smart people tend to think alike, and Carter was SMART. He taught me how to take it easy, and get by with what we have, like his lawn chair driver's seat in his white van and my corded drill. When Sam and Carter were preparing to leave for PA, I was leaving for Texas. I don't think any of us thought it would be for the last time.