Jeremy

"Do you know what your problem ish?" he slurred loudly while lurching toward me. I was standing by myself in between the bar area and the dance area in the fraternity house basement. It was either early on a party night or a pub night, the difference between the two was basically just whether the lights were dimmed or not. I just know it wasn't a party in full swing. I rarely drank in those days, so I often stood alone, watching, during social events.

Jeremy was the least favorite freshman pledge that semester. Even his blond hair and blue eyed cuteness didn't compensate for his ego. He was loud, and always right, at least in his own mind. He seemed to me to possess the arrogance of someone who was just pretending. I suppose overcompensating would be the correct wording. Of course I enjoyed him. I was always taken in by men who could exude even fake confidence. I drove all of the pledges home nearly every night, and he would insist upon being dropped off last. It made sense logistically, so I complied. Without fail, when we'd reach his dorm, he'd need help inside. I obliged, and eventually ended up tucking him in and leaving every night.

I'm sure when he asked about my problem I rolled my eyes and gave some smart ass answer. I'm sure I gave no indication I wanted him to tell me what my problem was. He leaned closer and told me anyway.

"You make too many short term investments", he started. I gave a slightly confused, yet bemused smile. I was clueless about anything financial. Seriously. He tried to explain that in investing you can either go for a short term investment or a long term investment. The short term investments had the potential to gain a lot of value quickly, but then you'd be done with them. The risk of loss was much greater there as well. Long term investments didn't gain at a particularly high rate, but over time, you gained more than a short term "big" payoff. He suggested that my uneasiness was due to the fact that I knew very small amounts about everyone in the room. He suggested I get to know people better, that maybe some people pay off in the long run rather than in the short term.

I still keep in contact with a few of the guys who stood snickering as I was cornered by Jeremy in the basement that night, twelve years ago. He was right, they mean more over time.

As for Mr. No Short Term Investments? He stole a bottle of rum one night a few weeks later and asked for an early ride to his dorm. He then offered to share his treasure. I doubt I need to go into detail about what happened later that evening. After that night, I never spoke another single word to him. He slept with some weird girl and left college for good, without a word to anyone a few weeks later. Sure, the fact that we never spoke again could've been because I made some unsavory comments about his prowess, but it could've been because he recognized himself in me, and that's why he gave me advice.