Chapter 4
Maggie was expecting the time machine to make some motion like an elevator does when it begins its ascent, but it felt like nothing was happening. Stella was so anxious she couldn't speak. She poked Maggie in the arm and pointed at the digital screen next to the controls. The months and dates were cycling backwards over and over and the numbers indicating the year were a blur as the numbers rolled back at lightning speed.
As the numbers sped through the decade of the 1980s, Maggie was pulled backwards and ended up pressed against the back wall of the time machine. Stella did the same eyes wide with excitement or anxiety, Maggie couldn't tell. The pulling and pressure feeling suddenly stopped as quickly as it had begun. Again expecting an elevator like landing, they were both surprised when the digital controls read April 21, 1967 and a bell chimed signally they had arrived at their targeted destination.
Stella peeked out the tiny window on the door. "Well, we are not in my garage anymore, but I don't really see anything except green." Stella said.
"Hopefully that means we landed at the golf course!" Maggie exclaimed. They had programmed the destination as the Permar Golf Course adjacent to the Santa Monica Airport. They figured it would be a fairly inconspicuous place to land a time machine yet be in a safe area where they easily could get ground transportation assistance.
Cautiously they opened the door. There was a group of golfers in the distance, but they couldn't tell anything about whether they were indeed in 1967 by looking at them. Stella used the remote control to put the time machine on "standby" mode to await their return in a few days and locked the door. "Standby" mode kept the time machine invisible and her arm went right through the air when she tried touching the area where she had exited just moments before.
They started walking in the direction where they saw a plane take off. Stella and Maggie cursed their heavy vintage suitcases ,which were the old hard sided type without wheels, the quarter mile from the golf course to the terminal.
They entered the terminal and approached the information desk. Several people they passed looked at them strangely. It dawned on them that they weren't dressed like other women who were wearing suits or dresses and most were wearing gloves and hats. Stella and Maggie were dressed far more casually in their sweaters and capris pants and thus were earning odd looks from passersby.
Stella still seemed pretty shell-shocked that they might perhaps be pulling off this crazy caper so Maggie approached the information desk. "Hello. Can you please tell me where the rental car desk is?" she asked the attendant.
"I can call you a taxi to take you to Avis Rental Car over on Broadway. It's about 3 miles away. You can wait outside under the awning "the attendant replied while pointing toward the double sliding glass doors. "Thank you for your help," Maggie said. The taxi ride was quick and the driver accepted their cash with no problem. They both exchanged looks as if to say "is this really happening." So far so good!
At AVIS rental car, Maggie once again did the talking as Stella still seemed to be teetering on the edge of a panic attack. "Hello. Good morning. We need to rent a car for a few days. Do you happen to have a something sporty- a convertible maybe? The middle aged man behind the desk, Mr. Thompson, replied they could rent a Mustang convertible. He explained the rental terms and that cash payment up front would be required. Maggie handed over the money which he accepted without question.
Maggie's knees wobbled and she accidentally dropped the pen she had been holdin on the floor as she read the date on the agreement: April 21, 1967! This can't be really happening she thought to herself. It must be just an elaborate dream!
While she asked for directions to Malibu, Maggie suggested to Stella that she go take her anxiety medication. When Stella returned, they loaded their suitcases in the trunk and headed out on the Pacific Coast Highway. It was 8:30am. Malibu was just 30 minutes down the road.
They couldn't both help but smile as they passed the "Welcome to Malibu" sign at the edge of the city limits. Once in Malibu, they drove around looking for a pawn shop. They didn't find one, but stopped at a jewelry store they found on the main street. They hoped the owner might buy rare coins or be able to direct them to someone who did.
They rang the bell and the owner, an older gentleman whom they assumed was Mr. Levi of Levi Jewelers, let them in. "Good morning", he said. "How can I help you ladies this fine Friday morning?"
"Good Morning. Do you buy gold coins? I have a few I am interested in selling", Maggie replied giving him her best smile.
"It depends. Show me what you have and I'll see what I can do for you", stated Mr. Levi as he put on his reading glasses. Maggie showed him the five gold coins from her ex's collection. He studied them very carefully turning them over and over a few times. He turned around to retrieve a book from the shelf behind the jewelry counter. He then flipped through it until he found the page he was looking for.
"Well, well, well. These are some beauties you have here. These are all early American coins, some of the very first currency minted after the Revolutionary war. This one is an 1808 Quarter Eagle with the bust facing left. These two are both Early Half Eagles, with small eagle and bust capped to the right. . You've got one from 1795 and one from 1798. These two are Early eagles called Heraldic Eagles with bust capped to the right which were minted in 1797 and 1800. "
"So what does that mean exactly?" Maggie asked as patiently as she could while praying he would offer them enough cash which they desperately needed.
"Well the Heraldic ones are not worth as much as the other three. I will give you seventy five dollars for each of those. The Half eagles are worth quite a bit more. I will give you a hundred for the 1798 one and one hindered and fifty for the one from 1795. I'll give you two hindered and fifty for Quarter Eagle dated 1808."
Maggie mentally calculated the sum in her head and turned back to look at Stella to gauge her reaction. Stella nodded her head in approval. Mr. Levi was actually offering about one hundred and fifty dollars more than they had hoped to get.
Maggie turned back around and told Mr. Levi that she accepted his kind offer. He said he would be gone for just a few minutes. He returned a few minutes later from the back room where he had obviously gotten the money from a safe. He counted out one hundred dollars in tens, another hundred in twenties, and four hundred and fifty in fifty dollar bills.
Mr. Levy said if they found had any more coins they wanted him to take a look at to please stop by and see him anytime. Stella and Maggie thanked Mr. Levi for his time and quickly made their exit while bidding him a good weekend on the way out. They quickly walked down the street back toward the parked rented Mustang. They were practically skipping as they reached the car.
"I can't believe it! That was too easy! Let's divided up the cash later so you aren't carrying that much on you. All right, now to find 1334 Beechwood!", said Stella. "I wished we would have thought to ask Mr. Levi for directions" she added.
"Shouldn't be hard too hard to find. We'll take the Pacific Coast Highway in the opposite direction from how we came in from Santa Monica since we didn't pass it on our way into town."
About two miles down the road, Stella pointed out a little road to the left which looked like it went down to a beach side residential area. They cruised along until they came across Beechwood and turned left again and they started looking for house numbers. Before they could locate the house numbers on the façades of the dwellings, Stella squealed and pointed excitedly, "There! The third on one the left!" She gestured toward where a tricked out red Pontiac GTO with The Monkees painted on the side was parked. Maggie didn't turn in and surprised Stella as she cruised past the Pad.
"What are you doing? Why didn't you pull in?" asked Stella nervously.
"Sorry, I panicked!" said Maggie. "I thought I was just dreaming this whole crazy thing, but it suddenly seems to be getting awfully real. I need to get myself together before we go knocking on their door.
Maggie turned the car around. She drove back up on the main road and pulled into the public beach parking lot. She got out of the car and walked out into the sand. She stood there taking deep breaths letting the sound of the rolling ocean waves and the ocean breeze calm her nerves. Stella walked up beside her.
They stood there for about ten minutes doing deep breathing exercises. Maggie bent over and did a Yoga move called the uttanasana bend or forward bend. She reached for her toes and placed them on the ground in front of her feet. She held her head against her knees. This move was really useful for combating anxiety and depression. Stella gave in and imitated Maggie's yoga move hoping that it would further quell her anxiety.
Before they got back in the car, Maggie and Stella went back over their plan about what they would do and say if indeed the Monkees were to open the door of the house they had driven by. A few minutes later they pulled up in front of 1334 Beechwood and parked next to the Monkeemobile.
They quickly fixed the damage to their hair caused by driving with the convertible top down and reapplied their lipstick. They got out of the car and approached the front door. They could hear music coming from inside indicating that the Monkees were in the middle of band practice.
They looked around and noticed the familiar signs from the show. There was a speed limit sign tacked on the wall, a sign that said keep off the grass to their left and a boot nailed to the wall next to the front door with a sign that read "mail drop" above it. Maggie was just about to knock on the door when she paused and put her ear against the door.
"Does that sound like "You Just May Be the One" to you?" She asked Stella.
Stella pressed her ear to the door to listen." It sure does!" She moved back away from the door. She was practically jumping up and down with excitement. "Ok give me a minute for a few more of those deep breathing exercises."
Maggie took several deep breaths herself and counted slowly to twenty. "Ok here goes nothing!", she said as she knocked loudly on the door of the Pad.