Call Corporate

Some folks may say that Delaware has to offer nothing but tax free shopping, beaches, and boredom. Settled by the Swedes, the tiny state stands as a bastion of what is written on it’s flag: Liberty and Independence. Others contend that the only thing in the state is the chemical companies, credit card companies and business climate. A corporate haven, it is because of the dual dragons of high tax collection and personal income tax, that a flame of freedom was ignited. And people happen to live there, too. Professor Connor Mettle, Professor Milo Kiln, and Professor Donnell Wayson teachers at Delaware Institute of Technology (DIT) would be known as the New Sweden Kids (NSK). The trio strolled in the Delaware Hello Place rest stop on the Terrace Roadways highway. Decked out in sportcoats and dress shirts sans the tie, each man could read the lips of the managers and supervisors of the stores: “Call corporate.” Why would they utter this phrase usually reserved for an issue to be handled by the “suits”? Well, this was to alert the higher ups of the presence of preeminent men. But what got them to this lofty position?

Well, because of the ideas they picked up, they decided to band together to alter the state for the better. From the initial inkling of how economics could change the way the state did business, the NSK developed their professor, Dr.Francine Woodrow’s theories and then applied them to real world problems. The ideas that they used to chart income models and establish an understanding of global markets now allowed them to apply those principles to the ills of the economy. As avid readers, the NSK devoured obscure texts and pushed themselves to excel. Though as tall as a corner mailbox, Dr. Woodrow commanded a room with her sharp intellect and clever humor. She brought to academia what a surgeon carries to the field of medicine. Her unabashed critiques of failed social systems opened the eyes of the three men. They were rapt. Of all the teachings that this lady imparted, the thought that theory put into practice could make waves resonated with them. The NSK expected to make a tidal wave after reaping the knowledge of Dr. Woodrow. But first they had to graduate. They all obtained their master’s degree in just eight months. Their straight A’s landed them in the highest ranks of their class. Upon completing graduate school, the NSK explored America and the world in search of what good ideas and bad ideas existed. By appointment of then governor Marlon Graff, the NSK brought to the First State the lessons which their professor Dr. Woodrow bestowed upon them. After a few strokes of a pen, the triumvirate slashed government spending, eliminated the minimum wage in Delaware, and did away with all taxes. All of which stemmed from what they learned at New Sweden University in Wilmington, Delaware, economics department. As farmers sow seeds of grain and vegetation, so did the NSK plant the seeds of liberty. Now, as they walked through the bustling rest stop, they noted that some of the employees who worked for what had to be no more than $2.50 an hour performed their tasks with litheness. An intensity and energy permeated throughout the travel plaza. Each man viewed a particular aspect of what they helped to foster.

Professor Kiln observed a janitor open up a brand new trash bag to line the can just outside the restroom. He saw how this janitor whipped out the receptacle liner as a matador confronts a bull. The close attention to detail involved with him clamping down the sides of the bag to keep it in place intrigued him. Or take for instance, what Professor Wayson saw. He peered at a manager quibbling with a supervisor over how to best position an etagere which would display coffee mugs. The exchange lacked heat or profanity or rancor but held within it a great amount of respect and thorough weighing of facts. Though the supervisor finally won the argument, each man profited by recognizing reality.

Professor Mettle leaned into to talk to a cashier at the Bean Trail. “Yes, I would like a almond milk latte,” Professor Mettle said. With the order tallied on an electronic tablet, the barista saw a screen above her head illuminate with his order. Keenly, she whipped together the ingredients; she steamed the milk; she loaded the coffee; and at the end she created a fern design in the beverage to illustrate her care. A smile on her face, the barista handed the masterpiece to the professor.

“Thank you very much, young lady,” Professor Mettle said.

As the three men prepared to leave, the district manager, Vernon Pitts stepped up to them and proceeded to shake their hands.

“We appreciate your business here at the Hello Place Delaware, gentlemen. Won’t you please stop by again?”

All three smiled and bid Mr. Pitts adieu. Professor Mettle issued a caveat.

“We will come back to the Hello Place as long as you’ve got that barista controlling that espresso machine,” he grinned.

The men left and returned to their car. At this hour in the morning, they decided to head straight to DIT so that they had time to set up their lesson plans. Professor Kiln drove the men to the school in Wilmington, Delaware. Their oddysee would prove to be a fruitful one as all three of them acknowledged that what was just a thought could be fashioned into being. Their labors to engender a sense of freedom within the marketplace paid off in significant dividends. Though they lived modest lives as teachers, with simple homes and drove unassuming vehicles, their spirits reaped returns in a major way.