Drag

HIGH PRICE OF MOM’S HELP IS DRAG ON FAMILY BUSINESS

DEAR ABBY:

Twenty years ago, my sister and I bought a business from our mother. We all love and respect one another and get along well. We will be finished paying off the business in two years.

Our problem: Mom, who is now 77, still draws a salary from us above and beyond the payment for the business. Her workload has lessened greatly, as it should. She could do all of her work in one day and lessen the burden of her salary. However, she says she’d “go crazy” if she retired. We don’t want that. She could still come in as often as she wants and do her personal paperwork, banking, letter-writing, reading, etc. These are all things she does at “work” — on the clock.

If we try to discuss this, Mom gets hurt and says, “Just let me know when I’m not worth the money.”

We don’t want to do that. We would hope she would see the fairness of this and suggest it herself.

Business expenses are going through the roof, and there are updates we should make, but we can’t do it as long as we are paying Mom at the level we are, on top of the money for the buy-out.

— DAUGHTERS DEAREST

Drag MS-A Mini Story

Okay, welcome to mini-story A for Drag. In this mini-story, I will ask questions you know. Look at the text. You can find the answers. Let’s start.

Mom is a drag on the family business. Who is a drag on the family business? Mom, right? The mom is a drag on the family business. Is the dad a drag on the family business? Noooooo, not the dad. The dad isn’t a drag on the family business.

The mom is a drag on the family business. Is the mom a drag, or is the dad a drag? Right, the mom – the mom is a drag on the family business. The dad isn’t a drag on the family business. Who is a drag on the family business? That’s right, the mom. The mom is a drag on the family business.

When was the mom a drag on the family business? Well, the mom was a drag on the family busi-ness for many years. For many years, right? Starting 20 years ago. Starting 20 years ago until now.

All right. When did the daughters buy the business? Hum, 20 years ago. The daughters bought the business 20 years ago. Who did they buy the business from? Ah, their mother. They bought the business from their mother.

Did they buy the business from George Bush? Noooooo, they didn’t buy the business from George Bush. They bought the business from their mother. Did they buy the business from their father? Noooooo, they didn’t buy the business from their father. They bought the business from their moth-er.

How long ago did they buy the business? Ahhhhh, 20 years ago, right? Twenty years ago they bought the business from their mother. All right. Very good.

Do they love their mother? Of course they love their mother. Do they respect their mother? Yes, of course they respect their mother. Does their mother respect them? Yes, their mother respects them.

Do they all respect each other? That’s right. They all respect each other. Mom respects them. They respect mom. All right.

When will they finish paying off the business? Ahhhhh, in two years. In two years, they will finish paying off the business. Who will finish paying off the business? Ah, the sisters or the daughters will finish paying off the business.

When will the daughters finish paying off the business? In two years. Who will finish paying off the business in two years? The daughters or sisters will finish paying off the business in two years.

Will the father finish paying off the business in two years? No, no, not the father. The father will not finish paying off the business in two years. The daughters will finish paying off the business in two years; but the daughters have a problem.

Mom, who is 77, still gets money. Who still gets money from the daughters? Mom, right, mom still gets money from the daughters. Does mom still get money from her daughters? That’s right, mom still gets money from her daughters.

Does mom get a salary from her daughters? Yeah, that’s right. She gets a salary, maybe per hour, from her daughters. Does mom get a salary, or does mom work for free? Ah, mom gets a salary. She doesn’t work for free. Mom gets a salary. She still gets a salary.

Does mom also get money for the business? That’s right. Mom also gets money to pay for the busi-ness. Who pays mom money for the business? Well, the daughters pay mom money for the busi-ness. Who pays mom a salary? Ah, the daughters again. The daughters pay mom a salary, and the daughters pay money for the business.

How old is the mom? Ah, she is 77. Is the mom very young? No, not really. The mom is 77. She’s not very young. Is she old? Well, not too old, but yeah, she is a little old. She is 77.

Okay, does mom do a lot of work? No, she doesn’t do a lot of work. Does she do personal work on the clock? Yes, she does. She does personal work on the clock. Does mom read on the clock? She does. Mom reads on the clock. She reads during work time.

Does mom write letters on the clock? Yes, she does. Mom writes letters on the clock during work time. Who writes letters on the clock? Well, mom. The mom writes letters on the clock.

Do the daughters pay mom to write letters? Well, they do pay her to write letters; but they don’t want to. Does mom write letters on the clock, or does mom work very hard on the clock? Mom writes letters on the clock. She doesn’t work very hard on the clock.

Is mom’s salary expensive for the daughters? Yes, mom’s salary is expensive for the daughters. Whose salary is expensive for the daughters? Mom’s – mom’s salary is expensive for the daugh-ters.

What is expensive for the daughters? Ah, mom’s salary, right? Mom’s salary is expensive for the daughters. Is dad’s salary expensive for the daughters? No, no, dad’s salary isn’t expensive for the daughters. Mom’s salary is expensive for the daughters. Is mom’s salary expensive for the daugh-ters or cheap for the daughters? Well, her salary is expensive for the daughters. It’s not cheap for the daughters.

Are business expenses going up or going down? Business expenses are going up. Are business expenses going up fast? Yes, yes, business expenses are going up fast. Are business expenses going through the roof? Yes, business expenses are going through the roof. They are going up very fast.

What is going up very fast? Business expenses. Business expenses are going up very fast. Whose business expenses are going up very fast? Ah, the daughters’, right? The daughters’ busi-ness expenses are going up very fast.

Are Bill Gates’ business expenses going up very fast? Noooooo, no, not Bill Gates’. Bill Gates’ business expenses aren’t going up very fast. The daughters’ business expenses are going up very fast.

Why are the daughters’ business expenses going up very fast? Why? Ah, because they must pay their mom two times. They must pay her a salary; and, also, they must pay her for the business. So why are their expenses going up fast? Because they must pay their mom two times.

Are their expenses going down? No, they’re not. Their expenses are not going down. They are going up. Do the daughters like this situation? No, they don’t. The daughters don’t like this situa-tion.

Okay, that is all for mini-story A. Listen to it many times. Listen to it every day. Listen to it for two weeks or more.

Drag MS-B Mini Story

Hello, welcome to mini-story B for Drag. In this mini-story lesson, I will ask two kinds of questions. I will ask information you know, and I will ask information you don’t know. If you don’t know, guess. Let’s get started.

Twenty years ago, the sisters or daughters bought a business from their mother. Did they buy a business from their mother? Yes, they did. Who bought a business from their mother? Well, the daughters.

What were their names? Hmmmmm, were their names Sam and Olivia? Yes, that’s right. The daughters’ names were Sam and Olivia. What did Sam and Olivia buy? Oh, they bought a busi-ness.

When did they buy a business? Ahhhhh, 20 years ago, they bought a business. Where did they buy a business? Hmmmmm, where did they buy a business? Did they buy a business in California? Noooooo. Did they buy a business in Texas? Noooooo. Did they buy a business in Canada? Yes, that’s right. They bought a business in Canada.

What kind of business did they buy? Did they buy a farm? Noooooo, no, no, no. Did they buy a papermaking business? No, no, they didn’t. They didn’t buy a papermaking business. Did they buy a dog cleaning business? Yes, that’s right. They bought a dog cleaning business from their mother.

When did they buy a dog cleaning business from their mother? Ah, well, you know, 20 years ago, they bought a dog cleaning business from their mother. Where did they buy the dog cleaning busi-ness? In Canada. They bought the dog cleaning business from their mother in Canada.

How did they buy the business? Ah, how did they buy the business? They bought the business with gold, G O L D, gold. They bought the business with gold from their mother in Canada.

What kind of business did they buy with gold? They bought a dog cleaning business with gold from their mother. Did they buy a cat cleaning business from their mother or a dog cleaning business from their mother? Ah, they bought a dog cleaning business from their mother.

Okay, how much gold did they pay to buy the dog cleaning business? Did they pay ten pounds of gold every year? Noooooo, they didn’t pay ten pounds of gold every year. Did they pay 500 pounds of gold every year? Well, almost. They paid 505 pounds of gold every year.

Who did they pay 505 pounds of gold to? Ah, to their mother, right? They paid 505 pounds of gold every year to their mother. Okay, how many times did they pay their mother? Well, they paid their mother every year. Every year, they paid their mother 505 pounds of gold.

Every year, did they pay their mother 506 pounds of gold? Noooooo, every year, they paid their mother 505 pounds of gold. Why did they pay their mother 505 pounds of gold every year? Well, because they bought her business. What kind of business did they buy? A dog cleaning business. They bought a dog cleaning business.

Did the mom continue to help with the dog cleaning business? Yes, the mom continued to help with the dog cleaning business. Who did she continue to help? Well, she continued to help Sam and Olivia, her daughters. Did she continue to help Sam and Olivia? Yeah, she continued to help Sam and Olivia.

Where did she help them? Well, she helped them at the business, right? At work. Where was the business? In Canada, right. She helped them at the business in Canada.

How did the mom help Sam and Olivia? Hmmmmm, how did she help them? Did she wash the dogs? Did she clean? Did she wash the dogs? No, no, she didn’t wash the dogs. Why didn’t she help wash the dogs? Well, because she was too old. She was too old to wash the dogs.

Was she too old to use the computer? No, she wasn’t too old to use the computer. She was too old to wash the dogs. Was she too old to wash all of the dogs? No, no, she wasn’t too old to wash all of the dogs.

Which dogs was she too old to wash? Ah, was she too old to wash the big dogs or the little dogs? Oh, she was too old to wash the little dogs. Yeah, she was too old to wash the little dogs.

Hmmmmm, why? Why was she too old to wash the little dogs? Oh, because they are fast. The lit-tle dogs are very fast. The little dogs are very fast, so mom was too old to wash the little dogs. Mom only washed the big dogs.

Why did she only wash the big dogs? Well, obviously, because they were slow. The big dogs were very slow, but the little dogs were too fast. Mom only washed the big dogs.

How many big dogs did she wash every day? Did she wash one big dog every day? Five-hundred big dogs every day? Noooooo, she washed half a big dog every day. Who washed only half a big dog every day? Mom, the mom. What did the mom wash every day? The mom washed half a big dog every day.

When did she wash half a dog every day? Oh, well, at midnight. At midnight. Only at midnight, she washed a big dog every day. Actually, every night. Where did she wash half a big dog? Oh, in Canada, right? At the business in Canada.

How did she wash half a big dog? Hmmmmm, well, she washed half a big dog with a toothbrush. You know, brush your teeth? (Noise) She washed half a big dog with a toothbrush, T O O T H B R U S H. She washed half a big dog every night at midnight with a toothbrush.

Why did she use a toothbrush? Oh, she used a toothbrush because her hands were very small. Mom’s hands were very small. That’s why she used a toothbrush. Who used a toothbrush because her hands were small? The mom used a toothbrush because her hands were small.

What did the mom use to wash half a big dog? She used a toothbrush to wash half a big dog. When did she use a toothbrush? At midnight. At midnight, she used a toothbrush. What did she use the toothbrush for? Ah, she used the toothbrush to wash half a big dog.

Okay, very good. Now we understand more of the story. Listen to this mini-story many, many times. Listen every day. Answer all the questions. Use your pause button. Listen to this story every day for two weeks, maybe three weeks, maybe ten weeks; but listen every day until you understand everything.

Okay, see you next time, bye-bye.