Write When You Find Work

"Write When You Find Work"

By Dick Mauer
In the early 80s I was a Patrol Agent in Niagara Falls and partnered up, as often as possible, with Jim Carroll. We were usually able to do some good on the job and were, generally, able to stay out of trouble. (The times we did get in trouble were always preceded by Jim's words, "Hey, you know what we oughta' do?") After that, look out. One of Jim's other favorite maxims was "It's better to have tossed and lost than never tossed at all. Jim was single at the time and drove a recent vintage white Corvette, which he washed so often the paint had gotten thin. We had a heated garage with a floor drain in Niagara Falls and Jim used to come to work early during bad weather to park and wash the car in the garage. As we were headed out to the field his last car related job at the office was to set the garage thermostat to whatever the temperature was in Miami that day. Jim used to say his car thought it was a Florida car.

One night we cruised out toward the Interstate where we found a hippy standing there with a hand lettered sign saying "California." The sign may as well have said "I'm wet". We stopped to have a chat and determined that he was a limey from Liverpool with a British Passport sin visa. (this being in the days when a Brit needed one.) We also determined that he had just entered the U.S. from Canada so we sacked him up and headed for the office for a fast 213 and V/R. I was the faster typist so I usually got stuck with the I-213. Jim would do the prints usually saying "it was the least he could do." (It literally was the least he could do). He tossed the guy's knapsack and found a post card the guy had written and stamped but not yet mailed. It was addressed to friends in Toronto saying, "Thanks for your help, l got through the border O.K. Ark! Ark! I'm on my way to L.A., will write when I find a job, Your Friend, Ian." Jim wrote across this message, "Apprehended by U.S. Border Patrol and deported to Canada. Ark! Ark! Ark!" and we mailed it. You've got to have a sense of humor.