Frank just slipped back into our lives like he never left. He visited often, even though he lived about an hour away. He came to our house to swim and just hang out. He bought himself a new dog just like the little dog he had to leave behind. He seemed to try to regain some of his life back by doing something that he loved, he rejoined the Army National Guard. There were not many things Frank loved more than sleeping in a tent and eating from a can. He was in the Guard when he met Kat, but one weekend away was too much for her. She complained about him being away incessantly. It was something she could not control so it had to go. Kat demanded complete control of Frank's life and she could not compete with the US military for control and it infuriated her. After they were married, she wrote letter after letter to his commanding officer demanding that he be let out. She of course signed them with Frank's name making it appear that he was the one that wanted out. Of course they wouldn't agree to discharge him early and when his commission was finally up, he rejoined. This infuriated her even more. Frank told her that they got him drunk and he didn't know what he was doing. We knew he needed that outlet to do something he loved and it was no accident. When Kat became pregnant with Frances, she finally got him out by claiming that she had some medical condition and he needed to be by her side.
Frank was thrilled to be back in the guard, but this was 2006 and there were some questions about being called up to Iraq. National Guards across the country were being activated to serve in the full military. That day did come. Frank told us that his unit was being activated and he was going to be deployed to Egypt by Christmas. I expressed concern to Matt. Due to his new behavior and language issues, I would not want Frank with a gun backing me up, that I know. We waited for news of his deployment, but Frank never seemed to know what was going on. Christmas 2006 came and went and Frank was still with us. I asked him if his unit shipped out and he said they did. I asked him why he didn't go and he said it was because he didn't get his physical form filled out in time. If there are any tests of mental competency, which I hope there are, that would be the reason. Whether he knew the real reason and didn't want to say, or he just couldn't comprehend what happened, I'll never know.
Fall 2007, Vincent went to visit Frank at his house. Everyone was concerned about Frank and his behavior lately, so while Vince and his family were passing through on their vacation they stopped in. Later, Vincent called Matt to tell him that Frank needed help. He was at the house and it was in a shambles. He had a truck parked in the back yard covered in grass. The first floor was filled with clothes and shoes, so much that you couldn't see the bed he was sleeping in, which was in the living room. The poor little schnauzer was living in a crate in the basement that was covered in poop. As much as Matt and I didn't want to get involved in Frank's life, eventually we had to.
When Frank came for Thanksgiving dinner he told us that the bank sold his mortgage to another bank and he hadn't gotten a bill in a long time so he thought that they forgot about him. By Christmas, he was convinced that his house was paid off and he had stopped paying any bill except the cable tv. Sometime after the new year, Frank came over and showed us a letter he had received saying that he was being foreclosed on. That was when Matt had to go over and see what was going on.
Matt arrived at Frank's house and saw the dilapidated appearance outside, but that was nothing compared to the inside of the house. There were garbage bags, sleeping bags, tents, blankets, clothes, probably thirty suits and fifty pairs of shoes piled in the room. Trash was strewn everywhere and the place smelled like poop. The poor dog was filthy, but he seemed happy although too eager for attention with jumping and barking. Matt found the mail. It was piled by the front door where it landed after Frank took it out of the mailbox. Unopened letters and bills were piled a foot high three feet wide. The only reason he saw the foreclosure letter is because it came registered and he signed for it. All of a sudden, all the nagging thoughts he was trying to ignore came crashing in on Matt. This is serious, but what is it? What is causing Frank to behave this way?
Matt thought that maybe it would be a good idea to let Frank's attorney, Nicholas Zinc know about the foreclosure to see what he could do. Frank thought it was a great idea and couldn't wait to introduce Matt to Nicholas. Matt said "shouldn't we call first Frank?" Frank said, "Naw, I always go over, he doesn't mind." They jumped in Frank's truck and pulled up to a large brick building that looked like an old factory. Frank hopped out and started climbing a fire escape on the side of the building. "Frank, what are you doing?!" a concerned Matt shouted out. There was no door in sight on that side of the building. "C'mon Matt, I do this all the time!" Reluctantly, Matt followed Frank up the fire escape and in through an open window. There was Nicholas Zinc at a large desk working on papers. He looked up with a tired expression without the least bit of shock or surprise that two men just climbed through his window. "Hey Nick, I want you to meet my brother, umm . . . uhhh . . . " "Hi Nick, I'm Matt" Nicholas was polite, but looked weary. "Sorry about the window." "Yeah, that's okay, Frank does that all the time, I'm used to it. He's actually here a lot." Nicholas told them that the foreclosure could be stopped if Frank became current on his mortgage. Matt lent Frank the money because he would become homeless if the house was gone and he did not want to see that, and even more, he did not want to see Frank at our doorstep.
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