This week Continental Savings has been on my mind. In the late 1980's I worked for this bank located next to the Pacific Stock Exchange in the Financial District of San Francisco. Each day I would wake up at 4:30am, get ready and catch the 5:45am commute bus 76 to the Financial District. It was an hour ride, of which I had my own pillow, blanket and a set of construction guys (also traveling to work in SF on the high rises) would save my same seat every day. One of these guys would eventually save my life - twice.
Continental Savings was owned and operated by Frank Lembi and his son Walter, both San Francisco real estate tycoons and very Italian. The Lembi's had the ability of hiring the most fascinating people to work for this financial institution and neighboring bay area branch offices. I started as the Administrative Assistant to 6 VP's, who I adored but ran me ragged. One, named Mike, I had a serious girl crush on.
To the Lembi's the Continental employees were family and I can say without a doubt I have never been treated as well as when the Lembi's owned and ran the bank. The employees loved working for Continental Savings. This made for a wonderful work environment. My Irish freckled self was a minority, as the staff was rich in cultures I had never had the pleasure of coming in contact, being from my small white bread Sonoma County town.
There was Nuri from Viet Nam. He was a doc drawer in the mortgage-lending department. The Khmer Rouge killed his father and he traveled with his mother to America. They lived in Chinatown and Nuri was a bookie on the side to supplement his income and care for his mother. I adored him and was fascinated by his stories of Viet Nam. He loved me because I was never afraid to try some strange Asian dish. He would say "You are sure not like other white girls". HA! That is a fact.
There were the "Three Steves" as we liked to call them, all from China, sent to America to go to college and learn banking. They spoke little English, argued constantly among themselves, and were forever combing the halls of the bank searching for me yelling, "Kafri, Kaaaafri" (This is how they pronounced my name). All three were from wealthy Chinese families who would fly over once a year to see if there were any "good" Chinese girls in America for them to marry. I was 28 and they were determined to find me a "good man" as I was getting too old to be a good wife and mother (according to them). They didn't know what to think of me, and with Nari loved taking me to these obscure Chinese restaurants down back alleyways in San Francisco for lunch.
"Kafri, you need to marry soon,” they would say slurping up undon noodles. "I am doing fine" I would retort. "Getting up at 4:30 and riding a bus and getting home at 7pm at night is not fine" they would shoot back. Nari would roll his eyes for he claimed he was never going to marry. "Women are too much work" he would say, "Just have sex Cathleen". The three Steves' would become appalled that he said such a thing and start arguing with him in Chinese.
Then there was Leo. Leo was my best friend who ran the computer room for the bank. He was from Indonesia and came to America to go to college and loved it so much he decided to stay. He wanted to marry a California girl, but ended up meeting Ria from back home and married her. Leo is the reason I went back to school to study computers. At the time, I was attending SRJC in Santa Rosa studying Real Estate and Contract Law. I would eat a light snack on the commute bus home and get off at the college to attend classes from 7-10. Damn, those were some hellishly long days.
Once we became friends, I don't think there was ever a day that Leo and I did not have lunch together. When he finally took his first vacation in three years - a two-week trip back home to Indonesia - he nominated me to learn his job and handle thecomputer room while he was away. I thought he was nuts, but he kept on saying, "You are smart enough". His boss, George agreed and the next thing I knew I was handling the computer room. In a small company, employees learn everything. Much to my great shock I fell in love with computers.
Later, Leo would build me a computer from scratch, drive up to my home and give it to me. "You should learn this. You are smart and it's a good career for women". I did exactly what he told me and it has saved my butt more times than I can count.
George, who headed IT at Continental Savings, invented a Loan tracking software for the Loan Officers. He called it SmartQual. When Continental closed its doors, George went out and developed a complete loan origination system calling it Loansoft. I have worked with him and his software twice since leaving Continental. George is this hilarious combination of Kelsie Grammer and Bob Hope. He also has pushed me into the male dominated field of computer science.
Nancy ran the compliance department for Continental Savings and eventually I left the VP's to go to work for her. She was one of the best bosses I ever had the pleasure of working for. She pushed me hard to learn the operations side of mortgage banking and I eventually became her top funder. I loved it when she gave me research for her cases. While under her watch, Continental never lost a lawsuit. She eventually went to work for George as his lead Loansoft trainer and found an obscure government program for me to attend computer school while I was out on maternity leave. I love her, because she made it possible for me to financially get a divorce.
Then there were the Santa Rosa loan officers for Continental Savings...what a motley crew. All x band members looking like something from Billy Idol, who was the top producers for the bank. They were such fun. Elisabet (Ebet, my best friend) was their assistant. This is how we became friends. On Fridays, the guys would travel to the city in top producer Steve's big ole Mercedes sedan and drop of loan packages to me. They would go around the bank schmoozing and end up back in Nancy's office where they would convince her to let me leave early. I was thrilled because it meant I would be home well before dinnertime. They would stop at a liquor store, grab ice, liquor and mix and with their battery-operated blender, mix cocktails for the commute home. They always gave me the front seat and Steve would smoke his cigars, laugh and tell me old band stories all the way back home.
Joe Montana was our spokesman; his mother was platform supervisor for our Millbrae branch and his dad a loan officer there as well. Joe DiMaggio came into the SF branch downstairs each morning to chat and have coffee. He was the banks favorite client. Catherine Crosby turned heads and Paul Reubans (Pee Wee Herman) was fun to help. Continental Savings was a bank for the rich and famous. Clients had to have a minimum balance of 10k just to open an account. Frank Lembi preferred the LIBOR index and used it long before it became known in the mortgage-banking world.
Then there were the African American women from Oakland. God, how I loved them. Smart, sassy, funny and well dressed. They ran their positions at Continental Savings like CEO's of their own companies. They loved to call me "princess" as they felt I was often way too nice for my own good. There was 'Mother Mary' this graying larger than life black woman who ran the front desk on the CEO's floor ('the 16th floor' as we liked to call it). She mothered everyone and was the heart of the bank. There was Louise, who sat next to me and once refused to talk to her sons for three weeks after they forgot Mother's day. They tried everything to get backin her good graces, finally succumbing to the pressure and surprised her with dinner, flowers, gifts and apologies.
And there was Marie, who disliked me at first sight, because later she would say that I looked like an up tight bitch (laugh). She wore nothing but leather, skirts that were about 3 inches long, heeled pumps I could never walk in without breaking my neck and 2 inch long fingernails. For some reason we always ended up on the elevator alone together and she would roll her big brown eyes. She worked in collections and I was in funding when I was informed she was coming to my department and I would be training her. "Hell no, and you can fire me” I said. Management wouldn't listen and kept saying we'd make a good team (yeah rolling around on the floor beating the crap out of each other).
I'm odd. I can dislike someone in business and still help him or her be a success, so of course I helped her and answered all her questions. I have a very dry sense of humor that Marie picked up on ... shock of all shocks she began to really like me and we ended up being best friends. My department rocked with her skills...shows you what I know...and Marie gave me some of my best hilarious work stories to date. She didn't take crap from anyone and often sprang to her feet if she thought anyone was giving me a hard time.
I'd love to write more about this...there are some great stories here...but Brian is with his Daddy and I have a busy weekend planned that I would like to begin. Saturday I will be in the city I love..SF..with a friend..;-) ..what to wear...what to wear...
Until next time-
C