“A breeze, a forgotten summer, a smile, all can fit into a storefront window.”
Today is just like yesterday and the day before: sunny with a light breeze, a deep blue sky and in the mid 50’s. It’s a pretty morning. For today, I have a small, easily accomplished, to do list. I have bird feeders to fill, a kitchen floor to sweep and a hall to vacuum. The trash sits in the trunk waiting until tomorrow when I’ll go to the dump.
When I was a kid, uptown was filled with stores. It was about a fifteen or twenty minute walk from my house, but I usually rode my bike unless I was going to the movies. I’d walk my bike in the square on the sidewalk so I could check out the store windows. I loved the fish market window where lobsters were in a pool in a sort of aquarium. They were walking around on the bottom. The lobsters were blueish with a bit of orange on the shell. The bakery, about in the middle of the square, had a great window with baked goods and breads. Through that window I could see the ladies behind the counter, always ladies, and the shelves behind them filled with bread. I always wished I could buy a cupcake, a chocolate cupcake with chocolate frosting. I was never one for vanilla cupcakes. The movie theater had posters on the side walls by the entrance, but they were the night movies, not the matinees. The window where I spent the longest time looking was Woolworth’s. Sundry is how I describe it now. It had notions, sewing stuff, a few toys, socks and some dishes. The window changed with the seasons. The Christmas window was the best. Down from the square just a little way was the fire station. In the summer the firemen sat outside the truck bays on wooden chairs just taking in the sun. I always stopped to chat a bit. From there, I’d sometimes stop at the town stable then ride through the school yard to go home. I always thought of it as a short cut.
I’m watching a really bad movie. Five people in their twenties are staying in a camper in the woods which had belonged to one of their uncles who disappeared two years ago. That spooked the other people. On their hike, they heard noises and one heard screams. Now, back in the camper, they are discussing aliens and probing. They found newspaper articles the uncle had saved which claimed a connection between aliens and trees. Really bad is probably being generous.
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keepthecoffeecoming.blog 
November 16, 2024 at 2:00 pm
Hi Kat,
Today is partly cloudy if you’re a pessimist or partly sunny if you are an optimist. The high should top out at a pleasant 76°.
During the pandemic lockdown we would drive to the various small towns around the DFW area to entertain ourselves. We carried our lunches in a cooler, or we would drive through a fast food joint and eat lunch in the car.
Many of these small towns are the county seats, and they all have an historic courthouse located in the middle of the town square. The square is usually surrounded by stores which were all closed at that time. Usually, there was an antique store or two as well as a western wear emporium. Walmart hasn’t killed every small town business district. We would stroll around the square and peer into the store windows. Some towns even had a movie theater, and some of them still showed movies before the lockdown was initiated. We haven’t gone back and so I wonder how many of those establishments are still in operation.
In Texas, all the towns that are the county seats are located about 30 miles apart from each other. This was done in the 19th. century because the farmers and ranchers could reach the county seats within one day on horseback or in a buggy. The county seats were where the markets for their products was located and where the railroads stopped. For example, Dallas county is 35 miles from Ft. Worth, which is the county seat of Tarrant county. Neither Dallas nor Ft. Worth has a square around their respective courthouses.
November 16, 2024 at 11:45 pm
Hi Bob,
I’m glad for 50’s this time of year. I think of that as nice and warm. 76° would be a sign of the apocalypse.
Places around the beaches are quiet and perfect for a ride. I also love to go on unfamiliar roads. I get to see so many different types of houses and especially love to find old cape styles. Like you I rode around during the pandemic and enjoyed.
I live in a village. The town of Dennis is composed of five villages. My village has a shopping center of sorts. It is anchored by Stop and Shop. There are still many small stores and those are the places where I love to shop. The antique stores tend to be expensive, but I still like to check them out just in case of a find. We have a town hall, a fairly new building. Mostly we have old houses, old captain’s houses, old churches.
All of Cape Cod, excluding the islands is in Barnstable County the second largest in the state. It is also one of the few county governments left in the state. It has one of the oldest populations in the country with an average age of 54(in the US it is 39).
November 17, 2024 at 9:41 am
Mrs MDH and I have just one more weekend before we hit the road for Thanksgiving. Denver is calling our name and a chance to meet Santa with 2 of our granddaughters
So I reacted yesterday by getting the Christmas tree up and lit and a few of the decorations in place. Time is running short
Right I have to head downtown to Ford Field as we meet the odious Jaguars from Jacksonville
November 17, 2024 at 11:12 pm
My Dear Hedley,
I can’t believe how close we are getting to Thanksgiving and Christmas isn’t far behind. Both my holidays will be quiet. I have ordered my Thanksgiving dinner so there will be a few festivities.
Have a wonderful time in Colorado. How neat you get to see Santa. Don’t forget to make a list for the jolly man. I hope your granddaughters we I’ll be fine with old Santa.
My sister lives in Littleton, Colorado. Her family will be there for Christmas. I’ve been practicing a Christmas
tune I’ll Zoom to them on Christmas Eve.