Small Town Afternoon

Although I have, in the recent past, complained about the way my little town has grown I find that I am still able to have small town experiences now and then.  I am still able to pick up my prescriptions at the local Safeway without ever having to give anyone my last name.  The bagger at the Giant always says hello to me when he sees me and the Jordanian owner of a small pizza place nearby greets me like a family member whenever I stop in- even if it's been over a year since my last visit.

This afternoon, after borrowing a hand sander from a friend who lives nearby, I headed over to the Apple store in Clarendon.  As I drove up a side street I recognized a friend and former colleague sitting in front of her son's bakery.  Much to the annoyance of the driver behind me I stopped the car to say hello.

Linda greeted me with a big "Hey Mary!  What are you doing?"

I told her about my errand at the Apple store and assured her I'd be back to visit.

Before long I was back at the bakery.  I walked in to a warm welcome from Linda's son, the owner.

"Hey!  How are you?  Haven't seen you in awhile!" came the call from the corner table where Josh was going over some paperwork with a friend.

Linda made her way to the front and told me about the Key Lime Pies she was getting ready to make. We talked about the book we're reading for our book club and she caught me up on the former students and their families who had come by to visit her.

I sat with her and chatted for about 20 minutes and noted that she knew almost every customer that came in.

Before too long I was on my way, happily heading back to my car with a free sample in my hand.

That free sample?  It was something called a "Brookie," which is a brownie-like cookie.

Yea- it was fabulous.