Saturday, March 27, 2010

Sunday Favorites - Great American Road Trip



It's Sunday and time for Sunday Favorites, where Chari, from Happy to Design allows participants to share an old blog post with readers, while still taking Sunday off, by reposting an old post.

Years ago, as an over the road truck driver, I collected a few thoughts and stories from my journeys and travels. In my Sunday Favorites posts, I am sharing some of those stories.


This one seemed especially appropriate for this week, because it happened on our anniversary, which is coming up this week.

  

My wife and I were married on April 1( that's right, April Fools Day)  in Las Vegas Nevada, and by April 3 we had left Las Vegas on the Great American Road Trip.  A trip that would ultimately turn into a six week honeymoon that took us through 39 different states.  We had so much fun, that, in addition to our regular traveling, we have planned a sequel edition to the Great American Road Trip every year since then, to celebrate our anniversary.

One such Trip brought us on April 1, 2003 to Roswell New Mexico.  Not too far outside of Roswell, on a lonely desert highway, we came across a tiny gas station with an attached store. 

In today's day and age, the thought of a gas station and attached store might bring to mind gleaming countertops filled with hot dogs, condiments, fountain drinks, candy bars, and various other merchandise, lit by florescent lights all nestled under the glow of a neon marquis. Sparkling restrooms, lightly scented with cinnamon air freshener, and a smiling teenager at the cash register, waiting to ring up your purchases, and accept your payment.

Just go ahead and wipe all those thoughts out of your head right now.

From the gravel lot, to the single dilapidated gas pump.  From the one room house converted into a one room store, to the portable outhouse in the back, complete with padlock and handwritten criteria. ("Paying customers only--ask attendant for key").  From the dust covered souvenirs to the somewhat dubious looking display of who knows how long they have been there snacks, this was not by any stretch of the imagination your typical, modern, every day, big city, C-store.

We walked in the door, and were greeted by the owners, a man and woman about our age, who smiled at us, and then proceeded to follow us around the store. (this didn't take long, a single circuit around a single 12' X 12' room, with a single shelf all the way around the outer wall.) Every time we touched a piece of merchandise on the shelf, we got the entire sales pitch for that particular item.  We quickly learned to look without touching, and to communicate with furtive eye movements, so as not to alert the omnipresent proprietor of our interest in any of his wares. 

Finally, so that we could be classified as "paying customers" thereby making us eligible to ask the attendant for the key to the facilities, we picked out a small terra cotta Gila monster, paid our $5.99 and asked for the key.

While honoring the ladies first rule, I waited in the store, engaging in obligatory idle chitchat with the merchant and his wife. 

"We are so glad you stopped by,"  He told me.  We haven't had many visitors yet today.  It is our anniversary, and we had hoped to make enough in sales today to go into town for dinner."  What a coincidence I thought, today was our anniversary too.  We were driving on down the road, and almost certainly would celebrate with dinner in a restaurant somewhere many miles away.  Somewhere with running water and real flush toilets.

Maybe I was just feeling extra generous on account of our anniversary.  Maybe it was something in the air.  A magnetic residue left from the infamous alien encounter there in Roswell.  I don't know, but by the time we drove away, I had somehow managed to buy: a coffee mug, a souvenir newspaper, pencils, postcards, and anything else that I thought we would possibly be able to use, give away, or put in a scrapbook.  

I hope they had an enjoyable dinner that night.  I know I did. 



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Be sure and join me each Tuesday for Tuesday Trivia Tie-in, where readers are invited to share trivia and show off their treasures.


Read all about it here

5 comments:

  1. What a sweet thing to do! Loved your story for SUNDAY (even tho it is Saturday as I read this!). It is so nice to hear of things like this - kindnesses people do one to another! With all the scammers out there, it's great knowing EVERYONE isn't out for themselves!

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  2. What a nice guy! I think doing something kind for someone else is the greatest gift we can give! Sometime I don't feel that there are enough kind souls in this wicked old world of ours. Thanks for sharing and Ha[[y Early Anniversary to you two!

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  3. How very sweet you were for doing that for the elderly couple. We need more people that do these sort of things in the world today.

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  4. Ha! I guess that couple must have been "elderly" in 2003, since they were "about your age"!! Peace, Stephanie

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  5. Hi Troy...

    My friend...that was just the nicest and sweetest thing that you did...buying that couple their anniversary dinner! I bet you felt great!!! What an awesome story!!! I think it's marvelous how you and Diann were able to take a 6 wk. honeymoon trip around the states and even greater...that you do take another trip for each anniversary!!! April 1st is nearly here...Happy, Happy Anniversary, Troy and Diann!!! I hope that it will be the best one ever...many blessings being sent your way!!!

    Thank you again for joining in with Sunday Favorites, dear friend!

    Have a fabulous day!
    Chari @Happy To Design

    PS...just wanted to make sure that you knew that I was canceling Sunday Favorites next Sunday...April 4th since I will be away and it's Easter Sunday...however we will resume regular schedule on the 11th!

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