Saturday Adventure
One thing about living in a small town is the staples of living. Unlike being in a metro area, you must drive to town to get supplies. I know most of you are like, " What to add on to your fence or the feed store?" No, it is much simpler than that. It really is the simple staples of everyday life, the things every household needs to work. You just do not realize what your house runs on if you live in an area where everything is within walking distance, unlike having to drive an hour just to stock your fridge for the next month. If you forget something on that trip, the cost of convenience is not worth the missed item on that list. It is the small things in those trips that make a small town and its surrounding areas worth the struggle of neighbors.
This weekend was the grocery weekend. It is a little over an hour drive, and we start out with the list. If you have never checked the fridge, the cabinet, and the stock of snacks, you will never understand the need for a weekend trip to restock the pantry. We get the car loaded, and everyone knows the drill. Now if you do not live in an area like this you will not understand the importance of the best McDonald’s on the route In Portageville MO, yes the best fries, the buns at the perfect state of almost stale, yes you know if they are to fresh that mouth roof glue eeewww, and always the welcoming staff that has patience for the regulars and the soul of who do you think you are coming in here with an attitude, You got to love the staff that knows you. After bellies are full, it is off to stock up. Now in these times not only prices but holidays, spending is a budgeting game tight as a well called play on the field, Some of us take pictures of and some of us have list others just facetime right into the kitchen but we all have missions as we go through Sam’s Aldi’s Walmart Kroger or any combination oof the numerous store and combinations to fill our fleets to get home with our haul.
Now for the long road back. Now, throughout the short span of 75 years, I can hear tales of carhops. We stopped once again in Portageville to get a Drink from the Sonic Drive-in. I am only fifty, so some of these stories are from my mother, who worked at Sonic in my hometown, and some are from people who grew up with her. Other things are photos or lore that were left behind by other carhop spots of time past, but Sonic has always been in close proximity to the place I have lived, so I could always find comfort in that vanilla Coke.
The idea that people still want this job is sometimes perplexing. The job is less than minimum wage, and tips are lacking to say the least, but the lore associated with that job has to be the draw. If you think about it, the history of roller skate racing and the tradition of beating the girl who wins is like the dance performances by the carhops, which made the night fun and interactive for the guests. I know that people think of it as just a job, but some of these girls have a historical link to it and hear what fun it was in the past and want that. Some are on a dance team or a flag squad, and this job gives that squad an extra spot and time to come together and unite as a team that works together. So the next time you think, 'Oh, McDonald’s and Sonic, just high school jobs,' realize that those kids, young adults, and people joining together are doing so to support something greater in us, to do simple tasks that are forming a unity, not just a part-time job. It is easy to see how they need our respect, just like we need theirs.
