Only In A Small Town
Mood:  a-ok
Topic: Holiday Happenings

My husband, Harold, and I went out to eat at a local restaurant this noon. Their menu special on Fridays is always the same - all you can eat walleye and all you can eat potatoes it seems since the portion looks like a double helping. I think it’s a ploy to keep us from ordering more fish. If that is the case, it works for me. I always leave feeling stuffed. Good thing about that is, I usually don’t have to fix supper.

It’s cold outside. If people don’t have a job, must be all there is to do is shop and eat. The restaurant front room was full. We dodged around the pulled out chairs over to the back room door and saw an empty table. Quick before the couple behind us had the same idea, we headed for that spot in the corner. The couple at the table next to ours smiled at our eagerness to get seated.

"Hello. Decided to hide out back here?" asked the young woman.

"Sure did," I said, smiling back. "No where in front to sit."

"We found that out," she agreed. "Here, in case the waitress doesn’t get here for awhile." She handed us their menus. "You may have a while to study them."

"Won’t take long," I said. "We want the walleye dinners. That’s what we came in here for."

"Us too," the husband said.

The conversation dried up when the waitress bore down on us like she was in a race with herself. "Here’s the coffee," She said, pouring as she talked. "See you have menus. Know what you want to order?"

"Walleye," I said to keep the conversation short.

"Potato?" She asked, breathlessly.

"Hash browns."

"Soup or salad?"

"Soup."

She turned to my husband. "And you, Sir?"

"What she’s having except make my potatoes French fries," he said.

And she was off back to the front, forgetting the coffee pot. She stopped only long enough to demand the dessert orders at a table down the line.

In no time, the waitress raced back with our cream of broccoli soup just as my husband helped himself to the coffee pot. "Good job," she said as if relieved to have the help no matter how small it was. She grabbed the pot and took off only to return loaded with two plates of mash potatoes and gravy and headed right for us.

"We ordered French fries and hash browns," I told her. "These must belong to someone else."

"Probably not. The cooks are so hassled in the kitchen, they just winged it and guessed wrong." Off she went and in seconds was back with the right potatoes much to the amusement of the young woman at the table next to us. "That was faster."

I excused for being particular, "I was tempted to keep the mash potatoes, but I thought they belonged to someone else."

That ended the conversation once we had food in front of us. The friendly couple left before we did. As soon as they disappeared out the door, my husband asked, "Do we know them?"

"No, we don’t. That’s what’s so nice about having a conversation with her. She would have felt at ease talking to whoever sit down by her," I replied.

 

The Day After
Mood:  cool
Topic: Holiday Happenings

The day after what you're wondering. A snowstorm that didn't amount to much after the tiny flakes stopped falling except in spots where the prairie winds reminiscent of years gone by blew the fine, white particles into piles against the house, outbuildings and fences. The countryside is colored white where brown corn stalks and bean stubble were a short time ago. Nothing spells holiday greetings in December like snowfall in time for Christmas. Do I get excited about the winter wonderland around me? Sure I do until after the holidays. My mood will change in January until spring. Just give me time to take in the wind chilled atmosphere around me. After the first of the new year, my goal is to stay in where it’s warm and read some good books in between working on a book of my own to publish.

Speaking of books if you're a fan of Civil War stories try out one I've written. Ella Mayfield's Pawpaw Militia sold on amazon ISBN 1438235461 and Create Space store 3344579. This book is a historical fiction because I had to add what I didn't know. The battles and skirmishes are factual as are the names of people living in Vernon County, Mo. during the war. I was a citizen of Vernon Co, living on a farm near Schell City until I was fourteen. My father and mother grew up near Montevallo, a town burned during the Civil War by Union soldiers because it was a strong hold for bushwhackers. My Civil War ancestors are buried in the Montevallo Cemetery. One of my favorite books is Gone With The Wind. That and the historical ties to my family lead me to research and write this story about the Mayfield family from Ella's point of view as a lady bushwhacker trying to protect her family and homestead. In the duration of the war, Ella lost a good many members of her family and her home. She had to flee from the area to keep from being killed. This story depicts the hardships of families homesteading just like the Mayfields. They were caught between Jayhawkers and Union soldiers and had no choice but to fight to protect their homes.

Until next time try to enjoy the snowfalls.

Books By Fay Musing
Mood:  energetic
Topic: Holiday Happenings

I was going to start this blog after the new year, but knowing full well I never keep my New Year's resolutions, I decided to start blogging now.  Being an Iowa author with selling books on my mine, I'd like to take the moment to mention I have a holiday book on amazon.com.  Christmas Traditions is a Amish love story.  ISBN 143824889X    The story is about Levi Yoder's stubborn denial about his feelings for Margaret Goodman, a woman who was once Amish and turned English.  Years before they were in love until fate stepped in and changed the path their lives too.  Now Levi premits Margaret to visit his son once a year at Christmas but he would like to stop that visit for fear that Margaret will tell his son the family secret.  Margaret endures Levi's attempts to upset her for the boy's sake.  This is one Christmas that is not traditional.  Margaret attempts to save a drowning child in an icy creek, is attacked by a Yoder cow and hopes that Levi will come to his senses and realize he loves her.

                                    Holiday Cart Watchers

I always thought shoppers were people watchers but they have become cart watchers. Harold left me to guard two carts of feed in the farm store a week ago. I saw no reason. To worry about standing under the Holiday Bird Seed for sale sign until a woman came to a fast halt beside me. She wanted to know how I had so many birds to feed that I needed two carts of feed. I told her we fed goats and sheep. (I was afraid at that point to confuse her with saying we had chickens. They are birds.) She read the side of a sack of all stock feed and turned red. She said she should have stayed home as she hurried away. I called after her that I would not like to have that many birds roosting in my trees and bushes.

That lady was no sooner gone than another stopped to check out the feed supply. She wanted to know if the feed was on sale. I said I didn’t know. My husband bought it either way. She said "Oh! This all belongs to you." She took off in a hurry. Finally Harold showed back up and I told him I was ready to send the first store helper I saw after him if he had waited much long. I was getting tired of guarding the feed.