The Sunday Drive

 

What comes to mind when you think of a Sunday drive? I think of a leisurely afternoon drive where no one is in a rush and you have no particular destination. I think of tulips, the Mardi Gras Fountain, and Coca-Cola.

As far back as I can remember, the Sunday drive has been a part of my life. My earliest recollections recount a spontaneous event in which my dad would announce that we were going for a ride. Dad would get behind the wheel and drive – sometimes in an intended direction, sometimes not. The afternoon trips were fun and would often take us along the New Orleans lakefront of the 1960‘s. Driving past neutral grounds planted full of flowers, we would feast our eyes on dazzling springtime tulips in every shade of the rainbow. As we drove along the lakeshore, waves lapped against the seawall as seagulls circled and squawked overhead. Back then the Mardi Gras fountain was in service, and although it was best to observe its changing colors at night, it was still a refreshing sight. Regularly my dad would drive us to the northshore ofLake Pontchartrain where stopping at a roadside diner and having a 6 oz. bottle of Coke was the perfect respite from Louisiana heat. continue reading

Till next time,

Marlene

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May You Find Your Pot o' Gold

A bearded old man seen living in these hills spending his time busily making shoes, was seen hiding gold coins over the hill at the end of the rainbow.

Ah, so beautiful.

The little old man was a fairy-like creature and always into mischief. Each time he was seen, the bearded man in the green coat with the funny hat would vanish, as if into thin air.

The towns folk were intrigued by the old man and his gold. Then began a search for the gold, but each time they ventured into the hills to find the treasure at the end of the rainbow, the rainbow moved farther away.

Sometimes so far away, they would go to great lengths in search of the Pot 'O Gold, even climbing mountains.

For years the people of this region have tried and tried to find the treasure that was so deftly hidden by the little man known as "Leprechaun".  Legend has it that it can be found easily, and that many believers have surely done so. 

Happy St. Patrick's Day Everyone!

Carts - One of the Dirtiest Places in the Store

A follow-up to The Neighbor.

Before choosing a cart, I scanned the store entrance-way for disinfectant wipes. The four of us were together and whoever pushed the basket would have to clean off any microorganisms before touching the handle. If I reminded the girls to get the wipes beforehand we could avoid my husband saying, “Wait don’t touch that, wipe it first.”

Filthy Grocery Carts

David routinely takes care of sanitizing the cart on shopping trips and rightly so. Did you know that 72% of grocery carts have fecal bacteria on them? Eeew! I’m getting a vision of teething babies slobbering all over the cart handle. Hope their mommies make a habit of sanitizing it.

We noticed that Wal-Mart was out of disinfectant wipes - again. A woman standing near the entrance also looking for them, absolutely refused to take a basket until she got some Sani-Wipes to clean it. Ah, a gal we could identify with.

Bacteria

Not wanting to wait for an employee to refresh the supply, David and I concurred that we only had a couple of items to get - white clown make-up for the costume party and a bag of rice - and that we didn’t need a cart for that.

After picking up the rice and determining that the only costume make-up Wal-Mart had was for face painting, my Wal-mart phobia kicked in. I announced that I was leaving the store to get some air. I handed the bag of Uncle Ben’s and a ten dollar bill to the girls. I asked them to check out and meet their father and me by the truck.

Walking past the check-outs and nearing the exit of the store, my eyes met with a woman who appeared to be waiting for something. It was the lady who wouldn’t touch the cart handle without it being cleaned first. We gave a knowing smile to one another.

David and I left the store. I wonder how long that woman had to wait for Sani-Wipes?
I don't know about you, but it's going to be tough not to think about feces the next time I reach for a cart.

Till next time,

Marlene