Recently I took a step back into time. I didn't do it deliberately; it just happened.I was making a 50-mile trip to an adjacent county when I thought (imagined) the car was pulling slightly to the right. Yes, I know the wind can do that, or the alignment, OR....a tire that is low on air.
I was already 20 miles from home and it was a considerable distance to a town large enough to have a "modern" gas station...one where you could drive up to the "Air" and replenish your tire. But I was coming up to a tiny town where I knew there was an "old" gas station. I didn't need to top off the gas tank, but I trusted the owner would be willing to help me out with the suspected tire problem.
Sure enough, the owner, an old fellow (at least ten years Older than I), greeted me on this lazy summer afternoon, checked the tire in question and added a few pounds of air. He then checked the other three as well, finding them to be okay. I thanked him kindly (Thank you, Virgil!), and went on my way.
I was blessed by his assistance, of course. But I was just as blessed by this "experience from the past". These few moments were taken right out of the 1960s, when you could pull into a gas station and an attendant greeted you at your car, filled the gas tank, washed the windshield, checked the oil, and, if necessary, checked the air in your tires. These few moments were like a precious remembrance (except for the gas price on his signpost!).
Now we have "self-service". The small-town mechanic is almost out of existence. And we are the losers for it.
P.S. The three tiny wispy clouds over the water tower are not UFOs nor are they sunspots on my camera lens. I double checked my other photos as well as this one. They were simply tiny clouds. Aren't they weird?
3 comments:
Even the old metal tv antennaes are rarely seen these days. It brings back memories of standing in the yard as a messenger between the person in the house looking at the televisioin screen and the person on the roof who was turning said antennae until the person inside hollered through the open window that we had a picture. Cable is far more convenient, though a lot less exercise! ;-Þ
I live in a small farm town. We love it. Our grocery store still bags and carry's the groceries to our car and we have a full-serve station for gas if we want it. The folks at the hardware store know me by name and know my children and we always have good conversations when I'm in there. These small courtesies are one of the reasons I love our town.
I, personally, never want to live in a larger town. You lose too much to gain very little.
Great post!
Jenn Myzia
I remember those days. When my Grandmother was still alive there was a station near her house where you could get the old fashioned full service. That is the only place she purchased gas 4 times a year! That was in '97.
I looked at your picture. You did step back in time. Only one gas pump. You just have to love small towns!
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