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There is just something special about living in a small town, because everyone knows everybody, with a small exception for recent newcomers we had yet to get acquainted with.
It seemed that the Andrews Journal office was like Grand Central Station over the years, as our regulars would stop by daily, or drop in once a week. Some ran in to talk to Vickie Creasman or Laura Hogsed, and guys came by to pick Mike Payne’s brain about the football games.
Others would come by for advice, and only the Lord knows why they would do that, but we did our best. Here is an example: Jim Garner’s insurance office joined the Andrews Journal building, and he was in and out talking to Mike about sports frequently. So, one day I was up front talking to Laura, and Jim came in and said he was going to hire another person in the insurance office.
He said to me: “You know everyone, what do you know about a lady named Patty Parker?” I told him, “She is a very sweet person, and I am here to tell you she is the best softball player I have ever seen. As petite as she is, when she steps up to bat, that ball is gone.” Jim stood there for a minute shaking his head up and down, then exclaimed, “That’s all I needed, she is hired.”
Another frequent visitor was Big Jim Wood. He was our retired English/literature teacher, and he never failed to correct something I had written. But he did say that I wrote better English than I spoke. He said, “Thank the Lord you write better than you talk.”
Many of the locals who stopped by to visit with us would wander next door to Midnite Electric to see what J.D. Queen and his bunch were up to, or stop by Mosteller Radio & TV on their way to the post office to see who was hanging out behind the counter, usually Johnny Wilson, Lloyd Gregory, Max Solesbee and Carroll Stewart.
But the highlight of our day was to go eat lunch at the Townhouse Restaurant, owned and operated by Tony and Pearl Scionti. They had the best food ever, and their roast beef and yellow rice was to die for. Not to mention the homemade pies that would melt in your mouth.
The nice thing was we never knew who would join us at the Andrews Journal table. Half of the store clerks in town would walk to the restaurant to eat lunch, and we usually sat on the large rambling porch if weather permitted.
The gathering of local folks to visit or share lunch together is a camaraderie that you do not get in a large city. It is personal, and it soothes the spirit with a profound sense of belonging to a place in time.
Kandy Barnard is a columnist for the Cherokee Scout. To talk about the Andrews Valley, call her at 828-361-3268 or email kandybarnard@gmail.com.