pos #7...

pos #7...

                                

  Regina and I were in Laurel, Mississippi walking up the wooden steps to Ben and Erin Napier's General Store when I spotted a couple sitting on a bench outside the main entrance to the famous HGTV landmark.   

  Fans flock to this southern town as if it is Graceland or even a national park on a perfect spring day.  They arrive by the busload, car, motorcycle or any other motorized buggy or cart.  And, it is all to pay homage to a man with a hammer and his wife who is an incredible designer.  

  Regina and I were just two people in the crowd.   

  Ben and Erin host Home-Town on HGTV.  Each episode takes place in Laurel and features a home or business remodeled by the creative team. 

   Regina went into the store as I approached the twosome sitting peacefully as they watched people come and go.  They appeared to be two People Over Sixty.

  Tamara and Jeff Myers live in Paducah, Kentucky which is about 215 miles southwest of Louisville and 140 miles north of Nashville.  

  We are here visiting Home-Town houses and businesses because we are fans of Erin and Ben, claimed Tamara.  

  I love it too and I am the pilot, so here we are, added Jeff. 

  Are you guys retired or just out playing today?

  Well, I am retired, said Tamara.  I was an Admin Assistant for Markham Engineering Company.

  I'm not retired yet, Mark jumped in.  I am a purchasing agent for Inland Marine Company.

  Oh, wow!  We almost needed Inland's services in Louisville earlier this month.

   You talking about the truck on the bridge in Louisville? Jeff asked.  We followed that pretty closely.  That rescue was amazing. 

(Last March 1, a semi-truck crashed through a retaining barrier on the Clark Memorial Bridge over the Ohio River in Louisville.  The cab dangled 100 feet above the water for more than an hour before a rescue team of First Responders performed a daring technical maneuver to rescue the 26 year old driver.) 

  So one of you is at home and one isn't quite there yet.  I imagine that takes some getting used to by each of you.

  I keep pretty busy, Tamara smiled.  I don't really know how I worked and did all I do.

  How do you spend your spare time?  Do you have hobbies?

  We rode a motorcycle with a church group, Jeff responded.  We are both directors of Faith Riders of Heartland Church in Paducah.  

  That's interesting.  What kind of bike do you ride?

  I had a Yamaha Touring Bike, Jeff replied.  We don't ride now because we travel a lot to Florida.

  The motorcycle days are gone?

  Yeah, Jeff grinned.  We traded the bike for airplane rides to see our family.

  We have two grandkids in Florida, offered Tamara.  So, we go see them every other month. 

  When you were riding that Yamaha, where were some of the places you went?

  Oh, we saw a lot of the country.  We went to Dyersville, Iowa and saw the Field of Dreams, Minnesota, Arkansas, we went everywhere, Jeff recalled.  The Smokey Mountains, Virginia, quite a bit of the country.

  What is the farthest distance you rode on your bike?

  Well, we rode for over 12 years and I would say the longest trip was to Sturgis, South Dakota.  That was a nine day trip, Jeff said proudly.  We went through a lot of states to get there.  

  How about goals or a bucket list.  Do you have one?

 Yes, we do, Tamara answered.  We want to see the Grand Canyon and we want to visit all of the state capitols.  

  That's cool.  Are you close?

  Not really, admitted Tamara.  We just started and we've seen six or seven.  We're close enough to Jackson, Mississippi, so, we'll catch that one on this trip. 

  Have a safe trip back to Kentucky.  

  You too, they said in unison. 

  Peter Rendon is 70 and finds himself involved in multiple Encore Performances. 

  I am the union president of the Kentucky Air National Guard, he said.  I am also the vice-president of a national union which is the third largest in the country, and, I am a deacon for the Archdiocese of Louisville.

  Tell me about your career before your retirement.  How did you pay the light bill? 

  I was an Air Force mechanic and I retired from the service, he stated.

  Were you stationed in one place or did you see the world?

  Oh, I traveled extensively, he exclaimed.  I've been to a lot of countries.

  Do you have a favorite place you would go back if you had a chance?

  I don't need to go back, he claimed, but, my all time favorite place I saw was Antarctica.

  Wow.  That was out of left field.  Why Antarctica?

  I don't really know, it was just me, the ice, and  the cold, he recalled. 

  How about this lovely woman standing next to you.  Where did you two meet?

  I was stationed in Germany many years ago, he smiled.  We met when I was there and we've been married for 47 years. 

  Peter,  it sounds like you have had a pretty busy life and continue to write new chapters.  Do you have a bucket list, anything particular you would like to do?

  No, I don't have a bucket list, he shook his head.  I have fulfilled everything on my list and I think the Lord has decided to use me for his good. 

  Coming up:  what about those expiration dates;  another oddities, observations, & ?'s; a conversation with a motorcycle outlaw turned evangelist, and; another job$ somebody's gotta do.

  And, finally.  Ben and Erin's General Store was fun to browse.  Among a few other items, I purchased a jar of Country Corn Relish for 10 bucks.  Strange.  It tasted exactly like Cracker Barrel Corn Relish.  I figure there is a company out there somewhere that makes all the corn relish nationwide for every store that calls itself a General Store and it is all the same corn relish. 

  HUH?  What's up with that?