Roaming on a Hot Fridy In Smyrna, Ga

Yesterday, I was in neighboring Smyrna, Georgia, with about a two hour wait. Anna had a hair appointment. I have found two hours to be about right for a good long walk in Smyrna’s downtown uplifted section and while there visit the Smyrna Library. They have MAD magazine as one of their magazines on the magazine rack and they also have a good genealogy section.

It was too hot to walk. Being the softy I am, I decided to spend the time in the air conditioned library.

I went to the magazine section and went to the magazine wall, and the place the MAD magazine was marked there was no MAD magazine. I picked up an Archeology magazine instead. Walking to nice cushioned armchair I passed a black man sitting on a double couch. He was young with a fatigue shirt on… and patches with statements sewed all over his fatigue shirt. He was asleep. I suspected he was the one with the MAD magazine. He was, it was sitting on the other seat of his couch.

I flipped through the magazine looking at the pictures and the descriptions under the pictures and then got the latest National Geographic off the wall and flipped though it. The guy was still sleeping, hogging the MAD magazine.

I picked a Dog World magazine off the wall and flipped through it. I was hoping there would be articles about dogs’ habits and instincts. No, they were more interested in breeding. Article after article about breeding. It is not a magazine for rescued dog owners.

Then, I decided to take a chance. I walked over and took the Mad magazine from the seat next to the guy. I felt like George in Seinfield.

I flipped thought it… it seemed slightly better than last month’s issue, but still not a premium humor as it used to be… I think now they are going after the young women’s market – or so it appears.

Then I got sleepy. Maybe the MAD gave me the same boredom as the guy I got it from.

I went to the rack and got something else but by then I was pretty much a goner. I was just too drowsy to read.

To wake up I needed to get circulation in my body. I walked up the stairs to the second level. There, I went to the Genealogy Research Room, which is an interesting room.. it is like a little rotunda or maybe a miniature Oval Office with a large amount of research book. I found a good book which I found an ancestor’s will, transcribed word for word. Since I didn’t plan on this I didn’t have a pen or paper. I used the copier machine.

I put a quarter into the machine. I think the copies were 15 cents each. After I took the first copy I saw I needed more pages copied but did not have any more change so I fed the machine a dollar and took several more copies. Then, I was through and had $.40 left to use. I looked around and found a possible two buttons to press to get my change back. I pressed each one at a time and each one at the same time and the 40¢ remained on the digital readout. It wasn't going anywhere. I was in the room along - for a brief moment I considered raising that cover over the glass, lowering my pants and sitting down, and show them what I think about their machine change giving ability.

I left the library happy. I had genealogy notes and had read the latest MAD.

But I was still drowsy, so I went to the drive-thru at a Chic-Fi-and ordered a small coffee. When it was my time at the window to receive the coffee the Latino lady took one look at me and said, “That’s OK, its free!” Did I get it on my looks? Yep, the Senior look.

Next we had lunch at an upscale place my son has high regard for, also in Smyna. The sandwiches were delicious – but costly. It was nothing like Brandi's Famous Hot Dogs where you face a sign when you enter that says, "No Shirt, No Shoes, No Service." When we came in you can see the chef’s section. They had a huge fish of some kind cutting it. Somebody said something about heating a cookie in a microwave and one of the chefs said they didn’t have a microwave, then he scoffed, “Not in my restaurant!”

Did he mean me or a microwave?