They deserve a break today.......

The gatherin' place.

Old folks, get up, get out, go, meet.

Same time, same place - daily.  Solve World problems.

Flannel shirt guy was the first onea the lot to come in. "Large coffee please."  I'm a tightwad.  Large coffee is $1.51...  Senior coffee (much smaller cup is $.88 cents.  Refills are free.  Reckon we just missed the Depression, that, or, lazy can/does happen as I followed suit, got the bigger, mo' expensive size.

Ballcap guy next.  Same.  Former TWA dude.  My hearing is good, but it ain't aweseome. First discussion I heard with he and flannel guy "the guy was 70 years old at TW, dunno why he was still working, all he did was come in and talk - why didn't he quit/retire and let someone else have a job."

Second take - I work two days a week at the golf course - pay is less than half of what I usedta make - I can unnerstand the 70 year old guy and his want of going in, saying "Hi", pay me pay me feed me feed me Seymour.

Happy (and pretty) lady comes..... table next to flannel and ballcap guy.  'Brrr... cold out there... starting to snow a bit.".... "Really?," Ballcap guy ssid, "hey, where's whatshisname and I hope he dresses for it."

From yesterday, I remember 'whatshisname' as whatshername's hubby.  Second day in a row, she drove, AND  he drove.. a chair between them.  I reckon, time can divide like that.  I have no idea whatinthehell I'm talking about - but, it is weird in that they kinda act like neighbors insteada honeybuns.

We're up to four grey haired ladies (MISOGYNIST! AM NOT).  One, has a baby streak of pink in it.  Couldn't tell it she was'a wearin' boots, but, I awaited for her to breakout like Nancy Sinatra singing "These boots are made for walkin."  Victor, that's mean.  You'd have to be here.  The lady is LOUD.  VERY loud.  I ain't a fan of loud. I've hung around this town, MIckey D's for a long, long time.  Wearing.  She can be wearing.  Sorry, kinda, not really.

Greyhair #3 brought cookies which brought shreaks of "COOKIES!" 

Younger old guy has now joined Flannel and ballcap at the guy's table.  The four greyhairs at the ladies' table are accompanied by whathisname (a chair 'tween 'em) and pretty in pink's hubby, who, daily, prints his crossword puzzle to complete while the ladies listen to pinky, er, I mean, while the ladies talk.

Guy table has gotten to health talking...... I heard polyp...  Medicare...  changed the rules... Now they're onto colonoscopy and I turned my head away 'cause I'm long overdue for one. Sorry, I rectum, er, reckon.

Whathisname had his fill of coffee.. bootscooted... no smooch from wifey... eh, don't need to to demonstrate love.. maybe they ain't the PDE type anyways.

Fifth lady... some kinda dessert goodies in a clear sandwich bag. Hey, her hair is brown and it doesn't appear to be colorded/tinted.  MISOGYNIST, you NEVER mention the gent's hair?  That's cause there ain't much.  Flannel wears a cap too, I'm guessing very little... ballcap guy, same, crossword feller, pinky's hubby, zilcho hair.  It was prolly knocked off over time by all the horrific decibels of whatsher.. VICTOR!  Sorry, kinda, not really..  Do you hear what I hear?

Younger old guy grabbed annuder round of coffee for all... Now they're talking daylight savings... dislike of same...  'What's the advantage of it?"...  "There's a town in Indiana, and they got both... two time zones, same city.  Walk across the street, different.  Live here, work there.  Bizarre."

Crossword guy's eyes finally moved offa the crossword as the ladies are discussing yesterday's announcement that a hometown kid won "The Simone Award", ie, named the best HS football player in the City... and that Liberty's coach won "Coach of the Year".. long time we ain't been that good.  Cool that the ladies are discussing.  Now they're on to "Pooches Cafeteria"... strange bedfellows.

Men's table still visiting about Daylight savings... 'I think it actually started during the Civil War.."  Finally, the Dewey Decimal System (Google) brought out. "Says here, it started in 1918"...   wasn't that Teddy Roosevelt time?  "Originally implemented during World War I to conserve energy at wartime."  "How could that conserve energy?" ballcap guy wondered.  Now they're on to zoom conferences and time confusion therein.  (Ain't it great to be retired?)

Crossword dude now outnumbered 6 to 1, he's oblivious.  Gotta be close to running outta ink, then he'll be in BIG trouble... he'd have to listen, participate.  Pinky say "Be a good boy now", she didn't, but, he knows that in advance.

"Oklahoma's actually adopted not changing Daylight Savings Time in 2025.".. Then, things turned upside down.  "DID YOU HEAR ABOUT THAT VA HOSPITAL IN TENNESSEE?  12 WORKERS CAUGHT ON CAM HAVING AN ORGY.  ONE GUY ADMITTED TO "BEDDING" 32 OF THE LADY WORKERS.!"  I said a baby prayer for pacemakers, laughed internally a bit... "AND ALL ON YOUR DIME!"... for shame for shame... then the jokes set in.. "Say, did you hear what George Burns said about sex at 90?  No, what?  It's like playing pool with a rope."  Aye yai yai.

Over time, there is honestly, more laughter from the ladies tablle.  Are we men grumpier?    Uh oh, Pinky has a gossip magazine.  (As if she needs one). VICTOR! (Scroll to, I've lived here a long, long time.)

"Snow on the way" (guys table,.)  Supposed to rain on Friday... "I've got leaves on the ground I can't get picked up" 4th new guy, standing. "I'm tryin got get the gas all runned outta my mower."  Just start it up, let it run.  "I heard the snow will be in here and outta here pretty fast."  "We're lucky its gonna warm up on Friday,."  43 with rain on Friday... supposed to rain Saturday..  Sunday too..." (Who needs Fred Broskie?)

Eight now seated at the gal table.  They're reserved for the most part.  Two, sometimes three convo's at once.  When the last of all of em arrived, it was admittedly pretty loud.  The misogynist in me always wonders, if there are 8 at a table and 8 are talking, who's listening?  (Victor, you counted crossword guy, there were only 7 talking at once.  Oh yeah, sorry.)

"Only three more weeks of football."  (Thank goodness the men's table moved on from the colon.)
Week 17, Monday night is December 30th."  Our last week, against Denver, the time and the date to be determined.  Whenever, it's gonna be cold out there."

Over time... and prolly daily.. talks get to...... health...  weather...  stars of the day (today I heard "Danny Kaye sure could dance"... something about Van Johnson... Rita Hayworth.. even Wally Cox.)

I'm actually kinda perked by all these fellow geezers.  Once, only once, in almost an hour and a half I saw someone staring at their phone.  Just shows to go I guess, we geezers ain't gotta Google, we're already full of info (sh*t).. oops, sorry, kinda.

Conversations like this go on every day, virtually every city in the good ole US of A.  Over time, some faces don't come back, some new ones jump in.  Silly or time well spent?

I vote well spent.  Lots of smiles.  Opines.  Ne'er or rare an argument.  Happy.  Theys happy.  Kinda like they like each other.  

Retirement.  They deserve a break today............ so get up and get away........ to McDonald's... or Hank's Coffee Shop......  Betties Biscuits and Gravy... the Awful Waffle... wherever there's coffee, tables, and years of experience, opines, smiles, camaraderie.  Even with a little pink splashed in.

Love, Victurd