Alcohol
(because no great story ever started with someone eating a salad.)
ESL - September 15, 2016 - Woodhaven, NY

I always stopped in Brattleboro, VT on my way to visit my daughter and her family in Craftsbury. I had become familiar with Brattleboro, when she used to live there some 16 or 17 years previously. It's a great little town and it is a part of my perks when I do that long drive. On this particular occasion, we were going to meet them in Brattleboro and just pick up the kids and take them back to New York with us. Didn't quite work out - I-91 was getting a face lift so the drive was taking a lot longer than usual. We were keeping in touch and they were getting to Brattleboro long before us, so we agreed to meet at the food co-op in Greenfield, MA instead.

Somehow, the road seemed smoother and more open after I spoke to my daughter and we got to Greenfield faster that I thought. As I was pulling into a parking area, I noticed an interesting pub and pointed it out to my wife. We checked out the food co-op and were not too impressed. I guess it was kind of late afternoon so they did not have that much left. There was however, enough potato salad left, and the recipe looked good - they actually had print-outs that you could take home. As it smelled very appealingly of garlic, we got two containers to go. My wife can be very nice sometimes, so she said: "Considering the harrowing stop and go drive that you just finished, I will buy you a couple of drinks at that pub you pointed out. I will also drive back to New York, so don't worry about the alcohol."

I thought I could kiss her right there, that's how happy that made me and then I thought, well who's to stop me and as we exited the food co-op, I actually turned to her and gave a big juicy kiss. The pub was just around the corner and it was named Smitty's Pub. We walked in and there were no seats at the bar. There was however a second shorter counter with a popcorn machine on it running just parallel to the main bar counter. No one was sitting at that, so my wife placed the salad bag on it and plopped down on one of the bar stools. I had to use the men's room after that long drive, but first I asked the bartender what kind of local brews they had on tap. She had a friendly, countenance and her mouth looked as if it was going to break into a smile, any moment. She told me what they had on tap, and I should have written it down, because it was a very tasty brew. I also wish I took better notes that I could refer to, now that I have finally decided to tell that story. One of the guys sitting at the bar undertook the task of explaining to me, the provenance and attributes of that brew, but hey I do not remember. Be that as it may, I hope some of those guys might remember me and this story would be the reason. I also asked the bartender, will it be O.K. if we opened our salads and partook of them in her establishment.