That got your attention!

I did smell my grandma though.
Or maybe it was the smell of the grocery store where she worked.
All I know is, I was walking down the hallway from the bathroom at Northgate Soda Shop and literally froze in my tracks.

I got back to the table and told mom, “I smell grandma.” She looked at me like you might think she’d look at me. Like I was crazy. Of course, we all know I’m crazy.

I remember being a little girl and going to work with her. Maudie. That was her name. That’s not the worst of it. Her middle name was Edester. I don’t know if that’s how you spell it. Is Edester even a word? No offense to Maudie Edester, but it shouldn’t be.

Her dad owned a grocery store in Marietta. We called him Pa Earn. I remember there being tall stools and a big black cash register.

And the smell from the Soda Shop hallway.

I must really be going through something. Is this what it’s like getting old? Do you sit around and think about all the Days (and people) Gone By and get sad? That’s exactly what I’ve been doing lately. In addition to hormones, I’ll blame part of it on my newsletter. I’ve been writing all the parts of my life in “chapters” and publishing them every couple of months. A few weeks ago, I wrote about Grandma. (You can read it here.)

Then, this week, I published one about my childhood friend, Derrick. Read it here.

I’m not trying to write about sad things. I’m literally going through a timeline of my life and writing down everything I remember about each time. These two chapters were free for anyone to read. Some of them will be hidden behind a paywall. Clearly there will be parts that are too private to share publicly. (It’s easy to subscribe, if you’d like to support our work.)

You might guess that I’m sitting in a room alone. In a whole house alone! When I spend time with my thoughts and feelings, the words flow.

Thank you for reading my words…

P.S. If you’re from the area, stop in Northgate Soda Shop and order the Pimento Cheeseburger!