I have this feeling we’re getting a little far afield from who we are – skimming sharks and all that. We’ve been putting photos up on the wall for decades now and I decided to pull off a couple from way back when.

Up there on top is one of the tables used by regulars – they leave stuff and others shove it around, but with respect, because they leave their stuff too. Julia brought the lamp in because she likes the extra light on gloomy days and the short days of winter. Enos said, “To H. with napkins and established the habit of just keeping a roll of paper towels on the table. Sometimes folks will pull it out from the window and get a lively card game going – or Monopoly or Scrabble. We had to go and find another game at a rummage sale, because Theo ate the “z” in a moment of pique at Howard. But I’m running on here . . .

That second picture, well, that’s where we put together a special gathering or where we go when we just want a special place to gather  . . . Maude usually claims the peacock chair these days, though back in the heyday of this picture, Judge Bob used to sit there – that’s why we call it the bench to this day. Old J.B. passed away about 25 years ago, but if I close my eyes, I can see him sitting there, waiting to hear that the jury was back in.