March 08, 2006
Out and about
J. P. Crowder's Virginia & Smithfield Hams
Brook Road and Broad Street
Too many reflections and crooked! But this is my favorite photo out of the umpteen I took this morning. Also, I went and signed up for Flickr so I can add an extra step to the whole photoblogging thing.
When I told Oz yesterday that I was going to haul the old computers and monitors out to the recycling center, he said, "Oh wait! I can take time off and come with you!" And so he did. He took a day off for a fun trip to the recycling center. And a doctor's appointment. And then I said, "I want to take some pictures of the storefronts on the south side of Broad Street. We have to do it before the leaves come out, and it has to be in the morning so the buildings won't be backlit." And things went on from there.
We were a little bit late to get the good light. We're going to try again on Saturday, instead of slugging around the house till brunchtime as we usually do.
The recycling center would be a great place for photography with a post-apocalyptic theme. Unfortunately, the whole place is a hard hat area so we didn't linger. I did see two guys using plastic wrap to bind together eight (ten?) foot high stacks of metal wheels on a pallet.
And another, not really related thing. A couple weeks ago we saw a No Smoking sign appear in the window of Country Style Donuts. We had to look twice because we couldn't believe it. "What will the old codgers do?" we cried. Whenever we go in, a minimum of two old codgers, cigarettes and coffee in hand, are seated at the counter and telling lies about lawnmower motors. We haven't done any followup because we've been trying to cut back on donuts, but we've noticed that there are always cars and trucks out front, so the sign doesn't seem to have deterred the regulars.
Today, for breakfast after our photography jaunt, we went to a Waffle House up the road from there. A sticker on the door announced that the Waffle House was now smoke free in accord with local ordinance; another, older sticker said that Waffle House provided a non-smoking section (which I don't recall they ever did). We said, "Woo!" because we are non-smokers. Then we went in, sat down, and noticed that a number of people were smoking. While we were eating, another guy came in, sat down by us, and started smoking. The waitress asked him if he'd like an ashtray.
I guess that all the diners on Williamsburg Road have posted these No Smoking signs to comply with an ordinance to … post No Smoking signs? Or maybe here in the East End, No Smoking means that you have to ask for an ashtray.
I'm curious about this ordinance, especially since I couldn't dig up anything online except articles about how the statewide smoking ban was defeated.
509 words | March 8, 2006 08:17 PM | Shutterbug