Home > Pulpwood Queen Blog > Archives > 2006 > November > 01 > Entry
Small Town Saturday Night, it’s a Small Town Saturday Night!
I live in a small town. I moved here from a big city. I discovered I missed living in a small town where everyone knows your name, where you live, what you like on your hamburger. Jefferson, Texas is my hometown now but I grew up in a small town in Kansas called Eureka! Very much like Jefferson, it too was the county seat. Eureka which means “I found it!� was a town that had a Rexall Drug Store, a Ben Franklins, J. C. Penny, Sears, Western Auto Stores. All the kids went to one high school. The principal Mr. Dodd was my dad’s principal and went to high school with my Grandfather Murphy. We had one Lions Park, Jefferson has a Lions Park too. We would drag Main on the weekends honking at all our friends no matter how many times we passed them that particular night. We had the Princess Theatre downtown and then Highway 54 Drive- In just outside of town, out by the one cemetery where all my kin is buried, the Murphys, Maloney’s, Kings and Kelseys.
My grandparents had a shoe repair and western store called Maloney’s Shoe and Saddle Shop. I grew up in that store as a kid. I would run around the corner to the Safeway to buy my grandmother, Helen a pack of Salem cigarettes. She would give me an extra nickel to buy a Cherry Mash or five pieces of penny candy. At 10:00 a.m., we would walk down the block across the street to the Mariani’s Rexall Drug Store for a coffee break with her sister, my Great Aunt Mable who worked at the county gas office. I would order a chocolate Coke made with chocolate syrup, Coca Cola syrup and carbonated water. My grandmother, Helen or Mudder, Mudd, as we kids called her would repeat that coffee break routine with Mable again at 2:00 in the afternoon.
I liked to crawl under the table in our booth to marvel at all the colorful wads of bubble gum stuck under there in the years of children coming for treats to the drug store. Everyone knew I was Helen’s granddaughter, one of Mary’s girls. We knew not to spin on the bar stools as the women who worked there would immediately reprimand you. Sometimes I would sneak away from the booth to go in the corner by the front window to read the comic books you could buy there. Rexall’s Drug Store is now closed at home and last time I peered into the window it looked as if one day they just locked the door and went home leaving everything exactly as they left it.
In Jefferson, we have the City Drug Store where you can get the best limeade and soda drinks in the state. They squeeze real limes, that’s a fact. When my girls were little I too had to reprimand them for spinning on the bar stools. Though my hometown is still there, it is a ghost of a town compared to the town of my childhood. The big department store Zenisheck’s is long gone as most of the businesses I remember as a child. I spied a florist shop and video store open now in places where other businesses once were thriving. Small towns my friends are dying. Mom and pop stores are going by the wayside to the influx of super marts and mega stores.
Linda Bloodworth Thomason realized that in her travels across America by car, as she just does not fly. The creator of such television greats, “Designing Women�, “Evening Shade�, and “Hearts Afire� came to my shop to spend almost a week to promote her first book “Liberating Paris� about a small town whose livelihood is being threatened by a super mart. The book could have been written about Jefferson, Texas or Eureka, Kansas, really any small town anywhere. She is now making it into a movie of which I cannot wait to see. Not only because it is a fine read but also because the movie is to be filmed in the Ark. La. Tex. In fact, the grand finale of the film is a wedding scene in which Linda has informed me The Pulpwood Queens will take part as the wedding party. We have our shades of “Bashful� and “Blush� wedding garden party dresses a la “Steel Magnolia� ready with hats to match.
I recently was contacted by Tammy Cromer Campbell, local photographer who has photographed me for several magazine and newspapers, as she had pitched a story to a new magazine called “Town Square�, a magazine on small town living that will be hitting the newsstands soon. She is coming Friday to shoot photos for a feature on The Pulpwood Queens and I for that magazine.
Snowbirds from Minnesota, Wisconsin and the Dakotas have been landing in my shop headed south for the winter. They tell me they make it a must to stop each year in Jefferson as they miss the small town charm that they find here.
Do I detect a change in the air? Are people beginning to realize that small towns are pretty cool? I don’t know but when I came to Jefferson almost twenty years ago, I thought this is it! I have found a little slice of heaven. I call it the hand holding capital of Texas because of all the people that come here to get married or celebrate their anniversaries. I marvel each day on how many people I spy holding hands. Where else do you see that these days? Kind of like Mayberry on the Bayou, I thought here is a place where I could settle, get married, and raise children AND not have to worry. I consider Jefferson the best kept secret in Texas being the bed & breakfast capital with it’s historical museums and homes. The former California city I was living in, San Diego, was growing faster than kudzu in Mississippi. I don’t know, one hour to go to the grocery store or two minutes. You take your pick.
My girls can come to my shop after school, go bike riding, head over to The Hamburger Store for a after school snack of cheese fries or down to the General Store for a Blue Bell ice cream cone. If they are gone too long, I’ll call that shop and ask, “Are my girls there?� In matter of seconds they are located. Or if they get into any trouble, like the time Madeleine and her co-horts in crime decided to go swimming in the bayou, before they can hardly get their feet wet, the phone rang.
“Kathy, do you want Madeleine swimming in the bayou or do I need to fish her out and send her back to the shop.�
“You do that, would ya Carol.�
Small towns are pretty special. As Linda Bloodworth Thomason once told me, “Try dropping your kids off a mega mall and see who is watching out for your kids.� My first thought, which goes to show you how twisted my sense of humor is, was pedophiles? I actually watched a grown man hit on a 11 or 12 year old at at neighboring city mall so think about that for awhile.
Nothing made me realize how cool a small town was until we had our last author in, Pulitzer Prize winner, Doug Marlette for his latest book, Magic Time.� I was all worried that nobody would show for some an esteemed political cartoonist, the creator of the cartoon strip “Kudzu�, and was now teaching at my dad’s favorite football teams university, the University of Oklahoma. I should have worried because I had the biggest book-signing event since Kinky Friedman who had previously set the record. For those out-of-state, Kinky Friedman is running for the Governor of Texas whose motto is “How hard could it be?�
I had Pulpwood Queen Chapters from Louisiana, ones come from Henderson, Gladewater, Longview, Marshall, Texarkana, Dekalb, Hooks, New Boston, and Linden, Texas and quite a few tourists to boot show up for the shindig for Doug. God Bless Small Town America! I remembered my friend and Pulpwood Queen Helen Thompson was in New York. She told me she was walking by a Barnes and Noble and looked in to see Tony Bennett staring into space with a stack of his latest book on his paintings. No one had come to the booksigning. I could only imagine if Tony Bennett came to my Beauty and the Book to do a booksigning for the same. Jefferson might have it’s first traffic jam.
And what really drove home that small towns are the best thing since sliced bread was when I took my fellow bookseller, Fred McKenzie up the road to Linden, Texas to see Michael Martin Murphey for his 88th birthday gift at Music City Texas. Evidently, they were going to do a live recording for a new CD of Michael Martin Murphy.
Fred and I arrived and the first thing, as I went to pick up our tickets at the Will Call booth, we were greeted by my friends and Lindenites, Jean and Russell Wright. Russ touched my arm and told me, “Kathy, tonight is on us, it’s our treat!� I started to argue and smiling he said, “Go on now, find your seats now. They are up front.� Here I was going to treat Fred and we were both treated instead.
Before we went to find our seats, I asked Fred if he would like to get a bite before the show. Our choices were homemade Chicken and Dumplings or Barbeque Sandwiches. Now this was scratch cooking you all, nothing from a can. I knew for a fact that the local hairdresser in town Linda King had made those dumplings and were they ever good. We took a table behind the sound booth and settled in for our tasty meal. Matt Early, the soundman came by with hugs and wished Fred a Happy Birthday. Evidently, the word had gotten out we were celebrated Fred’s special day. Then here came Pat Robertson who was on the Music City Board and a member of President, Richard Bowden’s band, The Moon and the Stars.
“There you are and here are your V.I.P. patches. Now you can come backstage after the show and join Michael Martin Murphey for some more great food and conversation.�
It was my turn to be surprised. As we headed for our seats, folks from all over stood to shake Fred’s hand, wish him well, with lots of hugs and pats on the back. Our seats were front and center on the fourth row, it was almost like a private concert.
Now the show was great, I love country and western music having grown up listening to the Wichita station, KFDI and Little Donny Doodad with my Grandfather, Dirt riding the pastures and with my Grandmother, Mudd. I was thrown back to a time of happy memories and evidently so was Fred. His eyes were bright and alert as he smiled tapping his toe watching the show.
At the intermission, Richard Bowden recognized Fred as having a birthday and a spotlight shone down on him as Richard encouraged him to stand up and take a bow. The crowd clapped and roared in approval. As he sat back in his chair, I pinched my nose to keep the tears of joy from running down my face. Here I brought Fred to little ole Linden, Texas for his birthday celebration and I was having one of the best nights of my life too.
After the show, we went backstage and hung out with the other V.I.P’s and Michael. I ate some killer cookies and had some awesome pie. Now I have been to concerts all over the country but where else can you hang out with the performer and have homemade food that will have you remembering the good eats from your Grandma’s, can you tell me that?
Yes, it was small town Saturday night, that’s right, small town Saturday night!
As Fred and I drove back to Jefferson, (a mere fifteen minutes away from our nice warm beds), we talked a mile a minute about that night, his birthday, our futures. Now I have been to plays on Broadway, clubs in Beverly Hills, I have walked the walks of authors in Europe, this were all wonderful and memorable events. But that night in small town Texas with one of my best friends, Fred McKenzie, it can never be beat!
Fred and I chuckled as we came roaring in to a town that’s sidewalks usually roll up pretty early. It was one o’clock in the morning. And you big city slickers reading this probably didn’t even know that we had anything to do but watch the grass grow. I beg to differ. We just happen to know that we may not have all the razzle and dazzle of city lights and such but we have something that can beat any “dog and pony show� anytime. We have community and a community that actually cares about one another.
The day I moved out of my condo in California, my neighbor who lived right next door and who I met the first time asked, “You moving in?�
“No, moving to Texas. I may not have been born there but I’m getting there as fast as I can.�
“Where are you from?� she asked inquisitively.
“I’m from Kansas.�
“Me too.� She cried. We found out we were both from towns an hour apart from each other, had lived next door to each other for years, and never knew it! The first day I moved to Jefferson, three of my neighbors came by to say “Howdy� and drop off a casserole.
So next time you’re looking for some fun, check out the websites below and head to a small town! And to paraphrase from another Hal Ketchum song, ‘You’ll know what love is!�
Tiara wearing and Book sharing,
Kathy L. Patrick
For more on:
Eureka, Kansas, go to www.eurekakansas.com
Jefferson, Texas, go to www.jefferson-texas.com
Linda Bloodworth Thomason, go to www.harpercollins.com/authors/27457/LindaBloodworthThomason/index.aspx
Doug Marlette, go to www.dougmarlette.com
Linden, Texas, go to www.lindentexas.org
Music City Texas, go to www.musiccitytexas.org
Michael Martin Murphey, go to www.michaelmartinmurphey.com
Kathy L. Patrick, go to www.beautyandthebook.com
Comments
Commenting is now closed for this entry.
By Beverly Freeman
November 2, 2006 3:10 PM | Link to this
Bravo Kathy. Bravo. You can certainly tell a tale. I loved reading Small Town. Although born and raised in Texas, I’ve only lived in “the country” for 4 years now, Linden, Texas. Small Town USA is the BEST place to be. So what if every Home Depo is 45 minutes away, it’s a lovely drive! How many times can you say you’ve driven to Walmart and STILL have a smile on your face? Only in a small town…where people will insist that you go first at a 4-way stop sign! Amazing! Thanks for the story!!
By Kathy L. Patrick
November 2, 2006 10:50 PM | Link to this
Why thank you Beverly and this story came from the heart. I realized after that night that Jefferson, Linden, were special and I think the world should come see our fair little cities. That East Texas bug bit me pretty hard back in 1987 and the symptoms and diagnosis is I am having a wonderful life. Move over James Stewart, here comes Kathy Patrick, ha! Thanks for sharing your views and keep them coming! Love, kat
By Jean Wright
November 13, 2006 8:51 PM | Link to this
Kat, Thanks for the very nice comments about our home town and the people. Small towns are unique. For instance, getting the mail at the post office should take only a few minutes but it can take as long as 30 minutes. After all, you have to socialize with everyone that comes and goes while you are there. Every errand is this way. Yes, small towns are nice!