Friday, February 18, 2011

At the diner


I am having breakfast at a diner near the marina. After going to the course in marine electronics last night, I spent the night on the boat. The fog rolled in, creating an eery scene. No lights from the city or big bridge were visible. An occasional fog horn would sound as the cargo ships made their way to port.

I had every intention of leaving on the rising tide early this morning. Instead I slept in and awoke feeling hungry. So here I am at the diner, having coffee and an omelet with grits and pancakes for breakfast. I come here fairly often because it is locally owned, has the morning paper, and friendly servers who seem to enjoy their job and customers.

When I was a kid, there were lots of these places. My father and I would stop in for cheeseburgers and fries. I can't remember having breakfast at the local joints because he fixed the best breakfast around with cured ham, eggs, home made biscuits, and red eye gravy. I marvel that I don't have heart disease from the cooking of my youth.

Sadly, most of these mom and pop places are gone. But there are still a few around if you care to bypass the chain and fast food restaurants. I look for these places of local color when I travel and purposely avoid the plastic cookie cutter ones.

In a few hours I will be leaving on the boat to catch the outgoing tide. I will sail for a few hours until sunset and then go to the anchorage to spend the night. The old Labrador has had her arthritis medicine and is ready for a good walk on the beach. Record temperatures will occur today so it will be the first time to go without shoes.

Regarding the sponsee that I took to an open speaker meeting, he was moved by what he heard. As the HP had it, the speaker was excellent and had 21 years of recovery to share. The birthday celebrant who was there got a 34 year medallion. He said that none of us come to these rooms at the top of our game. No one comes in saying how great their relationship with others is, or how happy they are, or how life is going so well and all we need is a little bit of recovery.

No, most of us come in as a broken shell of a person, emptied of hope. So true. I was glad to have this sponsee hear and see what can happen when one is willing. And the look of hope on the faces of those who picked up a white chip was moving. I left feeling renewed. Surely, we were meant to be there.

Hope that you are enjoying this day. I am going to make the most of it.

10 comments:

  1. Oh Syd. That picture threw me back to my favorite restaurant in Tallahassee which is long gone but where we ate hundreds of times.
    Ah. The rice pudding in that dessert case!
    You are a good man.
    Smooth seas.

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  2. Have to say I wasn't riding high when I came into the rooms. I knew the one choice that would make a difference was the rooms, this is where I had willingness.

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  3. I love the sound of a fog horn at night. My family summered every year at my uncle's house in Port Jefferson, Long Island. I remember being lulled asleep by the sound of the fog horns in the harbor.

    Have a great weekend. You are loved.

    SB

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  4. "He said that none of us come to these rooms at the top of our game."

    I like this.

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  5. Such a beautiful post. Thank you for sharing as always, Syd.

    Hope being the one spiritual principle I've found that we give to other. It comes from the outside in while others come from the inside out.

    ~Namaste

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  6. Do you do anything special when a comment comes your way and it is deeply religious, that might even preach at others about the proper way to believe?
    I am wondering. Syd, if it is best to change my setting so I must approve the comment in order for it to be posted.

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  7. Not being a schedule every minute is a good thing, one of the rewards of retirement, huh, Syd? We have a small cafe in this little town of 1200 people that is a mom and pop place. We went there for the first time a couple weeks ago for fried chicken. We had the best fried chicken and mashed potatoes and gravy ever. Can't eat like that often and we ended up with leftovers for another meal. Glad to hear the open AA meeting was a good meeting for your sponsee.

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  8. I feel that if I ever reach the very top of my game, I would have nothing to live for. For me, success is a journey rather than a destination.

    I love your blog.

    Linda

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  9. Hi, Syd! My husband loves to do the same; find the local mom and pop places. I'm more of a cookie cutter girl but he does find some great places sometimes. Some of the best though is made in our home for sure.

    Think I'll be getting to an Al-Anon meeting again soon, possibly this week. It's been several months for me but I really need some stress relief.

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