Musings
an Online Journal of Sorts

By Alyce Wilson

Wrought iron in front of Dad's place

I had my annual eye appointment this past Friday. I still maintain my eye doctor from when I was living in Central Pennsylvania, since I trust them. So when it's time for my annual appointment, I spend a little time with my parents.

So I drove up on Thursday afternoon, between my afternoon and evening assignments.

But I got stuck in traffic on the way there, since I got off a couple exits early to avoid construction traffic and hit rush hour traffic instead.

It's always a culture shock when I first drive into town, how rural and country it is compared to suburban Philadelphia. All the guys wear baseball hats, and the women wear T-shirts with faded jeans or short-shorts. They proudly display Pittsburgh Steelers flags out front of their houses, along with American flags. They work hard here, and the men are sunburned, the woman perpetually tired looking.

At any rate, I ended up with just enough time to order a sub from the nearby sub shop and reinstalled a couple programs I needed to work, my dad having recently had some work done on his computer because of some problems with spyware.

That evening, I couldn't spend much time with Dad because he had already gone to sleep by the time I finished work.

The next day, I got up early for my eye appointment. Dad had already left, and he told me later he'd been called by the hospital.

This year, I could drive myself to my eye appointment because they weren't dilating my eyes. Everything went smoothly. My doctor told me nothing has changed. She also told me that there are new soft contacts available that might work for me. I've been wearing gas permeable since I was about 16, because I don't produce enough tears to wear soft contacts. They're not as comfortable as soft contacts, though.

I told her that I'd consider changing but probably not until after the wedding because I didn't know if I wanted to get used to something new right now.

When I was done, I had some time before my first assignment, so I did a little shopping. I stopped in at a consignment store I used to frequent and saw a sign in the window that the owner had retired. You could see inside that the shop space she'd occupied for about 20 years was now vacant, a couple hangers lying on the floor.

Instead, I tried the local American Rescue Workers, not expecting to find much. I was surprised to discover that there were a couple nice tops that I was interested in, two casual, one a little nicer and one exercise top.

Una and I then took a very nice walk. We took the normal walk that I typically take with her, into the heart of the town. I timed us and discovered this walk was the same length as the one we take at home.

After my afternoon assignment, I went through the Wild Violet mailed submissions I'd brought with me and put a mailing together. Then, I grabbed the envelopes and leashed Una for another walk. I decided to go a different way, and we walked towards the post office, dropping the mail in a postal box along the way.

Right about then, we encountered a man with a scraggly beard and a really cute Jack Russell terrier. He walked across the street so the dogs could greet each other. Immediately, he introduced himself and asked me if I lived around there. I told him I was visiting someone. He seemed disappointed, telling me that he'd just moved here from another county and didn't like how people were treating him. He said they gave him an attitude.

Having grown up around there, I know that his outgoing nature is likely to be misinterpreted as some form of aggression. The Central Pennsylvania town where I grew up is very Germanic, and they tend to be reserved and value their personal space.

Una and I continued our walk, and I was fascinated by a number of stations that have been put up for an historic walking tour. Each station has a little area with benches and landscaping, along with permanent signs that give information about the history of the town. The signs include large photographs that allow you to compare the spot where you're looking with historical pictures.

I thought this was a great idea, except for one thing. For me, it only highlights the decay that this factory town has undergone, having hit increasingly difficult economic times as the industry in the area disappears.

Since I had my camera with me, I took some pictures along our walk that documented another side of my hometown.

Brightly painted door of the tattoo parlor,
which has one of the coolest paint jobs around

A broken nosed gargoyle on an historic hotel
that's been vacant and for sale for several years

The gothic looking abandoned hotel

Sample siding on a weathered wooden industrial building

An old factory building used by an office/industry supply business,
who only replaced windows on alternate floors

Una asks me to borrow $100. I tell her no.
The workers at this business thought this picture was funny.
They said to caption it "Doggie Heaven."

A poster in the window of a hair salon

As we were heading back, it started to get a little rainy, so we stepped up our pace.

Dad actually finished his office hours a little early, so I changed and we went to the local Applebee's, which I suggested because of the Weight Watchers entrees. I'm being really careful for the next couple of weeks before my first fitting for my wedding dress. We each ordered one of their lighter entrees, along with a drink.

After a nice, relaxing dinner, we browsed in the new Super Wal-Mart which has just gone in. It was ridiculously huge, and includes groceries. I'm sure it will kill off the existing grocery chain, which used to share a parking lot with the former Wal-Mart.

This makes me a little sad, but there's not much you can do. Just like the housing developments that have grown over the years in the rural town. You have to eventually accept them or you just get sick to your stomach every time you see them.

Then it was back to Dad's place in time for me to do my evening assignments. Afterwards, I ran Microsoft Update for Dad, who had never installed the most recent service pack for his computer. Hopefully, it will help him avoid problems down the line.

More from my trip to Central Pennsylvania:

May 28, 2007 - Patriotic Town

May 30, 2007 - Parents Day

June 1, 2007 - More Hometown Pics

Copyright 2006 by Alyce Wilson

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