Drive South

I'm starting this blog in our Comfort Suites hotel room in St. Charles, MO. We left home about mid-afternoon on Thursday for our new home in Millington, TN, where I'll be working with the Army Corps of Engineers Logistics Activity. We spent our first night at the home of Barb's daughter and her family in Omaha, and then got going about 9:40 a.m. Friday on the real "new adventure" part of this trip, turning south on Interstate 29 onto countryside we haven't seen before.
My first impressions of Missouri, which we passed into sometime around 10:30, was that it was rather unremarkable, except for numerous dead deer lying along the road side, and a dusting of snow in the north-facing ditches north of St. Joseph. But it was a beautiful day to travel -- sunny and warm for being November 11 -- or as the peculiar date stamp would read -- 11-11-11. Barb turned on the radio and we had country music for much of the day -- a harbinger of things to come as we head to Tennessee -- the home of country music.
Our day ended about 5 p.m. when we reached our hotel here in St. Charles. On the hotel staff's recommendation, we visited "Pio's" down the street for a great ribeye steak and a cold beer (my choices). It was a welcome end to a long day -- about 400 miles traveled. Tomorrow, when we're packed and ready to go again, it's on to Millington -- about 5 hours south of here. It will be a funny feeling to think of this as our new home. It's been so long since I've moved that far. More to come....
Saturday: We're both pooped out after finally arriving in Millington about 2:30 p.m. today. The trip meter read 910 miles.
Today's highlights: We stopped in Cape Girardeau, MO for gasoline, and noticed a White Castle restaurant across the street. My only experience with White Castle was a young boy when my dad took me to the Twin Cities on a Farmers Union bus tour for a Twins game. So Barb and I stopped for a few tasty "sliders."
The next thing of note were fields of white that began to pop up in southern Missouri. I realized they were cotton fields -- something I'd never seen before. Some fields had round bales of cotton, similar to the hay bales we see in fields in South Dakota. Others had what appeared to be covered cotton "stacks." I'm sure this is just the beginning of a "re-education" we'll go through in adjusting to our new home down south.
One trivia note: We crossed the Missouri River three times on our trip down here, but only crossed the Mississippi once -- that being when we crossed into Tennessee about 1 p.m. today. We looked around Millington some after our arrival today. We'll be doing a lot of that over the next few days. More about that later.

Favorite TV Shows

I recently finished watching the TV series "Boston Legal." All 101 episodes. Oh, the show itself went off the air back in 2008 but I own all 5 seasons on DVD. Barb thinks I'm a little nuts even though she introduced me to it back when it was still airing weekly. Over the last few months I watched all five seasons. It's one of my favorite shows but for probably all the wrong reasons.
It is so left-wing, pontifical and preachy. It makes no bones about its left-of-center views -- 180 degrees opposite of mine. It takes great pleasure in poking fun or outright ridicule at all things and people right of center -- George Bush, Dick Cheney, and all political matters near and dear to the hearts of conservatives. But its sheer irreverence and the far-out ridiculous cases tried each week in its courtrooms make it fascinating. In some ways it's the legal version of "Grey's Anatomy;" it finds the most extreme situations to present to its regular cast.
William Shatner plays the gun-toting, sex-crazed conservative Denny Crane, who lusts after every female and regularly shoots clients and indigents with unrestrained glee. Everyone fears what Denny will do or say next. He blames it on "Mad Cow Disease," but he is in the early stages of Alzheimer's Disease, which shows some progression during the series. Denny's political opposite and best buddy is Alan Shore (played by James Spader), who is left-wing, articulate but unconventional in his legal approach and brilliant in the courtroom. The only other character I'll make note of is Brad Chase (played by Mark Valley), a former Marine who threatens to take charge or take prisoners in every situation where his military background can be exploited and ridiculed. Get the picture?
So why do I like it when I should be offended? I don't know. Maybe because it's so outrageous.
But my favorite all-time TV series -- again, one I own the entire set -- is M*A*S*H, which aired an incredible 11 seasons from Sept. 17, 1972 until Feb. 28, 1983. To put that in perspective, M*A*S*H started airing during the first month of my freshman year at South Dakota State University, and ended when I was working as managing editor of The Stewart (MN) Tribune. It is, of course, about a team of zany doctors and their support staff who operate a mobile army surgical hospital just 3 miles from the front line during the Korean War.
M*A*S*H's main characters were so well-defined and known. Hawkeye (Alan Alda), Trapper John (Wayne Rogers), BJ Hunnicutt (Mike Farrell), Charles Emerson Winchester III (David Ogden Stiers), Frank Burns (Larry Linville), Father John Patrick Francis Mulcahy (William Christopher), COL Sherman T. Potter (Harry Morgan), Lt. Col. Henry Blake (McLean Stevenson), Maxwell Q. Klinger (Jamie Farr) (the resident cross-dresser), and of course Radar O'Reilly (Gary Burghoff) and Margaret "Hot Lips" Houlihan -- the oversexed but by-the-book, all-military head nurse. Of all the characters, my favorite is Frank. I don't know why because Hawkeye, Trapper and BJ pick on him constantly. I think Larry Linville had great fun playing Frank -- a snivelly, cheap, smarmy guy who carried on a long love affair with Hot Lips while his wife kept their home in Fort Wayne, IN.
This series was cutting edge in its treatment of war and its casualties. While usually funny, it gradually became more drama-based. And its final show -- the 251st episode -- was the most-watched television episode in history at the time with 105.97 million viewers (Wikipedia). The TV series ended with the end of the Korean War and followed each of the main cast as they left the compound to return to their civilian lives.
Several years ago the kids and I got to see many of the show's artifacts at the Air & Space Museum near Lincoln, NE. I photographed the kids standing beside the famous mileage pole, which anchored the middle of the hospital compound and pointed the direction with mileage to some of the characters' home towns.
Another favorite show -- and another that I own in complete DVD set -- is "Seinfeld." Seinfeld has only four main characters and touts itself as a "show about nothing." Of course, the show centers around comedian Jerry Seinfeld and his relationships and encounters with friends Cosmo Kramer (Michael Richards), Elaine Benes (Julia Louis-Dreyfus) and George Costanza (Jason Alexander). This was a funny show with some great one-liners (many of which Barb has heard me quote again and again, ad nauseum). Having said all that, I'll add this: While funny and lacking any political leanings, it is adult humor and lacking in any moral compass. The characters treat sex as an casual recreational dalliance. For that reason, I don't recommend it.
Another favorite show of mine is (or was) "Cheers," starring Ted Danson as the playboy, former Red Sox reliever and now Boston bar owner. The main cast includes Shelly Long as Diane Chambers and Rhea Perlman as Carla Tortelli (both bar maids), Woody Harrelson as Woody Boyd (bartender), and regular customers Cliff Claven (John Ratzenberger), Norm Peterson (George Wendt), Frazier Crane (Kelsey Grammer) and Lilith Sternin (Bebe Neuwirth).
Early in the show's years, the cast included Nicholas Colasanto as the philosophical bartender Ernie "Coach" Pantusso, who took a few too many fastballs to the ol' melon. Coach was well-known for his pithy sayings and butchering the language. What a lovable guy though. But, for my taste, the show took turned from funny to just plain stupid shortly after Kirstie Alley joined the cast as Rebecca Howe. Not that she turned it stupid but that the story lines became so far out that the show lost its luster.
I suppose it's not surprising that my favorite shows are sitcoms. Still, I would add the CBS news documentary "60 Minutes" to my list of all-time faves. Mike Wallace, Ed Bradley, Morley Safer, Harry Reasoner and Andy Rooney were a few of the correspondents who reported stories that were usually relevant to what was going on in the world currently. If there was a burning issue nationally, you'd usually find it as a hot topic (no pun intended) on 60 Minutes.
We recognize many of our favorite shows by their musical themes -- in the case of 60 Minutes, the ticking of the clock. We know then it's time to put down whatever we've been doing and prepare ourselves to be entertained. All the shows I've mentioned have recognizable themes -- the barroom chorus from "Cheers," the theme from "M*A*S*H," and the lively, animated theme from "Boston Legal." But some of the most recognizable themes belong to the oldies. More on that next time.

Football

I love football season. I always have since I was a little kid. My earliest memories were way back in second grade when the Alexandria Beavers played their home football games on Friday afternoons because they didn't have ball park lights yet. If you bought a ticket for the game, you got out of school early to walk down to the ball park for the 2 p.m. kickoff. If you didn't have a ticket, well... you got to sit in class and be quiet until the school day ended. Really? What choice is that? And who wouldn't take the opportunity to get out of school early on a Friday afternoon -- with the specter of a whole free weekend ahead -- and enjoy the beautiful, warm fall weather to watch the Beavers play football? I don't recall many of Alex's football heroes back then. Jim Murray comes to mind -- a bruising running back who championed the local crew.
Then in the eighth grade I had the chance to be a student manager. It was great fun to be around the big guys, hang around in the coaches' office and smell the sweat, leather and outdoors that came with the job.
Basketball, baseball and track were my other great sports loves, and I enjoyed all of them. But I had a physical build most compatible for football. My physical attributes weren't great enough to draw the attention of college coaches, but I loved playing the game, and was among the fastest players on our team.
In my freshman and sophomore years I labored "in the trenches" -- playing in the offensive or defensive line for the junior varsity, wearing number 66. I don't recall much from those years as I saw limited varsity action (if any). But near the end of my sophomore year, the coaches (Jon Wessel and Harold Ingalls) recognized I may be a better fit in the backfield, and so I became a halfback/cornerback.
During my junior and senior years, I started at right halfback in a backfield that included Dan Wagner at quarterback, Chuck Benson at fullback and Tom Nebelsick at left halfback. At 193 pounds, I was the lightest of our three running backs. In our junior year, we won only two or three games, but as a senior we went 5-3. I scored 10 touchdowns that year, and in our final game against Marion (my final game as a senior) I scored three touchdowns -- one on an interception I ran back for a TD.
But the college coaches didn't come knocking at my door. At 5-10 and 195 I didn't have great size. I was named All-Cornbelt Conference and received one small scholarship offer from South Dakota School of Mines, but I had no interest in attending college there.
Through the years, my love for the game of football has evolved. My interest in professional football has waned, while my enthusiasm for the college game has bloomed.
Having been a long-suffering Minnesota Vikings fans, I've watched them rip the hearts out of their fans time after time... from Drew Pearson's "Hail Mary" miraculous reception in the 1975 divisional playoff game, to four stunning Super Bowl losses, to Gary Anderson's 1998 NFC championship game missed field goal and the Vikings' collapse vs. Atlanta, to Brett Favre's ill-fated interception and the Vikings' loss to the New Orleans Saints in the 2010 NFC championship game. Pro football and I aren't the best of friends. My three favorite teams -- the Vikings, Buffalo Bills and Seattle Seahawks -- are 0-9 in Super Bowls. Not good. In fact, some Vikings fans breathe a sigh of relief when the Vikes are stopped short of the Super Bowl because, well, who wants to be the first NFL team to lose five Super Bowls (without a win)?
I've always been a South Dakota State University fan, of course, having gotten first my undergrad degree there in 1977, and then my graduate degree in 2011. Ironically, however, I never attended an SDSU football game in all the years I attended there. I went home almost every weekend back then. But when I married Barb in 2007, I became a Cornhuskers fan. And wow, what an experience. For the last four years (coincidentally, beginning with the first fall that we were married) we have attended one Cornhuskers home game. It made me a complete convert to college football. There is nothing like the experience of being among a sea of 85,000 red-clad, rabid, loyal Nebraska fans, cheering the Cornhuskers on. It is like one very, very huge party.
The first year the Cornhuskers were still coached by Bill Callahan and still struggling to reach the .500 mark. Barb and I, along with her brother Jim and his wife, Rhonda, watched the Huskers edge Ball State, 42-41, in a very exciting game. The second year I flew up from El Paso, TX and we watched the Huskers -- now coached by Bo Pelini -- top Baylor. Our perfect record ended the third year when Iowa State came to Lincoln and beat the Huskers, 9-7, on a cloudy, misty, wet, miserable day when Nebraska turned the football over five times inside their own 10-yard-line.
Then last year, in a game I had looked forward to since it was announced a couple of years earlier, SDSU visited Nebraska, and for the first and only time I would ever consider entering Memorial Stadium wearing something other than red, I donned my blue and white SDSU jersey and cheered for the Jackrabbits, who held their own despite having two touchdowns called back on penalties and ultimately losing, 17-3. Still, although we were seated among a huge red-clad Nebraska crowd, they were extremely polite and hospitable, and we received several comments as we left about how well South Dakota State had played. It made me proud -- not only to be an SDSU graduate but also to be a Nebraska fan. They are some of the best -- as far as I'm concerned, THE best -- fans in college football. In fact, I took a picture of Barb standing beneath the Memorial Stadium entrance that reads, "Through these gates pass the greatest fans in college football." It is an experience that everyone should have.
Although we may not make a Nebraska game this year (the season's half over now and our schedules make getting to a game difficult), we did get down to Sioux Center, IA to see Barb's brother Bill, who is assistant head coach of the Dordt College Defenders. Dordt is in only its fourth year of organized football, and so the programming is still struggling and experiencing growing pains. But the day was a gorgeous, sunny, warm, early fall day and the crowd was enthusiastic. There is simply nothing like watching college football on a perfect fall day.

If it's nice outside, this must be drill weekend...

Twenty-seven years ago I decided I missed "wearing the uniform" (almost three years after my active Army service ended). We were living in Fairfax, MN at the time, so I looked into joining the Minnesota Army National Guard, and joined the 125th Public Affairs Detachment in St. Paul. Ever since -- for the last 324 months -- I have been attending monthly "drills." This is Army training conducted one weekend every month. This was something that would normally have ended when I retired from the Army Reserve on Jan. 31, 2011, but since my job is to support an Army Reserve unit I am still attending those monthly drills, although now as a Department of the Army civilian. And, of course, as usual the weather is beautiful on drill weekend. This is an old adage among part-time soldiers. "If it's nice outside, it must be drill weekend."
Over the course of that career I've driven from Fairfax to St. Paul (two hours), and later from Alexandria to St. Paul (300 miles to the front door of the St. Paul armory). Later, in 1990, I switched states and joined the 129th Public Affairs Detachment in Rapid City, and so instead of driving east 300 miles I began driving west almost the same distance.
Back then, a couple of my fellow soldiers lived in Huron and Mitchell, respectively, and we'd meet in Plankinton and then car-pool to Rapid City together. It gave us an opportunity to discuss the weekend's training events and get caught up on one another's lives. My high school buddy, Barry Vlasman, was assistant state's attorney in Sturgis, and he graciously opened up his home to me on Saturday nights when I had drill out west.
But my weekend commutes ended when I joined the 5043rd USAR School in Sioux Falls in 1994. The School had a funny drill schedule back then. They drilled two Monday nights and one Sunday per month -- preparing to teach a number of classes to soldiers all over the U.S. During this time I became close friends with another Alexandria native -- Greg Schaefers -- who, ironically enough, lives today in the home of one of my best friends while growing up -- Lee Thomas. Greg and I didn't know each other back at Hanson School. He is about seven years younger than I. But our personalities seemed to fit well together. We knew many of the same people, of course, and Greg is a natural prankster. Even years later, when I lived in Canistota, Greg would swing through town and pick me up and we'd laugh and talk about Alex happenings and listen to comedian Roy Mercer on the way to drill. But Greg retired after our 2003-05 deployment, and eventually most of my good friends have retired as well.
Now, my job is due to end by Jan. 31, 2012, and so I am in the process of looking for another federal government job. This month (September) I reach 19 years of civilian service, and so my goal is to continue in the federal government at least until I complete 20 years. I have concentrated my job search in Nebraska and Kansas, but if nothing surfaces soon I may expand that search to other neighboring states. Chances are the requirement to attend monthly drills will end, and so my weekends may return to being all mine. It could be a funny feeling, but one I'm looking forward to.

Cars and cruising Main

Growing up in Alex, there wasn't a lot to do since a town of 500 people doesn't have a lot of recreational opportunities to offer. Most social events revolved around school activities. Usually, if it was an evening activity, that meant "dragging main" with friends. Although I didn't own a car during my high school years, I had other friends with wheels.
Kids used to drag main from the corner of the Methodist Church south to Hwy. 42 (Cenex corner), with U-turns at both ends. Back in those days there was no four-way stop by Security State Bank. That would've just put a crimp in our cruising style. So glad we didn't have to deal with it back then. Sometimes cars would break out of the lineup and drive all the way north to the end of Main Street and loop back through town before rejoining the parade.
My good friend, Barry Vlasman, drove an old brown Pontiac with an eight-track tape deck, and after play practice we'd cruise Main and listen to the Grass Roots. My good friend Jerry Erpenbach (Erp) drove a dark blue pickup; we'd hop in, drag main for a while, then cruise outside of town -- usually down to Lake Hanson for a quick loop through the beach area -- and down side streets before joining the procession back on Main Street.
My former brother-in-law and good friend, Jeff Van Pelt, drove an old, beat up baby blue Volkswagen Beetle that had no heater. I remember rodding around Alex with Jeff in that thing. It was a struggle to stay warm during the winter months.
I was a high school senior before I found the courage and had the desire to ask Dad to borrow the family's blue Ford Fairlane. It took all the courage I could muster in the first place, and I'd warm up by asking Mom first. Her response was always, "Go ask your Dad. It's his car." And so after administering an inner pep talk, I'd ask Dad. He was always fair and good to me, and never denied me use of the family car as long as I was responsible, so I don't know why I had so much trouble asking. And, of course, I put $2 worth of gasoline in the car to pay for the gas I burned.
Once or twice, I even borrowed Terry's orange Karmen Ghia. What a remarkable, enjoyable little car that was. With a stick shift on the floor. My first experience driving a stick shift was when Pat & Frank let me drive their AMC Gremlin. And over the years I owned many manual transmission cars -- several Geos and the blue Chevy Cavalier, but now I've reverted to automatic transmissions again. One of my most memorable trips with a stick shift was once when I lived in Canistota and I cut my right hand deeply near the thumb, wrapped it in a towel and drove to Sioux Falls to get it stitched up -- all the while shifting gears and trying to avoid getting blood all over everything.
Being the youngest in the family, I remember some of the older brothers' cars -- Terry's green Camaro and his Karmen Ghia, Roger's white Ford, his green Volkswagen beetle and his lime green Plymouth Duster. I remember once Rog and I cruising around Lake Mitchell in his white Ford with the green roof, and listening to the Beatles' "Sergeant Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band" on the tape deck. We must've gone up to see a vampire movie. And the folks had an old Chevy -- I don't recall the year -- and later a silver Rambler, the blue Ford Fairlane and then in later years that large green Pontiac. Dad let me "cut my teeth" on the Ford Fairlane as he would pull over and let me get behind the wheel and get a feel for the wheel.
After college I bought my first car from Terry -- his white Toyota Corolla -- and it was great on gas mileage. Since then I've lost track of all the vehicles I've owned -- a black Ford Courier pickup, a silver Pontiac, Chevy Caprice, Ford S-10 pickup, a couple of mini-vans -- Dodge Caravan and Plymouth Voyager -- green Buick LeSabre, an orange Geo followed by the dark blue Geo that was wrecked, and then a light blue Geo. The Cavalier then followed, along with the beige Buick Regal, the sporty little dark blue Miata, the beige Toyota Corolla I drive to work and the silver Honda CRV that Barb usually drives. Along the way there's been a motorcycle or two -- the 100cc Yamaha I had back in high school, and later when I had the newspapers for a while I had a 350 Honda, but I never felt comfortable enough riding to continue.
My only serious accident came in 1997 while driving home from work when another driver ran a stop sign at the top of the Vermillion Hill and I broadsided him. Fortunately, I was wearing my seatbelt or I would've gone through the windshield. As it was, I suffered only a few cuts (12 staples to close a cut to my head), a bruised knee and a fractured sternum, which caused some intense comfort as I had seriously painful muscle spasms for several days after that. But I spent only one night in the hospital and then recovered at home.

Growing up in Alex -- Part IV

Although there's not much left for businesses on the southernmost block of Alex's Main Street, that's where most of the action used to be when I was a kid. But I'm getting ahead of myself, so let me back up a bit.
Directly across the street south of the Hanson County maintenance shop was a small building that many years ago was part of a lumber yard (Fullerton?). I remember back in the 1960s when that building was used to publicize Robert F. Kennedy's campaign (yes, there actually was a building devoted to RFK's presidential run back then). In later years, Jo Murray had her hair styling business there, and now I believe the building contains fitness equipment.
South of that building was the tavern, which was owned back then by the Murrays. Jerry Erpenbach, Barry Vlasman, Dan Wagner and the rest of my high school classmates spent many, many, many hours there -- playing foosball, pool, pinball, watching TV, eating chislic and occasionally even drinking a beer. I remember the 25-cent Grain Belt taps... ;-) And some of the best chislic I've ever tasted... Later, Larry Parce bought the tavern and I believe it has operated as "Your Place."
Still farther down that street at the end of the block was the Masons' building used by the Methodist Church for their group meetings.
Across the street and anchoring that end of main is Cenex. Back then it was the Farmers Union Oil Co. Dick Huber has been a fixture there for many years.
Just west of Cenex was where Bob Hoscheid operated Bob's Cafe, back in the days when Alexandria sported TWO restaurants. But that was many years ago and my memories of that business have faded badly. Of course, our brother, Jim, operated Stoltz Standard Service which was west of Bob's Cafe. I remember walking down to Jim's station sometimes, but again the memories have faded.
Dick Brayton operated the Mobil station, which was later operated by Tim Doyle before going out of business. And behind the Mobil station was Alexandria's other motel -- The Elms Motel. I don't remember much about that motel other than it offered travelers a second place to stay in town. I remember also that Clarney (Clarence) Steilen operated a business along the highway on the east end of town as well, but again that was many, many years ago. Of course, Clarney also operated Clarney's Auto Parts on the north edge of Alexandria for many years.
I know my recollections have omitted some businesses, and I'll probably remember more as time goes on. But these are the ones that come to my mind most often.
Oh, Alexandria used to have a dairy business just a block west of RoseBud Cafe, and across the street west of the dairy was where the laundromat used to be. That was owned by the Cremers of Spencer. And Rog used to deliver milk to Mr. Cremer's store in Spencer many years ago when he drove a delivery route that took him north of Alex to Farmer and Spencer. Sometimes I'd get to ride along with Rog, and enjoyed an ice cream bar or two.
That takes care of my recollection of Alex's businesses. I hope someone will find this an enjoyable remembrance. It taxes my brain!

Growing up in Alex -- Part III

I never dreamed there'd be so much to write about growing up in a small town.
This blog entry will focus on Alexandria Main Street's second block -- the one that begins with Security State Bank on the north and ends with the Hanson County maintenance shed on the south. If you think back to those days, you will be saddened to see how little active business activity exists there today.
Just south of the bank sits Will Funeral Chapel, and before that that building housed Montgomery's Furniture, if I recall correctly. Next to it, though, sat Schmitt's Meat Market. That was back in the day when Alexandria supported two -- and if you count Clancy's Store -- three grocery stores. I don't remember much about Schmitt's other than the meat counter there. Just down the block was Haines' Hardware Store, which was a pretty neat place for a kid to check out their selection of toys.
And south of Haines' Hardware was the pool hall. That was a place for older kids and grownups to hang out. I wasn't a regular customer there until the pool hall's final years. I remember the pool tables being toward the front, with card tables in the back for the older men to play cards. You could play eight-ball, snooker, slop, or whatever pool variation you wanted. Pete Ries and Charley Sweesy are a couple of the old-timers who frequented the pool hall. I think Don Cheeseman ran the pool hall back then.
And going further south was where Folsom's GW Store was located. That was, of course, Alex's main grocery store for many years, and where Roger worked during his high school years. Even years later, when I took over the Alex and Emery newspapers -- Bob Jarding owned the store, and he later sold it to Gary Munson and Jeff Palmquist of Mitchell, and the store was renamed "Home Court Market" to emphasize their sports affiliations. That store was my destination when I had a few coins in my pocket. I vaguely remember when candy bars were a nickel, but I have a better recollection when they cost a dime. Or licorice could be bought for pennies. And way back when, us young kids collected baseball cards along with the cardboard-like chewing gum that accompanied those packs. We would trade cards, buy multiple packs -- hoping for that one special card we were lacking, and then keep our cards in a shoebox for easy reference. Sometimes, of course, the old or extra cards were clothes-pinned to our bicycle's spokes to make that engine sound. Folsom's Store was the only place I ever remember Mom driving the car. She just never drove much.
Anchoring the east side of Main Street on that block was the Hanson County maintenance shed. One of my first regular summer jobs was working for Hanson County. I remember we fixed a LOT of fence that summer -- Berno Haiar, Leonard Tuschen and I. Another memory is our work day started at 7 a.m., which meant getting up EARLY, getting my lunch together and walking the six blocks to the county shed.
West across Main Street from the bank was Bake's Barber Shop. I have fond memories of having my hair cut at Bake's. Ellsworth Baker and -- later -- Gordy Knudson were the barbers. Inside Bake's Barber Shop was like stepping into another world -- a man's world really -- with the knotty pine interior, a collection of magazines to browse while waiting your turn. And then, if you weren't tall enough for the barber chair, Bake had a green board that he set over the arm rests for you to sit on while he cut your hair. And then, at the end, there was that good-smelling stuff they rubbed into your hair. The women's beauty shop was in the back of the barber shop, and the women would pass through the main entrance on their way to their hair appointments. As I recall, hair cuts back then were $2.00.
Next door to Bake's was -- I believe at one time -- a drug store, although in later years it was the Legion Hall and was used as a meeting place for the Boy and Girl Scouts, and we even held a dance or two there. Pitts' Dry Goods Store was next door, but I don't remember much about that store other than that it was located there.
Moving farther south down that side of the street, I remember Clancy's Store, which later became Folsom's Discount Store. My only real memory of that store was that they kept Snickers Bars in a freezer there, so it was the place to go for a frozen Snickers Bar.
South of Clancy's is where Jim Davies now has his law office. I remember, though, years ago when a music store was located there. It's kind of hard to believe a small town like Alexandria ever supported such a specialty store, but I remember that store from the mid- to late '60s.
And anchoring the corner of that block was the RoseBud Cafe. We would go to the RoseBud after a game or sports practice for a pop or a sandwich. I remember eating there once or twice at noon on school days when Mom and Dad were gone.
That's my recollection of the second block of Alexandria's Main Street. There are some other businesses that I recall and I'll save them for another blog.