Rollin' laughing here!!

As I traveled as a part of my river guide job, I learned a lot about interacting with all kinds of folks, young, old, some geniuses and some not so with it. I learned to be polite and never let my face show what I was really thinking since my tips depended on being all things to all people and getting them to work together as a team.

Southwest Texas was one of my favorite places in this country. It was so different from Maine and New England, the people have a whole 'nother mind set down there. I used to love sitting down and talking to folks down there. When we got so we could understand what each other was saying, after the accents and all, we got to ask about each other and find out what makes us tick.

So, here I was one time in a little restaurant in Marathon Texas...way down near the border. Not much there but a railroad and a main street. Lots of men-geologists and railroad workers, ranch hands and oil workers, but all in all a pretty quiet place.

Now me being a 6'2 woman with a pickup truck with Maine plates, four canoes, two mountain bikes, a bed full of coolers and buckets and lifejackets and such, I kind of attracted a lot of attention.

I tried to ignore it, but figured if they were gonna look, there was nothing I could do about it so I may as well enjoy it, but keep my knife close, if you know what I mean.

So I get into this town and I start looking for something to eat, it being late afternoon and me wanting more than chips and soda. I had a room at a little motor court type place all reserved in advance, so I checked it out but drove by in case they rolled the sidewalks up early...

I spot ONE restaurant with it's lights on, everything looks sort of ready to close, so I drive over and park right out front and run in there before they lock the door...

There's 4-5 older men at the counter, farmer jean overalls, t shirts, feed store caps...you can picture it...all sitting at the counter in a row.

The waitress tells me to sit anywhere, so I sit at a table up close so she won't have to walk far. I read the menu, pick out what I want, place my order and read everything at the table cause those men are all staring at me and whispering...

I'm eating my EXCELLENT steak and one of them gets up and walks over and stands next to my table... and proceeds to introduce himself and asks me if I mind if he asks me a question or two. I said not if you don't mind me eating while you do it...

He says, "Y'all aren't from around here Ma'am, are you?" "No Sir, I am not" :Are Y'all mewnisipull?" ( i figured that out later-municipal= road crew) "Nope, I'm from up north"

"Y'all from up north ma'am?" "yup, Maine to be exact" "And that's yer pickup out there?" "it is"

"Well Ma'am...can Y'all tell me something?...what's that on the front of yer pickup?"

I almost fell outta the chair. I have an 89 Ford pickup with head gear on it for my snowplow. It's the old style, where the head gear stays on the truck, only the blade comes off in the summer.

Realizing that they probably never saw one, and mindful of my own idiocy when I saw the dinosaur, I told him what it was...head gear for my plow.


He touches the bill of his feed cap and thanks me and goes back and sits down...and they all start whispering again, and looking at me, and looking out the window at my truck...and the man gets up and comes back to my table. By this time I am done and ready to go pay and leave. He steps up and clears his throat and says..."Ma'am? Y'all mind if I ask you just ONE more question?" Go ahead Sir..smiling.

"Ma'am?...Up there in Maine? Y'all plow yer fields with YER pickups?????"


I LOST IT!!! I LAUGHED SO HARD I ALMOST WET MYSELF


I told him...( when I caught my breath) "I am sorry I laughed, you just took me by surprise! We plow our SNOW with our pickups. We use regular plows in our fields, just like everyone else. It's a SNOWPLOW rig!!!" "Ma'am? Y'all mind if we look at it?" like a hopeful little kid wanting to touch my bike!!

Those men came outside, looked it all over and under, asked me if I could open the hood, climbed in to see how we steer and put the plow up and down, how it was rigged up for directing the plow, eyeballed all the hydraulics and such and clapped each other on their backs and shook my hand repeatedly. It made their day!

The next day I am going to finish getting the supplies I needed to do the trip on the Rio Grande and EVERYONE in town is waving at me!!! I get to the store and they come right over cause they heard I was from Maine and I might have a hard time finding what I want, so they are gonna help me!!!

It all turned out to be a lot of fun and I met some great people but I hafta tell ya, I still laugh when I think about that day!


I love Texas!!!

(ps- they bought me breakfast the next morning! Same place!)