My parents were in town this weekend. Friday night we all went to the Country Diner – which is literally 50 yards from the base of our driveway, on the same side of the street. The sign reads, “Country Diner – Since 1948”.

We met the owner Betty Jo who came to our table to introduce herself. Rob met her before at breakfast with his parents, when she spent the whole time talking about her hammer toe.

Betty Jo is a grandmotherly woman who prepares all the food, has a great sense of humor, clearly loves what she does…and doesn’t pull any punches in conversation. 

She serves the men first – their plates come out to the table, and then she or the waitress goes back to the kitchen to get the ladies’  plates. She said, “I’m just old fashioned and that’s how I was raised. The women don’t like it, but I don’t give a cuss”.

Mom said, “That’s OK. I’m gonna grab one of his hushpuppies”, and reached toward Steve’s plate. Betty Jo quite firmly barked, “You don’t TOUCH his plate!” And she meant it.

During dinner Betty Jo came out with a small wooden box with a lid. She walked it over to my Mom and asked, “Would you like to try some of my peppermint candy?” Mom opened the lid, and a plastic mouse jumped out. Betty Jo said, “I did that with a colored man who came in the other day (you read that right…she said colored). He got so scared, he fell out of his chair. And we were all laughing too hard to help him up!”

Apparently our big natural spring and valley has a name: Swift Spring Hollow (pronounced Holler). And that’s just cool as shit.

During dessert, Steve told Betty Jo he’d never had chess pie before, so she brought him out a little bite – in her fingers. She said, “I know this is bad manners, but this is chess pie. I just wanted you to taste it.” And taste it he did, while she watched and waited expectantly for his verdict. He didn’t like it, but he didn’t say it.

Some guy we don’t know who had been mushroom hunting all day was overheard telling another guy we don’t know that we’re the ones who bought Bud’s old place, and that Rob’s a doc. Then he came over and offered us some homemade chocolate fudge with black walnuts that his wife made, out of a Cool Whip container. And it was really good.

I can’t decide if I’ve stepped back in time, or into a sitcom.