tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10155420.post6933694436674107013..comments2024-01-09T13:55:46.379-05:00Comments on 15 Minute Lunch: Hey Kid. C'mere. I got a job for ya.Johnny Virgilhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07914217086250206369noreply@blogger.comBlogger28125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10155420.post-24764696744759401872011-04-12T18:25:31.917-04:002011-04-12T18:25:31.917-04:00Wow, I didn't see the preview and just read th...Wow, I didn't see the preview and just read the whole thing in one go. Fabulous writing! I, too, had one of those "character-building" jobs as a teenager, and so did my brothers. I am sad that my own children have not experienced that yet. Things often have a way of turning out to be worth it, when you least expect them to. I'm delighted you had the opportunity to spend time with an elderly person and APPRECIATE him and his interests. So many people do not... and it's a shame. I guarantee you that your visits were the highlight of Mr. Payne's days. You did good, Little John.<br />(P.S. I really ought to write about my brother's job groundskeeping in a cemetery - it wasn't the dead people who were scary to the poor boy, it was the other ganja-loving employees!)RiderWriterhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05679157278313699794noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10155420.post-60464700049745970932011-04-06T15:10:31.045-04:002011-04-06T15:10:31.045-04:00Maybe it's just the day, but this story brough...Maybe it's just the day, but this story brought tears to my eyes. The day you spent listening to music with the old man was probably one of the best days of his life. And it sounds like it wasn't bad for you either ;)ArizonaDinoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10155420.post-29666524014819523212011-04-03T21:38:45.286-04:002011-04-03T21:38:45.286-04:00That's a great story JV. In your preview versi...That's a great story JV. In your preview version, I predicted the swamp in the back yard, but did NOT predict the reel mower. We actually had one of those when I was a kid and all I remember about it was that it was nearly impossible to push.Jen Mitchellhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10900261769824561993noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10155420.post-8386301760935926032011-04-03T14:25:55.772-04:002011-04-03T14:25:55.772-04:00Wonderful story. I enjoyed every word.Wonderful story. I enjoyed every word.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10155420.post-21950456708694972912011-04-03T14:25:01.672-04:002011-04-03T14:25:01.672-04:00Wonderful story. I enjoyed every word.Wonderful story. I enjoyed every word.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10155420.post-88578823450091590142011-04-03T11:27:14.074-04:002011-04-03T11:27:14.074-04:00I am far too young to say anything like "brin...I am far too young to say anything like "brings back memories" but your writing tends to, I think all kids have something like this somewhere along the line or I would hope so at least.<br /><br />Joy to read and gave me this odd detached pang of nostalgia and the warm n fuzzies, thank you.JAnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10155420.post-9710250763689528852011-04-01T23:19:26.902-04:002011-04-01T23:19:26.902-04:00Great story - a real Paul Auster feel to it (and t...Great story - a real Paul Auster feel to it (and that's a compliment from me as I've loved Auster's writing since I bought Leviathan on a whim 15 years ago because I liked the cover...). Your descriptions are so vivid I can SEE the scenes - a movie in the making, so to speak...<br />PS I had a reel mower in my flat in Scotland when I was a student and I was too much of a wimp to push it up the slope of my garden - a friend eventually took pity on me and did it for me, just asking that I bought him a whisky in exchange - a good deal, I feel!Magic27https://www.blogger.com/profile/08701211538213404730noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10155420.post-77397822581797133562011-03-31T17:50:45.408-04:002011-03-31T17:50:45.408-04:00Ye you made me laugh, but I almost cried at the la...Ye you made me laugh, but I almost cried at the last part... Darn you guys who write so well!kristinanoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10155420.post-58185659033681466642011-03-29T22:06:34.678-04:002011-03-29T22:06:34.678-04:00LOL - my parents bought a reel mower for our yard ...LOL - my parents bought a reel mower for our yard in the first house they owned in 1981 in southern Louisiana where the grass grows thick and OVERNIGHT. Guess who eventually got stuck pushing that beast around?? I also once considered cleaning up an enormous compost pile of grass clippings on the side of our house and then decided that there *might* be a snake in there so I left it. Seemed a reasonable deduction / rationalization to me at the time :)Jenyfer Matthewshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10769550148821002722noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10155420.post-58453755205426923912011-03-28T16:05:02.835-04:002011-03-28T16:05:02.835-04:00All right. I laughed about ten times. That was g...All right. I laughed about ten times. That was great.Miss Monroehttp://www.dearmissmonroe.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10155420.post-37285944311996840712011-03-28T15:13:18.509-04:002011-03-28T15:13:18.509-04:00Great story Johnny -
I think they wrote a Simpso...Great story Johnny - <br /><br />I think they wrote a Simpsons episode on your very story, where Bart gets the identical job as yours, for the Really Old Lady down his street. At the end of his agonizing day, she pays him a quarter, or something: <br />"Lady, if you think after all that work I did, you're paying me a QUARTER, and I'm going to say Thank You -<br />- You're welcome dear!" <br />(*DOOR SLAMS*)<br /><br />Oh, and as far as those Reel mowers go, at least yours was sharp! Someone tried to loan me one once (when I was about same age/fin. situation), but it was dull as hell. The tiniest twig or - even a sturdy dry tree leaf - would stall the thing and the handles would immediate slip out of my hands & batter me in the chest. And pulling did no good either, the wheels would just slip & you'd be dragging a #@$% useless, heavy ^%&* pile of metal across the grass. Good riddance.<br /><br />Anyway thanks for the story, and bringing back the memories! (Both fictional & real ones.)<br /><br />- Mike from CAAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10155420.post-32229835323136746542011-03-27T20:40:24.541-04:002011-03-27T20:40:24.541-04:00Great story as usual, reminded me of my first job ...Great story as usual, reminded me of my first job working for some old folks doing about the same work. Can always count on a JV story to bring back some memories of childhood, keep 'em coming!Alex Hippohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17342262278732346773noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10155420.post-29350065182270584692011-03-27T10:15:23.507-04:002011-03-27T10:15:23.507-04:00I bet you gave that old man something to look forw...I bet you gave that old man something to look forward to every week - someone to visit and spend time with. You probably helped him more than you know!Allinoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10155420.post-87424179941148315422011-03-26T22:54:54.671-04:002011-03-26T22:54:54.671-04:00Time spent with older people is one of those thing...Time spent with older people is one of those things you don't cherish enough until they're gone. This is a great story. I think you could sell the rights for an after-school special! (Do they still have those?)<br /><br />BTW, all the bike-riding greenies in my neighborhood have those mowers. They always look miserable pushing them.KChttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14899300754366923395noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10155420.post-55805290993643166062011-03-26T21:31:42.826-04:002011-03-26T21:31:42.826-04:00Your writing style is fascinating. Honestly, I hav...Your writing style is fascinating. Honestly, I have yet to read an entry from you that I thought was boring. This entry reminding me of the movie Prancer. This little girl rescues an injured reindeer and needs to buy a bag of oats to feed it. So she sets out to get a cleaning job. Her first and only client is an elderly woman with a huge house. She's the wealthiest person in town. Turns out the room this girl has to clean hasn't been lived in for decades. There's dust everywhere. It's basically been used as a junk room. The girl protests that the money she's charging was for a room far less cluttered and messy. Your entry just reminded me of this. She learned a lot about the lady and sort of bonded with her, kind of how you bonded with the old man. <br />Good stuff!Marie Nachtweynoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10155420.post-57459688585721846552011-03-26T19:50:55.300-04:002011-03-26T19:50:55.300-04:00Darn good read. Worth the wait. Never had a bb gun...Darn good read. Worth the wait. Never had a bb gun. When and where I grew up it was a .22 that you would get for your tenth birthday. Can sympathise with you on the chore though. Glad you stuck it outMONSTERhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02681124482736527213noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10155420.post-87067157616208116602011-03-26T18:44:55.267-04:002011-03-26T18:44:55.267-04:00Worth the wait! Thanks. I'll bet that there wa...Worth the wait! Thanks. I'll bet that there was other cool stuff in that house as well. Bless his little garden gnome ass.Mercy Sakeshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03032180271651134715noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10155420.post-29769740337583525912011-03-25T07:01:27.380-04:002011-03-25T07:01:27.380-04:00Despite the fact I'm now dying to read what co...Despite the fact I'm now dying to read what comes next, this was just the tonic for what is shaping up to be yet another crap day...<br />Thanks so much for these lovely stories, told so beautifully!Magic27https://www.blogger.com/profile/08701211538213404730noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10155420.post-10888617898635695652011-03-24T14:56:57.066-04:002011-03-24T14:56:57.066-04:00I was allowed to shoot the hay bales and the wheel...I was allowed to shoot the hay bales and the wheel barrel. Which would ricochet! Way cool. The archery arrows also went right thru year old hay bales....Ray Janeshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14965985187123647698noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10155420.post-25262080894081192912011-03-24T06:07:51.366-04:002011-03-24T06:07:51.366-04:00You'll shoot your eye out...You'll shoot your eye out...She-Shehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08345314153892127627noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10155420.post-27778506722735425752011-03-24T04:33:07.801-04:002011-03-24T04:33:07.801-04:00T - I did that tour too, but I think it was at the...T - I did that tour too, but I think it was at the Albany plant on Central Avenue. The bread was good, but the smell of that place was overwhelming. Like walking into the Yankee Candle of baked goods.Johnny Virgilhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07914217086250206369noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10155420.post-5156295781618979902011-03-23T21:49:20.373-04:002011-03-23T21:49:20.373-04:00JV, My only good memory of being a Brownie ( a you...JV, My only good memory of being a Brownie ( a younger version of Girl Scouts) was the factory tour of Freihoffer's Bread Bakery in Lansingburgh. They gave you a slice of hot, pasty, white bread at the end of it, I'll never forget the delicious smell either, much better, I'm sure than the smell of the plastic bread wrappers!.Trishhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05382815893023585849noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10155420.post-16015310861359336242011-03-23T13:24:16.278-04:002011-03-23T13:24:16.278-04:00Oh choot! (WV for ya...)
You can't leave us h...Oh choot! (WV for ya...)<br /><br />You can't leave us hanging for too long!<br /><br />I hear you on <a href="http://www.savagechickens.com/2009/08/commuter-blues.html" rel="nofollow">the commute</a>...kristinanoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10155420.post-12330485464732709812011-03-23T13:07:30.903-04:002011-03-23T13:07:30.903-04:00I can't wait for the movie version to come out...I can't wait for the movie version to come out!Lisahttp://www.heartifactscards.blogspot.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10155420.post-46230405102414583002011-03-23T04:59:00.915-04:002011-03-23T04:59:00.915-04:00Ha, you guys are funny. Sorry about that. But 4:3...Ha, you guys are funny. Sorry about that. But 4:30 should only be allowed to exist once a day...Johnny Virgilhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07914217086250206369noreply@blogger.com