Tuesday

Tuesday is probably my favorite day of the week.

Tuesday (and Thursday) my boy goes to preschool for two hours and fifteen minutes. In that time I get to grocery shop with only one little helper. One that does not beg or nag. One that sits politely in the cart, just pleased to be in my company. I can take a minute and look at something - like the prices - with being assulted with the 'gimmies.'

For groceries, I prefer SuperTarget. Though slightly more expensive than SuperWalMart, I just like it better. I walk in today, and notice again the people in the Pizza Hut dining area. Our SuperTarget has a small Pizza Hut in the store. They serve a limitied menu, but the breadsticks are pretty dang good.

The place is full. Full of folks drinking coffee and talking. Trying to remember the last time I had a drink and a meaingful conversation. Heck, any conversation. Most of these people are, um, old. The handicapped stalls are all full of Lincolns and other large sedans.

I don't know if they meet every day, but I do know they meet on Tuesday. They all have a cup of coffee, some a donut too. It's nice to see them. Nice to see there is life after kids.

I wonder what they talk about. I know they type. They get the paper every day and read it. I glance at the front page, page two, and the front page of the Life section. That's about it. All the time I have. They take the time to read the paper and maybe even talk about it. That's what my grandparents did. Read the paper in the morning, front to back.

Maybe they talk about their kids and grandkids, and for some, I suspect, great-grandkids. Share pictures and talk. Talk about the kids that visit, and the kids that don't. The kids across town and the kids across the world.

The weather. I'm most certain they talk about the weather and the crops. Here in the midwest, they devote news time to the state of the crops. Corn, soybeans... animals too hogs, cattle. I'm sure a few were farmers in their day. These are the folks that take a drive, just to look at the fields.

There's something comforting about it. Seeing them talk. Look forward to seeing them next Tuesday, even if they don't see me.