This summer my front porch was beautiful with morning glory vines growing out of a large decorative pot. They climbed up and spiraled around the column. As fall has progressed, their blossoms began to lessen and their leaves turned brown and they were no longer beautiful. So I pulled them up this from the pot and filled it with tall, bare branches, cattails and grasses...then I filled the pot with colorful fall gourds. I sat a bright orange pumpkin beside it and the porch is revitalized and beautiful again.
STORY OF THE WEEK:
TALES FROM TWIN CHIMNEYS - "TALE PIPES" PART ONE
By: Beverly Anderson
While visiting a friend in town, I noticed my car's muffler was about to fall off. I carefully drove to a well known big-chain muffler repair shop and asked for an estimate. $350.00. Wow! I was shocked. My car was up on their rack and they asked me to come and stand under it and look at the problem: rusty tailpipes, plus a muffler hanging by a thread. I understood, but was still shocked by the cost.
I drove home to Twin Chimneys to think about it and talk it over with Gayle and Doug. Gayle says she is having muffler trouble, too. Thus began these tales: "Ask and Ye Shall Receive", and "It's a Small World, Isn't It?"
I called my friend, Mary Carroll. She called her friend, Ed. He said, "Boy, that is a high estimate, but then muffler shops are notorious for eating women alive". He recommended Gorilla Muffler. He even volunteered to go with me. GORILLA Muffler! Maybe I will need his company.
I called Gayle at her office in town and of all things, she had just passed by Gorilla Muffler on her lunch hour and thought it would be a good possibility, but she was afraid to go inside. A great big gorilla stands outside the shop holding a huge tailpipe. Not her usual shopping experience.
She gathered her courage and called them on the phone. The lady who answered was very nice and the combination of Ed's recommendation and this kind voice, I gathered up my courage and drove to Gorilla Muffler.
Sure enough, the lady was very friendly. We visited while my car was taken away for inspection. It turns out that she passes our house, Twin Chimneys, each day on her way to work. In fact she says she always wishes we would get some ducks on our pond. She says we need some. We had a delightful conversation and I quit worrying about my muffler and about the big gorilla outside. The mechanic asked me to come and stand under my raised car. Again. This is twice this week I have stood underneath my dirty, strange looking car belly. It is not fun, but they showed me the same problems and said, "it will be about $130-150 to fix it". I breathed a sigh of relief. "Can you do it today?" I asked. "No, it takes several hours. "How about tomorrow?" they asked. "I live out in Ashland City and I can't come into town tomorrow". A man came out from the back of the shop. "I think you are closer to our Pleasantview Shop". I thought to myself "you mean Gorilla Muffler has a branch office?!!!" I was amazed. "Yes, I said, that would be more convenient for me". "OK", he said. "I'll call my wife and tell her you can come on Thursday." "She has a doctor's appointment on Wednesday and so she can't fix it that day". I wondered if she would actually be the one to do the work. I'm not used to women mechanics, but I am looking forward to meeting her.
...to be continued
PICTURE OF THE WEEK:
"Daughter of the Autumn Wind"
by Heide Browne
Acrylic, 15 x 18, $250
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