Damsel > wrote in message
...
> Thought it might be interesting to see the flip side of this
> whole thing.
[snip]
Back in February 2002, I posted this experience. I post it again today
in honor of the man that it is about.
The Ranger
=====
It all started out at Castle Ranger. I had loaded...
....the daughter-units into the Blue Bullet without any minor (or major)
protests usually associated with a late-afternoon trip to any store, let
alone the grocery store. We were going to hit one of my regular haunts
since Ol' Man Hubbard forgot to stock his cupboard and there was no food
to be had.
This particular supermarket is enjoyable to shop in for some very
selfish reasons: 1) During the late-afternoon hours, and before dinner,
they tend to be rather lacking in foot traffic. 2) This net result
allows the staff to be energetic and helpful if questions arise and 3)
the quality of this supermarket's produce is excellent while the prices
are no more expensive than a major chain that shall remain nameless.
These make for some very pleasant reasons to keep returning.
During the trip down the expressway, all three daughter-units didn't
fight, scream, or cry. There were no "looking-looks" and no
"touching-touches." Each girl-unit played quietly with their dolls. I
pulled into the store's lot and parked -- right in front of the
entrance! The Good Omens(sm) were just piling on top of each other.
We spilled out of the Blue Bullet and onto the walkway where the carts
are stored. Spawn, as is expected of her, protested her placement in the
cart's seat. Her displeasure was duly noted (as noted in "Raising
Children With Attitudinal Positions," chapter 7, page 175, section XIV,
paragraph nine, sentences 1-9 clearly state) and documented. I then
tabled the issue for future discussion in a session of congress. Pack
order and placement established we proceeded into the produce area.
As I said, the produce in this store is amazing. The selections are
varied and there are items sold that I normally don't see at other
stores. One selection we passed Daughter-unit Alpha noticed; purple
potatoes. She picked one up and asked me a series of questions. I had
answers to none of them. I was in the process of having her put the lone
spud back when the dept. manager walked over. Dm is always in this area,
always talking to people, and always well informed on every little item.
Purple potatoes were no exception. Alpha and I listened as he talked,
and answered each question she fired at him. We could have walked out
with diplomas in Potato-ology. I had asked about another item, and Dm
was telling me about preferred methods of cooking them when we both
heard, "Wow... Are you three sisters?"
Alpha, always chatty, answered, "Yes.
That'smysister.Andthat'smysister.Andthat'smydaddy. "
"Oh, man. Mr. Mom and triple trouble."
Every hackle on my neck feathered upwards. I didn't have time for this
today. I needed to get in and out of the store quickly and tackling
Neanderthals was not part of the plan.
I touched Alpha, "Time to go," and I looked up at the meathead, "Say
good-bye." Alpha smiled and said good-bye and came back to the cart.
"I'm glad it's not me with three girls."
I whipped around and had multiple answers ready but heard, "Amazing."
I stopped and the two of us looked over at Dm. He had returned to his
produce cart and was trimming tops off and setting up a new display. He
was holding up and examining a turnip. "Amazing."
Neanderthal carped for a second, thought of something, carped some more
and then left. Dm put the turnip into the display. "Simply amazing..."
He turned around and was watching me watch where jug-head was headed. I
was envisioning ways to reacquaint ourselves should Opportunity present
itself... "Not worth it. Let it go."
Agitated still, I scowled then quickly smiled, "That obvious?"
"Yeah. Did you have any other questions?"
The girl-units helped me fill the cart with something from every display
(or so it seemed.) We were going to feast for the next week! I headed
off to the butcher counter. Alpha and Beta were asking questions about
the different items in our basket, Spawn was sitting quietly, head on
the handle bar, as I reached for and took a number to be waited on.
Since the girls were being very well behaved, I walked back to where the
Pudding and Jell-O(tm) display was. "You can each pick /one/ flavor."
Spawn immediately chose her favorite, while Alpha and Beta negotiated
who would pick chocolate, chocolate fudge, and a chocolate and chocolate
fudge swirl. I left them to get down to brass tacks and started to
mentally tick off what meats we needed for the coming week.
"Twins?"
"Huh? Whuh? Uh... Yes. They are." I mentally shifted gears slowly and
came around sluggishly.
"Lucky you!"
I stared at the new face. The eyes -- a contrast of pale and bright
blue -- that I fixed on showed openness, sincerity, which in turn
created a relaxing calm. I looked beyond the eyes at the face. Wrinkles
were etched deeply, care lines and crow's feet stretched into dimples.
Bushy brows reached into the close-cropped wreath of cotton-white hair
that circled his head like Zeus' olive branch. He was only slightly
taller than me but much thinner. He was wearing a Hawaiian print
(Magnumesque) and Birkenstocks. He was smiling, finding humor in my
silence. The previous feelings that my last encounter had brought forth
disappeared. I mentally guessed him to be 60 to 65.
"Yes. Yes, you're right. I am very lucky," I started.
"All girls, too. Three times blessed," and he touched Spawn and gently
patted her head. She didn't move away but smiled. I didn't reach out to
block the move. I stood there, mesmerized. He continued, "I have five
daughters."
"Dad. Mom sent us out for milk and yogurt." The young woman's voice cut
his reverie short.
He sighed heavily. "My youngest," he offered. "She's getting married
tomorrow."
"Dad... Come on." I looked over at her; she had turned a bright
purple-red, from her neck to the tips of her hair.
He ignored her pleading and continued. "Yep. The last of five." There
was an unspoken joke that caused her to smile and reach for his arm. "We
can spend a couple minutes..."
"Two. Then we have to go."
The Grey Fox smiled toothily. "Two it is," he smacked his palms
together. I was openly enjoying the give-and-take between the two. "Yep.
Her mother gets antsy when I start yappin' at total strangers. Name's
Bud. No sense bein' strangers any longer." His hand snapped out and I
found the grip firmer than many a younger man. His daughter rolled her
eyes. Alpha and Beta had come back over with their choice of puddings
(both had picked the same type) and started talking to the daughter.
Instead of shock and dismay, I found myself smiling like some country
bumpkin, bobbing my head in agreement to my own magical music. His
daughter and my daughter-units hit it off immediately; the four sat down
on the floor and started chatting back and forth, the younger girl-units
skipping through sentence and grammar structures without meaning while
the older was able to glean simple information without hesitation or
effort.
The Grey Fox beamed and continued, "Yeah. I noticed you were going after
that meathead back there. It never ceases to amaze me... I raised five
girls in a different time and received almost the exact same banal
static. I'd've hoped we'd advanced by now but obviously there are still
some throwbacks..."
The cadence, the sing-song back and forth of his words, invited like
conversation. I found myself thinking I'd known this man for 20 years
instead of the actual 20 seconds. He talked and talked, sharing stories
of raising five daughters, seeing them all through college, moved out
and married. He talked about some of the biases he'd encountered and how
he'd handled them. He talked, and we shared similarities, for TWO
hours -- 125 minutes! My watch's beep brought me back to Real LifeŽ.
"Oh..." I groaned. "SHE's is gonna kill me."
"What time is it?" his daughter queried me. I showed her. "Mom's gonna
kill US! You know she's not going to be happy when we get back... We
were only to get 'milk and yogurt.' A thirty minute round-trip, Dad."
"She knows," Grey Fox smiled. "You got a special group here, [The], you
know that?"
"Yes, sir. I do."
"Enjoy 'em while you can. They'll be married and moved out before you
really know what you've got. I know. I had my time and it wasn't nearly
long enough."
I didn't say anything. I knew, for some reason, that it didn't require
anything more.
"Dad. Let's go..." His daughter steered him back into the current and
they were quickly gone.
"Who were they? Do we know them?" Alpha asked.
"We didn't but we know 'em now, don't we?"
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