Abbeville and altered attitudes

Abbeville :: Dagny took the picture while TG watched

This post will be a little bit of normal and a generous helping of insanity.

In other words, just right.

Let's start with something Sydney said.

Abbeville :: It was a beautiful day

I realize you don't have the privilege of knowing my friend Sydney. We've been buddies since the late eighties, when we both lived in the Chicagoland area.

Sydney's originally from Atlanta, and that's where she lives now.

Here we are at SunTrust Park in July of 2017, taking in a Braves/Cubs game:

The Sydney Connection :: July 7, 2017

Mostly we talked our heads off (there was a rain delay) but that's to be expected.

Anyway here's what Sydney (who faithfully reads this blog but infrequently comments) opined, in response to a recent post where I paid one or two respects to the current coronavirus madness:

... while I really don't want to catch the Covids, I am sad that I'm rapidly losing the freedom to do just that.

Hear, hear. Word! What she said. I couldn't agree more.

Abbeville :: Old Glory at the Opera House

I've even quoted Sydney, slightly paraphrased, several times. It was one of those "I wish I'd said that" moments. But then I went ahead and said it anyway.

And now for further commentary on that and a few other subjects.

When TG, I, Audrey, Dagny, Chad, and Erica set out for Abbeville, in the Upstate eighty-six miles from Columbia, three Sunday afternoons ago, we wanted a change of scenery.

(The whole thing was my idea but they like short trips too, and we all enjoy hanging out together.)

Following a mild winter, we've had a cold spring in South Carolina -- colder than any of us remember ever experiencing before. As late as last week, nights were still dipping down into the forties.

It's been glorious. Cool temperatures, low humidity, balmy breezes and plenty of sunshine.

Abbeville :: Eucalyptus, old brick, and sky

I see it as a gift from God during these stressful weeks, and I've enjoyed it thoroughly and taken advantage of it as much as I could.

On the day we trekked to Abbeville, a gorgeous day as just described, I was looking forward to walking around outside and taking pictures.

Founded by French Huguenots in 1764, Abbeville is named for the French town of the same name. It has a town motto:

Pretty. Near. Perfect.

It's also known as the birthplace and deathbed of the Confederacy, as it was in Abbeville that South Carolina's secession from the Union was launched in late 1860, and it was also there that Jefferson Davis officially acknowledged the dissolution of the Confederate government, in its last official cabinet meeting.

Right now, the only thing Abbeville is, is deserted.

Abbeville: Right twice a day

I know; you don't have to tell me. These little, old South Carolina towns aren't exactly densely populated. They tend to be lonely places even on "busy" days.

But this is different. This is a kind of bone-dry emptiness that reverberates and resonates like something out of The Twilight Zone. 

It borders on weird.

Our troop may not have been the only humans about, but with a lone exception, the only people we saw besides ourselves were those riding in the few cars that drifted around the town square while we explored it.

The aforementioned exception was a man we met who was standing behind the cashier's desk at the only place open on the square: Maria's Mexican Restaurant.

A neon "OPEN" sign beckoned, so Audrey and I poked our heads in the door to see what was going on.

Abbeville :: Prince Brothers

A table was angled so that you could get no farther inside the door than twelve inches.

Empty booths stretched along both sides of the darkened, narrow space. Tables in the middle were stacked with chairs, their legs pointing towards the ceiling.

I looked at the man, who smiled. I said, Are y'all going to be all right?

In lieu of a verbal answer -- I suspected he spoke no English -- he directed my gaze to a rather lurid painted depiction of Jesus behind and above his head.

(I'd just like to point out here, apropos of nothing in particular, that the phrase in lieu of does not mean in light of. It means instead of. Thanks for letting me get that off my chest.)

I nodded with what I hoped looked like sympathy. He nodded back, and smiled again, and shrugged his shoulders as if to say whatcha gonna do.

(This exchange occurred before we in South Carolina were once more "allowed" to sit outside an establishment and consume food purchased there. But two tiny tables with a total of four chairs sat on the sidewalk in front of the restaurant, and the man indicated that if we so chose, our party could use them.)

Abbeville: Wall greens

He handed me a menu, which I am holding in the picture at the top of this post. 

I feel badly to this day that we didn't eat there. We intended to have a meal together; we just weren't sure how it was all going to work out what with COVID-19 calling all of the shots.

But it was right chilly in the shade, where those two tiny tables were. Also one of the two tables wasn't exactly clean; it had trash on it.

The girls hadn't worn jackets and there was a stiff cool wind blowing, making them uncomfortable.

We opted to walk down the street first, in the sun, both to warm up and to see what we could see.

Once there we found an old church and a garden center, and took a few pictures. Then we went back to the square and peered into the deserted storefronts.

I asked Dagny to pose in front of a window decorated with brightly colored hearts.

Abbeville :: Dagny wins many hearts

As is the case in many small South Carolina towns, an impressive monument to Confederate soldiers, and the Confederacy itself, dominates the town square. 

I imagine it won't be long before we hear that it has been torn down, because history is inconvenient.

But until it is, that monument proclaims a truth that is more inconvenient than even the monument itself, and less convenient and more in danger now than ever before:

Honor the brave. They knew their rights and dared maintain them.

Speaking of history, before we left, TG asked me to take a picture of him beside a small monument to Thomas Dry Howie, "The Major of St. Lo."

TG and tribute to Abbeville's native son

Howie, a hero of Normandy, was born in Abbeville and was a member of The Citadel Class of '29. My TG is a member of the Class of '74. 

At The Citadel, Howie was a Deans List English major, President of his class, All State halfback on the football team, and captain of the baseball team. He was also voted “Most Versatile, Popular and Best All Around” by his classmates.

He took the qualifying test for a Rhodes Scholarship on the same day that he scored the winning touchdown in the homecoming football game, in which The Citadel beat Clemson 12-7. 

At age thirty-six, he gave his life for his country. He is buried in the American Cemetery in Normandy, France. Our Audrey has been there.

Major Howie was the inspiration for the character played by Tom Hanks in Saving Private Ryan.

Abbeville :: Trinity Episcopal

In due time we returned to our cars and set out to find food. We never even discussed going back to Maria's for enchiladas; I hope the man behind the cashier's desk got some takeout orders that day.

We ended up eating at Burger King (love me some BK once every five-or-so years), sitting outside at a picnic table, scarfing it down quickly because everything was threatening to blow away. Plus the girls were still cold.

Afterwards, heading back towards Columbia, we stopped in the larger-but-still-small town of Greenwood to visit Old Greenwood Cemetery.

There wasn't a whole lot to see there, it being a tiny cemetery, but all of us enjoyed traipsing around, looking at old graves. According to one stone, the first white child born in Greenwood is buried there.

Old Greenwood Cemetery :: There's only one first

FYI: Thomas Jones was born in 1829 and died in 1895 at the age of sixty-six.

Since that wonderful outing, we've enjoyed our Mother's Day celebration and taken another day trip that I'll tell you about soon. And in that time, I've done a little bit of research and a whole lot of thinking.

I know; right? How can that last part end well? Bear with me.

One thing I've learned is that in 1968-69, one hundred thousand Americans died from the Hong Kong Flu (H3N2). During the pandemic, the Woodstock music festival was held in Upstate New York, with four hundred thousand unwashed and drug-addled hippies attending.

Abbeville :: Give a rebel yell

There was barely sanitation; I think we can all agree that no social distancing took place, that no one wore masks, and that not a word was said about washing your hands a lot.

By the way, since the above story began to circulate in light of current events, several news outlets such as Reuters and USA Today have scrambled to float the idea that the information is "misleading."

They claim that to put the timeline for Woodstock "in the middle of a pandemic" is disingenuous and inaccurate because although chronologically its dates occur smack at the midpoint of what are recognized as the virus's supposed start and end, it actually took place between the first and second "waves" of the virus.

Abbeville :: Where they remember not to forget

Mmmmmkay. Let me just say, if the lib media are denying it's true, I believe it even more. To quibble over the question of whether Woodstock took place in the middle of a pandemic that killed 100K Americans, or between waves of it, involves semantic hairs I'm not willing to split.

And you can bet the ranch that nothing in the way of giant gatherings with no thought to a killer virus, will be taking place here in the United States any time before the presidential election on November 3rd, 2020.

(Although it may well disappear from the media's notice entirely on November 4th, regardless of the election's outcome.)

Abbeville :: Dagny at the old church

Can you imagine if Joe Biden wins the presidency and the pandemic numbers continue to swell? The media will immediately proclaim that he is doing a "tremendous" job, especially considering the mess he was left by President Trump. 

Precisely what President Trump has (rightly) said about his performance and predecessor, to universal scorn and contempt, hatred and lies, and the most malicious slander.

Also during the Hong Kong Flu pandemic, America went to the moon. And back. President Johnson and Vice President Humphrey both caught the virus, and recovered, in the waning days of the administration. Actress Tallulah Bankhead and former CIA Director Allen Dulles weren't so fortunate; they died of it.

I'm old enough to remember those years; I was born in 1957. I know for a fact that schools didn't shut down because of the Hong Kong Flu. I'd remember that. Restaurants didn't close either; my mom was a waitress and I'd remember that too.

Abbeville :: Color coded

I promise you, no one wore masks or talked about staying six feet away from others, or canceled travel plans.

I'm pretty sure folks kept on going to church and to work.

Let's bring it forward to two years ago, when eighty thousand Americans died of the seasonal flu. You and I both know that ZERO precautions were taken two years ago, to protect the public against catching the flu.

(And I don't need to be reminded, gently or otherwise, that COVID is worse than the seasonal flu. Let's say that it is. Dead is still dead no matter what you died of, and at least the flu numbers don't lie. They don't have a political agenda.)

In 2009, during the Obama administration, nearly thirteen thousand Americans died of Swine Flu (H1N1). Again: it wasn't a blip on the radar in terms of closings and cancellations and panicking and distancing and quarantining and President-despising.

Do you know what the smart people did, in 1968-69 and in 2009 and in 2017-18? If their health was compromised by other illnesses and/or age, they stayed home and laid low for the duration, until they felt it was safe to come out again. Nobody suggested taking measures any more drastic than that.

Abbeville :: Stately courthouse architecture

In other words, the self-same thing we should be doing now, and what we should have been doing all along. 

Instead? Well, you know. Complete nonsense laid on with a trowel, chaos and destruction of lives and the economy, when it is a known fact that as a rule, only certain demographics are at risk of actually dying of Wuhan Flu.

(It has a 98-99% recovery rate and yes, I think that's good. I think that's pretty swell, all things considered.)

But the whole class has to stay in from recess because the teacher doesn't want to really deal with the problem. And then you've got the rest, who are truly loving all of the drama. And then there are those who are dead-set on destroying President Trump and his chances for reelection.

And then you've got radical leftists who, having had this taste of total control, are loath to relinquish it.

Y'all do know, don't you, that none of us are getting out of this alive -- in the earthly sense? We're all going to die at some point, of something. None of us will live forever in this current situation. I believe the date of my death is fixed. God Almighty has determined it and He will see me through life and greet me on the other side.

Old Greenwood Cemetery :: Word

Do I believe that means I should walk out in front of a bus, or take other inordinate risks with my life and safety? Of course not. But I also don't think that going to the store or to church right now, without wearing a mask, is tantamount to walking out in front of a bus. Or to killing anyone else, for that matter.

I agree with Sydney; I don't want to catch the rona. But I want the freedom to catch it. I'd rather lose my life than lose the liberties I've enjoyed as a citizen of a free country since my birth.

Meanwhile in super-lefty locales such as Oregon and Washington state, restaurants are reopening. Want to know what that's going to look like on the Left Coast?

Patrons will be required to give their name, phone number, and email address upon presenting themselves for a table. (This is for "tracking and tracing" just in case an outbreak occurs on the very spot where you ate your burger and fries.)

Oh and you won't be waiting anywhere near the restaurant for that table. Stay in your car; they'll text you.

Abbeville :: Divine your space

When you are shown to a table (fifty percent occupancy, comrades), there won't be anything on it. No menus, napkins, silverware, salt and pepper shakers, hot sauce, sugar, Sweet'n Low, or ketchup. These things will be distributed in single-serving one-use form "as needed."

When dishes and utensils do arrive at the table, some of them will be "disposable" and no one will hand them to you or place them in front of you. You'll have to retrieve your meal yourself, from a tray.

Everything coming to the table will be brought by employees wearing mouth-and-nose masks, plastic goggles, acrylic face shields, and gloves, and who have had their temperature taken when they got to work that day.

As far as I know, HazMat suits are not yet required for servers. Diners, however, should come prepared to wear a mask. Yes; they may ask you to wear a mask while you eat and drink. Doesn't that sound appetizing?

I guess that's because at any given time, they'll be able to tell when COVID is lurking in a corner, or stalking the tables, ready to attach itself to some unwitting random maskless person enjoying their mashed potatoes.

Abbeville and Audag :: Pretty. Near. Perfect.

(We ate at a restaurant last Saturday night. We were not allowed to be seated within view of any other diners.)

(Our server, an exceedingly sweet and thoughtful young lady, was wearing an ill-fitting black mask that wouldn't stay over her nose. She kept having to adjust it, only for it to slip down again.)

(I wonder: Is touching a mask you've been breathing and talking into for hours, then touching my cup or plate, any better than handing me that cup or plate with no mask on your face?)

(I'll leave you to ponder.)

When it comes time to pay for your meal in those far-left states, no one will want to touch your money anymore. It will be cards only, and you'll have to ring yourself up. Nobody will do it for you.

They're asking for extra gratuities because of how tough things are, but don't leave your filthy infected cash at the table. Add twenty-five percent to the card total. And the menu prices are higher than pre-COVID, naturally.

Abbeville :: Confederate States of America

There will be limited access to rest rooms; you're expected to take care of all that before you show up. But extra "hand washing stations" may be provided.

At an upscale dining establishment in Virginia, near the nation's capital, mannequins dressed in fancy 1930s garb will be seated at every other table "to reinforce social distancing."

Dining with The Dummies.

(In the pictures I saw, all of the dummies were white. Wait for it: There'll be trouble over that in 3-2-1.)

Rest assured, there's no stack of pancakes in this land that I need badly enough to go through all of that. I'm a good cook; I'll eat at home better and more cheaply, and enjoy it plenty, and keep the tip.

Abbeville :: Take a letter Maria's

In a small town in California, there is a sign posted at the entrance to a bike path. It forbids the use of bicycles on said path, but allows that walking on the path is permitted. Someone will have to explain that one to me.

On the East Coast, Mayor de Blasio of New York City warns that the beaches will be fenced off for Memorial Day and that if anyone goes into the water, they will be removed. From the water. Where, you know, COVID is rampant.

Speaking of Memorial Day, the Veterans Association has issued an edict that, breaking a long-observed and cherished tradition, the Boy Scouts will not be "allowed" to place flags at veterans' graves in the country's sacred National Cemeteries.

Are they really suggesting that it is not possible to decorate graves with flags, without infecting someone with COVID? Because I'm pretty sure the dead don't care and the Boy Scouts are capable of staying six feet apart.

Here's my point. Yes; I have one. I'll thank you not to snicker.

Abbeville :: Welcome to lonely town

If you think you're at risk of catching COVID-19 should you venture out of your house, and the thought of that eventuality makes you fearful, you should stay home. Definitely. Indefinitely. Just stay there as long as necessary.

No one will judge you and I'm sure family members, friends, and neighbors will help you get the supplies you need, so that you don't have to leave the domicile until you're ready.

For those who do not fear catching or dying of COVID-19 -- although, like Sydney, they may not want to catch it -- there should be the option of going about their life and business unmolested by state and local government. Taking as much risk as they are willing to take, and taking responsibility for the outcome.

Abbeville :: They faced their fears

In some parts of the country, folks are simply doing that. They're going out and doing what they need to do -- until they can't, that is, because a governor with a God complex has forbidden certain activities.

Hero law enforcement officers in certain cities are approaching groups, informing them that by gathering they are running afoul of some Executive Order or other, and then simply walking away.

That's what I'm talking about.

Old Greenwood Cemetery :: Broken but still standing

As for me, I'm getting a pedicure this Wednesday. My salon owner texted to tell me she was reopening, and to offer me an appointment, which I was overjoyed to take.

Dagny will graduate from kindergarten on Friday night. The ceremony will be unusual, I'm sure, but at least we'll have one. The schools are doing the best they can under strange circumstances.

Abbeville sits empty in the dwindling spring days and soon the summer sun will keep most folks indoors, at least in the heat of the day.

But there was the heat of battle at one point, which produced our liberties. 

Abbeville :: Honor the Brave

There were those who were brave, and who knew their rights and dared maintain them.

In the face of all tyranny, we need more people like that. We need to be people like that.

And that is all for now.

=0=0=0=

Happy Tuesday

Comments

[Mari]

There's so much in this post that I hardly know where to start. But first, the day trip. I love day trips and this looks like a fun one. Such a charming place. Bob loves that TG had his photo taken at Thomas Howies grave. He was a hero, for sure! And the picture of Audrey and Dagny is just so perfect!
I am not offended by the confederate flag but am very offended by those who want to take everything down in case it may offend someone. Except they aren't worried about offending me...
Your friend Sydney is wise. I love that quote. It makes me think of something on a whole different line, but since I thought of it, I'm sharing. Do you know that the residents in our home have a right to fall? However, we are supposed to put many things in place to make sure they don't. We can't use bedrails, seats that tip them back or anything that stops them from getting up on their own though - because they have a right to fall!!! And if the things we try don't work and someone falls and injures themselves, we can be fined... Our government at work.
As for this whole covid thing, I am just sick of it all. And most of the doctors and medical people I know are also saying this is not right. Yes, it's serious for some people, but so are all the missed medical things that need to be done, the businesses that are closing, those dealing with depression...I've got nothing else, except you are right. Why don't you run for office?

[Jennifer]

@Mari ... why don't YOU? Hahahaha I am stunned by what you said about the residents having a right to fall, and I'm not sure I understand why you can't use bedrails and special seats that would help them. And then if what they have a right to do actually happens, you get fined? Well that's bureaucracy, which is the bane of mankind and the enemy of freedom. I'm encouraged by what you say the doctors and medical personnel say. Surely you and they of all people -- who work with people who are sick and recovering, or dying -- know that the whole person is important and what's going on that's stressful or burdensome in their lives, isn't going to have a positive effect, but a negative one. And then so many things fall like dominoes. BTW I'm not done with this subject. Another post is underway. Stay tuned. Hahahahaha xoxo

[sally]

Why don't both of y'all run?
The end..
Just kidding.
WOW, this is some post, Jenny. But, I'll start with how nice it was that y'all got together for that day trip. You guys are special in my book. I love the photo's and especially your girls, Audrey and Dagny. They are both beautiful. :)

I'm sick to death of the media, there I said it! And, on top of that? Those Hollywood people who think I give a flying fig what they have to say. Hey, look at me, yes me; I'm SO important and you need to hear what I have to say about the President - well, gosh! I'm almost ready to stop FB for real. I have one friend that in all other ways, I adore. But, she gets on there about our President using foul language; she hates his guts. Even her husband is embarrassed, I'm sure. Nastiness is uncalled for. OK if you have friends that want you opinion, fine but using that kind of language and vitriol, really?

Okay, I got that off my chest!

Let me tell you something, Jenny, I agree with every single thing you have posted concerning the virus, and our political situation.
Ok, that's really the end.
Love ya!
xoxo

[Jennifer]

@Sally ... bless you, my friend! And not just for agreeing with me. And I'm just going on the record here to say that I don't know how anyone stomachs Fakebook. Ever. There; I said it. Not running for anything but always willing to run my mouth. xoxo

[Sydney]

Hahaha, it’s a wee bit disconcerting to open up a Jenny post to see your own goofy face staring back at you! Let’s plan another talk-fest if they ever allow us back into Braves Stadium!
I love your photos as always and I am fascinated by the stats you enumerated about previous pandemics. And the sight of “lonely Abbeville” reminds me of Coldwater MI where we vacationed over the Memorial Day holiday. Way too many boarded-up storefronts... so unhealthy in ways not measured by a thermometer. I agree, it should predictably end long about November 4th. Can’t wait for your follow-up post!

[Jennifer]

@Sydney ... well I was going to talk about masks but now the COVID seems to be a thing of the past, haaaahaha ... not much social distancing or staying home going on these days. But yes I'll pay my respects. It must be done and why not me xoxo