Ashland City

My Wednesday night class at church has been on an "Old Testament Journey" through the Bible lately. So, we have taken several "journies" to cool local places. You may recall my previous posting about Sewanee. (There is talk of a Mediterranean cruise in 2007. Stand by.)

Saturday, we went to Ashland City for a "cruise" on the Cumberland River with a company called Blue Heron. We saw one blue heron. And I think he was chained up out there by the river just so we got full value for the ride. Really, it was a nice little drift down the river and back. Check out these signs.

Afterwards, we ate catfish at Riverview, the marina dive under the bridge there in town. This place has been there since before dirt and I tell you what, it is good. We took a group picture in front of the church bus like good little tourists.

Then came the best part. We stopped at Stratton's for ice cream. Stratton's is a 50's-style restaurant with square cheeseburgers, good fries, great malts, a juke box, and the sort of friendly manager and waitresses you'd expect to find in such a Mayberry town.

I think I enjoyed the trip more than anyone else. You see, I lived in this little town from age three to age nine. We passed the church where my Dad used to preach, my old street, the skating rink, the farmers' co-op, and the brand new Super Wal-Mart (WHAT?!). Let me tell you how out-of-place a Super Wal-Mart looks in Ashland City. I mean, I remember when they built the first little Wal-Mart down the road from my house. You could fit every resident of Ashland City into the Wal-Mart at once.

I remember eating Sunday lunches at Riverview. And by "riverview," they mean there is a rickety wooden deck on the back of the restaurant where you can sit facing the river in white plastic chairs, enjoying the flies and heat while you smoke cigarettes and drink weak sweet iced tea with your catfish and salad bar dish. The walls inside used to be dark wood paneling but now have a thin coat of white paint on top. The floor is the cheapest linoleum tile money can buy. Most customers look like they just washed in from the river because they did. The older waitresses call you "Sugar."

I remember eating at Stratton's with my family. I remember the first time I could hold two of those little square cheeseburgers in my tummy. I would sit and flip the pages of the little juke boxes that were in each booth, pressing the buttons to watch the song titles light up. I picked out "favorite songs" even though I had never heard any of them. Dad would talk to the manager and got to kinda keeping up with his life. I can't wait to tell Dad that the same guy still owns the place. I am happy to know he is doing alright.

Apparently, all of my childhood memories are related to food. I'll come visit you if you can correctly guess what flavor of malt I got.