Bud #2: Twinkle Lights and a Food Drive

It was a Sunday afternoon at the end of December. I was looking for some final Christmas cheer, so I headed out to Bud’s Geauga Corners. Bud’s is an old white clapboard tavern at a crossroads in eastern Geauga County.  I’ve been stopping at Bud’s for years. It wasn’t a fancy place, but it was a place of unique individuals with good common sense and basic human decency. It was also a good place to get a cold beer. Proprietor Bud had hired Randy, a recovering alcoholic and decorated Vietnam Vet as part time help. Randy was strong in recovery and was conquering the rage that still lingered from his Vietnam service. Randy’s military career had ended badly. The combination of alcohol and what we now call PTSD had landed him in front of a military court of JAGs. JAGs were military lawyers. They really hadn’t seemed to care much. They gave Randy a general discharge (less than honorable).  Randy really hated the JAGs for the disrespect and lack of concern they had shown him. But he had learned to control his anger for JAGs. Now he rarely spoke about them though he still thought of them as a bunch of %$*@ desk jockeys who never served in ‘Nam. Randy and Bud had developed a wonderful friendship. It was signaled with the code words, “Those diet colas taste better with a slice of lemon.” It meant “you’ve got a friend in me.”

Bud had never served in the military, but he had developed great respect for Randy who had put his life on the line. He began to understand why that judge so angered Randy.

I got to Geauga Corners about 1 o’clock and I was amazed that the gravel parking lot was almost full of cars. People were carrying boxes and bags of food and dry goods into Bud’s.

Outside there was a big plywood sign that said Food Drive Today 1 to 4 PM.

Inside, the twinkle lights were still up. They gave the place a festive atmosphere.

People were coming into Bud’s one after another. There were piles of boxes and bags of

donations to go to the Hunger Center. The boxes and bags covered the bar and were stacked on barstools and in front of the bar.

Old friends from Geauga Corners were greeting each other. They were all very excited about how much had been donated. Bud and Randy just sat in the back corner booth, Randy drinking his diet cola and lemon.

Only Harold was a bit grumpy. He had been displaced from his regular barstool perch and now had to sit at one of the booths.  I slid into the booth across from him. As we watched the pile grow larger, I began to notice that the items weren’t just can goods. There were also paper products, shampoo and toothpaste. I remembered how people who receive government food coupons couldn’t use those coupons for basic health care items. Then it clicked. Lots of the folks bringing boxes had been in tough situations before. They knew what it was like to do without.

The crowd thinned out and were gone by 4 o’clock. Bud turned off the outside light and locked up.

Together Bud and Randy shared another diet cola. Neither spoke, but they were amazed and proud of their community. Finally, Randy said, “I’ll put the stuff in my pickup tomorrow morning and take it to the Hunger Center.”

He did that and a lot more.

NEXT TIME: A Stale Birthday Cake and Randy Gets a Kiss

The opinions expressed are solely those of Dave Partington and of course Bud, Randy, Harold, Larry and the rest of the guys sitting at the bar at Bud’s. Bud’s Geauga Corners is a work of fiction. Bud’s Geauga Corners is paid for solely by Dave Partington.