Coincidences

Talk about coincidences. The first time I was in the city where I reside was when I was on the road. Road companions knew among me as having a “good nose for chow.” They meant that I could suss out a decent dinner, given how busy it was, the smell, and my gut (literally ) feeling about the place. Improbable as this may seem, I had a pretty good record for picking good places.

A nose for food

One early Saturday morning, we were on the road in North Central Massachusetts, with an eventual target of Bennington, Vermont. We’d lucked out with a ride all the way through to close to the New York state line. From where we’d be let off, it would be a short hop to Bennington. But there we all were, with tummies grumbling.

My buddy Bill convinced the driver to drive through the nearby small city. Soon I spotted a likely place, called Leo’s, and in we went. Leo’s became an occasional itinerary stop for us when we passed through after that.

I didn’t think much about it till the other week. I was driving through downtown. The site of Leo’s is now a ladies’ clothing store. While I now live in town, I’d rarely eat out there, and thinking about Leo’s made me hungry, and I made tracks out of town to a little donut shop I know of, where I could do more than recall the vicarious moments of my youth with a fresh, locally made this morning donut.

The woods

So, what do I think the best thing to do in our city is? Walking in the woods. There is an Audoban sanctuary, lots of conservation land, and we abut state-owned forestry land. Undeveloped tracts of woods penetrate all areas except the very urban core and the former industrial areas.

Let’s say that the city, and much of the region, is in “remission” from its days as one of Massachusetts preeminent industrial areas. Goods from here could be found worldwide. Like much of this part of the state, it’s in the process of deciding what it wants to become. But I was talking to a friend the other day who is a Conservation Agent in the town where I work. I was mentioning the goldenseal that was beginning to open its flowers in my woodland garden, and he was mentioning the deer passing through his yard from a nearby woodland. That’s what we most enjoy about our city. Despite its urban and industrial history, it is woodsy and green.

Now all we need are some good dinners, coffee shops, and roadhouses to make the wanderer still in me feel at home!