Smiley Anders for Aug. 17, 2012

After I mentioned tales of trusting restaurant people in New Orleans who let customers dine on the promise to pay later, I heard from Doug Treadway with a story right out of “Grapes of Wrath:”

“While hitching across the U.S. back in the ’60s, I spent a night sleeping atop a concrete bench in a rest stop in Arizona.

“I woke up and started walking along Route 66 and came upon a little roadside diner.

“I went in and was greeted with a cup of coffee as soon as I sat down.

“The lady who poured my coffee was the only other person in the place, so I told her I was broke and would sweep and/or mop the floors if she would just give me something to eat.

“She told me I didn’t have to sweep or mop, as that had been done already, and that I could have all the pancakes and coffee I wanted — which turned out to be a lot, as I had quite an appetite in those days.

“God Bless America.”

They win again

It would seem that humans should be able to outsmart squirrels — but as many of our stories illustrate, this is not often the case.

For instance, this just in from Corinne Rabalais Gilder, of Crowley:

“As an avid appreciator of birds, I keep a large commercial container of sunflower seeds in the carport (hidden behind a large fleur-de-lis pot) to use for easy feeding.

“I noticed the lid was open and thought my husband had left it open.

“Opening the door to leave, I saw a squirrel leaving the container very quickly.

“I was surprised as the lid is hard to open and snap shut.

“I was more surprised the next day to find the container open again, AND part of the lid chewed off (the bits of plastic and seed shell were all over).

“Next step , bricks over the cover of the next container.”

Happy returns

Susan B. Landry, of Bayou Goula, thanks Susan Sevan, who called to tell her she had found the wallet belonging to Susan Landry’s son, Bryce, in a basket at the Wal-Mart on O’Neal Lane:

“My son had visited this store the night before, so his wallet was probably sitting in the basket all night.

“She said she simply Googled his address and came up with our phone number.

“I told her I was so very glad she called to let us know this, and that I couldn’t believe the chances of his wallet ending up in honest hands.

“She said she only did for him what she hoped others would do for her.

“Bryce is an Army and Iraq war veteran, going back to school so he may have been shopping for supplies.”

Concrete suggestion

Chip Morrison takes issue with our readers who speak of “cement” when complaining about our long-delayed road construction projects:

“Cement is the stuff that holds concrete together; it is the stuff that holds model airplanes together, and it is the stuff that holds furniture together.

“It is the key ingredient, but it is but one of four ingredients in concrete.

“The first is cement, the second water and the third and fourth are sand and gravel (or, as a unit, aggregate).

“So cement is necessary, but it is concrete that builds roads, since the time of Romans.”

Nostalgia Corner

Edward Jeansonne says our recent discussion of long-gone comic strips reminds him of those he found in a 1932 New Orleans Times-Picayune:

Tarzan & the Red Lion, The Gumps, Old Doc Yak, Count Screwloose, Dave’s Delicatessen, It’s Papa Who Pays, Toots & Casper, Chris Crusty, Ella Cinders and Mutt & Jeff.

Special People Dept.

• Pauline Cassel, of Amber Terrace Assisted Living, celebrates her 99th birthday Friday.
• On Friday John D. Schwab celebrates his 97th birthday.
• Joseph C. “Jack” Rogillio, of Rosedale, celebrates his 94th birthday Saturday.
• Louis and Pauline Bartus, of Albany, celebrate 64 years of marriage Saturday.
• Edmond and Amie Landry, formerly of Lakeland but now living in Baton Rouge, celebrate their 62nd anniversary Sunday with family in New Roads.
• David and Joan Carpenter, of Jackson, celebrated their 55th anniversary Thursday.

Unsolved mystery

In our Senior Moments Dept., Sarah Stravinska, of Chestnut, tells us, “I just rescued some perfectly good socks and underwear from the trash.

“Lord knows WHAT I threw into the laundry basket!

“I’m scared to look!”

A dog’s life

Thanks to Francisco for keeping us abreast of the latest news from the Belle of Baton Rouge Casino:

“I was at a musical event at the casino when a lady friend came over and asked me for a dance.

“She was holding a teacup Chihuahua in her hands.

“As we proceeded to the dance floor, she placed the pup in her cleavage.

“We danced the whole set while the pup slept comfortably in her bosom.”

Write Smiley at [e-mail]. He can also be reached by fax at [phone] or mail at P.O. Box 588, Baton Rouge, LA 70821.