Last week, I was traveling a bunch. I’m not much of a fan of fast food but when I’m on the road, that’s what I tend to eat and I try to find a Bojangles. I found one on the outskirts of Asheville and went inside to eat, the first time I’ve sat down in a fast food restaurant since last year.
The Bojangles staggered tables to provide separation. Some were open and some were closed. I was reading the signs on the table to find one that was a available when I heard a voice say, “’At one, right there is open.” I turned to thank a man in his mid-sixties wearing a chin beard and baseball cap.
“They just tryin’ to keep us safe from the virus,” he told me. “Kinda confusin’, though.”
Then he pointed to his arm and said, “I got my second one yesterday.”
I nodded and told him I had my first one and would get my second the next week.
Then he said, “Now I want my stimulus check. Mine ain’t come yet.” He broke out in a grin and said, “Well, Joe Biden is senile. May be he forgot to send it.” He laughed and I smiled as I started to eat my sandwich.
Then he turned serious. “Really, I think we got us good ‘un, don’t you?”
I asked, “Joe Biden?” He replied, “Yep. I think he’s the right one. He’s done good so far.”
I told him I agreed and that I thought things were about to get a lot better with the vaccines and the stimulus checks.
He said, “You know, that Trump coulda done ok except for his bad disdemeanor. He was just too hateful. I think he’ll run again, though. I think he might win, too. Joe Biden will be too old in four years.”
I said, “Well, I think Biden is getting us on the right track.”
He replied, “Yeah, it’s better, but that situation on the border is bad. That might bring Joe down.”
Then he told me a story about serving in the Navy in Norfolk. He only did a two-year stint. He’s been living in Asheville since he got out, but he was born in the Shelton Laurel part of Madison County. I figured he knows a thing or two.
Thomas Mills is the founder and publisher of PoliticsNC.com. Before beginning PoliticsNC, Mills spent 20 years as a political and public affairs consultant.
