Shopping locally.

Yesterday, to prepare for my family's Independence Day celebration, I stopped in at two of my all-time favorite local food shops here in the middle of South Carolina. Most people who've lived here for a while are familiar with these places... they've spent money in the stores... they've walked away with memories from the people who've checked them out... and they've been back for more.

 

I have known Bill Horton's Produce Stand since I was a little girl. Before we moved out into the country that used to be Chapin, we lived in a subdivision that backed up to the place. The more I think about it, the more I realize it was a great neighborhood: we had the Saluda River on one side and Horton's on the other. Anyhow, Horton's is one of those places that makes you feel at home and lets you know that you're gonna get yummy, fresh produce every time.

 

The gentleman who runs the place that his father started 29 years ago tells customers with his thick southern drawl, "Daddy taught me well." (Horton senior started the place when he retired from Bellsouth after 46 years, so you know he was running that stand out of love for good food.) The junior Horton rises at 2 every morning to make it out to the Farmer's Market to gather string beans and squash and peaches and tomatoes and onions and potatoes and the like from local farmers. And it's good stuff, people. Good. Some of the best. If you're a connosieur of them, you absolutely must try his boiled peanuts. They are divinely perfect. But the form of payment is what gets me here: "Cash, check, or get me next time." It's nice to go to a place where the owner has faith in his customers. It's refreshing.

 

The building that houses my second stop used to be home to a bakery when I was small. My dad would take me and my brothers there on Saturday mornings so we wouldn't wake up the sleeping dragon my mother. That was a long time ago, and still the sleeping dragon my mother hates mornings. The bakery, however, has long since disappeared. In its place is St. Andrews Seafood Market. There are so many things to say about the fish market: the seafood is fresh, the oysters are the best, the deals are honest and good. But, what is one of the most notable aspects is the lady who runs the store, Mrs. Kim. Ohhhhhh, Mrs. Kim. There is truly no one like her. She is craaaazy. And, not only does she know it, she embraces it. It's awesome.

 

Mrs. Kim's always got something funny and most probably harmlessly inappropriate to say. Like yesterday, when I walked in, she greeted me with a warm smile and sized me up and said, "Happy holiday. Oooooh. You sexy lady. If I was man, I ask you out." Ahhh. I love it. And if I have one story like this, I've got a hundred. The lady is just always laughing and teaching her customers to say "thank you" and helping them to not take life quite so seriously. Every time I go in there, I leave with a smile. She's contagious. Now, if you're some uptight, pretentious soul, please don't go, but, if you enjoy a good sense of humor and quality seafood, you should make a trip.

 

Yesterday, I arrived home with six pounds of some good-looking jumbo shrimp, a free can of soda, compliments of Mrs. Kim, 8 juicy peaches, a watermelon, and a huge bag of boiled peanuts. More importantly, I walked away from those local shops feeling some of the goodness that still resides in people, and I love that that goodness will spill over into today.

Happy holiday, friends!