September 11

Yesterday I took our 1998 VW Bug that we inherited from my mom and dad to the shop - last car dad ever bought, and he even called me when he was in the process of buying it, to joke that it was probably OK for an old Jew to buy a VW, more than 50 years after the end of WWII. My younger son had it at camp all summer, and essentially ripped off the bottom of it, driving on back roads and parking in a field.

The car place gives you one free cab ride, and I used up mine after dropping the car, so I took the bus to pick up the Bug (my bike won't fit into it, even though it's a nice ride out there). I got off the bus and was walking though the suburban strip - fast food joints, car dealerships, landscaping company - and I went past a Culvers, a frozen custard chain here in the Midwest. Their signs have always struck me as funny - they run the titles of their specials together, like "Pork BBQ Chocolate Chip Lemon Ice". So this time, I read the sign as "We Remember Taco Salad". I thought that was pretty funny, Taco Salad being one of those American fusion foods like Chop Suey, that I wouldn't think would arouse much nostalgia in anyone, unless they are the type to get misty-eyed over eating at Burger King or MacDonald's, or the school lunch room. It took focusing on the top of the sign, which said "Red White & Blueberry", for me to realize that they were remembering 9/11/2001, while serving Taco Salad, and red, white & blueberry frozen custard.