So I called Rena to see if she could come out and play.
When I called her number at the Dump, aka, The Boothbay Region Refuse Disposal District, I got a voice mail recorded message which said “Hi, this is Rena, I can't come out and play right now, and I can't take your call because the loader makes too much noise. Please leave a message and I will return your call after the shift.”
I decided not to leave a message and instead backed our pickup out of the shed and loaded up the pile of discarded wood, old pallets, trash collected from cottages I watch and many bags of recyclables that my wife had been saving since 1987. I figured I could catch up with Rena when I got over to Boothbay.
When I arrived at the dump I immediately saw why Rena was unable to take my call. There she was outside in the backhoe loading cardboard into the front bucket with an expression on her
face that wasn't alarming, but it wasn't just after Sunday school either. Smart aleck that I am, I called out to her, over the sound of things crashing.
“Hi Rena, will you be heading up to camp this evening or are you still working on your plans for the Bermuda vacation?” Rena gestured and said something I couldn't quite make out. I thought maybe she was telling me where I could put the load of lumber and pallets. I could have been mistaken.
Rena is not given to being overly expressive. An apple that didn't fall far from the tree of her mother who I knew for years as a waitress at “Ebb Tide” restaurant. She was also quiet and reserved. And the Ebb Tide often served evening meals for the Brunswick Naval Air Station Third Air Wing on Christmas Eve!
The machine that grinds up stuff had ground to a halt --- out of service for about three weeks. Rena indicated that it might be back on line soon and offered another gesture which I took to be directed at the nearby barking Jack Russell leaning out of a Suburban with New York license plates.
I'm sure Rena would appreciate a few kind words and a pat on the back for her efforts. Perhaps soon she will be able to take calls on her phone again.