Do you want to get a room?

“Do you want to get a room?”

“I don’t know”, I said “what do you think?” “Well I’ll stay if it’s decent, I don’t want to stay at a dump.” “Me either.” We travelled up the banks of the Ohio River towards our next destination in Chester, WV.

Travelling has become as natural to me as brushing my teeth when I get up. Sometimes I forget where I am, as the fog of my mind tries to focus and find clarity at 5:30 in the morning. My phone usually wakes me with my two daughters saying “Wake up Daddy; it’s time to get up.” I use them as my alarm ringtone to start off my morning. I’ve found the usual Hotel alarm clocks aren’t always reliable to start my day with.

As we come up SR 22 from Cambridge, OH and I77, we finally make a decision. The hotel chain we usually stay at has an unusually high daily rate, so we rely on the sole opinion of the project engineer we met last week. Our home for the week will be above a restaurant in downtown Chester, WV. We call and make arrangements for a late arrival with the clerk, which entails them leaving the keys (and I mean real keys, not the plastic magnetic strip type) outside behind a screen door.

What we found when we arrived was a quaint little town of Chester, has some of the most polite and hospitable people around. Call it southern hospitality or what ever you want, but if I couldn’t read a map, and didn’t know we were only 30 miles from the Pittsburgh airport, I would think we were a long way from what I’ve come to realize is an east coast charm.

We arrive at Connie’s Restaurant and Lodging on Carolina Ave at 11:45pm to find our keys and rooms waiting our arrival. We park in our rooms for a short night before our usual long days.

We awake to a beautiful morning of fog rolling off the Ohio River, and crystal smooth water. Chester mirrors the Ohio city of East Liverpool, and as opposite as a mirror image is the city of East Liverpool is of Chester. East Liverpool is a bigger but older more run down city. It looks similar to Old Louisville before the renewal projects. Both cities revolve around industry, steel mills, and the world famous Fester China, a product of the Homer Lauglin China Company.

At the end of our first long day, we thought we would give Connie’s Corner Restaurant a try, with hopes of finding a good home cooked meal. Without changing clothes we walk in to find warm smiles. As we waited to be seated, the owner Connie offered us a table. I ask if we were too dirty, or too late since it was 7:30pm and they close at 8pm. She assured us we were welcome.

The menu offers a variety of great home cooked meals, from pasta to burgers, steak to breakfast. I opted for a light breakfast to finish off my day. I even ask our waitress if I could go ahead and order my breakfast for the next morning since I was just staying above the restaurant. She laughed and told me she wouldn’t be here to put the order in. Connie’s doesn’t open up till 7am, which is about 30 minutes too late for us to eat breakfast there, but when Connie came over to great us she assured us that if we would like some coffee in the morning just come around the side of the building to the kitchen entrance and coffee would be ready. True to her word, Connie met us there at 6am to start breakfast, and had 3 black coffees ready to go.

I have travelled to 37 of the 50 states and 3 foreign countries. I spend a lot of time eating at restaurants while I travel, and Connie made us feel as if we came home. To Connie and Bob Hissam, the Restaurant and Lodging staff, a big Kentucky thank you for going the extra mile. The best part is the week has just begun; we’ll be here until Friday.

If life’s road ever finds you in Chester, WV, you should make a stop at Connie’s Corner Restaurant and Lodging, you won’t be let down. I recommend the home fries.


K note:

I like to think of myself as an observant person. I pay particular attention to people. No one in particular, just Joe Public’s mannerisms, they way they act when they don’t realize anyone are watching. That is why I mentioned the East Coast Charm earlier. My observations are these: We as Americans in the Midwest and the east coast regions are for the most part very impatient. To prove a point, go to any Wal-Mart in our part of the country and you can see people frustrated because the front row parking spots are all full. Another driver making the laps in the parking lot trying to park by the door. Ever have one of those drivers behind you at a stop light that when the light turns green their horn starts blowing before you even have time to release the brake. As if ‘Big Daddy’ Don Garlits (a drag racer) just missed the tree at the IHRA nationals. Where has our patience gone?

The first two days in Chester have proved to be the exception instead of the rule, friendly people, and great service. I find people pointing out to me the fact that I use or sir (old military habit) a lot. I was raised to be respectful and polite. I wish the y generation had such habits. My wife and I decided before we had children to pass that kind of respect on to them. It’s quite a surprise to the older generations to hear 10 and 12 year olds being polite. It’s out of the norm.

I believe that if my generation (X) would focus their minds and use the resources available to us; we could make an impact on this world that would change the course of our planet. We have the opportunity to do good in more places in the world, than ever before in history. We possess and employ the world’s best technology; we only lack the drive and motivation to do anything about it. My generation suffers from selfishness, and apathy. Now I’m talking on the whole, don’t take offense if this is not how you live your life. Try an experiment, spend one day this week and make an additional effort to be polite and kind, random acts of kindness.

Make today a good day; show someone else that you care.

Remember Look Up, Live Life, and Be Thankful

Kevin