Service stations a thing of the past
You guessed it – My walk down memory lane has made it to ‘Prissie’s’ column. But this is legit and as Opie would say, “It’s been weighing on my mind.” When is the last time you drove into a service station to get gas? I can tell you, it’s been a while for me! My stepfather, Hugh Perdue managed Pelt’s Service Station on the Greenwood Highway (right before you get to the new Green’s Supermarket). He didn’t have a bell that you could run over and it rang to signal there was a customer there for gas. He had two eyes always on the pumps and two legs and he greeted customer after customer from 6:00 a.m. until 7:00 p.m. seven days a week. The thought of letting someone jump out and pump their own gas never entered his mind. And never, ever would he have let a lady pump their gas.
You don’t have to go that far back in your memory bank to remember Wally’s Service Station in Mayberry, North Carolina. Limited abilities taken into consideration, Gomer and Goober were always there, always smiling, cleaning your windshield, checking your tires, your oil, and your transmission fluid. You never had to get out of your car – not even to pay. Just hand the money over and the change would be returned in a flash.
The demise of the gas stations across the country is something you won’t see brought back I am afraid. And what a shame. I used to love talking to the attendant and as a 16-17-year-old being a little bit of a pain to them. Tyler Oil Company was new to Marianna during that time, and they had the best gas around – American Oil or Amoco Oil (Jim Tyler please clarify for me). Back to the story, gas went out of sight for the time back then. I can remember being on a budget, a very tight budget and driving up to get literally 50 cents worth of gas. That was barely two gallons at the time. But we were able to see folks and talk to whoever else was there getting gas, drinks, or whatever. For the most part, gas stations are open 24/7 at the pumps. You just pull up, insert your card, get your gas, and go on your merry way.
Once again, I’m OLD, I like to see people, converse with people, know who is getting my money, evaluate their service, let the higher-ups know how well or not so well their employees did. I have no issues with convenience and welcome it, however I do like personal service. I don’t do self-checkout and will not do self-checkout. No matter what the upper management tells you about it’s not costing people jobs, it is. How can you put six (and many times more) checkouts with no one manning them except the customer who’s doing someone’s job. Say that is not taking jobs from people. It is and if you feel the same way, speak up next time you walk into a store and see no cashiers, but a row of cash registers waiting for you to do the job of checking yourself out although those costs are figured into the items you are buying. Think about it – it'll sink in if you think long enough.
I miss the local shops downtown because you never ever had to worry about being catered to or waited on, there was always ample amount of help. From Westmoreland’s IGA with help in every department available to help you to Daffin’s Department store with fully-staffed-departments, material, patterns, and threads was a department that has long since gone by the wayside, but shoes, men’s, women, children, and infants wear all had capable help to serve you. Go upstairs to home goods and there were knowledgeable sales personnel in linens, china, cookware, and everything in between.
Today, we do have some local shops that are well staffed. They’re personable, know their customers or quickly get to know them. Think of them first and foremost when you need to purchase something and if they have what you’re looking for, patronize them. Tell them you appreciate the sacrifice they make every day to serve them, the risks they take in owning a business that is dependent on customers. Today’s times are hard, money is stretched at a whole new level so keep that in mind when choosing your businesses to frequent. This week was short and sweet, so it won’t hurt my feelings if you read it again and humor me with a visit to your locally owned businesses this week! That’s it from Prissie.