Merritte.blog

The man wanted ice. No. He Needed ice. It’s lunchtime, 11:35 AM in the Veterans Canteen Services Cafeteria in the John J. Cochran in downtown St.Louis. 3 men are gathered around the 2 coke-branded soda fountains, and he needed ice. A 24-ounce Veterans Canteen Services branded disposable cup was taken off the top of the stack and the man pushed it against the metal bar of the ice dispenser of the first fountain, and the machine rumbled to life, but no ice was dispensed. He sighed, his grey eyebrows furrowing along with the lines of his forehead that broadcast he probably had stories to tell. He needed ice. To the dispenser at the second fountain he turned. Again the machine’s gears turned as if it was a beast awakening from slumber. After 47 seconds of the man activating the ice dispenser with his cup and hand adorned with a class ring and fingers that both have seen decades of work, a single ice cube was dislodged, hitting the bottom of the cup with hollow tone. The man needed ice. His eyes looked down at the drain grate of the soda fountain, a black grill pattern reminiscent of so many backyard barbecues, and beneath the wet metal he saw his prize. He needed ice. That same hand that had done so much labor over the years and tried to entice ice from the machine had a new job now. Half of the drain grate was swiftly removed and placed perpendicularly on its sibling, forming a cross as if reinforcing that this man’s prayers had been answered. He reached down to the small mound of ice, gleaming slightly in their partially-melted state, grabbing a handful of the discarded treasure and funneling it into the erstwhile waxed paper cup turned monument to ingenuity. The man got his ice. He dispensed his 105,342nd lifetime Coke Classic to top off his cold accomplishments, applied the plastic lid, and walked to the counter to pay for his spoils with 2 dollar bills.

Just want to brag about my mom a bit, today she retired after 40 years as a renal dietician, helping thousands of dialysis patients over her career! http://ift.tt/2rwBfOU

Thank you Thank You Thank You @whitelinespaper! I bought a half dozen of your A4 link notebooks when they were first introduced years ago, and just finally filled them all this fall. When I discovered I couldn't find them anymore in America I was really bummed. I sincerely appreciate the samples of the new American sized editions! Look forward to the new webstore! #bestnotebooks #whitelines #stationarynerd http://ift.tt/2iFUPEx

Celebrating #hanukkah with a hanukkream filled #donut @strangedonuts http://ift.tt/2isrwnE

Giving thanks to all the veterans today, especially 1SG Merritté. #veteransday http://ift.tt/2fF6O3p

#earlyvoting #ohio #franklincounty #ohio #imwithher http://ift.tt/2fGAYqT

When you see Bae. Cc: @meganmodene #stretch #dachshundsofinstagram #dog #weinerdog #icecream #dachshund http://ift.tt/2e0Xubc

#michigancentralstation #detroit http://ift.tt/2diZKXv

#hitsvilleusa #motown #detroit http://ift.tt/2e50JwN

#dothouse #heidelbergproject http://ift.tt/2dzWOqx

Caught Stretch doing some political message board trolling this morning. http://ift.tt/2dLfBjK

Pick a color. #cootiecatcher #fortuneteller http://ift.tt/2dfgxfY

Stretch is already done with today. #nose #dachshundsofinstagram #dachshund #weinerdog #dog http://ift.tt/2dkib27

I feel you Stretch #rainyday #dachshund #dachshundsofinstagram #weinerdog #dog http://ift.tt/2clXa61

Happy #nationaldogday from Stretch. #dachshund #dachshundsofinstagram #dogsofinstagram http://ift.tt/2brktaR