Cletus and the Frozen Pipes

A few weeks ago Vickie and I went up to Nelson County to get some apples. For a number of years we’ve enjoyed eating at The Lovingston Café and so after our time at the orchard we stopped at the café for lunch.

I struck up a conversation with a man at an adjacent table who was down from Pittsburg for the weekend. Then, as the waitress was taking our order she and I talked about the weather.

She said, “Last winter it was so cold that our pipes running under the concrete slab of our house froze. I sure hope this winter isn’t so cold.”

I said, “Well, at least you didn’t do what my cousin Cletus did last winter. His house is also built on a slab with the pipes beneath the slab. Because he was afraid that his pipes would freeze he built a fire on his floor to keep them warm. The problem was that he burned his house down.”

“Oh my,” the waitress replied, “our problem wasn’t that bad.”

Later on, as the visitor from Pittsburg rose to leave I said, “Enjoy your trip.”

He responded, “Thanks; and I’ll be thinking about your cousin.”

I wonder if the folks up in Pittsburg are talking about my cousin Cletus. Come to think of it I wonder if the folks in Nelson County are talking about him too.