Transactional small talk isn't my fav

You know how every grocery checker or salon service provider asks about your day or your fun plans for the rest of the day or other such small talk prompts? I suspect they really don’t care to know; it’s just something that’s designed to fill the silence until the next customer comes along.

I don’t mean to sound cynical, but I’m pretty sure the barely out of their teens checker’s interests and mine have little in common. A friendly mutual smile works for me. I mean, seriously, should I tell her/him that my husband recently retired and we’re still doing the seemingly endless paperwork? I can imagine their eyes glazing over.

I’m thinking of printing out a list of things that I’m doing this month and handing copies to those who inquire. Kind of like those letters that people include in Christmas cards mailed to people they haven’t interacted with for the past year.

Here’s my recap for July ... Bert’s official first day of retirement was July 1. He’s adjusting well. Me? I’m sure I will. There was my favorite holiday, the Fourth of July and then we spent a couple of days camping with friends in the Idaho Panhandle National Forest on the St. Joe River near Avery. We rode our side-by-side over 100 miles in those two days with glorious scenery but not-so-glorious bumpy dirt and gravel trails. I swam and floated in my backyard pool a time or two. I hugged my darling great-grandson, baby Bennett, who’s working on his ninja crawling technique. I rode in the Post Falls Festival Days parade with Bert and wasn’t in charge of anything except waving and smiling. Our three baby robins left the patio nest and didn't even wave goodbye.

This past weekend, I was on Main Street to emcee the Rathdrum Parade with our daughter, Sarah, who flew home for a few days. Enjoyed my sister and brother-in-law’s hospitality at their annual backyard barbecue for their friends, neighbors and customers, where I got to hug on my darling niece, Kristen, who also flew home for the weekend. Bert, Sarah and I enjoyed a fun Sunday afternoon tour of downtown Coeur d’Alene riding yak, elephant and unicorn scooters via Tour CDA. And coming attractions are the annual girlfriends' slumber party days at Anne’s lake cabin and a visit with my baby sister, Ronna, who’s coming home this weekend.

That should be enough to tide over the small talker’s curiosity. And if I sound a bit out of sorts this week, well, gray skies and 60-degree temperatures in one of my precious few sunny summer months will do it. 

The good news is that the forecast is for a return to sunshine and 80+ degrees and I'm sure my patience for small talk and sense of humor will follow.

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Happy birthday today to Katie Brodie, Steve Anthony, Jeremy Epstein, Marilee Wallace, Bill Singleton, Kris Olson-Wood, Carolyn Kreager, Ginger Harmala, Cassie Ohlig, Anne Kulinsky, Jessica McLean, Darin Hayes, Steve McCabe and Brett Surplus. Tomorrow, Marie Price, Tom Taggart, Karen Youman, Mark Hunsaker, Karen Prosser, Doug Miller, Shelby Stone, Anthony “A-Train” King and Srinivas Gundari blow out the candles. Larry Schwenke, Robin Schlotthauer, Alenna Blakeslee, Rich Nicolson and Karen King do the birthday dance Friday. Celebrating on Saturday are Doreen Mack, Marla Giese, Deb Miller, Marlo Gerber, Nick Epstein, Kelsey Wood and Lois Johnson. On Sunday, my brother-in-law, Rick Scharf, Ann Beutler, Larry Trosper, Gail Everson, Brady Campbell, Shelly Zollman, Rich May and Brian Thormahlen put on their party hats. Taking another trip around the sun Monday are Jan Nelson, Bekah Manderscheid, Cathy Werner, Zack White, Hank Wayman, John Hensley, Debra Wunderlich, Norm Loftin, Darrell Rickard and Karen Englestad. Celebrating on July 29 are Tanya Peugh, Mark Anthony and Alisa Loftin-Ward.

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Kerri Rankin Thoreson is a member of the National Society of Newspaper Columnists and the former publisher of the Post Falls Tribune. Main Street appears every Wednesday in The Press and Kerri can be contacted on Facebook or via email [email protected].