Our store, Mountain View Mercantile (originally he O.R. Case Building) by Granny Chicken

The old pickup truck stopped to let me cross the street. The two passengers smiled and waved to me. Though I had never met these two men, I returned the wave and the smile, as I heard the driver yell out his window “Hey, Linda- If you need anything while your hubby is out of town next week, you just holler at us.” Feeling as if I was living on the movie set of Mayberry, along with Andy, Opie and Aunt Bee, I had officially settled into small town living.

I can honestly say that I never once was afraid to stay in that large building all by myself. Even on dark, rainy nights, I felt as if someone had their arms around me. Granny Chicken said that was probably Mr. O.R. Case, the building’s owner, who was glad it was being looked after.

Named by her grandson since she was the grandma with the chickens, Granny Chicken was a local artist who painted in the primitive style. A bit eccentric and dressed in her signature print dress and straw hat, she wandered into the store one afternoon. Having just read about her in a tourism publication, we struck up a conversation and made a date to meet for lunch. Soon after, I took a crash course in primitive art, started carrying her art on consignment in the store and became her agent.

Together, we traveled to events sponsored by the Department of Parks and Tourism to promote the Ozarks and Mountain View. Granny turned out to be more connected than I had imagined. She introduced me to then Governor Clinton and his family at the Governor’s mansion. At Winrock Farms, the Rockefeller estate, we clapped along as Winthrop Rockefeller sat on a bale of hay and played the spoons, but not before he had welcomed her personally. I remember thinking that the folks back home will never believe this.

It seemed that whatever I needed would just appear. Pouring over old books in the local library, I found just the right logo for the store. Hoping to find some original recordings back from the building’s era, I was surprised to find a collector of vintage music sitting against the building playing just such music and happy to sell me some tapes. Complete with that authentic tinny sound, it made for wonderful background music in the store. I was surprised when, out of the blue, a packaging salesman walked into the store asking if I needed any supplies. Keeping with the theme and my budget, I stamped my logo on brown bags and used bright colored tissue paper and rope as gift wrap.

Between the local cast of characters dropping in (my favorite was the local baker, a New York transplant, who resembled Woody Allen) and the tourists visiting, every day was an adventure. Students from the Soviet Union and China, soil and conservation experts from Morocco, Africa and South America and groups of senior RVers; you never knew what to expect.

Living in a tourist town did have its benefits. Visitors were upbeat, the small community supported each other and, together, worked hard to put their best foot forward. Somewhere between the advice of the other store owners (open when you want, close when you’ve had enough) and my methodical personality, I found my rhythm and enjoyed the ride.

Author’s Note:
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