On a recent vacation I road shotgun on the ride down and back. On that trip I came to realize that I had become “that guy.”

Sweet Corn 1 Mile, Warning: Crossing Deer,
Wooden bowls, Boiled Peanuts Ahead,
Shallotte, Boiling Springs, and Cape Fear,
Lake Time Vintiques, The Attic, Grandma’s Shed.

Peaches, Water Melons, and Blue Berries,
White Lake, Whiteville, and Lake Waccamaw
Cerro Gordo, Dirty Ankle, Mount Airy,
Laurinburg, Derby-Windblow, Burgaw.

Snead’s Grove, Piney Grove, Lumber River
Scotland County Recycling Center,
Pollo-Pasta-Pizza, We Deliver,
“Enterance”, Exit Only, Do Not Enter.

Reading aloud signs as we drive by,
I realize with age I’ve become that guy.

© Randall Edwards 2018.
Photograph: This work is from the Carol M. Highsmith Archive collection at the Library of Congress. According to the library, there are no known copyright restrictions on the use of this work.