So, Which Matus News Stand?

In the years not too far back, there was a Matus news stand on three corners of Public Square. Not always right on the corner, but close by. Three of them.

Leo figured the foot traffic (and possibly car movements) went only one way. If you were on the South Main side, you would not want to go across to the east store; likewise, if you were on the western side, you might not care to cross two streets on the Square, or head over to the South Main side.

All three prospered and it’s quite likely customers to one never saw the inside of another. We’re like that; we have our paths and our stores which may never vary in a lifetime.

I’ve just never seen a concentration of news stands like that. It might also have been the bus parking spots: each route had its spot on the Square and, except for one side, you were within a few yards of a store.

For whatever reason, there’s only one left. Or, only one Matus news stand; there always was another, literally a stone’s throw from two of Leo’s places.

The other was a good place to get zip paper, bongs, scales and all the things you need except “the product” itself. The owners play innocent, but City Council finally blew up and started talking plainly about what they were selling and said all that stuff wasn’t so you could enjoy your cigarettes.