Ever had one of those times that something brings back a memory of someone you haven't thought of in years, and then all the memories come flooding back?  Everybody at work is talking about this place in the area that has both male and female strippers.  The waitresses are teasing some of the guys that they ought to go there and dance part time!  I kept thinking "I know somebody that used to do that," but I couldn't remember who it was.  I've worked an awful lot of places.  But then it came back to me that who I kept thinking about was Mary.  I worked in this really rough place.  We were open 24 hours a day.  The manager was a defrocked priest, and Mary was the hostess.  We got talking about strippers one day, and I had commented that I'd known some. One of the waitresses giggled and said "Well, you know another one!  Mary used to do that.  Haven't you noticed the pictures in the entranceway?  That's her when she used to dance!"
 I had walked by the pictures of the young girl in the skimpy costume I don't know how many times, and never even noticed the resemblance.  But sure enough, when I took a closer look, there was no question that young lady was Mary!  When I saw her again I asked her how many years she had danced.  She said "For twenty years.  I was fifteen when I started and I quit when I was thirty-five.  Just didn't have the stamina any more, though everybody said I still had the looks."  
And she most certainly did, because she was still nice looking, even then!  "I bet you've got some wild stories to tell!"  I commented.  
"Well, to tell you the truth," Mary answered, "I really don't!  I had very little happen in all the years I've danced.  There was only one incident that I could really say was really a problem, and that wasn't much."
 "Tell me about it!"  I pleaded.
"Well," Mary continued, "I was dancing in this roadhouse in Tennessee.  I got done and went to get paid and the owner refused to pay me.  He said the customers had been disappointed with my performances.  I hadn't pleased some of them enough, meaning of course, I hadn't gone out with them.  I can tell you, I was some upset! I got a ride to the bus station and barely had enough to get home!  The lady at the counter saw how unhappy I was and asked what was wrong.  I explained and she muttered "That cheap damned bastard!"  A few minutes later a big pot bellied sheriff waddled in.  "Come with me, miss," he grunted, "right now!  Just leave your things here."
I thought "Oh my God!  I'm in trouble now!"  He took me out to his car and drove me back to the roadhouse, ushered me inside, grabbed the owner by the ear, and hauled him to the cash register.  "You've got five minutes to pay this young lady," he roared, "so I can get her back to her bus!  Pay her right now, every cent she's due!"
The owner moaned he didn't owe me anything.  The sheriff screamed "I said pay her, RIGHT NOW!"
The owner grumbled, opened the cash register, counted out the money, and gave it to me  "She doesn't deserve it!" he argued.  The sheriff grunted, snapped "Come along, miss!" and drove me back to the bus station. When we got there I asked the sheriff how much I owed him.  He looked rather cross and said "Nothing, dearie.  I'm not having any young woman cheated in MY county, not as long as I'm sheriff!"
"I swear to you," Mary continued, "that's the worst incident I ever had, in twenty years of dancing, except for the time we were marooned twenty days one place I was working because of a blizzard!  There were some unhappy wives in that community when their husbands got home!"
 "I bet there were!"  I answered. "I'd say you were one lucky lady to be in that business all those years, and have that little bit of trouble!"
 "You're probably right!"  Mary agreed.  "I've got a good nest egg in the bank.  I could retire now, if I wanted to.  The only thing is, I'd be bored to death!  I like to keep busy and this place keeps you busy!"
"That it does!"  I agreed, "That it does!"
Yes, it's nice when memories of nice people just come flooding back!  You wonder how they made out.  Strangely, people I know in my lifetime very rarely contact me from The Afterlife, I can never understand why.  But when they get over There and find out what I actually do they tend to stay away, and I wish they wouldn't.  It's nice to hear from old friends again.  Of course knowing Mary's character she's probably already been reborn and is making some man very happy someplace.  I think The Afterlife would probably be too boring for her.  No, there's no doubt of it, knowing Mary it would be!