Advocate columnist Ellen Raff received lots of feedback on her August column, “Lakewood wannabes.” Some cheered her on; others booed her. The Advocate welcomes all kinds of feedback, and we especially enjoyed some of the handwritten, snail-mail responses to Raff’s commentary.
The first is included in this post for your viewing pleasure. (Hint: Click on it for a larger version.) We’ll type it out, too, but really, looking at this postcard makes it all the more enjoyable. It’s a letter from G.L. of Audelia Road, who identifies himself on the other side of the postcard as “age 56” and explains his subsequent words as “Re: Dual Communities’ Strive-alry?” From what we can tell, his votes for retail development in our neighborhood would be for nostalgia and good old-fashioned comfort food. Plus, it’s evident that he is a big fan of punctuation.
Read G.L.’s letter plus another take on Raff’s column, after the jump:
“Having lived on Larchfield from 1961 to 1970, and also having lived in ‘North’ Lakewood (off Sperry) from ’81-2000, I, now an anonymous ‘75238*”-apartment-dweller’ denizen, think ‘Retro-Stimulus Commercial Redefinition’ of Northlake/Lake Ridge shopping centers and Lake Highlands Plaza would have to mostly re-entail:
1. a (reborn) Hardee’s
2. a Winchell’s/Dunkin’ Donuts spot (of that ilk)
3. a (resurrected Dairy Queen; Wendy’s is lousy
4. a (comeback-kid) Griff’s Hamburgers
5. a (renaissanced), extant Kip’s Big Boy
6. a (reanimated) A&P supermarket (Recall Northlake shopping center’s A&P?)
7. (maybe, perhaps) a combination or “piggy-backing” collaboration between … DQ and Orange Julius
* I don’t know why, but when Kingsley Road at Audelia turned into Walnut Hill, this stretch of Audelia became: Odd Deal-ya?”
We also received this kind note from Rebecca Tudor of Summerhill Lane:
“Ms. Raff,
This note is in response to your more than magnificent back page editorial ‘Lakewood wannabes.’ It was all it should have been — a hoot, accurate, professional and too much fun — exactly what so many of us have long thought and infrequently shared. Thanks for saying it all, with such fun and accuracy.
Rebecca S. Tudor”