Harry Potter and the Small Town Theater

One of the things I've forgotten about big city life -- waiting in lines. Whenever I'm in a city, it seems I spend half my time waiting. Going to dinner and a movie takes all night. You battle traffic and sit through lights. You wait for a table at a restaurant, then you wait in line at the theater. Some theaters even herd crowds from ticket booth to a waiting station before releasing you to access the concession stand and enter the movie theater.

In Ruidoso I rarely have to wait in line. Last night I went to see the sixth Harry Potter movie. It was a 9:15 showing. I left my house at 5 'til 9, arrived at the theater at 9:13. Got my ticket, my popcorn and a Coke, and I was in my seat before the previews were done. Had plenty of elbow room, too. Now, you can't do that in a town like Albuquerque or El Paso. It was like my magic wand cleared all obstacles before me.

Same story when it comes to restaurants. Whenever I'm in El Paso, I'm always frustrated with the fact that going out to dinner means waiting around at the restaurant for a table. Sometimes you sit around for an hour, sometimes you get lucky and the wait is only 15 or 20 minutes. 15 or 20 minutes! In Ruidoso, we walk into our favorite restaurant and they seat us. Unless it's an extremely busy weekend at the height of ski season, there's no waiting (and the locals don't go out to eat on the busy weekends). You'd need Hermione's gifts to get a table so easily in most cities.

I've gotten so spoiled by our small town that I get grumpy when traffic is heavy enough that I have to actually wait to make a left-hand turn or flip a U-ey in the middle of the highway. I like it when I can stand in the middle of the road and talk to a friend who has stopped his vehicle (in the road) and we won't be in anyone's way for a good 2 or 3 minutes. It's just one of those magical small town qualities, like calling up the room of requirement at Hogwart's. Around here you don't have to be Harry Potter on Liquid Luck to make an evening roll smoothly; that's just the natural state of things.