Virginia Ritan's Poor Excuse

At the request of a recent Dutch musician and new friend, I meandered over to Middletown city offices to collect recent MiddFest memorabilia. Saying hello to other office staff on my way up to the fourth floor, I was in good spirits as usual. Judge Mark Wall's bailiff, Gene came by and gave me a hug. Dot Dunlap was really sweet. Nonetheless, I made my request at MiddFest offices and a lady failing to introduce herself grew defensive at my efforts to honor a commitment that I am still going to honor. She actually seemed as if she did not want me to gather anything for our Dutch friends but insisted that she be the only one to send this memorabilia. She then tried to touch the ceiling lights with her nose and stomped away. I was shocked to find that this lady is none other than Virginia Ritan, MiddFest International Chairwoman. In the minute or so that she spoke to me I concluded a sad but voluminous image of Mrs. Ritan.

Ms. Ritan, you do not rule the solar system. Perhaps the rooster did not crow at your house this morning. Indeed you are why national polls consider %65 of Americans rude. You would be more suitable in fueling the negativity prevailing within the city. While you may think you are geared toward hosting international guests, please don't forget that charity starts at home. If you can not treat your fellow Americans with respect and dignity, how do you manage to fake your way in welcoming our foreign visitors? Please don't embarrass us in front of our foreign visitors. Remember, you do not run a kiss-my-address club. You are just another Middletown citizen like me. Most of all, you are a complete embarrassment to Middletown. You are what we in the south call a typical Yankee and rude to boot. You are why gravity is lost north of the Ohio river. Middletown and Middfest are not about you. If anything the two are about all of us. The recent Middfest was the most successful I had ever attended because of our Dutch visitors, volunteers and festival enthusiasts. I did not know you existed until I came to your office. Don't ever forget this reality.

As I strolled around the vicinity collecting memorabilia, businesses were happy to contribute based on how Virginia Ritan presented herself to me. I even ran into the lovely Deb Silverman from Cincinnati's WCPO news. Mrs. Silverman remembered our August interview. A business owner invited over to her home to join her, her husband and dogs for fellowship. The Middletown Journal contributed some news articles for my collection. Management at Manchester Inn made a contribution. Steve Murphy, in charge of Middletown Metro system was nutty as ever. All of these wonderful people are extremely busy but always happy to take time out for anything I need. No sucking up required.

Maybe we don't meet Virginia Ritan's standards, whatever they may be, but we are respectful of those around us no matter whom they are . Hey Virginia! You forgot to ask me "how are you?" In case you were wondering; I am fine and it's great to always be fine. You should try it sometime. While you may not care how you present yourself within the community, I do. I don't want to find myself on someone's blog acting like you did today in your office. So why is Virginia Ritan so special? Well the problem is that she is the only soul that thinks she is special. How sad. Imagine how much she is missing out on by distancing herself from so many wonderful people around her. Mrs. Ritan if you can not equally respect all Middletown citizens and contribute to a positive image for Middletown, maybe France is for you.

Until the next dive-bomb my darlins, MEOW!