Darrell resides in the town of Eden, the outskirts of which I pass
through regularly when traveling between Greensboro and
Martinsville.. I rarely go into Eden’s downtown (it actually has three,
but that’s whole ’nuther story), but geocaching led me there today. A recently
published Adventure Lab cache sends hunters to five separate locations in Eden that feature
noteworthy works by local artists. Last night, I had to head to the old
hometown for an appointment this morning, so on my way up — despite a
torrential rainstorm — I stopped at three of the cache’s five stages (yes, I
got wet; yes, I had fun). The weather turned out considerably better this
morning, so on my way back home, I stopped at Darrell’s place — a shop called
Sophisticated Rubbish
— to make his acquaintance.
Previous caches have drawn me to this location, but those were prior to
Darrell taking up residence. He is, indeed, flat — a near-life-size piece of
sheet metal attached to a mural on the side of the shop building. This little
corner of Eden has really undergone an agreeable transition, with numerous
shops and places to dine. The pandemic certainly does not have impacted local
businesses too negatively.
Any town that welcomes Bigfoot as a resident is all right by me. Thanks, Eden.
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Just across the way from Darrell’s residence, you will find a little park with a mural promoting the town. There have been a handful of different caches placed here over the years. An earlier mural here, called “River Boat Men: Dan River Trading, 1792–1892,” depicted black men rowing batteaux on the Dan River. It was changed in 2020, when some members of the community objected to it for glorifying of a part of history they felt best relegated to the past. |
