When
I paid the venerable Waterbury Howard Johnson's a quick visit
in March of 2001, the bickering partners had not yet reached
a settlement. The situation was unbeknownst to me, and as soon
as I arrived began to snap a few pictures before heading inside
to have dinner. Only a moment after I took the above shot from
across Main Street up a treacherous snow covered embankment,
Kristina Bakes (current owner) came screaming out of the restaurant's
front door. She demanded to know what I was doing and for me
to put the camera away!! Ms. Bakes refused to believe that I
was taking pictures merely to document the restaurant, and moreover
I informed her that I was not violating her "rights"
by snapping photos from the public right-of-way. She must have
assumed that I was a spy gathering evidence for her rival, and
simmered down only a bit as I walked with her inside the restaurant
to be seated.
Dinner
was uncomfortable at best, as she and her entourage kept a watchful
eye on my every move. Ironically her business has received much
FREE publicity both directly and indirectly from my photos and
visits to her establishment.