I’m not sure if It’s a small-town phenomenon or not. I intend to pay more attention and see if my theory is right. At issue is the matter of community bulletin boards.

Today I paused long enough to actually read some of the stuff covering such a board at the local grocery store. It’s about five feet wide by four feet high and the largest indoor bulletin board in this village of 500. It was plastered with signs from top to bottom. There are two large outdoor boards: one beside the post office and another on Main Street. I know the school has several for their very specific audience. There are also smaller ones in various businesses.

There were two notices offering pickup trucks for sale. Each of them included a photo and the familiar fringe of phone number strips at the bottom of the page. There were only three or four missing for the 40,000 dollar truck.

If you can’t afford one of the trucks, how about a dusty-rose wing chair? Maybe you’ve already got the chair but nowhere to plunk it. I was surprised to see two posters asking for a place to live. How thrilled would anyone be to accommodate a ?senior woman with dog?? I don’t mean the senior, I mean the dog. A bit much to want in a rental, I suspect.

Maybe You’re interested in buying a property in Andrew for only $159,000: two bedrooms, large garage. While I can’t exactly picture the property in question the lots all tend to be large; could be a deal for the right people.

And of course in rural Alberta It’s not so much spring as it is auction sale season. A stack of Lindstrand Auction sale posters was front and centre. Posters have come a long way since the one my parents got decades ago when they left the farm. Today’s auction posters include full colour photos, graphics, and website backup for more info.

Not every notice has a commercial bent. How about attending a session on completing grant applications? Or the notice advising that the 40-year-old Andrew Sportoff Days held every Canada Day weekend since the country’s centennial are officially over because no one is willing to sit on the organizing committee?

Of course, there are the requisite notices about upcoming events both in town and in neighbouring communities. How else would anyone know about spring tea and bake sales, drama productions, skating carnivals, or the restart of the farmers? market for the season? How else would anyone know where to get free kittens, after all? Soon the garage sale posters will appear because there’s a lot of good stuff that needs to change hands.

With my kids gone and my business closed my pipeline to what’s happening in and around town is severed. I’m glad I took the time to check out the board and get back into the loop, at least momentarily. Scoping out the bulletin board near you makes for some fine reading, from where I sit.