Ol' Man Wiley Had a Farm

Hlay, Wiley Waldrep's old friend, drives by every now and then and laments the old days. He sees it all as a good example of the cycle of greed that has entangled the country in a big mess.

"What are they building?" he asks. "They are building those big homes. You can't buy those things. And you got people going in who can't afford them, and that's why we have the problems we have today."

Hlay is pleased about one thing, though. One of the small streets next to the land is called "Wiley Waldrep Farm Road." It's a nice memorial for the simple farmer who kept that little pocket of the world safe from the excesses of mortgagers and homebuilders for so many years — even though Waldrep would never have wanted to be anywhere near what's become of his farm these days.