View From The Bridge 1/25/2012

“VIEW from the BRIDGE”
By Muncie
1-25-12

CONSORTIUM
At last, the weekend is almost upon us and our town will be host to the Performing Arts Consortium. Block next Saturday the 28th on your calendar and plan to spend an enjoyable time at the Fort Benton Elementary School. Be sure to be on time (9:00 a.m.) because if you are late you will have to wait until the Showcase that is performing is over. The schedule and times for each session can be viewed and printed at the Montana Performing Arts website at http://www.mtperformingarts.org/sub/schedule.htm   If you happen to see, any of the participants in local businesses…give them a warm Fort Benton welcome. Rumor has it that they love coming to our town because of the hospitality they are shown. I would venture to say that next to Summer Celebration/Chouteau County Country Christmas, the Consortium is a great boost for our economy.

CHILI COOKOFF
It will be very exciting to see who the best Chili cook in Fort Benton is. The honor comes with a down side and that is that the winner will be called upon to make chili for other events. However, the winner will be the kind of person who will be willing to do that. I know that I have put a heavy burden on the winner but that is what happens when you become famous. I just spoke with Linda about the cook-off. She had called to ask Wally and I to be judges because more people had signed up than she expected. We had to decline, as we are booked that day for the Consortium. We really would have like to be there. Last week Linda had 9 people signed up and this week she has 15. She also knows there will be more because there are people coming from Great Falls. It should be an old-fashioned rip-roaring time. A good time will be had by all.

LIBRARY “OOPS”
I reported last week that the Library scheduled a “Book Sale” for the day after Valentine’s Day. Wrong-o! The sale has always been on Valentine’s Day. On Monday February 13th at 3:00 p.m., volunteers will gather to set up the book sale. There are approximately 40 to 45 members in the Friends of the Library Organization. Please come and help set-up for a couple of hours. Anyone else who would like to help, please come-on-down. There are advantages to this volunteering as you get the first pick of the books.

SUNRISE, SUNSET
Last week I forgot to write about the sunrise and sunsets and it has been very interesting keeping track since winter began. The chart below shows that in four weeks we gained 4 minutes in the a.m. and thirty-nine minutes in the p.m. (I rechecked the figures and December 22nd and 28th are correct. The rise, instead of gaining, lost minutes.) I had thought it was more evenly distributed. Years ago, I kept track on my calendar but since then “it’s funny how time slips away.” I am aware that this may be boring to you but indulge my present mood of keeping up with the light world. It gives me another thing to think about and not concentrate on the world’s problems. It is said to “light one little candle” will change things but, at the moment, that seems so far fetched. Since I have not heard from anyone about this subject…I will carry on.

Date Rise Set
12-22 8:10 4:26
12-28 8:13 4:41
1-4 8:12 4:46
1-12 8:11 4:56
1-19 8:06 5:05

CHOUTEAU COUNTY COOKBOOK
The Methodist Church Cookbook is now at the printers. The Committee is anticipating an early spring completion. Upon delivery, there will be an ad in the River Press announcing the arrival and the location for sale of the books. This cookbook was a labor of love and many hours of organization went into the project. Spring is only two months away so watch for the ad. Chouteau County has so many fabulous cooks and bakers that have contributed to this project. This new cookbook is a great opportunity to show off their talents. Good luck to the Methodist Church for their efforts.

PANDEMIC WORKSHOP
This workshop being held in Fort Benton is a masterful piece of putting Fort Benton on the map not only in Montana but nationally. An article in the January 11th edition of the River Press tells the story of how this extraordinary workshop came about. Briefly, I will relate some of the story but refer to the above edition of the River Press for details. In August of 2010, Linda Williams participated in a workshop in Washington D.C. She talked about programs that Fort Benton had done on rural mass casualty response. The Institute of Medicine was looking for a rural community to participate and Fort Benton was chosen. Considering that Los Angeles was chosen as the large urban city and Chattanooga, Tennessee as the mid-size city, it was a great honor for the IOM to have chosen Fort Benton. Linda would like approximately 50 people to participate. They are looking for elderly, people with disabilities, and those who face barriers to accessing care. You need to register by calling Linda at 622-3751. The Workshop will be held on Thursday, February 9th from 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m.

SPORTS
We have not been able to attend many sports games in the last few weeks because of the cold weather. It is hard on us seniors. However, we follow every game as reported in the River Press. We are very proud of all the teams if they win or lose. It is the effort we hold the highest. We love all of you and your participation will hold you in high esteem in your life after high school.

SO LONG FOR NOW
Have a wonderful, enjoyable weekend everyone. It is going, according to weather reports, to turn chilly again for the weekend so bundle up when you go out. GOD BLESS AMERICA AND OUR TROOPS.