View From The Bridge 11/5/14

VIEW from the BRIDGE
By Muncie
11/5/14

VETERANS DAY
You are all invited to the Dedication Memorial for William “Billy” Swensgard on Veterans Day, Tuesday 11/11/14, at 2:00 p.m. Afterward, proceed on to the Golden Age Senior Center for refreshments and conversation about Billy.

The V.F.W. has also has invited Veterans and their families to the annual Veterans Day dinner at the Sunrise Bluffs. The time of arrival should be 5:30 and dinner will be served at 6:00 p.m.

Please make an effort to come to the Dedication as Billy was the only soldier killed in Vietnam from Fort Benton. We will also remember a young man from Big Sandy who was killed and the only one from that town. There is no one from his family left behind.

See you there.

CREEPY CRAWL
What a fun day that turned out to be.  I began at noon to walk Front Street. I had a copy of the River Press with me to check off the businesses that were participating and the ones I should visit. It was a gorgeous day weather wise at 71 degrees. No sweaters, jackets or coats interfered with my costume. I was not “Maxine” that day but a vampire. I purchased it at the Price Rite last year and found it hanging in the upstairs closet. I really did not look like a vampire because I could not find a set of vampire teeth. I did put red lipstick drops of blood down my cheek that helped the effect a bit more.

I appeared and disappeared as if by magic from the businesses listed except the new Ambulance Garage. I decided to do the Pub Crawl because spiders and spider legs had to be turned in at the Grand Union. I had not realized that the Pubs had spider legs. I finally found a Crawler to go with me and we hit all the Friday and Saturday night hangouts. We went in the front door or the establishments and out the back door. We finalized with the Ambulance Garage where the ghouls and ghost-ies had made a fire. They were putting together Some-mores. I declined the graham crackers and marshmallows but quickly ate a good hunk of chocolate. Ummee! I had collected that day, several bars of candy, a brownie, a donut, and a cup of pudding with chocolate crumbs on top. I controlled myself and saved the candy for Trick or Treaters visiting my home. (Honest.)

By the time we arrived at the Grand Union, I had 22 spider legs and had to fill out 22 slips of paper with my name and phone number. I headed for home and since no one called me by midnight, I assumed that I did not win any prizes. However, it was the most fun evening I have had for a long while. (P.S.) I know I was the oldest vampire on the Crawl.)

C.C.P.A.
On Tuesday, November 18th will be another Chouteau County Performing Arts performance. One of my friends at the Golden Age Senior Center told me that she had her piano tuned by a man who came from Helena. He is scheduled to tune the grand piano at the Elementary School sometime this week. He said that Tie n Hsieh was the most fantastic artist he has ever heard.

I do not know if she incorporates classical with other forms of music but the following is a description on the flyer. She is a serious, composed, and full of music pianist. She expresses a warmth and freshness in classical music that has made her one of the hottest artists on the west coast. (I am so happy she is from the west coast. Anything or anyone east of the Mississippi makes me uncomfortable. You know the attitude of Easterners. This does not cover any artists that we have had in Fort Benton who are from east of the Mississippi.)

RECYCLE
A few weeks ago there was a program on Sixty Minutes about plastic bags. Perhaps some of you readers saw it and if I do not have the facts correct, let me know.

Americans use FIFTY (50) BILLION plastic bags a year for about 20 minutes for each. That is a whole lot of bags Folks. Please, please use cloth bags. I have talked to Price Rite about getting some cloth bags in again. Another alternative is to ask for paper bags. They can be recycled and actually used several times.

I asked up, down, and around town and I get the same answer as my excuse. “I have cloth bags but I forget to take them out of the vehicle when I get to the store.” One bright young woman said that she put a note on her dashboard. I keep mine on the passenger seat since I do not have a passenger. I know that is not the answer for most of you. I have also had several cashiers remind me that I have forgotten the bags when I walk into the store.

Benton Pharmacy has neat smaller white (now green) cloth bags. If you forget to take your bags in, you could not use a plastic bag if you only have a few items. Please make an effort to recycle. It soon becomes a habit and doing automatically is such a breeze. Happy recycling day and every day is a recycle day.

THUNDERBOLT AND LIGHTFOOT
I received another cute story about the movie. I really enjoy them and I appreciate hearing from you. Dusty Keuhner sent this one to me. “When the movie was being made, my Uncle Marvin was a mechanic for Rice Motors in Great Falls. Somewhere in the movie there is a shot of Clint and Jeff’s car in the service space at Rice Motors. Uncle Marvin was under the vehicle on one of the little sleds on rollers. If you look quickly, you can see his feet.”

Dusty went on to say that back in the days when any of the family was watching that movie, we would talk about our uncle being in it. When his feet showed, we would all shout, “There his is!”

It reminds me of the movie, “Somewhere in Time.” It was made at the Grand Hotel on Mackinaw Island in Michigan. A friend of ours was working the summer there during his college years and was recruited to be a member of the orchestra in the dining room. As many times as I have watched that movie, I have never seen him. My family would also shout, “There he is!” I never saw him but just knowing that he is in the movie makes it special. ”Cut and print.” End of story.

MONTANA
4. The Montana Yogo Sapphire is the only North American Gem included in the Crown Jewels of England.

5. In Montana it is a felony for a wife to open her husband’s mail. (Boo, Hiss. I wonder if that law is still in effect and can the husband open the wife’s mail without it being a felony? Who is with me on a protest march to Helena?)

6. Montana is the only state bordering three Canadian provinces, Saskatchewan, Alberta, and British Columbia.

GOD BLESS AMERICA, OUR TROOPS and WEAR RED ON FRIDAYS.