View From The Bridge 11/23/14

“View from the BRIDGE”
By Muncie
11/23/14

HAPPY THANKSGIVING
I know that I said it last week but it bears repeating. As of today, (Monday afternoon,) it looks as though there may be some problems traveling. Start early and take your time if you are going to be on the road. Have a great holiday and I am sure that there will be stories to share.  I would be thankful if you would share them with me.

I must get out to the shed and find the Santa Hats. It was a ritual for us. Actually, I have a purple Carroll College Santa Hat. When I am out and about around town, please do not say to me that I should be wearing “RED EVERY DAY” before Christmas. Who should I be loyal to? I know…I’ll wear the red one on Fridays.

DECEMBER MOON
This is an update on the full moon that is due on December 6th. You would only have two days’ notice after the 12/3 edition of the River Press is in your mail. I do not, as I think back, that I saw the full moon in November because it was overcast. I did see it the next night.

The full moon on December 6th is called the Full Cold Moon or the Full Long Night Moon for obvious reasons. Just think though, two weeks later, the days begin getting longer. I hope that makes you feel better about the cold and the long nights. No! Not much on these cold and dark nights. This past week was somewhat encouraging. We didn’t get the snow flurries and rain they predicted for late Saturday evening and today Sunday. Let’s count our blessings that we are not like Buffalo, N.Y. The only thing I like about that is their name.

C.C. CHRISTMAS CONCERT
It is lining up to be the best ever. I feel that local talent is the more enjoyable. They love living here or they would not be here. They share much of the daily living of our small communities. They breathe the same air that we do. That means a lot to me and I am anxiously waiting for that day, a week from next Sunday.

By the way, the auditorium looked so professional with the newly covered seats. I felt as though I was walking down the aisle at Radio City Music Hall.

Our M.C., (Randy Morger,) mentioned that there still remains a balance on the payments of the seat covers. It would be a good time to purchase a seat for a Christmas present for a loved one or yourself. Remember that the names of the donors will be on a plaque near the entrance doors. What a wonderful legacy to leave for your descendants in years to come.  Just do it!

MONTANA
I thought that last weeks “so called facts,” were believable. I just wish I could remember when I want to recall in telling.  Enjoy these this week.

10. Montana is the only state to allow double proxy weddings. In other words, both the bride and the groom are allowed to have stand-ins exchange matrimonial vows on their behalf.  Double, proxy divorces, unfortunately, do not exist.

11. Montana is the only state that has rivers that drain into three different oceans, the Pacific, the Atlantic, and the Artic, (by way of drainage into Hudson Bay.)

12. Montana has more residents (8.529) per 10,000 people) serving in the United States Military than any other state. It is the only state without a modern naval ship named in its honor.

RECYCLE DAYS
With collections once a month, the recycling really piles up. I try to tie up and organize when we get breaks in the weather so I can work in the garage. I am semi organized with perfectly sized boxes for newspapers and magazines, 3 large plastic contains for plastics, aluminum cans, and metal cans. As of late, I have had to arrange for pickups because of Saturday football games. I have always been accommodated and my admiration for the Recycle Committee is unending. What a fantastic job they are doing. They go above and beyond the call of duty. Just wanted the Committee to know how the community feels about you.

Did you know that the General Federation of Woman’s Clubs National Convention gave an award to Fort Benton, Montana for the best recycling program in the United States? Congratulations to not only the Committee but to those in the community who supported the program.

FOOTBALL
The University of Montana Grizzlies and the Carroll Saints both won on Saturday. The weather was good but some people did not like the wind. As it turned out, the Griz and the Bobcats are in the playoffs. The Saints played their first playoff game and it will be a big one next Saturday when they play Southern Oregon for the third time. It will be a nail biter for me especially if I am not able to go to Helena because of the weather. I would have to watch it on my computer. A few times I lost the game on the computer, after I paid for it, could not retrieve it, could not find it on a radio station, and had no idea what was happening. Oh well, “what ever will be will be,” as they say in Greece, (Do I have the right country?)

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