Tuesday, July 4, 2017

View From The Bridge 7/5/17

VIEW from the BRIDGE
By Muncie
7/5/17

FIREWORKS
Did you wonder why when there were a few minutes of darkness in the display? Someone told us that there was a boat in the river that held up the show. What really happened was that the computer failed and the rest of the show had to be manually done.

Did you know that fireworks were handled by a computer? I am so far behind in all this tech stuff. The only thing I would like to have is the vacuum that runs all by its self. What a blast that would be. Again I wonder if you still have to clean the dirt out of it.

JULY MOON
If you readers are tired of or do not read about the moons, please let me know. I have been repeating the same moon names for years now. I still enjoy it because I cannot retain the names and it is new information to me each year. I do enjoy knowing when the full moon will appear and when the finger nail moon first appears.

The July moon is called the Full Buck Moon. The antlers on the bucks begin to grow. It is also called the Thunder Moon which took place today (Sunday the 2nd.) It was 94 degrees according to my weather station. When I came to my computer room to work on the View, I keep the blind closed because the light shines into my screen. An hour later I went to the kitchen and found it very dark and raining. Then there was a loud clap of thunder with lightening to follow. It was raining too hard for me to go out and retrieve my flag.

A short time later the weather station read 86 degrees and the sun came out. I checked the flag and it was perfectly dry. It is no use to predict the weather. If you wait 5 minutes, it will change.

My husband Wally and I used to have a contest about who would see that finger nail moon first. Of course I always won just like I won the best rock-of-the-day when we went hunting. (This was my joke of the week.)

RATTLERS
It is that time of year again to watch where you are walking or stepping. A RATTLESNAKE was reported on the vicinity of Front St. and 22nd in the alley. It was run over. (I asked if they saved the rattles and the answer was “no way.”

The second report was given to me by Police Chief John Turner. The snake was on the Levee Walking Trail near the Old Bridge. The spotter did call 911 immediately and help was there within a minute. Always call 911 and call no matter what kind of snake it is.

AMERICAN FLAGS
I met a couple in Lehman’s True Value last week and they were buying a new flag. They were retiring their old flag. I have always given my old flags to Larry Bower at the First Security Bank for retirement. If that is not convenient for you, give it to a Boy Scout, an American Legion member, or VFW member.  They are sure to get it to the right location.

Did you get your flag up on Tuesday? I will have counted them that evening. I know there are people that only fly their flags on holidays but they can be flown year round. At this time in our countries history, a support of our love of country can be shown by flying our awesome American Flag. I am so lucky that I was born, raised, and am still living in the best country in the world. I cannot imagine what it would be like to have to abandon my home and this wonderful Fort Benton because some radicals were trying to take it.

KEN’S WWI STORIES
I really enjoyed Ken Robison’s WWI stories in the last the 14th and 21st editions of the River Press. He wrote about women who changed the world with their actions like the Red Cross. Nurses are the backbone of any clinic or hospital.

I enjoy watching them put all your information into a computer. It is all at the tip of their fingers and tells all you want to know about yourself. Well, almost everything. (If you have a secret life, you would not tell anyone because once you do tell someone, it is no longer a secret.  (I have been watching too many 48 hour shows on TV.)

THE HAZENS
I phoned Judy and Herb a couple of weeks ago to ask how they were doing. Many of you readers were asking me if I had heard from them since they moved.

They are doing fine and enjoy their new place as much as I am enjoying living in their apartment at the Sunset Apartments. They live a ways out of town and it is peaceful and quiet. They said to say hello to everyone and they would be back to visit Fort Benton soon.

Well, today, Monday the 3rd, I called them again to ask Herb where the WI-FI box was located. Herb was in a kind of hurry to get to the hospital. Judy was taken there last night to the ER and was being operated on at that very moment for gall stones.

I thought it would be wonderful to send Judy a get-well card. At this moment I cannot put her address in this column but call me if you would like to have it.

GOD BLESS AMERICA, OUR TROOPS, THOSE WHO PROTECT US and WEAR RED ON FRIDAYS. (I’ll only be really happy when I see American Flags handing from every porch and everyone in red on Fridays. You would not disappoint me, would you?)