You and I and the tri-state area
By: Stan Jordan
You have heard me brag about living here in the tri-state area many times, I hope you can handle one more episode.
Just this morning (January 4th) on the TV there are bad rain storms in the northwest, floods and acres of mud and muck, it covers everything like a blanket.
In the midwest there is a lot of severe storms and blizzards, on the highways lots of wrecks and traffic can’t move.
In Texas and some of the south, are ice storms or inches of rain. In the east it is lots of rain and this brings floods. This same storm runs from Florida up the east coast and then ties up all the road traffic and into the New England area as rain, wind, snow and ice.
Here in our fine area we have had many days of spring like weather. I have written many times that our geographic location is one of the best in the nation. You bet, I am thankful.
See ya!
Eagle News
By: Stan Jordan
The leaves are gone now and the crops have been harvested and I am getting reports of people seeing more wildlife. A lady told me about seeing four eagles out by CR 63 the other day, two adults and two without the white head. Now probably that was their last spring chicks. They would be almost a year old and therefore pretty good size.
Then a man who lives north of Hicksville said he saw an adult couple along side of the road working on a deer carcass, the car didn’t seem to bother them.
There is an exchange student here from Argentina staying at the boss’s house and she tells me that they have eagles in her area at home.
Kenny Donat was telling me about a pileated woodpecker he saw the other day. He said he was pecking on a big oak tree and the chips were flying. He also told me about a couple of adult eagles that rest real often in an old dead oak tree back in his woods. An interesting talk.
See ya!
A weekend
By: Stan Jordan
When I came to work this morning, the boss said, “Hello, how did your weekend go?”
I was about to say, “Just like any other” and I stopped to think for a minute and by golly, I had a pretty good weekend.
On Saturday morning, our group was going to go to the pancake house in Payne, but one person didn’t feel good and another had an appointment somewhere, so we didn’t go.
Along about 2:00, I went down to the “O” to get some lunch and as I sat there, a fellow came up and asked, “Do you remember me?” I stammered a little bit, because I never remember names, oh yes, I should. He said then, “I am one of the three boys from Butler who comes into the West Bend and get our printing done.”
“Oh heck yes! Sit down and we’ll talk.”
I was sure glad to see him. There was three of those retired men, all military veterans, they come from over around St. Joe and Butler. The one boy would fix up a work order for their printing and the other two and I would have a ball. We talked about eagles and wildlife, army stuff and the St. Joe pickle factory.
Then he said, “I don’t do the running for the American Legion anymore. I haven’t been to the West Bend News for months. Charlie died some time ago and the other guy, Bill, is practically an invalid, so I don’t do the running, but I do like to come over here to the ‘Big O’ with my boys.”
Those three old timers came to Antwerp to get their printing done and then would go to the “O” for a little rest and relaxation.
Sitting there and talking with that old timer sure made me a fine weekend.
See ya!
Time to go
By: Stan Jordan
Whether you live in the northern hemisphere or the southern hemisphere, some of the biggest activities of the day are eating, sleeping, your daily job and using the restroom. It might seem odd, but that is the daily fare all over.
Here in the heart of this country, we have all kinds of industry. We have lots of construction going on everyday and when nature calls there is a port-a-potty or so in the area. Or if you are a worker in the vegetable fields or maybe in the big valley in California of vegetables, grape fruits or whatever, in the area is a port-a-potty or so. That is the law, the employer must provide an area and the necessary equipment. That is a very good rule and I think it works out o.k.
But now if you are traveling by airplane, while you’re still in the terminal, I recommend the last thing you do before boarding for your flight, is use the handy restroom. The facilities on the plane is a torture chamber. The guy who designed that chamber thought that everyone is tall and skinny and that is not true. It is better to go before you get on the plane.
The world over, you are a pointer or a sitter, and the guy who invented the port-a-pot should be national hero.
See ya!
An old, old tale
By: Stan Jordan
This story is 100% true, I just never told it. All the people are gone now, except me.
The scene is Berneck, Germany in the later part of July, 1945. Our whole company was billeted in this small town. Ours was the headquaters platoon and we were in the local hotel called the Berneck Haus. We soldiers had the top floor and the officers had the ground floor company office.
There was two men from the captain’s tank and four men from the second tank. The driver of the captain’s tank, I will call Sam, he and I are the main people in this story.
Sam had been watching a German girl who lives down the street a ways. She wasn’t much, the main thing about her, to me, was her boots. I had never seen a woman wear knee length boots. They were black and shiny, I imagine good leather. Anyways, Sam followed her home one night, he came back after dark and was all scratched up. Lots of red marks on his face and I was asleep and he woke me up and said, “I want you to help me, do me a favor.”
So, I got dressed and he didn’t tell me anything much, but I figured he had made a deal with this woman.
“Is this illegal?” I asked, and he said, “Well, maybe, but I am going to help this girl,” so I knew he was getting something out of the deal.
This girl came from some other town, she had a car hidden down town, no petrol… ‘gasoline’ for it and can’t get any, anywhere, so she can’t go home. Well Sam promised her ten gallons of good tank gasoline and that is where I came in. He wanted me to take my Thompson and be his guard and also hold the flashlight while he poured the gasoline into the gas tank of the German car.
Sam had already siphoned the gas out of our tank and had filled two, five gallon G.I. cans. He carried both cans and I walked along.
The girl had given him the door key to let us in the building, it was right there on Main Street. We went ahead and done the job and returned to our hotel room.
Now that was late July and a number of us was sent back to the States about that time and I never heard anything about it. I done the favor but never heard of any outcome. Sam had remained in Germany when I returned to the States.
See ya!
OUR LEADERS IN WASHINGTON
By: Stan Jordan
I haven’t written much lately about the chaos with our so called elected representatives in Washington. Some of their actions are silly and some are down right senseless.
The one boy is acting like a spoiled brat that stretches the truth a lot. The other side are some people who just got some muscle and are throwing it around.
This so called shutdown has gone far enough, it has not accomplished any thing except the hardship of hundreds of thousands everyday government workers. They have not been paid for over a month and it looks like it will be another month with no pay day. This is down right un-American. I believe in a day’s pay for a day’s work. These people are just plain American and they are not being treated right.
It is certainly time for those hard-headed brats to get together and govern our country right.
See ya!
