Betty’s Week

    A few weeks ago I mentioned in the column our visits to Traverse City, Michigan in 1982, when Jim attended Interlocken Band Camp.
  Friend Mike Ervin was in recently to tell me he and his wife had just returned form a vacation in the Traverse City area and that it remains just as I had described it–still very clean and beautiful. They had visited many sites that Ed and I  had not had time to see and his descriptions of these made me want to go back. Maybe Celeste, Jim and I can make this trip again one of these years. Thanks, Mike, for sharing your vacation with me. Oh, and he also had pictures.
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  A note with Mary Duke Nyberg’s subscribtion renewal was interesting. Some of you may know her and I’m sure will enjoy it also. She writes that she’s taken the paper for over 40 years. “I used to live in Coffeeville and in the 50s I went to school at Jeff Davis in Water Valley,” she says. She now lives in Doddsville and states that she really enjoys the paper.
  Thanks for writing Mrs. Nyberg.
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  Recently Mary Horn of Thaxton dropped by the office. We had a very enjoyable visit, and she left me her most recent  copy of her publication, Life, Day by Day, entitled Trick or Treat? It had lots of cute quotes and some interesting original art. Her publisher’s title is Tinkering Inklings.
  My favorite quote in the pamphlet was “If you want a friend in Washington, get a dog,” by President Harry Truman. Ed and I visited President Truman’s home, and home city, Independence, Missouri, and from the info we got from his friends and family still there, it seems that this would have been right in character with his thinking.
  From our short visit I think Mrs. Horn and my views of the present political actions and the world situation are about the same. They are also pretty much in agreement with what I believe President Truman’s would  be.
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  Included in this week’s edition of the Herald will be a section of tribute to the veterans.
  Last week Ernie Aune was in to give me the info for the Lions Club pancake breakfast. While we were talking Snooky Williams came in and urged Ernie to give me information on his service years. None of us knew that it was past deadline for the section. However I listened to Ernie and his story was very interesting. I made a few notes and hope I remember correctly the rest. It was not past deadline for my column, so I’m sharing Ernie’s story with you.
  He and Ben Horan entered the Air Force together. They were mustered in at Lackland AFB in San Antonio, Texas. After the time spent here, they parted though, because they chose different areas of service. After basic, Ernie spent 52 weeks in technical training at Keesler AFB in Biloxi. He trained as a Precision Ground Controller and then spent time at Barksdale. While in service he met and married his wife, Ernestine, who is from Louisiana.
  Then while at Elmendorf AFB in Anchorage, Alaska, their first child, David, was born. Ernie said the hospital was a series of quanza huts and that David was born in one of these.
  He was in service from 1951-55, exact time of service was four years, four months, and six days. It amazes me that most service men and women can tell you the exact length of their service span.
  He served during the Korean War and the main plane in his area of service was the F-89, an all weather interrupter, with 26 rockets in each wing tip. These patrolled the Dew Line between the Bering Straight and Russia.
  His story was most interesting and there’s lot more to it, but this is all my memory retained.Oh yes, his rank was Airman First Class.
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  After having rained most of Thursday, I got lucky and it had almost stopped before I set out for my sitting job Thursday night. Crossing the Pope/WV Road the rivers were still there but my windshield was almost clear.
  Having gone by Larson’s to pick up a few things, I decided to buy some chocolate and some frozen veggies that were on sale. Took them by Moms before going on to the nursing home.
  Carolyn had Caroline and came on up. I got to play with the baby for a little while and then Nephew Michael and Jack came by for her. While Michael and Carolyn talked, Jack was running all over the hill. Caroline and I were on the porch picking petunias, one of her favorite things to do. Each time Jack came by the porch, Caroline would wave bye-bye.
  That day she had also learned to play patty-cake. You could say patty-cake and she, like a wound-up toy, would spring into action. After a minute or so she’s stop. Then she’d hear patty-cake again and away she’d go.
  Michael took Caroline and Jack on home so it was off to relieve Bo, so he and Carolyn could go eat. I’d brought a salad for supper, so no one had to feed me.
  However on Friday morning I wound up with peanut butter and crackers—Rance forgot me. Made up for it at lunch. Don brought me tenderloin and rolls and Rance brought a chicken sandwich and fries. Ate the tenderloin for lunch and the sandwich for supper. Don offered a steak dinner, but didn’t think I needed it. If I keep eating like this and just sitting, I’m going to have to have a new wardrobe.
  Thursday night and  Friday were not good—Mom talked for almost 24 hours. I left about 7:30 Friday to go to Moms for a night’s rest. When I arrived back at the nursing home Saturday morning, Mom was in PT. She came back and was fine. Her long-time friend, Teddy Benner, also in for rehab, came by and they had a good visit. Mom was so tired she drifted off and when she woke up she says, “I left y’all for a little while, didn’t I?” We told her that was fine we ‘d enjoyed visiting. She says, “Well, what ‘d I miss?” Laughing, we said, “Nothing, we just talked about you.” With that old quick sense of humor we’d been missing she came back with, “Well, if you were talking about me, you were letting someone else rest.”
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  Rance came in Sunday morning to relieve me and stopped by the van to get ice off the windshield. Couldn’t believe it was so cold—nursing home was hot.
  Came home down six and across 315. About the Mt. Olivet area a herd of deer was on the side of the highway—was so glad they decided not to cross the road.
  Temperature has warmed back up and I’m glad—don’t like cold weather.
  I am enjoying that extra hour of light in the morning—it’s nice for me on both Sunday and Wednesday mornings.