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CHAMPION—August 9, 2010

          Champions are perforce tree lovers and the spectacle of a great intricate stack of new pine lumber is, in every Champion view, spectacular.  The afternoon sun gleams off the stately structure all golden and precise against a Champion blue sky as visual poetry. Now it has purlings and soon it will have the galvanized and will be what they call “dried in.”  Builders are special people and are given leeway to be ‘special’ because of the good work they do.  Their attentions may be required elsewhere this week as the Skyline Picnic is in the works and so if the roofing is a little slow getting on, it will just give the populace opportunity to admire the substructure all the more.  It is the very nature of tree lovers and Champions to be patient.

          Fishermen are patient people too.  Dillon Watts just returned to his home near the Cripple Creek in Tennessee from an Alaskan fishing trip.  He went with his cousin and his grandfather, Steve Watts, flying from Nashville to Atlanta, then eight hours to Anchorage, then five hours driving to the spot where they got on the boat.  There was some reported seasickness, but the catch was remarkable and great memories were made.

       There were half a dozen seven foot long fishing poles auctioned off the other night at the benefit for Sharon and Buzz Woods.  These were some very fancy rods and reels, new and donated by a local prominent professional fisherman.  Prominent Champion quilt maker, Esther Wrinkles, donated a lovely quilt to the benefit.  Tickets were sold and the winner was Mrs. Judy Hutchison.  She said that she had never won anything and was just delighted with the beautiful quilt.  J.D. Shannon did the auctioneering and made a fine job of it.  He has an excellent voice and has obviously been to a few auctions in his young life.  The first sale of the evening was a peach pie purchased by Robert Upshaw.  The basketball tournament, the good food, the quilt raffle, the music and the auction all went to making a great benefit.  Sharon and Buzz are life long residents of the area and are starting over after losing their home to a fire.  The pictures and precious personal mementoes cannot be replaced, but the friendships and support of the community are solidly in place.   Young Rowdy Woods is making a good recovery from his appendectomy so there is good news to report on many fronts.  The General was getting around pretty well accompanied by his guileless little grandchildren and saintly sweet wife. 

          The ‘Dog Days’ of summer are scheduled to end on August 11^th.  The calendar says that they began on July 3^rd.  If this means the dog gone hot weather is really gone, that will be good.  Gardeners in the area are experiencing bountiful harvests and are freely sharing with friends and neighbors.  There is still some good growing season left and Linda will have the fall Cole crops ready when she opens the Plant Place back up in September. 

          Champions are ever looking for the opportunity to improve themselves or their environs.  For example, one now says that one of the defining features of an inexpensive hose is that it frequently kinks.  Previously he had said things about the ‘dad blamed lousy cheap piece of junk hose’ and just what ought to be done with the no good miserable outfit.  Realizing that swearing at it does not keep it from kinking up at the critical moment, he now puts a little more effort in to handling it in such a delicate way to prevent the problem and is sure that when it is time to replace this hose he will do so with one that costs twice as much.  Surely someone makes a good quality garden hose.  Rich people probably do not have the problem.  They probably hire somebody to do their watering and let them do their swearing as well.  

          Some of Wally Hopper’s cousins were surprised to learn that their distant uncle John Sevier Upshaw was an Indian Agent appointed by Congress.  Wally’s letter brings up a number of historical issues and Denlowites will be most interested to learn more.  This part of the country is less populated now than it was when Wally was a boy and some think that it is less populated now than it was before Columbus made his trip.  How would current residents respond to being colonized by a foreign people with odd features and peculiar ways?  Champions are hospitable by nature but would most likely balk at being elbowed out of their hills and hollows.  History is a tool best used to understand the present and to shape the future. 

          The picnic grounds are shaping up nicely.  Firefighters and other volunteers have been out getting things ready for the big picnic.  The Skyline Picnic is the highpoint of the social year in these parts.  It looks like the weather will cooperate to make it the perfect occasion.  Friends who only see each other at this event will be out in force and the membership is getting ready to stick those pies in the oven.  The music is lined up and there are some great things coming in for the silent auction.  Local merchants are generous and there will be great prizes given away all through the evening on both nights.  It is an excellent opportunity for folks new to the area to get acquainted in a pleasant unconfined, informal environment.  Champion!  Leading up to the picnic is the Perseid meteor shower–the biggest, splashiest meteor shower of the year.  As the debris from the comet Swift-Tuttle scatters into the atmosphere, they say that as many as 60 shooting stars an hour can be seen on Thursday night into early Friday morning. Mars, Venus and Saturn will be lined up with the moon in the western sky so the whole week has promise to be celestially entertaining.

          School busses are practicing their routes, which reminds Champions that the school year is about to begin again.  The year certainly is rushing by.  For those waiting at home for their soldier to return, the time can drag out long.  Champions are reminded that the Nation’s soldiers belong to everyone. All citizens benefit from the willingness of the people in the Armed Services to put their lives at risk in the dangerous parts of the world.  Blood kin or not, all the Soldiers belong to all the Citizens and they have Love (with a capital L) and Gratitude (with a capital G) due them.  They are our soldiers now and will be our Veterans (with a capital V) when they get home.  They are Champions.

          Champions ‘of an age’ remember Shelley Fabares.  “On a picnic morning without a warning I looked at you and somehow I knew.  On a day for singing my heart went winging.  A picnic grove was our rendezvous. You and I in the sunshine, we strolled the fields and farms.  At the last light of evening, I held you in my arms. So when days grow stormy and lonely for me I just recall picnic time and you.”  Sing your favorite picnic song out in the Loafing Shed in the heart of Downtown Champion.  Send it or any good history to Champion Items, Rt. 2, Box 367, Norwood, MO 65717 or to Champion News.  Look for history at www.championnews.us and get yourself a hand full of those Champion Picture Postcards so that those unfortunates out in the dreary world can get an eyeful of Champion—Looking on the Bright Side.

CHAMPION—August 2, 2010

          Champions are, by nature, students–curious keen observers with good eyes for detail and beauty.  Those are traits that come with the place.  The place has much to offer any time of any year, but these days particularly Champions have available to them an example of joinery suitable for serious study.  Anyone interested in seeing just what is under the skin of a solid building can benefit from a protracted gawk at the skeletal structure of the authentic and only Replica of the Historic Emporium on the North Side of the Square in Downtown Champion.  As seen from the vestibule of the Temporary Annex or from the portico of the Loafing Shed, the clean geometry of the structure is stunning.  One hears of an elegant solution to a math problem when doubt, uncertainty and difficulty present themselves.  The difficulty with the Historic Emporium had to do with the tenuous fragility of materials expected to be ageless when indeed they were quite old and depleted of their strength.  The Elegant Solution stands as an example.

          Examples of good neighbor fun were plentiful at the Holt Up and At It Picnic.  This event supports the 4 H Clubs, a very worthwhile program in a rural community.  Reports were that it was close to a record-breaking crowd and that everything was just lovely.  The food was good, the games were fun, the prizes were neat and the music quite pleasant.  Everybody was having a good time and that is the point of the whole thing—community involvement for the overall benefit of the community.  This is a great part of the world for just this sort of thing.

          Another chance to step up to be a good neighbor is coming up on Saturday, the 7^th.  There is to be a “three on three shoot out” basketball tournament for Sharon and Buzz Woods at the Skyline School.  The tournament play will start at three in the afternoon and before it is all said and done, there will be juicy burgers, hotdogs, music, a quilt raffle, fun and games including a pie auction and an auction that will include lots of new fishing equipment and many surprises.  Sharon and Buzz lost their home to a fire recently and this benefit will help them get started again.  They have been good neighbors and steadfast supporters of all the local fire departments and community organizations as well benefits just like this one for people in the area who have found themselves in similar situations over the years. 

          Dr. Amanda Zappler, a well-known audiologist, researcher, and instructor at the University of Texas was visiting in the neighborhood recently.  She works extensively with Veterans in the Temple, Texas Veterans Administration Hospital.  She reports that hearing loss among returning Veterans is very common.  There is much hearing loss precipitated by constant exposure to loud noise and this loss is generally in the high range of sound.  There is also a great deal of hearing loss connected to percussive injuries.  In some cases the mechanisms for hearing sound are damaged and in other cases the person is still able to hear but the damage has been to that part of the brain that assigns meaning to the sounds.  So a person may be able to hear but not know what the sounds mean.  This same person is still able to read and to communicate in that way, but there is much work that needs to be done to assure that these Veterans get the opportunity to return to a normal and productive life.  They have the Love and Gratitude of the Nation, for which they have sacrificed so much, and of Champions everywhere.

          There is an old Champion woman who spends her time naming imaginary grandchildren.  Among the names she has chosen are Dreary, Impunity, Florid, Precipitous, Rationale, Ennui, and Hearken.  Recently she has been neglecting her own work in order to spend as much time at the building site in Downtown Champion as she can without drawing too much attention to herself.  She likes to observe from the sidelines and this exposure to has been an eye opener for the old girl.  She has become a great fan of the Greek inventor Archimedes.  She now thinks that is the ideal name for a grandchild, male or female.  She would not say just which of the famous innovator’s is her favorite invention is or how it relates to the building going in Champion.  Perhaps some study of Archimedes will reveal the answer.

          Linda’s Almanac from over at the plant Place in Norwood indicates that the 7^th and 8th of the month will be the most beneficial days for planting beets, turnips and other root crops for a fall harvest.  Those will be good days to start seed beds.  Many are already bringing in considerable ‘sheaves’ and the bounty of a good healthy garden is the reward for all the planning and work that it takes.

         A note comes from Wally Hopper saying, “I wanted to let you know that I have been tracing my ancestry and discovered that the Denlow store has lots of history.  I have written a letter to State Rep. JoAnn Emerson to pursue the possibility of erecting an historical marker at that location.  You may remember seeing it on Hwy 76. It is in bad condition right now and I am going to see if there is a possibility of the state to restore it.  I found out through my research that it was built in 1899 by John Sevier Upshaw (my distant uncle) and was used as a trading post with the Osage Indians.  He was appointed an Indian Agent by Congress after the Osage Indian War.  Just thought you might like to know and I will keep you updated on the progress after my meeting with JoAnn Emerson.  Thanks, Wally Hopper.”  There is indeed much interesting history surrounding Denlow.  Cletis Upshaw was a real fount of information and he is still much missed by so many who wish for another chance to sit down with him again to hear his stories.  It will be good to hear that the General has resumed his business of keeping track of everything and keeping everyone informed.  He has the good wishes of the whole Denlow/Skyline/Champion population.  Those good wishes are extended to young Rowdy Woods too.  Little guys have their own troubles sometimes and need as many good thoughts as do Old Generals.

          “I’ll build a stairway to paradise with a new step every day.”  Sing your favorite George Gershwin song right out loud in the Loafing Shed next to the Temporary Emporium on the West Side of the Square in Downtown Champion.  Watch the good stuff happening and be glad to be a witness to history in the making.   Share your own accounts of history at Champion Items, Rt.2, Box 367, Norwood, MO or to Champion News.  Look in at www.championnews.us for a clear view of the beauty of the place.  Take a little drive in your air conditioned car some afternoon…Get out to Champion and Look on the Bright Side!

CHAMPION—July 26, 2010

          Champions find themselves curious beyond good decorum when it comes to the construction of the replica of the Historic Emporium on the North side of the Square.  The great nephew of the builder of the original emporium is in charge of this building and is representing his family trade well.   Sunday found the four walls up all the way to the top plate and a stack of trusses blocking the West entry to the Square.  Windows and doors are framed in and the overall configuration is beginning to take shape in the imaginations of happy Champions who see that change is a positive thing.  It is clear that the tenor of the place will not have changed.  The Bright Side will still be in clear view.  It is Champion.

          The 29^th through the 31^st will all be good days to plant root crops for the fall according the Linda’s Almanacs from over at the Plant Place in Norwood.  The turnips and beets can go in now as well as another bunch of radishes and some lettuce and greens.  Champions are lucky to have such a good growing season.  Last frost is typically considered to be May 10^th, but it has been earlier in recent years.  The first one of the Season can come as early as the end of September, but is frequently weeks later.  A little planning can have food coming in out of the garden for much of the year.  Linda has started the Cole crops and in a few weeks the fall cabbage and broccoli plants will be ready to set out in the garden.  The Plant Place will be closed for the month of August while some remodeling happens there, but the doors will open again just at the right time.   “They” say that if you see a pretty garden there is generally someone in it. 

          The political candidates are out in full force campaigning and a-politickin.  The ladies of the Skyline Auxiliary are laying in wait for them to come knocking.  Since the summer fundraiser for the fire department comes after the election, chances for the candidates to tangibly exhibit their support for the community are few and needs must be aggressively addressed.  While there are certainly some beautiful babies in the neighborhood to be kissed, of more service is the purchase of big blocks of quilt tickets.  This year’s quilt is called Stripes and Scraps and it is just stunning.  Esther Wrinkles pieced the quilt and it has her mark of excellent craftsmanship and her good eye for color all over it.  Political candidate, Mary Lou Sallee, in years passed purchased the winning ticket for the Picnic Quilt.  Last year the presiding commissioner bought the winning ticket for the free power that Jeff Pardeck from over at the White River Valley Electric Cooperative awards the fire department every year.  Some old Champions are thinking that their electric bill will be pretty high this month on account of the air conditioning and a hundred dollars worth of free power will be worth the dollar it takes for a ticket. The real winning ticket is the chance to be of help to the fire department.  The July Mascot Monkey of the Month finally made it to Henson’s Store in Downtown Champion.  It is a real cutie with patriotic attire suitable for the month of July.  The Picnic Society sponsors this monthly silent auction to assist the fire department in making its big truck payment.  The bidding ends at 5 p.m. on the last day of the month.  There will surely be some good pictures on the www.championnews.us website of the lucky winner holding the patriotic monkey.  Just now that quilt is up on the Neighborhood Events page and it is dazzling!

          Summertime finds people coming and going in Champion.  Visiting double-cousins have brought some fun with them from Texas and Champions took some real fun with them to Tennessee.  Foster and Kalyssa were glad to see their Grammy home again and to see lots of visitors from Tennessee in Champion.  There has been a young people’s meeting going on over in Marshfield and Champion has benefited from the proximity.  Louise and Wilburn Hutchison have been entertaining two of Louise’s brothers from Iowa and her sister and brother in law from Oklahoma.  It is pretty well figured that some serious cooking and eating has been going on in the general area.  It seems that the General has been laying low for a while, however and the mischief quotient is on the low side as a result.  Things will all be getting back to normal soon…whatever that may be.  The picnics and summer gatherings are what Champions think about during the wet cold months of the year.  There is to be a three on three benefit tournament for Sharon and Buzz woods on Saturday the 7^th of August at the Skyline School.  They lost their beautiful home to a fire recently and it will be a great opportunity for the community to lend a helping hand. These folks have been wonderful supporters of the Skyline VFD for years, and of the Skyline School and every community organization and cause.  “What goes around comes around,” they say, and so Sharon and Buzz can look for a lot of help to come around, delivered up with much affection and genuine good humor.

          Sarah Bettens is a singer from Belgium.  She sings “The Soldier Song” that says, “Mother, I’m fine, everything’s ok.  It doesn’t help to miss me anyway.  I’ll be in your heart you know and you will be so proud to know I was strong, I didn’t let you down.” The story of the song is the story of soldiers serving today.  They tell their Mothers they are fine, but Mothers know they are not.  They will be needing some comforting and some understanding when they get home.  Those serving in and out of uniform have the Love and Gratitude of their Nation and they will need it just like they need a Mother’s love. 

          Sing your own sweet or sad song out in the Loafing Shed in Historic Downtown Champion.  Tell some stories of the old days to whoever is there to hear them or send those old yarns to Champion Items, Rt. 2, Box 367, Norwood, MO 65717 or to Champion News.  There are changes going on in Champion but big chunks of the past will tenaciously hold on and before long the old and the new will be indistinguishable from each other.   It will take a little time, but shoot! Champions have plenty of that going way back and stretching way out into the future.  It’s Champion…Looking on the Bright Side!

CHAMPION—July 19, 2010

          The good news in Champion is all about family and friends.  That is just the way this place is.  Cousins, brothers, sisters, children, parents, aunts and uncles and those grandparents, as well as long time dear friends, are all having a field day with visiting and feasting.  It is a great time of the year in Champion to do just that.  In the winter time a trip out into the snow for an armload of wood, or a shoulder against a brisk wind to finish up the outside work just requires pulling on a sweater or a chore coat and a visitor is happy to lend a hand.  In the summertime, the hard work better be done early in the morning, and while a visitor may have it in his heart to turn a hand to help, the oppressive humidity might suffocate that good impulse.  Some may rail about the softness of a society that cannot do without its air conditioners, but few will turn them off.  Older folks find themselves enjoying the softness of a good sofa and quiet visiting on the hot afternoons.  Naps are also nice.  Some visitors have said that they have never seen Champion so very green this time of the year.  They need to come back more often.  Champion!

          A week later finds the construction of the Replica of the Historic Emporium on the North Side of the Square in Downtown Champion well under way.  In spite of rain delays and a great surplus of supervision, the rest of the floor joists are in and the whole thing has been covered by quite a substantial sub-floor.  It is amazingly flat–big and flat and very square.  “All the world’s a stage,” they say, “and all the men and women merely players:  they have their exits and their entrances; and one man in his time plays many parts, his acts being seven ages.”  The they in this case is that old square Willy Shakespeare.  The quote comes from his play “As You Like It.”  Champions like it fine.  There was talk of mounting an impromptu stage play on the big, flat, square stage of the sub-floor, but the timing was a little off.  By the time the General could get his rabble of players together the walls would be going up and he would just be a complication. Now if there is one thing the General is really good at, it is complications.  His music career is a prime example.  It may be that the Backyard Bluegrass will be willing to let him sit in again the Skyline Fire Department Picnic.  His last appearance on his custom made instrument with that group was captured in a series of still (silent) photographs which can be seen in color in the Champion Friends Category on the website www.championnews.us.  Look under ‘Generally Speaking.’   Those pictures do a good job of conveying the lively atmosphere of the picnic.  It’s going to be a doosie this year.  Anyone interested in volunteering to help ready the grounds, can show up Tuesday morning, July 27^th at 9 a.m. at the picnic grounds.  There will be plenty to do and an opportunity for meeting friends and neighbors.  A great colored photo of the Picnic Quilt is right on the neighborhood events page.  It is Bright and Beautiful.

          Sixty pounds of protective gear and equipment is what the soldiers deployed in Iraq and Afghanistan carry around in the same kind of intense heat that Champions are experiencing these days.  The Love and Gratitude for those who serve cannot be expressed often enough or completely enough.  World War II Veterans still remember clearly their military experiences and the friendships forged in that difficult time in their youth.  Every age finds young people bound together by the common experience of National Service.  For each group the feeling is that nobody who was not there can possibly understand exactly what it was like for them.  Veterans cross generations to help and understand each other.  They are Champions every one.

Just being able to stroll out to the garden to bring in a little picking of black-eyed peas or a few peppers is enough to wear out some old Champions. There is still time to get some good gardening done and Linda’s Almanac from over at the Plant Place in Norwood, says that starting the 25^th root crops can go in the ground again.  The 22^nd and the 23^rd will both be good days to prune to discourage growth…a nice time to get a haircut. Louise Hutchison has more welcome company coming and one of the bunch is an Iowa brother who is bringing her a sack of corn…ten dozen ears.  That is quite a lot of corn.  A Champion’s Aunt used to stand the ear of corn up on the middle part of an angel food cake pan to cut the corn off the cob.  It is not supposed to make such a mess that way.  Linda Mallernee takes eight cups of corn, a cup of water, a teaspoon of salt and a stick of butter and boils it for three minutes.  She lets it cool and freezes it, and it is said that it is the most delicious corn imaginable.  If Louise says it is good, it is good.   Louise is all smiles over the birth of another great-granddaughter.  Ryleigh Elizabeth Deal arrived on Friday the 16^th.  She has a two-year-old sister named Emily, and the family lives in West Virginia.  Louise will have pictures to share soon. 

          Take a moment out of your busy schedule to stop in at Champion.  The rare opportunity to see something substantial rise up as an example of how things just ought to be does not often come along.  Wood frame construction is exacting and quite interesting.   While many feel free to ask questions and make comments about how if they were doing it, they would have done it thus and such a way, most Champions are just standing back and enjoying the spectacle.  One of the duties of a non-participating observer is reticence.  One is reminded of an old Earnest Tubb song, “I love my gal, she’s a little bitty booger, just as cute as a bug and sweet as sugar.  I’m a gonna buy her a diamond ring, and we’ll get married in the spring.  Do you need any help?  No help wanted.  Could you use a little help?  No help wanted.  Just call on me if you need any help. Do you need any help?  I’ll handle this job all by myself!”  That July Monkey is finally there on the counter at Henson’s Store and you never saw a cuter monkey!  The silent auction is a monthly endeavor by the Skyline Picnic Society to help the fire department make its truck payment. Sing your favorite Earnest Tubb song in the Loafing Shed next to the Temporary Annex on the West Side of the Square while enjoying progress in the making.  Spin a yarn there or at Champion Items, Rt. 2, Box 367, Norwood, MO 65717 or at Champion at getgoin.net.  Change is in the air, but Champion is always the same at heart—Looking on the Bright Side.

CHAMPION—July 12, 2010

          Champion is poised for change.  It is an attribute that distinguishes the character of the place.  Poised.  Stable and steady, yet ready.   An evenly balanced place, carrying itself in equilibrium, supported by the fulsomeness of the past, near and distant, bears the wonderful weight (wait) of tradition and history.  Residents had become accustomed to the unadorned foundation of the Replica of the Historic Emporium as it baked in the sun of haying season with the promise of the finished edifice hanging heavy in the air.  A great mound of pea gravel covered the piping inside the foundation and it baked in the summer sun a while.  Then, as if suddenly, a stem wall appeared and evened out the foundation that now had a sill beam of pressure treated two-by material fastened to the jay bolts.  Now a forest’s worth of two by twelves are lined up on narrow centers—hundreds of feet of perfectly parallel floor joists are lined up just waiting for all that sub-floor stacked up under the big tarp. Things will move quickly now—except for rain delays and the like.  Poised and patient—Champion!

          Ladies of the Skyline Auxiliary, meeting in the Loafing Shed, were entertained at their last meeting by a pair of young deer who wandered out of the dense woods on the Fox Creek side of town.  The sleek young animals strolled about at the crossroads with impunity to the delight of the onlookers. However, the ladies soon got down to business with the serious planning for the Skyline VFD picnic.   A workday at the picnic grounds has been scheduled for Tuesday, the 27^th of July.  Members and volunteers will meet at 9 a.m. to ready the kitchen and to begin the work that will need to be done to the grounds to make them pleasant and comfortable for the many hundreds of people who will attend the stellar event of the summer.  Anyone interested in joining the skyline Ladies Auxiliary or who would just like to pitch in for a little old fashioned volunteering is welcome to come.

          Gardens are burgeoning and neighbors are sharing produce with each other.  Linda’s Almanac from over at The Plant Place in Norwood says that the 17^th through the 20^th will be good days for planting above-ground crops and seed beds.   The 21^st and 22^nd will both be good days to prune to discourage growth.  Eva Powell and her family enjoyed the bounty of granddaughter Emily’s garden as she cooked dinner for the bunch on Sunday.  Tennessee boys with their parents were visiting over on the Krider Farm and the merriment spilled over to much of the Champion community.  Summer-fun is Champion.  Look for Linda’s Almanac in the ‘links’ section on www.championnews.us.  There is also a beautiful picture there of the Skyline VFD Picnic quilt that will be a featured part of the fundraiser this summer.  A big colored picture of Jr. Mudd and his June Monkey can also be found there.  He surely has a sweet smile.  The Skyline Mascot Monkey of the Month for July is said to be ‘on its way.’   Champions are patient.

          Neighboring Vanzant had a grand picnic success with a huge turn-out. The politicians were out in full force pressing flesh and making their positions clear.  Every psephologist in the area will have eyes on the upcoming elections.  They will be clean and orderly—an example to the rest of the world.  All eyes were on the spectacular fireworks display as the picnic came to an end Saturday night.  Roger Wall had just finished his presentation when the sky across the road erupted in booming showers of colored light.  It went on for twenty minutes with the spiraling, whistling, crackling, sputtering and spewing effusions of brilliance and the boom, Boom, BOOM.  Those sounds were softer on Esther Wrinkels’ front porch.  She left the picnic a little early so she could be home in time to see the fireworks from there.  She gets a nice view.  She had really enjoyed the picnic and the chance to visit with many old friends as well as the chance to finally meet Taegan Krider, who was at her first picnic in the arms of her parents.  Ruby Proctor had a good time as she usually does.  She just brings a good time with her, wherever she goes.  She came to the picnic with Pete, who was still reporting on his excellent experience at the Viet Nam Memorial Wall that had been in Cabool over the 4^th of July.   Many conversations included statements to the Love and Gratitude felt for the Veterans who served during the Viet Nam era and those who serve today.  A whole new generation of Veterans will hopefully be met with the understanding and support they have earned from the Nation.

          Some Champions were mighty pleased to make the acquaintance of Mark McIntosh.  He is from Norwood and works for those nice Centurylink people.  After years of struggle and waiting, Champions are one by one getting connected to the high speed internet.  Mr. McIntosh has been in the area doing the final hook ups and everyone is happy to see him coming up the drive.

          During these ideal summer days when the temperatures are about to rise again, Champions are encouraged to spend some time in the Loafing Shed next to the Temporary Annex of the Historic Emporium on the West Side of the Square in Downtown Champion.  The opportunity to see magic happen—to witness History in the Making does not come around every day.  “Your cares and troubles are gone.  There’ll be no more from now on.  From now on Happy Days are here again.  The skies above are clear again.  So, let us sing a song of Cheer again.  Happy times, Happy nights, Happy days are here again!”  This was a popular song in 1932, about the time of the original construction of the Emporium.  Spin some yarns, make inquires, or report any kind of happy times to Champion Items, Rt. 2, Box 367, Norwood, MO 65717 or to Champion News.  A trip to the bustling burg itself is the best idea.  If you are there, you are in Champion and perforce Looking on the Bright Side!

CHAMPION—July 5, 2010

          Champion again finds itself uplifted and improved by the observance of the Nation’s Birthday.  Grand Marshall, Dustin Cline, led the parade in his slick, black, souped up show truck festooned with extra chrome, while his charming wife dazzled the crowd with her radiant smile and regal wave.  Miss Taegan Rae Krider was this year’s Champion Parade Princess and appeared in a very fetching black and white ensemble featuring a patriotic motif in Red White and Blue.  She has been enjoying the company of visiting Aunt Linda and cousin Dakota as well as other close and distant family.  Over a month old now and already a full participant in all community activities, this young lady is a Champion!  The parade route started in the church parking lot and proceeded out the Eastern Gate to the pavement, thence west past the city limits sign, reentering the square from the north.  The Loafing Shed provided comfortable viewing while dignitaries had available to them the prime location of the Emporium West Annex Veranda.  This is perhaps the most ‘green’ parade in the Nation, as there routinely is less detritus at its conclusion than at its beginnings.  Not a trace is left except the fullness of heart borne of the Love and Gratitude for the Founding Fathers and their Great Idea:  America!  That is Champion. 

          The high-speed Internet connection is almost connected in Champion.  The Centurylink people are out in the area getting everything in place to tie Champion to the rest of the world through the Ethernet.  Cool.  It will be delightful to get into the www.douglascountyherald website and rumble around.  It looks as if the Champion column and all the other correspondence columns will eventually be available there.  Another very interesting place to visit online will be the State Historical Society of Missouri website.  It is at http://shs-umsystem.edu.  Links to both these sites can be found at www.championnews.us.  That is also the place to see photos of Jr. Mudd, who won the silent auction at Henson’s Store for the Skyline Mascot Monkey of the Month for June.  The picture of July’s monkey will soon be there as well, together with a good color photo of the Skyline Picnic Quilt.  It is a real beauty!  The Ladies Auxiliary will have had it’s meeting on Tuesday the 6^th dealing with preparations for the Skyline Picnic coming up on the 13^th and 14^th of August.  The picnic season is in full swing now, so there will be many chances to meet up with friends and family while supporting local community efforts.  This is a good time of the year in this excellent part of the world.

          Esther Wrinkles said that Rege  Kelly’s 4^th of July celebration in Norwood was another great success.  She said there was a great turn-out and the music and fireworks were good.  She had a dozen for dinner at her house and spent some of the rest of the holiday fishing.  She went with Larry and Theresa to a springfed pond down by Hunter Creek.  It is a comfortable place to fish and she caught quiet a few.  Fishing is good pastime anytime. 

          That bunch of tree-huggers were together again at the Mill Pond for the Fourth.  Old acquaintances made the time to reacquaint with news of empty nesting and grandchildren and a wide variety of other topics.  It seems that there will be many people turning sixty-four this year.  “Will you still need me?   Will you still feed me when I’m sixty-four?”  Back when the Beatles wrote this song, sixty-four seemed old!  Gardening was a great topic of conversation during the afternoon.  A nasty little black flea-beetle has appeared in profusion to wreck havoc in many gardens.  Dave Miller has 500 yellow tomato plants out over in Woodpeckerville and many others elsewhere—a new variety with which he seems quite taken is called “Hillbilly Delight.”  There was also much conversation concerning the Viet Nam Memorial Wall that was brought to Cabool.  Some had been to see it and some were unwilling to go because of the deep emotion that it evokes.  Jan Liebert from over at Teeter Creek said that she receives the new public radio station from Cabool well at her place.  She said that Sandy Ray Chapin had been on the radio in marathon since the evening of the first.  He was interviewing Veterans who had come to see the wall.  As he told their stories he played the music that they were listening to while they were serving over there.  Jan said that Sandy was doing a splendid job.  This is a great radio station that some people are just now discovering.  It is KZ88.1 on the FM dial.  They play a lot of local music and focus on local events of interest.  A link to their website, www.mykz88.org can be found in the www.championnews.us site.  World affairs, philosophy and politics were fairly well hashed out among the group as a potluck feast of mammoth proportions was consumed.  The day passed sweetly, another year gone by. 

The 7^th and 8^th will both be good days to plant root crops.  The 11^th and 12^th will be first good days of the month to plant crops that bear their yield above the ground.  This is from Linda’s Almanac from over at the Plant Place in Norwood.  Gardeners are reminded that now is a good time to plant for a nice fall harvest.  Citizens are also reminded that it is important to be registered to vote by August the 3^rd for the upcoming primary elections.   It is to be noted that the complaints of nonparticipating observers bear little weight.  It has been said that the General has been having a little trouble bearing his own weight.  Champions all wish him good luck in getting the lead out and getting back to his routine mischief making and surprise hijinx.  The fun quotient slips a little when the General is not quite up to snuff. 

Amble on over to the Loafing Shed on the West Side of the Square.  It is adjacent to the Temporary Annex and offers an excellent vantage point for kibitzing the construction of the replica of the Historic Emporium.  A substantial amount of fine pea gravel now covers the water pipes inside the foundation.  It is obvious that progress is pending, just about to break out all over.  The changes will be substantial if not what one might call swift in the here and now.  Time is so subjective.  “Send me a postcard, drop me a line, stating point of view.  Indicate precisely what you mean to say, Yours sincerely, wasting away.”  There are still available plenty of those Champion Picture Postcards with views of the previous permutation of the most pleasant place around.  Champion—Looking on the Bright Side!

CHAMPION—June 28, 2010

          Relief from the oppressively hot weather is felt as completely in Champion as anywhere.  Barns are full of hay and citizens go about their business with a renewed sense of optimism.  Gardens are producing and these are exactly the days that were longed for during the long deep winter.  Champion!  Because of its central location in Douglas County, Mid-America, and the Western Hemisphere, Champion sees a good deal of company this time of the year.  Friends and family travel great distances to soak up just a little of the pastoral calm so missing in the hectic pace of the dreary elsewhere with its six lane freeways and flummoxed populace.  The hospitality of Champion is legendary.  Welcome.

          Sunday afternoon found Esther Wrinkles’ house so full she could hardly turn around.  Her 93^rd birthday was the occasion that brought her sister, Irene Dooms, and her two sons and their wives and children, and Esther’s two sons and their wives and families and Leon and Peggy Harris and numerous others—15 in all–to celebrate with her.  On the phone one of her good neighbors said Esther’s house was just rocking over there and she agreed that Esther is indeed a party animal.  Champion! 

          More birthday celebrations were going on with the Powell family.  Mrs. Eva Powell enjoyed the company of her granddaughter, Emily, and her husband, Victor, and their children, Serena and Connor on Saturday night.  Her daughter, Sondra, had just returned from a cruise to Alaska and came bearing gifts and stories of having to wear a jacket against the chill up there.  Eva had also had a nice visit with her niece, Jeannie Maddox, who came over with an armload of garden produce for her—squash, cucumbers, peppers—all the good stuff.   Birthday cards and calls are coming in and she has been promised a ‘stinky rose’ (garlic) from her Sunday pew friend. Phew!  Ms. Powell will be attending the Mt. Grove High School Alumni Parade on Saturday the 3^rd.  This will mark her 60^th high school reunion!  Congratulations.

          It was figured pretty well solid that the General would be leading that parade, but sources close to him say that he will not be out in front of the procession this year with the whistle and cymbals.  More is the pity, because even the Champion Parade Committee (CPC) had its bid in on his services for the auspicious occasion of the Hallowed 4^th of July occurring on Sunday this year.  Committee members are scrambling to compensate for what may prove to be his absence.  It is staggering.  So is he, but hopes are that soon he will have regained his composure, posture and wit.  Meanwhile Champions struggle on and will observe and solemnize the Birth of the Nation, Freedom and Patriotism with as much fervor as can be mustered in the void of this fabled bulwark.  Bullwork?

          “I’ll take mustard on mine.”  The swimming holes will be full of picnickers and celebrators on the 4^th.  Friends who meet on this annual occasion only will be pleased to catch up on each other’s news and to address the current state of world affairs.  Amid the ranting and profundities will be the standard expressions of Love and Gratitude toward those who serve and have served at the behest of the Nation.  Many are planning a trip over to Cabool to see the Viet Nam Memorial Wall that will be on display there.  The holiday marks an opportunity for fun certainly but also the opportunity for sober and somber observance and homage to those who made it possible. 

          Champions are glad to hear that Skyline Firefighter Bill Griswold is on the mend.  He fell ill while on vacation and after some serious hospitalization has made it home to recuperate in is own comfortable spot.  Greg and Tamara Griswold, Bill’s brother and his wife, are retiring to the area and have been visiting while working on getting their place here ready for occupation.  They will be welcome additions.

Milder weather has gardeners willing to be out there pulling weeds, cultivating and fertilizing.  The signs have changed again and so Friday and Saturday will both be good days to plant root crops.  Saturday marks the beginning of the “Dog Days” of Summer according to Linda’s Almanac from over at the Plant Place in Norwood.  It is also the 45^th wedding anniversary of a certain pair of absentee Champion farmers.  With some luck, Barbara’s sweetheart will be home in time to celebrate with her.  He is out of the hay and back in the bower of connubial bliss! 

          Bidding is hot in the June Mascot Monkey silent auction.  Inquires have been made by Champions friend Rebecca Quezacotl of Tejas Endeavorville. She has things to say about the tyranny of the culinary ego of small communities and clearly sees that a Picnic Society matron might well prefer making monkeys to pies.  Her view of the June monkey on-line verified to her that this particular monkey has a very sweet expression on its face.  It is expected to bring a pretty penny for the Skyline Area Volunteer Fire Department.  The proceeds from these monthly auctions go to help make the payment on the fire department’s new fire truck.  A resurgence in the popularity of the red-heel sock monkey is largely due to its appearance in a car commercial on television.  “How you like me now?” is the refrain that is repeated while the monkey is seen doing all sorts of implausible monkey stunts.  The bidding closes at 5 pm on the last day of the month.  The July monkey will be identifiable by its red, white and blue ornamentation.  Hurrah!

          “There’ll be a change in the weather, a change in the sea.  From now on there’ll be a change in me.  Why, my walk will be different, and my talk and my name.  Nothing about me gonna be the same.  I’m gonna change the way I’m living and that ain’t no shock, I’m thinking of changing the way I set my clock.”   Clocks are still set the same in Champion and while change seems slow sometimes, patience wills out and the much anticipated reincarnation of the Historic Emporium on the North Side of the Square in Downtown Champion will ‘er long seem to have leapt up out of the ground in all the kinds of splendor expected and unexpected.  Why, it will be like nothing changed at all in just no time.  In a dozen years hardly anyone will recall when Henson’s Store suddenly disappeared without a trace and the new improved replica appeared as if by magic.  By then young Foster will be driving.  Drive on over to Champion for a good look at magic in the making—best viewed from the Loafing Shed.  Questions, comments, yarns, songs, stories about change and observations on Champion life are welcome at Champion Items, Rt. 2, Box 367, Norwood, MO 65717 or at Champion at getgoin.net.  Look in on the place at www.championnews.us if you can’t get here in person.  If you can get here, do.  You’ll be in Champion…Looking on the Bright Side!

CHAMPION—June 21, 2010

          The first day of summer arrived in Champion with a sizzling fanfare.  The humidity mixed with above average temperatures to make the day ultra summer like. 

All the surrounding creeks are being dipped into liberally by Champions who are ‘way cool’ thereafter.  The winter of Champions’ discontent has been made glorious summer and no one complains.  There are no grim visages.  Champion is a place well worth a second look.  That is what readers of the Champion column got last week…a second look at the news from June 7^th.  

          News from the 14^th of the month includes (1) Karen Krider won the First Ripe Tomato in Champion Contest.  (2) Foster Wiseman birthday occurred on the 16^th.  He is now five years old and going to school and loving it. (3) Champion neighbors over on C Highway have sold out and moved to Tennessee.  There was a big auction at their place, which was very well attended.  Many interesting items changed hands via the auction company and many old acquaintances were renewed out under the trees on the spacious lawn.  (4) Flag Day was celebrated on the 14^th with all the customary Love and Gratitude that Veterans have coming.  It was noted that Pete Proctor will be greeting people at The Vietnam Traveling Memorial Wall, which will be in Cabool July 1st thru July 4th.  This is a 3/5 scale of the Vietnam Memorial Wall in Washington, D.C. and it is over 300 feet long and six feet high.  The names are all there.  (5) Rare visitors cause an improvement to almost any Champion menu.  The complete article can be found on the website at www.championnews.us.  There can also be seen photos of Miss Emerson Rose Oglesby with her Grammy’s prize-winning tomato. 

          Taegan Rae Krider’s Aunt Linda celebrates her birthday on the first day of Summer.  Next week Ms. Paula Mudd, Ms. Eva Powell, and Ms. Esther Wrinkles will all celebrate birthdays.  Ed Henson’s birthday was the 27^th of the month.  He was 95 years old when he passed away in 1998.  Still, he is well remembered and well regarded as a genuine Champion.  The stories that circulate about him and his legendary sense of humor continue to bring smiles to the many visitors to Champion who knew and loved him. 

          The haymakers are still busy at it.  They have to cut it down to put it up and hope it doesn’t get sprinkled on too many times before it gets up.  Many are reporting an excellent harvest and say that the hay is so thick it takes longer to cut and makes more bales.   It is hot, hard work and some of those farmers are getting as brown as berries.  Any given swimming hole is liable to have a haymaker or two in it at any given time. 

          Arlene Cooley says, “If you could incorporate the following into your otherwise fabulous writings……..It’s that time again!  The Cooley reunion for family and friends will be held June 26th at First Freewill Baptist Church in Mountain Grove from 10 to 3.  A potluck dinner at noon will be followed by an auction and door prizes with music provided by Darrell Cooley.”  There will definitely be some fun going on there.  Those people do an unusual amount of grinning and laughing.  Funny. 

          Last weeks news informed that the 20^th through the 24^th would be good days for planting above the ground crops and seedbeds.  Linda’s Almanac from over at The Plant Place in Norwood says that the 27^th through the 29^th will be good for planting root crops again.  Sometimes a gardener does not have the leisure to plant by the signs.   Rather, when the iron is hot, or when conditions allow, or when it can be worked into the otherwise busy schedules of the planters.  Enemies do not sneak into Champion gardens by night to plant tares among the wheat, but the blasted armadillo feels free to grub about where he will and his blundering is destructive. The effect on the garden is what a prominent archaeologist calls ‘bioturbation.’  It is a real word that means the stirring or mixing of sediment or soil by organisms, especially by burrowing or boring.  One old Champion slept out in her garden the other night.  She loaded her gun, set up her cot, hung up her mosquito net and settled in with a keen ear out for the snuffeling grunt of the wretched beastie.  She fell fast asleep and rested deeply to awaken at dawn with a little dew on her bedding and plenty of signs that the armadillo had been visiting.  Her old dog would have been an asset on that occasion because she is a light sleeper and has a wonderful nose for varmints, but gunfire and thunder send her running and it seems a shame to upset the aging family pet.   “Life gets tegious, don’t it?” is an applicable saying passed down for generations from Mother to daughter.  The word is ‘tedious’ but the saying requires the errors in spelling and grammar for effect.

          Father’s Day was another roaring success in Champion.  All the old boys were celebrated and appreciated.  The phone lines were buzzing with all the Love and Gratitude that children hoard up from one year to the next.  Foster Wiseman had his birthday party on Father’s day.  His parents, Tanna and Roger, and his sister, Kalyssa, helped him celebrate.  The party was hosted by his Grandmother Krider and attending were his paternal grandparents, Wayne and Bernice Wiseman, Great aunts and uncles, Vivian Floyd, Harley Krider, Kaye and Richard Johnston, second cousin Madelyn Ward and her parents Phoebe and Josh Ward, aunts and uncles Staci and Dustin Cline, Briaunna and Leslee Krider and their little one, Taegan, as well as others.  That birthday song was sung and everyone had a good time. 

          For a good time, head on down to Champion.  Spend a lazy afternoon over in the Loafing Shed adjacent to the Temporary Annex on the West Side of the Square.  There summertime yarns are being spun daily and summertime songs are just waiting to be sung.  Spin your Champion yarn at Champion Items, Rt. 2, Box 367, Norwood, MO 65717 or at Champion at getgoin.net.  Get a good look at the construction site where the replica of the Historic Emporium will soon be rising like Sondro Bottichelli’s 1486 painting of Venus emerging from the sea.  Champion!  Looking on the Bright Side!

            The second week of June in Champion is historically warm and humid. These are the days about which Champions dreamed in early February. Crazy, spotty little showers that dampen downed hay three days in a row accompany the heat and the relativity of the humidity is extraordinary. The cool breeze wafting through the Loafing Shed in downtown Champion lures the farmers in to talk about their hay, their equipment, and the good fortune they experience as residents of this part of the world. A fly on the wall of the Loafing Shed could probably recount any number of interesting conversations—if there were walls and talking flies. Foster’s birthday is on the 16th of June, but he will wait for his party until Sunday. He is now five years old. That is pretty amazing. He is quite a nice fellow. He’ll be having a hotdog party at his Grammy’s house on Sunday afternoon. There will be lots of cousins, aunts and uncles, and friends to help him celebrate. Over in Tennessee his Aunt Linda is having a birthday on the first day of summer—a sweet way to welcome in the season.

           Champions will be getting new neighbors as Doyle and Kathy Strickland are making a move to Tennessee. The Taylor Auction people held a big sale over on their place on Sunday afternoon. There was an enormous crowd and lots of interesting things to bid on. The real estate had sold already, so it will be good to meet the new neighbors and to welcome them when they move in. Hopefully the Stricklands will be as well situated in their new spot. Meanwhile it was pleasant to see lots of familiar faces at the sale. Bill and Beverly Emory were there and Beverly was wanting to be sure that her favorite customer was suitably teased about how her big white thing and someone else’s big black thing had run into each other a while back, leaving the big black thing on it’s back with its legs in the air. That is surely enough teasing for the time being. There is an art to successful bidding at an auction of this sort. Sometimes you get a bargain, sometimes you get soaked and if you are lucky when the bidding gets up there too high someone will snatch it from you and that will be good too. The main thing is not to bid against yourself.

             The signs have changed, according to Linda’s Almanac from over at the Plant Place in Norwood, and once again those above the ground crops can be planted. From the 20th to the 24th that second planting of corn can go in together with all the other things that have been running late. There is still time for green beans and squash and cucumbers. The pressure is off of Champion now though as Karen Krider has won the First Ripe Tomato in Champion Contest. It was a perfectly spherical tomato just under three inches in diameter and gloriously bright red. “Very tasty!” said the judges and so the rest of the community can just relax and get out there and hoe the corn. Where are Lem and Ned when you need them? While Pithy Adeline has certainly been a boon to the neighborhood, being such a delight for the eye and so high spirited, she may have distracted the boys to the extent that they are fairly useless. Champions are back where they started. As far as the hard work goes, it is as if those nice barefooted boys never existed!

            Flag Day finds Champions thoughtful about Freedom and the service of all those in uniforms who have sacrificed to preserve it for the rest of us. Pete Proctor will be greeting people at The Vietnam Traveling Memorial Wall, which will be in Cabool July 1st thru July 4th. This is a 3/5 scale of the Vietnam Memorial Wall in Washington, D.C. and it is over 300 feet long and six feet high. The names are all there. Many thousands will come to view it. What will memorialize the current conflicts? The Vietnam era Veterans waited a long time for recognition. Hopefully, those returning now from the dangerous places in the world will be met immediately with the Love and Gratitude they have coming.

          Seldom seen dear friends and precious family move through Champion bringing excitement and nostalgia with them. In their wake the tranquility of Champion seems just a little too tranquil—too quiet for a little while. Soon the preparations for the next wave of welcome visitors will begin with the anticipation of laying eyes on those dear faces again after the passing of too much time. Champions know that the very best thing available in life is the Love of family and friends. Heart strings get plucked and out rolls a song like Dylan’s “Country Pie.” “Saddle me up a big white goose, tie me on her and turn her loose. Oh me oh my! Love that country pie!” When kinfolks come the groceries sure do get good!

          Amble on in to the Loafing Shed next to the Temporary Annex of the Historic Emporium know as Henson’s Store located on the West side of the Square. From there a view of the construction of the replica of the original on the original spot can be clearly viewed. Ten years from now visitors to Champion will say, “It seems like the store is just a little bigger than I remember it having been.” Ten years will go by in a flash. Send examples of the rapid passage of time to Champion Items, Rt. 2, Box 367, Norwood, MO. 65717. Email favorite pie receipts to Champion at getgoin.net. Look in on the website at www.championnews.us to see a picture of Miss Emerson Rose with the First Ripe Tomato in Champion. She has a beautiful smile. She is a Champion! Looking on the Bright Side!

CHAMPION—June 7, 2010

        Charles H. Towne must have been in Champion when he wrote his poem “How softly runs the afternoon beneath the billowy clouds of June.”  James Russell Lowell said, “And what is so rare as a day in June?  Then, if ever, come perfect days.  Weather we look or whether we listen, we hear life murmur, or see it glisten.”  So it is in Champion, the bees are buzzing and the haymakers are having a hay day!

        A note comes from the General who said, “If I get a chance to practice before the next reunion, maybe I won’t torture the ukulele so much.  If you would, please add that Buzz Woods won the quilt that Shirley Brixey made and donated.”  People are still talking about what a good time they had at the Denlow School Reunion and one clever photographer took some nice pictures of the food laid out the length of the hall with every imaginable hearty dish—meatballs, lasagna, fried chicken, and ham, to name a few.  There were beautiful salads and vegetables, bread, and then deserts!  There were pies and cakes and cobblers and on and on.  The General allowed as how he has never come away from that table hungry.  It was a feast of everyone’s favorite dish!  Champion.

        The Skyline Ladies’ Auxiliary had a meeting at Henson’s Store in the spacious accommodations of the Loafing Shed.  It was the first of June and a lovely evening and the ladies got right down to business.  Minutes were read, the treasury report was tendered, and the big new business is the upcoming picnic.  Already the behind the scenes work that is required to make the Skyline VFD Picnic the highlight of the summer is well underway.  Put it on your calendar—August 13 & 14.  Esther Wrinkles turned over an incredible quilt for the fundraiser.  It is a queen sized quilt that she hand-pieced.  The pattern is called ‘Stripes and Scraps.’ It has a small nine-patch center in each block with radiating stripes that produce quite and interesting optical illusion.  The whole thing is done in pinks and blues and it is vibrant.  The lining is a solid blue—not baby blue, not dark or light or bright blue, but just exactly the right blue—maybe Perfect Champion Sky blue.  Anyway, it is good to have the quilt designated so the fundraiser can begin.  One lady said that she would have her tickets ready when the politicians come by to ask for her vote.  Since the picnic is before the election, it would be good of those who want to represent and serve the area to actually show some support of it!  There will be a great colored picture of the quilt on the www.championnews.us web site.  Perhaps there will also soon be a picture of the owner of the May Mascot Monkey of the Month.  This month a real cow-girl from Texas is the high bidder on the red-heel sock monkey that has been on display down at Henson’s Store in the Temporary Annex on the West Side of the Square.  The SAVFDA Picnic Society runs a monthly silent auction there, the proceeds of which go to help the Skyline VFD make its big old fire truck payment.  The June Monkey will soon be on the block.  This one has piercing iridescent black eyes and a countenance that promotes affection.  Its picture can soon be seen on the Champion web site.

        It turns out that not everyone has an Internet connection.  Champions across the country still use the U.S. Postal Service for all kinds of old fashioned communication.  It just cost $5.50 to send a monkey in a priority envelope to Texas.  It is a great joy to receive a note from a friend, or a birthday card.  Champion Items at Rt. 2, Box 367, Norwood, MO 65717 is a good place to spin a Champion yarn.  There are archives of all the Champion Items going back to August of 2006, so if there is one you missed or one that you remember fondly, send a note to request a reprint.  It will come on plain paper rather than newsprint.  For those with the Internet, the web site has a wonderful search engine that will let you look up anything that has been mentioned.  Of course, if you look up Foster and Kalyssa or the General, there may be too much to read.  If you just want to reread that old buzzard story, you can type in ‘buzzard’ and up it will come.  It is a strange new world.  Linda’s Almanac from over at the Plant Place is easy to find on the web site or on the counter in The Gift Corner in Norwood.  It says that the 10^th and the 11^th will both be good days to plant root crops or to transplant.  Pithy has been planting sweet potatoes and pulling up some young tender turnips for Lem and Ned.  Such a nice girl!

        Ruby Proctor was out rambling around on Saturday with her son Gary and Kristie.  They had been to the cemetery looking around and reminiscing and on their way over to Champion to get a look at all the changes they stopped in on a friend.  It was a sweet surprise visit that just made that friend’s day.  As to the changes in Champion, Ruby has a happy heart.  She understands why it had to change and at the same time she holds on to her good memories from the past.  She moved to Champion when she was six years old and has always thought of it as her dearest home.  She knows that the changes will be good ones and that the thing that keeps Champion such a precious place will not change at all.  There is a lady with some stories to tell and a wonderful laugh.

        Memorial Day found Champions paying respects to their Military Service people, past and present.  Flag Day is coming up on June 14^th.  All eyes look to the Stars and Stripes as a representation of freedom.  Champions look to it and to those serving with Love and Gratitude.

        June’s is called The Strawberry Planting Moon.  The red rose is the flower and the birthstone for the month is the pearl.  “The liquid drops of tears that you have shed shall come again, transferred to Orient pearl,” said Richard III.  He was rudely stamped and badly motivated, but definitely an optimist.   It would be pleasant to go through life with no heartaches, no thistles in the fields, but that is not always the way it works.  Real life has ups and downs.  Down in Champion things are mostly up..Looking on the Bright Side!