Bern's Eye View
by Bernadine Hildebrant
It’s 4th of July weekend. All of the area campgrounds are beginning to fill up. I can smell the outdoor fire pots as the tourists are taking advantage of the super nice long weekend. What a wonderful aroma that is. You'd be surprised how many people have dogs of every size. I see so many dogs hanging their heads and tongues out the car windows to enjoy the fresh air. Have you driven past Del's campgrounds? The resort is packed with tourists of many sizes and shapes. AND they all seem to really enjoy visiting with each other. What a wonderful area we have around our city - so many campsites and all of them overflowing with campers.
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What memorable weeks for me! I visited with my grandson Grant Schoaf and his wife Jen. They live in Alaska and came to visit Grant's parents Glen and Kathy Schoaf. Grant is retired from the Air Force which he entered when he was a senior in high school here in Waterville. Part of his duties in the Air Force was to fill the planes with fuel while they were in the air. I told him never to tell me about it while he was doing his duty - "Just tell me when you get back on the ground." Grant applied for a desk job (Air Force) after he retired. He passed the test, so now he's on the ground, not flying all over the world, and Gramma's happy. Glen and Kathy invited several of Grant's friends and relatives to enjoy the day and devour the wonderful food Kathy and Glen had prepared.
Grant served during the Gulf War and retired as a Master Sergeant. Grant's father, Glen, served during the Viet Nam War and was a Staff Sergeant.
Glen and Kathy also invited Jack Webster who served in the Navy. (He joined the Navy to see the world, and what did he see? He saw the Atlantic and the Pacific and the Pacific wasn't terrific and the Atlantic wasn't cracked up like it was said to be.)
When Grant was in high school, he worked for Jack, picking up and delivering the local papers. I enjoyed listening to all the stories these men relayed to us.
Thank you, Grant, Glen and Jack for serving our good old United States of America!
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The second memorable weekend (last weekend) was one I spent with Mary and Larry Laski in Brainerd (my daughter and son-in-law). My daughter Eileen took me to Mary and Larry's beautiful home a few miles north of Brainerd. Eileen's husband Mitch stayed home to keep the home fires burning. When we arrived home Sunday evening, he had a nice refreshing lunch ready for us. How wonderful. My son Mike who took us to New Ulm was back at their home waiting to transport me back to my home in Waterville. I didn't have to do anything at Brainerd except to enjoy visiting and listening as my family had a great time doing the same. It was a wonderful vacation. My cat Jinx was well taken care of while I was gone. AND my house was immaculate for me to come home to. My cleaners Shannon and Blair did a great job as they didn't have me around to do this and do that.
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Here's a good laugh! My granddaughter Natalie (Schoaf) Smith and her family live in Owatonna. Recently one of the family, when they returned from town, left the car door open. Zack Smith saw it was open so he shut it. A short time later, the family heard the worst meowing from the car. Their cat saw the door on the car was open so he climbed in to take a nap. When he looked around, he couldn't find an open door anywhere. He climbed onto the front door window and accidentally stepped on the door lock. Zack said “no problem just give me the keys and I'll let the cat out." Natalie's response: ”I left them in the car.” It would cost Zack $250 to get the person with a tool to open the door. A light came over Natalie's brain and she said, "I think we have that extra insurance for things that happen like this.” They did. A happy ending to what might have been an expensive venture.
