| September 30 '06 |
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| Volume 539 |
|
Lightning
Strikes 2nd In As Many Months
Legend has it that lightning never strikes
twice in the same place. However, that may be only as accurate as the case
of no two snowflakes being exactly alike, wherein I maintain there’s
insufficient research to show otherwise.
According to the online encyclopedia, Wikipedia, "The saying ‘lightning
never strikes twice in the same place’ is false. The Empire State Building
is struck by lightning on average 100 times each year, and was once struck
15 times in 15 minutes."
I don’t dispute the facts presented, but I would ask for a definition
of "in the same place," before belaboring my assertion further.
Also from Wikipedia, "Of all common trees the most frequently struck is the
oak. It has a deep central root that goes beneath the tree, as well as hollow
water-filled cells that run up and down the wood of the oak's trunk. These
two qualities make oak trees better grounded and more conductive than trees
with shallow roots and closed cells."
Our neighborhood is considered quiet, relative to many neighborhoods. We
catch the occasional sirens of our local police vehicles and of ambulances.
While, one can hear the sounds of traffic moving along Hwy 15, located less
than one mile to our west, it’s generally not very noticeable. Ours
is also a safe neighborhood, and as far as I know, there’ve never been
any crime or break-ins in our area. Weather-wise, we were spared by the killer
tornado of 2001, and last year’s hurricane season did no significant
damage to our neighborhood. However, thunderstorms and strong winds do
occasionally wreak havoc in our peaceful neighborhood. Most, if not all of
my neighbors have experienced tree damage in the past five years.
Lightning struck a neighbor’s house a few years ago, setting it on fire,
and it took a few months to repair all the damages. On the same day, a lightning
strike killed a large oak tree in front of the house just north of the house
struck by lightning. This year has also had two incidents involving lightning
strikes in our neighborhood.
In a previous issue I reported that lightning had peeled much of the bark
from the trunk of an oak tree in Bill Knight’s front yard. That strike
occurred the first weekend in August. Now, only seven weeks later, a second
lightning strike has hit a tree in his backyard. Here’s a bit of interesting
trivia to associate with the lightning at Bill’s house. Each time, Barbara
and I were at Sunshine Health Care visiting Aunt Jo. Both times Jason was
at home preparing to leave for a music session with his friend Barney Harris.
I should probably establish an alert system, similar to the color coded one
we use for terrorism alerts, to notify Bill that conditions are favorable
for lightning. For example, an orange alert if either Jason is going to play
music with Barney or if Barbara and I are going to visit Aunt Joe. A red
alert would be issued if Jason is meeting Barney and Barbara and I are on
our way to visit Aunt Jo.
Last Saturday afternoon, in the midst of a thunderstorm, a bolt of lightning
hit a tree in Bill’s backyard. It was powerful enough to shut off the
lights at the nursing home for about fifteen seconds. Barbara tried to call
Sarah as we were leaving the nursing home after visiting Aunt Jo. There was
no answer, and we assumed she was napping. Jason called to let us know he
was leaving for a gig with Barney Harris and to tell us what had happened
next door. Pulling into our subdivision we saw fire department vehicles in
front of Bill’s house. We met Felicia’s car and stopped alongside
her.
"Lightning hit a gas line at Bill Knight’s house," Felicia excitedly
exclaimed. "We were standing in Knight’s driveway with some more neighbors,
when the firemen told us we better leave since it was a main line that was
burning and there was danger of an explosion."
It was still raining pretty hard when we pulled into our driveway. Barbara
called to see if Felicia and Sarah wanted to split a pizza with us. We agreed
to eat the pizza at Sarah’s, so we grabbed a menu from a local pizzeria
as we left our house. I asked Barbara to drive, so I could get a picture
of the fire from the passenger’s side of the car. Since it was almost
dark, I changed the automatic settings to one for low-light conditions. That
was a mistake, because a tripod is needed for a long exposure. The picture
associated with this article is blurred as a result of my inability to keep
the camera immobile for two or three seconds, but at least one can get an
idea of the magnitude of the burning gas in Bill’s backyard.
From Sarah’s, we ordered a pizza, ate it, and leisurely discussed the
events of the day. The last of the fire department vehicles were leaving
as we returned home.
At church the next morning, Tommy Wood, another neighbor who had witnessed
the fire, shared his perspective.
"It was just like Moses and the burning bush,"
he stated. "The bush burned but was not consumed. The only difference was
God didn’t speak."
I quizzed Tommy on the bush not being consumed.
"Flames were coming from the ground beneath the bush, going up ten feet or
higher, but the bush didn’t burn," he insisted.
After church, I saw Bill in his backyard and walked over to inspect the althea
bush that didn’t burn. Oh, there were some blackened limbs, but there
were plenty of green leaves on it, too. Maybe it was the rain that saved
the bush, or all the water the firemen pumped onto it.
The tree that channeled the lightning into the ground that ruptured the natural
gas line didn’t appear severely damaged, but more will be known about
its condition come next spring. Of this I’m certain, I’m going
to be reluctant about sticking my head outside of my house the next time
a thunderstorm rolls into Dogwood Circle.
M.R. Swanson
A Pontotoc Native
Following World War II, American veterans came home to help preserve the
peace that was so costly to our nation and to imprint society with their
values and morals. Now they are dieing at an alarming rate. Tom Brokow authored
a book in which he declared these "The Greatest Generation."
Pontotoc’s Marlin Swanson typified the veterans acclaimed by Brokow.
He served his country in the Navy, and upon his return to civilian life,
began a family and carved a successful career in produce distribution. Marlin,
the second child in a family of twenty children learned the value of honesty
and hard work at an early age.
By our association as contributors to a book of stories about Pontotoc County,
Marlin and I met last year and became friends, instantly. He subscribed to
this newsletter and often sent me copies of humorous articles and jokes.
Marlin died earlier this week, at age eighty-two. He never retired but continued
to work in his office in Bakersfield, California.
Five days before he died he wrote to tell me he planned to be in Mississippi
in October and hoped we’d have some time to get together.
"I enjoyed your article about Mrs. Audie. I have been knowing her just about
all my life and remember her mother and father. She taught school at one
time at Buckhorn. Her husband was the son of Mr. Jim Austin, the man I wrote
about in my story, "The Hired Hand" in Folk Tales. Her last
brother-in-law, Raymond Wayne Austin, just passed away July the
29th."
"I was talking to Raymond Wayne Jr. and told him about your article about
Mrs. Audie, and he said he would like to have a copy, and I sent him one."
"He remembers you, Tony, and him playing together or running around together
when he would be visiting Mrs. Audie."
"I’m supposed to get back that way about the 18th of October
so maybe we can get together for lunch or at least a cup of coffee."
"Talking about Wayne Austin Sr., I first met him in Buckhorn school in 1932,
and we have been friends ever since. I will sure miss him not being there
for me to visit anymore. After he got out of the Army Air Force after WW2,
he settled in Florida and worked down there until he retired, and then he
and his wife came back to Buckhorn and built a home on the old farm and spent
the rest of their life there. His wife died several years ago."
"Excuse me for sending this stuff […material that you can read on a
rainy day when you don’t have anything else to do.], but I thought some
of it might interest you."
Marlin Swanson will be missed by all who knew him.
Swanson
Obituary The Bakersfield Californian
Marlin R. Swanson Oct. 29, 1923 - Sept. 24, 2006 He was a father, grandfather,
brother, uncle, and husband. Marlin Swanson was born the second oldest of
twenty children to Early Swanson and Ludie Swanson on October 29, 1923, in
Buckhorn, Mississippi. He grew up during the Depression era on a farm with
no cars, electricity or running water.
In April 1944 Marlin served in the Navy aboard a destroyer as a Sonar Operator.
He saw action in the Philippine Islands and Okinawa. He received several
battle stars. In March 1946, he was discharged from the Navy, and he arrived
in Bakersfield.
His first job was working for the Pacific Fruit Express Railway. He learned
the basics of railroad shipping, and he began moving up through the ranks,
arriving in a vegetable shipping partnership in 1954. His tenacity brought
him his own produce company "M.R. Swanson Inc." in 1974.
Honesty, integrity and loyalty were some of his best qualities, and this
was evident in his work ethics. He worked passionately taking care of his
produce customers and potato growers until his last days. Only his death
stopped him from showing up to the office.
In 1946 Marlin married Anne McIlvain, and together they brought Teresa into
the world. Marlin married the last love of his life Patricia Dyess in 1963.
Together they enjoyed their life with their three children, Alisa, Darlene,
and Dee Dee. Later they divorced, but "they remained best friends to the
end.
Marlin's favorite pleasure was to visit with family and friends. He always
had a joke and a story to tell. Twice a year he would travel to Mississippi
to visit with his 12 sisters and 7 brothers, and stopping to see his customers
along the way.
In his younger years Marlin coached an all girl basketball team, consisting
entirely of the Swanson sisters. One of his favorite stories was when a young
man in a Randolph, Mississippi gym needed some tennis shoes to shoot some
hoops. Marlin found him some shoes, and they played for a bit. That young
man happened to be Elvis Presley. We will all miss his great stories.
He was preceded in death by his father, Early and his mother, Ludie; his
brothers, L.V. and Richard; and his sisters, Norma and Faye. He leaves behind
to cherish his memory his daughters, Alisa Swanson, Darlene Paulson and her
husband, Roger, Dee Dee Todd and her husband, Sean, and Teresa Scott;
grandchildren, Vanessa and Taryn Paulson, Blake Thorne; sisters, Estmer,
Earlene, Frances, Kathleen, Leuvenia, Nona, Dorothy, Linda, Glenda, and Marilyn;
brothers, Curtis, Earnie, Rayburn, Jimmy and Larry; former wives, Anne Holderman
and Patricia Clark.
Visitation begins Friday, September 29th, from 4-8 p.m., at Hillcrest Morutary.
A Celebration of Life will be held Saturday, September 30th, at 10:00 a.m.,
at Hillcrest Memorial Chapel. Pallbearers will be Roger Paulson, Sean Todd,
Brian Spaulding, Ronald Swanson, Ken Bristol, and Ben Bufkin. Honorary
pallbearers will be Earnie, Rayburn and Larry Swanson, Peter Thorne, Glenn
Handel, and Owen Rice.
In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the March of Dimes or the American
Heart Association.
Source: The Bakersfield Californian
Bodock Beau The
Perfect Pastor
They say there’s no such thing as a normal person. Likewise, there really
isn’t a perfect preacher. However, in the computer age, folks have been
able to identify the characteristics of a perfect pastor.
The Perfect Pastor
The results of a computerized survey indicate the perfect pastor preaches
exactly fifteen minutes. He condemns sins but never upsets anyone. He works
from 8:00 AM until midnight and is also a janitor. He makes$50 a week, wears
good clothes, buys good books, drives a good car, and gives about $50 weekly
to the poor. He is 28 years old and has preached 30 years. He has a burning
desire to work with teenagers and spends all of his time with senior citizens.
The perfect pastor smiles all the time with a straight face because he has
a sense of humor that keeps him seriously dedicated to his work. He makes
15 calls daily on congregation families, shut-ins and the hospitalized, and
is always in his office when needed.
If your pastor does not measure up, simply send this letter to six other
synagogues that are tired of their pastor, too. Then bundle up your pastor
and send him to the church at the top of the list. In one week, you will
receive 1,643 pastors, and one of them will be perfect. Have faith in this
procedure. One congregation broke the chain and got its old pastor back in
less than three weeks.
Adapted from "The Perfect Rabbi" contributed by Carl Wayne Hardeman
Jay Leno: Radical Muslims are still angry at the Pope. They say the
Pope insulted a whole people and their religion. Then they went back to calling
for the destruction of Israel and killing everyone.
President Clinton is still very upset that ABC did not pull the ["Path to
9/11"]. In fact, he told them that he was thinking about changing his mind
about appearing on the show "Wife Swap."
President Clinton lost his temper in an interview with Chris Wallace. He
might not be the pleasant and polite first lady Hillary needs after all.
Even Muslims watching the interview were saying, "Take it easy!"
President Bush, the president of Iran and the president of Venezuela all
spoke at the United Nations, and they all made a point of not listening to
each other’s speeches. Where would we be if world leaders didn’t
have a place where they could all get together and ignore one another?
The leader of Hezbollah appeared in public today for the first time since
the cease-fire with Israel. He told the Lebanese people, "I feel your pain."
You know, that’s Bill Clinton’s line. You can’t call us the
‘Great Satan’ and then steal all of our president’s lines.
Liquids can now be carried on flights again. However the liquids must be
bought in airport gift shops. So basically you’ll have to buy a 3 ounce
bottle of hair gel for $167. You know who thought of this? The airport gift
shops.
Starbucks has announced they are not happy with the 8,600 stores they have
in the United States. Now they want to increase that number to 20,000.
That’s smart business planning. See, with Al Gore getting ready to run
for president again, people are going to need all the caffeine they can get.
Conan O'Brien: The president of Iran refused to attend a United Nations
banquet because wine was being served.
The Iranian president said he was afraid he'd get really drunk and say something
pro-Semitic.
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