Pine Bluff News
By Pat Matheny

I haven’t heard any strange dogs barking in PB lately, just the usual ones…I guess that’s a good thing. The WVDOH spent most of the week mowing and brush hogging the sides along Big Bingamon road…it definitely needed it.

Tuesday, I drove down to Worthington Barber Shop for a haircut. It was good chatting with Frank and Janet and getting caught up on happenings. They are the proud owners of a new Mustang convertible and I hope they have as much fun with the vehicle as Susie and I did with our Mustang convertible…many, many moons ago when my curly locks would flow in the breeze.

In the afternoon, I walked over to Postal’s to see what he was up to. He was trying to scrape two layers of commercial grade paint from the exterior of his john boat…that’s going to take a while. He has been doing a little fishing and piddling around.

In the evening, I attended the weekly Vet meeting in Mgtn. As always, it was good seeing and chatting with the guys. We have another counselor since Cecil Joseph was transferred to Arizona. Her name is Brenda something (?) and spent 10 years in the US Army. I’ll pay closer attention to her name at the next meeting.

I’d like to give a shout out to Chuck (Charles) Collins. He was in the US Navy from ’76 to ’80 and volunteers to handle the Mgtn Vet Center office duties and to keep it open during our Tuesday evening meetings. He has been doing it for over 7 years; thanks Chuck for your service then and now…a very nice guy.

Thursday morning, I had an appointment at the VA Hospital. They ran the pressure cuff tests on legs again. I ran into pulmonary specialist Chris Shaw when leaving; it’s always nice chatting with him. It was also nice to talk with the guy (I don’t know his name) who runs the valet parking service at the hospital. They seem well organized and I think they are doing a fine job. I may have mentioned this before, but I love the valet parking.

On the way home, I stopped at the Shop n’ Save in town to pick up some Hostess snowballs, chocolate cup cakes, and cokes (Junk food day). It was nice running into little Jimmy Salerno (Jimmy’s Diner) on the way out. A couple of weeks ago, he had triple bypass heart surgery at Ruby…that’s not a fun thing to go through. He seems to be doing all right.

I ordered a half barrel with liner to replace the old one for fountain. The FedEx delivered this one also…much to the delight of the UPS guy. I drilled holes through the barrel for water outlet and a cord, installed pump, and put the barrel in service. That sounds simpler than what the project actually was…plus one Band-Aid and a wrenched right wrist were involved.

Since the weather finally warmed up, I spent Saturday pressure washing the deck, garage, and house (6 hours). It was fun holding the 3000 psi output wand with a bum wrist.

We have a new addition to the family. Susie bought a rather large frog (Size of a groundhog) that’s painted up like Spiderman…yeah, I know. She calls it Homer. Due to marital harmony, the amphibian is now crouched in front of the barrels.

Cynical BUT Funny: Last week I read that 4,153,237 people got married last year. Not to cause any trouble, but shouldn’t that be an even number?

Until next time, have a great week and remember our Veterans.

Pat