This was the week of 2022 Marcus Hometown Christmas. Trees that were usually put up on Sunday were already up on Saturday. This year there were 27 trees. Marcus Lumber had a wood tree made of laths and painted green. The SkillsUSA from MMCRU High School Industrial Arts Dept. had one and a Garden Gnome was from Farmers State Agency.
We went back in time with the tree from Marcus Historic Society. Around the bottom of their tree were dolls in baby buggies and a stroller, and a small kitchen stove. Tree ornaments were from the past also.
“Details” had dried orange slices and hydrangea flowers (at least that is what I thought they were!) on their tree. All these trees were something to behold. I wish you could have seen them in color with their lights illuminating their ornaments.
School was let out early on Thursday because of bad weather arriving. By 6 p.m., I thought it was hail but was a driving rain that froze as soon as the snow arrived. At first schools were just going to be 2 hours late, but by 8 a.m., schools were closed for the day.
With the Hometown Christmas on Saturday, streets had to be cleared off, but there were still icy spots. The Saturday activities did go on in spite of the previous weather.
December 2, Carla Stodden passed away. Her funeral was on Thursday, Dec. 8. It wasn’t until later that afternoon that the weather turned bad. Carla was a resident at Heartland Care Center since 2009 after her mother passed away. I remember her going downtown in her fast moving two-wheeled transportation! I missed her refrigerator towels that she made that were usually at the Community Center at Hometown Christmas time. For those whose lives Carla touched, she will be missed. Until we meet again Carla, rest in peace.
It isn’t that often we see our former neighbors, the Stoddens. They did join us for funeral lunch. Ever since Dave passed away, we just haven’t gotten together.
I did call Lois Allen that I had seen in a book that Carla’s sister had made, that Lois and Jerry Dunn were Carla’s baptism sponsors. Lois said up until about 10 years ago, she always sent Carla a card but had lost tract of her as of late. She didn’t even know Carla had died until I called.
I just got a message from Sharon (Johnson) Harwick that Marlene Jorgensen had a heart attack Saturday morning and died. I have had these relatives for a meal when they come together once a year (usually to celebrate Marlene’s birthday that was in Sept.).
Sunday (Dec. 11) is the FREE gift of Revisiting Bethlehem given by St. John’s Lutheran Church in Le Mars. Every five years this church turns their church basement into a trip we take to finally reach Bethlehem. They have live animals there. They start at noon and finish at 6 p.m. People rotate every 2 hours. Because they are “in character” they do not speak to anyone passing through. I plan on going to this again (I have been there 3 times before!) At the end of your journey, they offer food that people ate at that time.
Monday is the City Council meeting. Thursday is the MMCRU High School Band and Choral Concert. There seems to be something right up to Christmas!
In the news this week was the first time U.S. currency had two women’s signatures on it. Treasurer of the United States Chief Lynn Malerba is the first Native American to hold that position. Secretary of the Treasury Janet Yellen unveiled the first U.S. currency bearing her signature, the first time U.S. bank notes will bear the name of a female treasury secretary. Both these women ceremonially signed fresh sheets of bills in $1 and $5 denominations. The new notes will go into circulation next year.
Due to low water levels at Little Sioux Park near Correctionville, three trumpeter swans will be removed on Monday and be temporarily relocated to Nora Springs, Iowa. The low water levels at Little Sioux Park won’t allow the aerator to function properly, leaving the swans with little or no open water. Conservation officials will reevaluate the lake levels on a regular basis. The swans will be returned to Little Sioux Park when water levels are adequate.
Little Butterball, the orphan kitten that its mother didn’t want and Bethany took in, doesn’t have one of the top five names for cats this year! Trending Cat Names for 2022 are Hella, Yoongi, Crscent, Finnian, or Haiku. There are pandemic-related names like “Covid” and “Dr. Fauci”.
Luna is the No. 1 name for female cats, and Oliver is the No. 1 for male cats. These names as well as other names were listed after online pet-care resource Rover.com studied data that more than 1 million users shared on its website. This was gathered in Sept. and Oct.
Bella was eclipsed by Luna as the most popular female dog name in 2022, making Luna the No.1 name for both female dogs and cats for the first time. Rounding out the top five names for cats are: Lily (female) and Milo (male); Bella (female) and Leo (male); Lucy (female) and Charlie (male); and Nala (female) and Max (male). Can you see that little Butterball is not even mentioned?!
In this report were two lists of 100 names for males and 100 names for female cats for 2022. There isn’t room for these 200 names, but they are quite interesting. My older cat, “Miss Sassy” is mentioned but Bethany’s cat, “Jewel” isn’t. I did see that the cat Bethany rescued from being caught in the fence, and she called “Pumpkin” was mentioned for both female and male. She thought Pumpkin was female until Zachary reported it was not!
This is the time of year when people become depressed. Money may be scarce, relationships are falling apart, jobs are lost, credit cards are more than due, and they seem to have no where to turn. It is the time of year when the “Dear Abby’s” get letters asking what to do when you can’t afford the family gift drawing, or can’t give what someone is expecting. Their answers are usually: Tell the truth. “I’d rather not be in on the drawing, or to someone expecting much, “I can’t afford it at this time”. It does not pay to play big and put it on a credit card—they have to be paid off in the future. Count your blessings and consider yourself fortunate that you aren’t living under a bridge and going to the back of restaurants looking for food in a dumpster.
I do not know how much room for articles so I will close sooner. Remember in your thoughts and prayers those who have lost loved ones to death and have had their lives changed, have health problems some of which are terminal, be with those who are struggling to make ends meet even though they have a job, and encourage those who are still trying to shorten the distance between friends and family to build a bridge instead of a wall.
I will close with this quote from Arthur Helps (1813-1875) British historian: “Wise sayings often fall on barren ground, but a kind word is never thrown away.”