I’ve been on the road a lot recently and I have seen more than my share of critters on it. Of course there are deer but one morning I came up upon a doe and a tiny baby deer on Highway 156 outside of Patriot. As I patiently waited for the two to get out of harm’s way, I flagged down an approaching car and told the young lady about the deer. She then directed me further up the road where there was a second tiny baby deer. Despite my desperate attempts to shoo it away, I ended up having to actually pick the little critter up one-handed and move it off the road. It was a good 50 feet from the other two so I left it with the other little deer behind a pasture gate and safe for the time being. Thank goodness, I have not seen any familiar looking roadkill in that area so hopefully it all ended well. I called the Sheriff’s Office and asked for them to relay the information to DNR officers so perhaps they were able to intervene as I knew a friend who had seen them in the road just a couple of days earlier. That tiny little deer probably didn’t weigh 10 pounds. I hope it made it!
Then later, I was up on Highway 350 when the car in front of me slammed on his breaks. Confused, I was able to react in time only to see not one, or two but three ground hogs in the middle of the road. They made it across safely also.
Not so sure about the fairly good sized snapper I saw a day or two later. He was close enough to the edge of the road that I felt my fingers were more important than his pointed little tail. I will never forget trying to help a young lady with a snapper when I was a deputy a few years back. She had a towel over it at Markland Pike and Highway 56 and was attempting to get it out of the middle of the roadway. I exited my car just in time to direct her away from the snapper when a pickup truck screeched to a halt and the driver, a young man exited. He grabbed the snapper by the tail and threw him into the bed of his truck and sped off. I just about lost it when that young lady burst out in smiles because the man had ‘saved’ it for her. Yeah, for his dinner!
And then, there were the cows. Again, not one or two but a whole herd! On Highway 250 leaving Patriot, two were squabbling over one little area of mud beside the road, a little heifer was in the creek and the others were roaming in and out of the pasture at their leisure. Bev Stoops stopped to help but the owner came home just in time to take over the mess.
Think about it. To you folks down here, seeing critters in the road is part of everyday life but this here is a City Girl. I got my initiation though when I was with the Sheriff’s Office and the late Norm Peters had a very large and cantankerous bull that liked to jump his fence. I remember trying to report it to the dispatcher on the police radio that pretended not to understand me so that I had to repeat myself several times. I finally changed “bull” to “male cow” and she quit asking. If the truth was known, she (Amanda) was probably laughing too hard to talk. The bull and I were becoming pretty friendly for awhile but then he seemed to disappear. The sheriff later explained that having a jumping bull is not a good thing and someone, somewhere was probably eating that problem even as we spoke.
Maybe I am a little too preoccupied with potential roadkill this week but maybe subconsciously, I’m glad I didn’t end up splattered all over some street or roadway. While sitting very quietly at a stoplight in Cincinnati this week, a gentleman failed to stop in time and rear-ended the vehicle I was in. Fortunately for all involved, what could have been a very unpleasant experience turned out not so bad. Being a retired police officer, I ended up asking for and getting a photo taken with one of Cincinnati’s finest officers and his all white Harley Davidson motorcycle. The ‘offender’ got to be the photographer. A couple of days in a hand splint was all that was needed, thank goodness!
John Curlin whom I have never had the pleasure of meeting – yet, at least, contacted me by email seeking copies of my recent articles. Seems John was not able to find any to purchase and didn’t want to miss anything so I emailed him the originals that I send to the newspaper office. Talk about being flattered! Thank you, Sir!
I don’t do ‘hot’ very well, So I made an executive decision and postponed the Red HOT Hatters Yard Sale. Of course this year’s County Wide Yard Sale was the hottest day of the year and thank God for meteorologists who were able to forewarn us in time! We will try again in September and continue to gather goodies until then. So far we have a large original oil painting in blue, large print of Sitting Bull, a ceramic vase of a lady, a large yellow chicken pitcher, angel figurines, hardback books, pet supplies, used golf balls, collectible tins, gold-rimmed mugs, Easter eggs and Christmas decorations, and much, much more! I have already sold (and bought) some things so we are $40 richer than we were already. And I was able to identify my mystery benefactors! Sondra and Fred Stave were the little elves who left the goodies on my front porch the other day. Thank you so very much! As always, all monies will go to the Antoinette “Toni” Kniola Memorial Fund. Anyone wishing to make a donation to Toni’s Fund may do so at anytime by stopping by the Community Foundation Office or to contribute items for the sale contact me at (812) 594-2281 for pickup.
The Red HOT Hatters are working on collecting some donations for our own Gift Giveaway at this year’s Relay for Life. Our Team Captain Sandy Dawson also has some 2016-2017 calendars and gel pens that can be purchased outright. The Relay will run from noon to 6 p.m. on Saturday, June 25th. Volunteers will be needed for the Relay for Life booth on June 25yj from noon to 6 p.m. Help with setup and teardown would be greatly appreciated. The Red HOT Hatters will not have a June meeting per se.
This year’s Fourth of July shirts are red and have a slight V-neck. They are available for purchase in advance at the Town Hall. Jill and Bruce Hutcherson will be the Parade Marshals this year. Registration forms for the 2016 Patriot 4th of July Parade are available at the Patriot Town Hall. Participants can also register onsite that day. Line up is between 9-11 a.m. at the Patriot Boat Ramp northeast of Town. The flag ceremony in Memorial Park will follow the Parade and is scheduled to begin at noon. The pitch-in dinner at Harris Park is scheduled to begin at 1 p.m. with music, games and inflatable recreation.
I still haven’t gotten a chance to have lunch with my buddy Sharon Levell but I got a little closer: I saw her hubby Bill at his son Brian’s garage on 250 and got to say “Hey” officially for about 60 seconds.
This recipe is a bit longer than most but this is one of my favorite sandwiches and it’s good for any meal, so try it! You’ll like it!
“Monte Cristo”
2 eggs
Pinches of salt and pepper
4 slices sturdy white bread
2 T. mustard
2 T. mayonnaise
½ lb. thick sliced baked ham
½ oz. shredded gruyere cheese
Salt and pepper to taste
2 T. butter
Optional: powdered sugar, honey, preserves
1. Beat eggs in a shallow dish (large enough to fit a sandwich) along with a few pinches of salt and pepper. Set aside.
2. Assemble sandwiches, with mustard, mayonnaise, ham, cheese, salt and pepper to personal preference. Slightly compress sandwich.
3. Over medium heat melt butter in skillet.
4. Dip and coat each sandwich in beaten egg, and place in skillet. Cook sandwiches 2-3 minutes on each side, until browned to liking and cheese has melted.
5. Makes 2 sandwiches.
If you have anything for me to include in this article, please send it to me. Information can be received any day of the week but normally my deadline is Sunday at noon for that week’s issue of the paper. Any news received later will appear in the following week’s article. If you need something in on a particular date be sure and give it to me early. Thank you for sending me what you do every week – I couldn’t do this without you!
You may contact me several ways: by calling my home at (812) 594-2281 or dropping me a note at P.O. Box #01, Patriot, Indiana, 47038. In addition, contact KAY E COOK on Facebook or online at PatriotNews1995@gmail.com.