Game night in Ramona was a 10-point pitch party years ago
By JESSICA GILBERT
Ramona correspondent
(785) 965-2621
Nothing stirs up small-town curiosity like a group of parked cars on Main Street — especially if your car isn't parked there, too. There's this sense that you're "missing out" on something, or that the "party has passed you by!"
That certainly was the case this past Sunday evening when the Ramona Senior Center was surrounded by cars — the cars even spilled over to the other side of the street by the former bank building!
"What's happening at the senior center?" asked Tooltime Tim when he stopped by the bank where I was laboring over the year-end statement for the city books. "It's game night!" I replied. "Second Sunday of the month."
When I spoke to Norma Bird, president of the Ramona Senior Center, she confirmed that "Game Night!" was quite a "blast!" "We played 10-point pitch," said Norma. "And we whipped fannies!" Then she broke into laughter. "Myrna and Steve Eskeldson were our partners and we had so much fun. It's been a long time since I've played pitch. Have you ever played?"
Pat and I used to call 10-point pitch the official "Game of Ramona," because when we'd come out here each summer, we played a lot of pitch with Uncle Hank and Aunt Gertie Schubert.
As kids we didn't play cards much, so as adults we didn't even know the proper names for the cards, let alone how to play pitch. When my sister would take the bid and call trump, she'd often say, "Trump is those 'clover-thingees'," meaning clubs.
And when it came to scoring pitch — well, it seemed that every summer Uncle Hank would have to give us a "tutorial" reminding us that "the two is worth one point, the king and queen worth zero
If your car wasn't among the other happy cars parked around the senior center this past weekend, you have another chance this month to be part of a senior center event — the valentine potluck Feb. 19.
Noreen Weems will be at the center from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on that day to help people with their income taxes. If you have questions about LIEAP, which offers assistance for energy/heat and food stamps, Noreen can help with that, too.
Lunch on Feb. 19 will be a potluck at noon, with folks bringing a covered dish. Afterward there'll be Bingo! "You're invited to get a small gift for $2 or less and wrap it," said Norma. "We'll use them as prizes for Bingo."
The Birds have had company at their house for the past week. Don's older brother, Richard Bird, is moving to the Herington area from Ft. Worth, Texas. "He'll be moving into a small apartment in the next week or so," explained Norma. Later on Don will accompany his brother back to Ft. Worth to close down his place.
During Super Bowl weekend Pat Jones decided to go see his daughter Heather, who lives in the town of Riley, north of Ft. Riley. It was the weekend when the snow descended on Ramona.
Pat and I received a phone call from Connie Smith, who lives next door to Paul. "I know you don't have a television so I wanted to alert you that a big snow and ice storm is on its way and will probably hit Ramona this evening," said Connie. "And Paul is out of town and doesn't think he'll be back until Monday."
You might think that the impending storm was the worst part of Connie's news, but actually the unfortunate part was realizing that Paul Jones was going to be out of town! Paul is the city maintenance man and the one who keeps our street cleared when snow arrives.
Making matters worse — the old city tractor had "given up the ghost" the week before and wasn't working when we needed it most.
City council member Jeannie Weber, heard the news of the storm and she and her husband, Jim, arrived at our house with a proposal. "I've got my big tractor," said Jim. "I can help."
Jim was up late into the night trying to stay ahead of the snow. But by the time he arose the next morning, there were another five or six inches that had accumulated.
"We've got Dad's little John Deere tractor," said my sister. "Jim, you take Main Street, and Tooltime Tim, you take the side streets."
In no time at all, it seemed, the dynamic duo had the streets cleared — they even had a little help from Alan Bentz from Tampa.
The whole town seemed like one big snowy beaver pond, with folks scurrying everywhere to help get the job done. City council members Jayme Brunner and Jeannie Weber were shoveling people's sidewalks. Don Matkins had his snow blower and cleared walkways by downtown buildings and for citizens as well. Even the kids got in the act.
"We didn't do it to get paid," said Cole Svoboda, who stood with his shovel in hand and his coveralls dusted with snow. "But people wanted to pay us." Even some of the older kids, like Jimmy Cheever and Josh Leach, were offering their services.
When the worst of the storm had passed, roads were clear enough for Paul Jones to return home. "There I was in Riley watching Channel 13 news about the snow storm," said Paul, "and they announce the weather conditions in 'downtown Ramona!' It was strange."
Valentine's Day is approaching — it's my favorite holiday — so I thought I'd leave you with an inspiring thought or two on love. I keep a "Favorite Quote" book and here are a couple of favorites: "Love does not make the world go 'round, it's what makes the ride worthwhile!" (Davis)
And a funny one by Lilly Tartikoff, a ballet dancer and wife to Brandon Tartikoff who was king of NBC in 1989: "Early on I made a decision about life. I decided that until I met someone as brilliant as Balanchine, and whose buns were as tight as Baryshnikov's there wasn't a whole lot to be impressed by!"
And if you want a tip about the most effective "love potion," Menandes, a Greek playwright said, "There is but one genuine love potion — consideration."
And that's the news from downtown Ramona where our hearts are full of appreciation for one another (especially when it snows) and a traffic jam is two parked cars and a dog in the road.
