Ramona
By JESSICA GILBERT
Ramona correspondent
(785) 965-2621
The phrase, "busy as bees" took on new meaning this past week when I listened to David Mathis, marketing vice president for Golden Heritage Foods from Hillsboro, talk about the mysteries of honeybees. David was one of several fascinating speakers featured at "Hyacinths, Hats, and Honey," an event sponsored by the Peabody Main Street Association.
According to Mathis, a worker bee produces about one-half teaspoon of honey in its entire life. "And we used 11 pounds of honey in making lunch for everyone," said Joanna Brazil, director of Peabody Main Street Association.
Next time you have honey on your toast — just bless those bees. Why, I even learned that honeybees are the only insects that can pollinate cucumbers.
Pat and I were honored to be the afternoon speakers for this women's workshop, and I even won a gift certificate from Nancy's Fashions in Hillsboro for wearing the most elegant hat — and believe me, the competition was stiff! There was a contingency of ladies from the Red Hat Club in El Dorado, and they walked away with the majority of prizes!
Friday evening Tracy and Yvonne Brunner entertained and educated friends about the beef industry in South America. The Brunners spent two weeks in early March on an agricultural tour in Argentina, Brazil, and Uruguay.
Guests included Betty and Harold Ohm, Henry and Gertie Schubert, Erich Utech, Junior and Jeanetta Hanschu, Rick Hanschu, Paula and Max Morgan, Lauren and Orvell Brunner, Tony Meyer, and myself.
"Pre-show" entertainment was provided by Gertie Schubert who passed around the brag book she'd just received from Colorado featuring the Schuberts' first great-grandchild, Logan Samuel, born April 19. He weighed nine pounds four ounces and proud parents are Kimberly and Adam Glueckert of Aurora, Colo.
As 7:30 approached, the appointed hour for the video show featuring slides, video footage, and narrative by Tracy, Tony Meyer pronounced: "The show will start in five minutes!" And then he added, "That's what they'd say at the theater in Tampa, and we'd all rush for our seats and see a great western!"
I suppose you could call the Brunner's show "a western," since it featured cattle and cowboys. That was one fascinating revelation — cowboys are the same world-over!
And another thing I learned is that some of the roads in rural Brazil look just like our rural roads — the ones you aren't supposed to drive down after it rains! Made me give thanks for our highways and roads. They may need a little patching and maintenance, but they get you there! Next time you get gas, give thanks that it's not $3 a gallon — the going rate in Brazil!
The Brunners' young son, Tanner, modeled souvenirs his parents brought home — like ponchos and hats. And he even demonstrated how they call cattle in South America — a trumpet made of a cattle horn that's about four feet long!
Jane Brunner Hogan walked into the Dirt Gambler's Museum Wednesday with several little packages in her hand. Jane had called and asked if I'd open the museum for her and her husband, Jim and her mother, Marlyss of Herington.
When I saw the plastic zip lock bags filled with memorabilia I imagined that Jane was just going to show these family treasures to me — not leave them here! There was a photo of her father, David Brunner, in his Ramona basketball uniform and she'd even found a ticket to a Ramona basketball game — 23 cents for the game, three cents tax and for a quarter you got an evening's worth of exciting competition.
She handed over commencement announcements for David Brunner, class of 1927 and Benjamin Brunner, class of 1925. And two Ramona High School banners for our sports corner in the museum.
She added a servicemen's prayer book, a military field manual, a postcard her father received notifying him that soldiers in his unit would be in a parade with Gen. Eisenhower, and a picture of her father in military uniform.
"I figured these treasures could be enjoyed by more people if they were on display in the museum rather than in a trunk somewhere," said Jane. And as for me — well, I felt like it was Christmas!
When Jane arrived in the "school room" of our humble museum, it brought back lots of memories. "Duane Beltz, Keith Schubert, and I were all born within a day of each other," said Jane. "Duane was Feb. 22, I was Feb. 21 and Keith, Feb. 20. We were all born in the old Herington hospital, went to the same school together, and the same grade. Gertie Schubert was even my third and fourth grade teacher."
As she reminisced about where she'd lived in Ramona she added, "We had a three-holer outhouse — we were 'uptown'!" And her husband, Jim, mischievously interjected, "That's why I married her — she was wealthy!" Jim and Jane now live in Gardner.
After the Hogans and Mrs. Brunner left the museum they headed to Lewis Cemetery to decorate David Brunner's grave.
Last Saturday, when Pat and I were in Peabody, our buddy Tooltime Tim was at the museum working on the computers, creating a t-shirt design for a Ramona t-shirt. While he was there working, three ladies stopped at the museum to leave a photograph for the military display.
Pat Riffel of El Dorado, Dolores Brooks of Herington, and Dorothy Boettcher of Greenville, Texas, left photographs of Burton, Eldred, and Alfred Riffel, sons of Wanda and Dan Riffel of Ramona. All three men were Korean War veterans.
The Ramona park was full of activity this past week when the Ramona Senior Center sponsored a wiener roast. "We roasted marshmallows and made s'mores, too," said Marlene Anduss, vice president for the senior group. "We had a great time just sitting in the park and visiting."
"I now know the real meaning of henpecked," laughed Norma Bird, president of the Ramona seniors. Norma and her husband Don, have two cockateels and several months ago when they added a female to the mix, their male bird wasn't very excited about the new roommate in the cage.
"He'd sit on the food dish to keep her from eating, chased her around the cage, and wasn't at all friendly. He nearly starved her to death." said Norma.
And then something changed his mood. Romance filled the air and he started calling her "Pretty Bird" and emitting wolf whistles. Don set to work building a nesting box, and next thing there were four tiny eggs in he nest.
"When those eggs appeared, our male bird was so protective," said Norma. "And he was so attentive and sat on the eggs. But then after a week or so, he lost interest. He didn't want to sit on those blasted eggs, and instead he wanted to play with his toys."
The female was none too impressed with this behavior! "She'd come flying out of the nesting box and make a bee line for her mate, pecking and biting and creating quite a fuss. Cockateels are a parrot, so you can imagine her bites were quite effective," said Norma.
Last week the first of the eggs hatched. "They're so cute, about the size of my thumb," said Norma. Both birds now sit on the nest, protecting and feeding and still working to hatch the last egg.
"It's clear who rules the roost!" laughed Norma, who says she's already getting calls from folks interested in buying the new little cockateels.
And that's the news from Ramona where the birds and the bees have filled the news, but a traffic jam is still two parked cars and a dog in the road.
