Getting to Loyal about once ….

Getting to Loyal about once a week seems to be working out great.

This week there were more spring flowers and the trilliums are beginning to bloom. As I drove through the cemetery I noticed the Legion had been around putting flags on the graves of veterans. The thought came to me, I guess I won’t be making a trip up to the Pipe Lake cemetery to put flowers on the graves of my parents and brothers, Ernest and Harold.

Driving by Roehl’s Acres I noticed a new sign just south of the Behnke farm house and across the road from Northside’s storage bins about where the new road runs from K over to Miller Avenue.

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I saw quite a sight the other night. It was the night of the eclipse but it wasn’t quite dark yet. When I looked out I suddenly saw the branches on one of the trees shaking violently. All of a sudden an animal dropped out of the tree with something in its mouth. It ran away from me so I just assumed it was probably a cat with a fresh bird it had just caught.

I spent the rest of the evening waiting and finally watching as the moon got fully covered. I was amazed that it didn’t start clearing again. So after watching what I thought was the right spot in the sky and nothing was happening, I went to bed. I woke up about one-thirty and the moon was shining brightly as if nothing had happened.

According to the computer the next eclipse is scheduled for Tuesday, Nov. 8.

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My supply of books is holding out, but I have been through a couple this week. One was about Charles Lindbergh’s early life before his famous “Spirit of St. Louis” flight.

It was apparently written in longhand in both pen and pencil as he traveled around the world. He makes out like his grades in school were pretty bad and life sure wasn’t what it is today. This would have been in the early 1900’s, even before the automobile had made an appearance. Life growing up on a farm in the Little Falls area in Minnesota didn’t sound so great and certainly much worse than I ever encountered from the mid ‘30s and on.

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The next book was one on the first 25 years of the Minnesota Twins. It might explain why I still remain a Twins fan and not a Brewer. It really began even before the Twins arrived and long before there was even talk of anything like the Milwaukee Brewers. The Milwaukee Braves had left for Atlanta before that.

Florence and I were married on Dec. 30, 1956. Starting in January we lived in an apartment in Northfield, Minnesota, and I drove every day to southern Minneapolis to pump gas at an Erickson/ Holiday station. I quickly found out pumping gas and washing windshields wasn’t quite as glamorous as it had been being the station manager.

My route up to Minneapolis on what is or was known as Cedar Avenue, was mostly rural at the time, but there was a tiny suburb by the name of Apple Valley just starting up. I was also required to drive over the Minnesota River on a rickety old bridge. Once over the bridge

I saw where a new baseball stadium was being built. They called it Metropolitan

Stadium.

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The Twins Cities were no stranger to baseball. Both cities had teams, There was the Minneapolis Millers and St. Paul Saints. So after years of talks and effort the Washington Senators became the Minnesota Twins. I don’t recall when I attended my first game. My brother Ben lived in Mendota Heights and he invited me to come along with a bunch of Knot Hole Kids he and some of his neighbors were taking.

Then came my lucky streak. I had left my job as a linotype operator/printer for the Turtle Lake Times and was working at the post office. My old boss, Harold Lange at the Times, had a season pass to the Twins. I guess it was just a promotional thing the Twins did.

So all I had to do was call in with his pass, order two tickets for a select day and my Dad and I got to see a game.

I don’t remember how many we saw but we were lucky to see them win most of the time.

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Then came the ‘65 season and the Twins won the pennant. The World Series was coming to Metropolitan Stadium. As you can imagine tickets were not just available, at least any free ones. But luck still held out.

Those with press passes could buy two tickets per game and the American League, the Twins, got four home games that year.

Once again my old boss came through. He and his son were using the two tickets per game, but then he came to me and said if the Twins won the sixth game, I could go to the seventh. Let me tell you we were a pretty excited family during the playing of game six.

Luckily it was just me and the postmaster at the post office so it was pretty easy for either of us to take a day off. Our sub lived next door over the Clover Farm liquor store.

We closed the post office at 5:30 and I headed home. Florence and the girls, (Shelly was just eight months old) were ready to go. We drove to Florence’s parents in Northfield just 40 or so miles south of Met Stadium.

Since I had no one to wait for, I headed to the stadium. Early enough there was no traffic problem and found parking about three rows from the stadium. Sad to say Sandy Kofax and the Dodgers won the seventh game, but once again I lucked out. I was one of the first to leave and again there was no traffic problem. Those of you who ever attended a game know all about the creeping along one had to do when they attended just a regular season game.

Another factor to being a Twins fan. His name was Harmon Killebrew and he finished his career with 573 home runs. He lucked out when a US Senator from Idaho conned the Washington Senators into letting him play.

He came to the Twins when the Senators left Washington. His picture sits on my window sill along with my grandson Major/Doctor, or Doctor/ Major Will Hayman.

I’m not done with baseball books yet. Next up – Kirby Puckett.