<p>Claire Lovell</p>

Bird species seem to come and go with the varieties of weather, perhaps blown hither and yon by storms and gales.

On the beach Sunday, I was treated to the sight of a few black turnstones, which I havent seen for a while. They were down the rock pile; closer to the ocean so there wasnt much bird watching. Other times, I had seen them doing the thing for which they are named, rolling over the beach rocks with their bills to find a few bugs below. Cool.

Time with friends

One Wednesday, our church group had lunch at Suzanne Elise with Roberta Meling as hostess. We had the best chicken salad with romaine, a few other greens, crispy chicken slices, pecans, Craisins and dressing of choice. There was ice cream or a root beer float for dessert. It was great.

Alvis told us about her days enjoying choir camp at Camp Magruder over the stormy weekend. Fortunately, they were able to get home through the flooding, although the road had been closed earlier. Present were Kathy Ferris, Joan Hill, Roberta Meling, Doris Jarchow, Alvis Porter, Sharon Likwartz and yours truly. It was a nice afternoon.

Banner anniversary

In my daily reading of a pile of unsolicited mail, I found a bookmark bearing words to the Star Spangled Banner. I discovered that Francis Scott Key wrote it 100 years ago. We should celebrate! Just dont get a popular singer to do the honors. They have no feel for the song, which, though a waltz, should be sung in strict tempo as an anthem not a ballad for vocalizing and experimentation.

Metal gatherers

From Water Under the Bridge I remember that 75 years ago, we all were gathering scrap metal and shipping it to Japan. There was a scent of angst (pronounced onkst) and trouble in the air. Strangely enough, everybody seemed to know that the metal would be coming back to us as ammunition. What were we (not) thinking?

Indomitable spirit

I was happy to see Freida Johnson out walking with her daughter, Bonnie, after a recent illness. Freida has an indomitable spirit, which we all could aspire to, and were glad to have her in the neighborhood. Actually, except for some winters in Arizona, she has been in the neighborhood since about the age of 5, living in her third house on the street at present, growing up in one and raising her children in the other. We wish her well.

Elk up close

On the road home from Suzanne Elise one afternoon we saw three big elk pushing through the brush. I was glad they were there instead of crossing the highway, but it was fun to see them so close.

Thoroughly Republican

Ever since Dorchester moved its venue to the convention center, Ive tried to attend the Friday night keynote speech, which used to be open to the public. I remember speakers like Ronald Reagan, George H. W. Bush, Nelson Rockefeller, Maureen Reagan and seeing other big Republicans like Tom McCall, Bob Packwood and Vic Atiyeh. Theres even a snapshot of Sen. Packwood and me taken by his wife.

Those were exciting times. Once, I was a participant and paid my own way. Now I dont believe they have the format of an important kickoff speech open to the public or I would have tried to go.

Politics has always been thrilling to me. I treasure a political button I have with the slogan OReagan Country. At least one other dyed-in-the-wool Republican, Clarence Sigurdson, was always there, too.

Finding the words

For some reason, with the sun peeking through a corner of my window Thursday a.m., I thought of the old hymn, Lead Kindly Light, the title, that is. All the words didnt come to me. I had to look through four books before I finally found it in a Broadman hymnal, copyright 1940. In my search, I did find another Methodist hymnal, with tunes, copyright 1878. We always did have a tendency to throw out the baby with the bath water.

Laugh Line

Q: If a man crosses the ocean twice without taking a bath, what would you call him?

A: A dirty double crosser.