The Press-Dispatch
Issue link: https://www.ifoldsflip.com/i/1437336
Sweet's Column By Barb Sweet My So Called Millennial Life By Stephanie Hayes The Greek alphabet is caus- ing drama. Developed in the ninth century B.C., it has become a po- litical flashpoint destined for a ca- ble news chyron reading chaos and hysteria: ancient Greece to blame? All I'm saying is, Glagolitic script should watch its back. The World Health Organi- zation has been naming coro- navirus variants after Greek letters since May. We all know delta, which ruined our sum- mer outfits. Epsilon and iota disappeared without much fuss. But when the WHO got to nu, the meetings turned into an Abbott and Costello sketch. Around xi, concerns about China came up, and the WHO was all, "Alexa, skip! " Now, here we are at omi- cron. Experts say it will take weeks to figure out if it's more deadly or contagious than others. Do not panic! But if you're prone to panic, Greek Lettergate is a handy distrac- tion from imagining a world in which we are destined to get boosters like free koozies at minor league baseball games (I will do it). I propose the World Health Organization dump the Greek alphabet before it gets to the next letter, pi. We had pi vari- ant at Thanks- giving, anyway. A pumpkin pi, an apple pi... Sorry, that joke was low-hanging fruit. I'm so sorry. I can't be crusted. Scientific names are hard to remember. Delta, for ex- ample, was B.1.617.2, which also is the classroom your kid has to be in on Wednesday at 3:30 for holiday chorus, or was it math tutoring at 3:15? There has to be a better way. For instance, "The Sound of Music" characters are plenti- ful, with the added public rela- tions bonus of being beloved. It's time to make room for the Liesl variant, the Friedrich variant and, I guess, the Kurt variant, if we have to. When the children run out, we move to the misunderstood Baron- ess Elsa von Schraeder vari- ant, and the most likely to have commitment issues, the Captain von Trapp variant. How about the zodiac? The new variant sounds complicat- ed, like a Cancer sun with Sag- ittarius rising. Or maybe it's a Scorpio with Venus in Gemi- ni and a Virgo moon variant. All we need to figure it out is the exact time, date, latitude and longitude where the vari- ant was born. It's simple! Wait, this is a bad idea. Rabbits? That would be comforting. Holland Lop vari- ant, Flemish Giant variant, Netherland Dwarf variant, Soviet Chinchilla vari... gah, too political. Variant names should translate across borders. Ex- perts, please consider com- mon wordless expressions, such as the eye-roll variant, the heavy-sigh variant, the eyebrow-scrunch variant, the cheek-puff variant and the I'm- gonna-hurl-face variant. Even- tually, we will reach the just- resting-my-eyes-for-a-second variant. Maybe we should simplify things entirely with numbers. That way, when we get to vari- ant 4,567, it will align perfectly with the years spent living in a pandemic. Koozie, anyone? Stephanie Hayes is a colum- nist at the Tampa Bay Times in Florida. Follow her at @ stephhayeswrites on Facebook, @ stephhayes on Twitter or @ stephrhayes on Instagram. Share your favorite recipe! Monica's Meals in Minutes PO Box 68, Petersburg 47567 mealsinminutes@pressdispatch.net MAIL EMAIL MEALS IN Monica's MINUTES HOT CHOCOLATE BOMBS By Monica Sinclair Do you have chocolate lovers on your gift list this year? If so, this week's recipe will be perfect for them. It is a lit- tle labor intensive, but they will really know how much you care about them when they receive these as gifts. Enjoy! INGREDIENTS • 22 ounces semisweet chocolate, such as Baker's Chocolate, finely chopped • 1/2 cup baking cocoa • 1/2 cup nonfat dry milk powder • 1/4 cup confectioners' sugar • 6 tablespoons vanilla marshmallow bits (not minia- ture marshmallows) • Optional: sprinkles, colored sanding sugar, melted candy melts DIRECTIONS 1. Place chocolate in a microwave-safe bowl. Microwave, uncovered, on high for 1 minute; stir. Microwave, stir- ring every 30 seconds, until chocolate is melted and smooth, 1-2 minutes longer. Chocolate should not exceed 90°. 2. Add 1 tablespoon melted chocolate into a silicone sphere-shaped mold (2-1/2-in. diameter). Brush melt- ed chocolate evenly inside molds, all the way to edg- es, rewarming melted chocolate as needed. Refriger- ate molds until chocolate is set, 3-5 minutes. Brush a thin second layer of chocolate in molds. Refrigerate until set, 8 -10 minutes. Place remaining melted choc- olate into a piping bag fitted with a small round dec- orating tip; set aside. 3. Remove chocolate spheres from molds. In a medium bowl, whisk together baking cocoa, milk powder and confectioners' sugar. Place 3 tablespoons cocoa mix- ture into half the chocolate spheres. Top with 1 table- spoon marshmallow bits. 4. Pipe a small amount of melted chocolate on edges of remaining spheres; carefully adhere to filled halves, pressing lightly to seal, using additional melted choc- olate if necessary. If desired, decorate with optional ingredients. Refrigerate until set. Store in a tightly sealed container. 5. To prepare hot chocolate: Place hot chocolate bomb in a mug; add 1 cup warm milk and stir to dissolve. Source: tasteof home.com C-2 Wednesday, December 15, 2021 The Press-Dispatch Hi stars and welcome to the big stage all lit up in colorful bright lights and dec- orated to help celebrate with all our stars who will have a birthday or anniversary in the week of December 16 -22. Come up onto this stage and take a bow. We have a new star in our birthday list, so to Sian and Nick Gaines, who had their first child, Dakota Rose Lee Gaines, 6 lbs., 20 1/2 inches long, on December 3, 2021, congratulations. Welcome, Dakota Rose Lee. Grandma Vanessa is so proud. BIRTHDAYS December 16 -Dakota Conrad; Christo- pher and Katherine Meyer celebrate 26 years; Danny and Tina Stone celebrate 27 years. December 18 -Mallory Kay Tooley turns 15; Mitch Wright; Kevin Hornby. December 19 -Xavier Glen Shelton turns 10. December 20 -McKayla Travis turns 17; Jessica Meier; Travis McCandless; Stac- ey Williams turns 45. December 21-Chance Crane turns 20 ; Edna Baker; Harry and Jan Nelson cele- brate 64 years. December 22-Morgan Schnarr. May all our stars have a really great day and may all your wishes come true. Keep in your heart and in your prayers all our stars who are having surgeries, treatments, testing and more, and those with allergies, and the aches and pains of everyday life. EVENTS December 21-Winter begins. December 25 -Christmas Day with fam- ily and friends, church services and can- tatas. December 26 -Kwanzaa begins. December 27-Winslow Town Hall at 6 p.m. December 31-New Year's Eve. Christmas in Hornady Park will contin- ue from 6 -9 p.m. every night until the end of December. Come and see all the dis- plays set up for your enjoyment. Winslow senior citizens are meeting on Monday and Tuesday at the Commu- nity Center. Petersburg seniors meet in the courthouse basement. There were no postcards this week at Sweets Column, Winslow, IN 47598. Winslow Patoka River is rising and it's already full. The Wabash River and White River are or will overflow their banks. The Winslow temps have went up to 70s and down to 25 for a couple of nights. Winds were strong enough to shake the cars and trucks. We had an- other weekend of storms that brought tor- nadoes to the south of us. The woods and trees have lost their colors until spring, so the trees and large pine trees are dec- orated in lights and yards have the man- ger scene, snowmen, Santa and his rein- deer, the Grinch, Mickey Mouse and Minnie, drag- ons and skeletons. Speak- ing of skeletons, the 57 Bones family is decorating the Christmas tree. They have two small children. I like to see the yard in the daytime without lights, but at night, it lights up your ar- ea. In Winslow, the Bolins and Hickmans have their east end part of town. Check it out. Our Brownstown has several yards still decorating. You could have, unless you have already, seen San- ta Claus at the Winter Wonderland in the old town hall. On December 4, there was a Christ- mas parade with several fire departments from Spurgeon, Patoka Township and Pe- tersburg, three queens of Pike County, Pike Central band, white and blue classic cars, the Bishop family and the Grinch, who chased an elf around Main St., the Winslow Lions Club and Mindy pulling Santa Claus on his sleigh. There were lots of families all along Main St. to the Sports Field to see Santa and the parade. It was a bit chilly, but a great day for a parade. There was a mishap of sorts as a vehi- cle was about to drive towards the parade that had started to come down the street. Our police officer Mike went straight to- ward this person and put that car to the curb. There was no damage, but the ve- hicle had to back up and go on the side street. I thank you, Mike, for our safety, also Officers Steve and Ray, who helped block the north and south. Thanks to ev- eryone for the parade. Winslow did have a great day with the Mouse House, where several children came in to buy presents for Mom and Dad, and other family members. There were coats hanging on lamp posts, doors, across benches and any other item that would hold a coat. Throughout the day, the coats were beginning to disappear. The Winter Wonderland had Santa Claus sitting in his chair beside the fire- place and Christmas tree, with his bag of toys (stuffed animals) and listening to each child's request for a present un- der the tree. Santa also gave them a bag of candy, orange, apple, a candy cane, an animal and some got 3-D glasses of either Santa, reindeer or candy canes. There was also hot chocolate and a cook- ie. Oh, yes, you could write a letter to Santa and mail it in the special mailbox to Santa Claus. Other items set up were: more Christmas trees decorated differ- ently, an igloo, the nativity set, a big San- ta Claus, snowman, candles on the fire- place and lighted items on the walls, and lights in the front window. I saw several stars I hadn't seen for a year or two, and I'm at the age if I don't write it down, I forget most of it. Anyway, I talked to Mrs. Havens, who had her grandchild with her. She is ei- ther Jacob's or Silas' daughter. The Winslow Lions roared at our Christmas dinner, where about 20 family and friends enjoyed the bring-in meal of ham, turkey, BBQ deer, sweet potatoes, whipped potatoes, green beans, corn, mac and cheese, broc- coli cheese rice, rolls, tea to drink and lemon or chocolate cream pies, éclairs and cream horns. We enjoyed another Saturday, December 11 for Winter Won- derland with Santa Claus, but we will not meet until the springtime, unless we have a special meeting. Norm got a year older. He is now 64. The gifts he received on his birthday were great gifts to receive, but Ava (our vehicle) decided to light up the dash area where the mileage is. Most of the time, it is not lit up, but for his birthday and the next day, the area stayed on. So, we know it was a short. Have you ever had Santa Claus wave at you? We did. We were on a drive when we passed Santa in his casual wear get- ting his mail. Santa waved at us and we waved back. Christmas candy is being sold as a fundraiser for the Odd Fellows in Peters- burg. Call Randy Hamm at 812-766 -3006 or Jerry Hill at 812-354-7656 for more in- formation. There were snow flurries on December 8 in Ayrshire, where we saw small flurries and then in Winslow. In Brownstown, we woke up to a small amount on the porch, which is in the shade. The grassy areas had melted. So, eight days of snow as the old tale goes. Took Mom out to try on shoes and that didn't go too well because most of the shoes were not all slip-ons or with straps. So, we decided to have the velcro straps replaced at a shoe repair place. We found one in Huntingburg, but we were an hour or so away in Washington. We enjoyed our ride, as we saw all the deco- rations set up and at the shop, the owner said they were fine, just needed cleaned. In a minute or so, they were like new. Now, she won't lose her shoes. The lights are about to dim for this week. Keep an eye on family and friends. Slow down and see all the wonders in each yard and town. Stay safe and wear your mask in crowds and indoors. As al- ways, smile, wave and say "hi" to every- one you see this week. After Omicron, let's ditch the Greek alphabet REAL ESTATE TRANSFERS James L. King, Inez L. King and James Lowell King, AK A James I King convey to The James L. King Revoca- ble Trust and James L. King Trustee, real estate as record- ed in Pike County. Amy L. Ropp conveys to Kevin Carroll, real estate as re- corded in Pike County. Eddie Willis and Eddie R. Willis convey to Eddie R. Wil- lis, Marjean Willis and Eddie Willis, real estate as record- ed in Pike County. Dalton J. Dillon conveys to Barry E. Dillon and Rhonda R. Dillon, real estate as recorded in Pike County. Kevin Michael Kluemper and Kevin M. Kluemper con- vey to Nicholas B. Kluemper, Kevin M. Kluemper and Kevin Michael Kluemper, real estate as recorded in Pike County. Stephanie McNabb conveys to Apryl A. Bolton, real es- tate as recorded in Pike County. Lake Helmerich Property Owners Assoc., Inc. convey to Apryl A. Bolton, real estate as recorded in Pike County. Lynnville National Bank, Alicia M. Goslee, Pike County Sheriff, State of Indiana and Circuit Court of Pike County convey to William C. Atkins and Jana M. Atkins, real es- tate as recorded in Pike County. Estate of James D. Griffith, James D. Griffith and Chris- tina A. Scales convey to Christina A. Scales, real estate as recorded in Pike County. Heather N. Eastham and Heather Eastham NK A Heath- er N. McCandless NK A Heather McCandless convey to Rick Kortea, real estate as recorded in Pike County. Pike County Auditor, State of Indiana and Nancy Jo- anne Loveall convey to Raymond F. Austin, real estate as recorded in Pike County. Pike County Auditor, State of Indiana and Nancy Jo- anne Loveall convey to Raymond F. Austin, real estate as recorded in Pike County. James E. Minnis and Dona K. Minnis convey to Ches- ter R. Davis and Janet E. Davis, real estate as recorded in Pike County. HEATING AND AIR 812-789-3065 jmcdonald@alltradeheatingandair.net or admin@alltradeheatingandair.net THE INDUSTRY LEADER IN CLEAN AIR, BUT DON'T JUST TAKE OUR WORD FOR IT. The Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America recognizes CleanEffects® as asthma & allergy friendly® LOUIE CAMPBELL Sales Professional lcampbell@sfaulknerauto.com CALL OR TEXT 812-899-6267 @LouieYourCarGuy HWY. 64 W. PRINCETON Looking for a Great Deal On Your Next Vehicle?