ORIGINALLY WRITTEN JOEL KLAASSEN
If you take your summer vacation in Kansas, you have a shot at winning a new car if your trip is at least 100 miles from home, if you take it by Sept. 10 and if you submit a photo of your family or friends in front of a recognizable attraction. The quality of the photo doesn’t matter because it is entered in a random drawing.
Don’t know where to go? Look up www. travelks.com for ideas, or pick up a brochure at your local Chamber of Commerce office or call 800-2KANSAS, ext. MG34 to receive a free Kansas Getaway Guide. I looked at the Web site and found a lot of information.
I hate it when the phone number is spelled out, so it is 800-252-6727, ext. 6434.
— One attraction I’ve always wanted to see is Big Brutus. I was in that area one night, but never could find the huge mechanical coal-mining shovel in the dark.
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Thirty-five years ago I was working in Cambridge, Md., at Josten’s American Yearbook Co. The idea of taking a trip reminded me of one I took with a load of high school yearbooks bound for several stops in Kentucky.
Sometimes the shipping had to be expedited because of unexpected developments. The husband of another Josten’s employee and I thought we would earn a little extra money on the weekend by making the book run.
We went down to Hertz Rent the Truck. It was “the” truck because they only had one. At about 10 p.m., on Friday we loaded up and headed for the hills of Kentucky. The trip really could be made into a movie because it was nuts.
When we arrived at the Interstate in Virginia we ran out of gas. A trooper came to our aid and drove us about 15 miles to the next town. All we could get was one gallon can of gas. So we went back to the truck and put it in. A gallon of gas doesn’t go very far in a big truck, so we ran out again before reaching the next town. This time we walked for gas.
The next morning, as the sun came up. we arrived in Kentucky all bleary-eyed and giddy. First stop was a pancake house. What a trip.
— This past Saturday I had the opportunity to play in the Big Brothers Big Sisters of Marion County golf tournament played at the Hillsboro course. Who would have thought the weather would almost require a jacket in the morning-and really no wind to speak of. Besides having a great time, I learned that 51 “littles” looking for a big brother or big sister.
If this is something you have wanted to do, or if you know someone who might be interested, BBBS of Marion County would like to hear from you.
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If you’ve never eaten green beans raw you should try it. Quite a treat!
