| By Alvin Engelke
 By Alvin Engelke
alvinengelke@hotmail.com
There were 331 riders in the Shrine ATV Poker run held Saturday on the historic dePue farm at Creston. The Creston Community ATV Poker run will be held Saturday, July 21 at the Creston Community Building.
The Loudins got their cabin under roof but, judging from the number that was in over the 4th of July, they will have to build a substantial addition to hold all the family and friends. They also fetched in a big boat and some wondered where enough water would be found to run it.
Several area residents, including Charles & Euell Russell journeyed to Spencer to see the fireworks which were spectacular. At 9 P. M. it was pouring rain but the rain quit, the woods were wet (and safe) and all went well. Charles & Euell were also dining at Dairy Queen.
The area received a nice rain which made mud and caused the river to rise a little with muddy water. Fields have turned green and gardens are growing, much to the delight of the DNR's deer which are busy harvesting bean plants, tomato plants, cucumber vines, pepper plants and the occasional weed.
Gary Bailey was in the Creston area looking especially for the location of the Headley graves (Anthony's family) on Island Run.
Several area residents attended the Wirt Methodist parish picnic, worship & Holy Communion service Sunday at the park in Elizabeth.
Richard McFall has been spending some time in Creston looking after his oil interests.
Zelma Pauline Cox, age 83, of Harrisville passed away June 24. The daughter of Ben and Julia Jarvis Hedge of Bear Fork of Little Creek, she was a retired schoolteacher having obtained both bachelors and master's degrees from WVU.
Eleanor Grim, widow of the Rev. Gladson Grim, passed away July 4 after an extended bout with Alzheimer's disease. She had spent a large portion of her life in Creston.
The friends and relatives of Harold Richards gathered at the scenic Maze graveyard on a low hill in the Maze bend to lay his body to rest among his long departed relatives. Rev. Harold Francis held the service and some had trouble locating the cemetery with two arriving after the service was over.
Euell & Charles Russell were both consulting their physicians at Minnie Hamilton Health Care Center. Euell received a good report on his blood sugar level.
There has been all kinds of oil field and frac activity up Big Root and Leafbank lately. The other day it seemed like Universal had a convoy on Route 5.
Donna Sue Ferrell has been having chariot difficulties.
The price of local Penn grade crude oil rose to $67.75 reflecting, worldwide, troubles with terrorists in Nigeria, a place where most of the natural gas is flared to get the oil produced quickly. The so-called save the planet crowd apparently is able to overlook such minor matters so that they can have jet fuel to go around holding concerts, political rallies & such.
The report that weapons produced by the Chinese Liberation Army are being used in Afghanistan and Iraq against American soldiers is particularly disturbing especially since one of the would be presidential candidates, some years back received lots of Chinese cash under conditions that would have sent anyone else to a secure facility. It seems that the last batch of Mohammedan terrorists in England were doctors and related medical staff. Such should give one cause when one reads the names practicing in many medical facilities especially when, it is said, that one can lie to take advantage of the infidels (that's us).
Brick Street (formerly known at the W. Va. Workmen's Compensation Fund) sent out a new round of slick promotional materials even though the Legislature, in its infinite wisdom, set them up as a monopoly.
Some folks were talking about their vacation to Gatlinburg Tennessee and noted that "all the workers there" seemed to be Mexican. A timber company in Alabama said that local residents there no longer did that kind of work and foreign workers (euphemistic for illegal aliens) had to be used. One would wonder when those who claim that folks can't get jobs, have to get government checks, food stamps, WIC coupons, etc. Some have said that if the welfare programs were stopped and the checks cut off there would be plenty of people to do "the low pay jobs" which, in many places, means $12/hour and up. Perhaps then those who have "entitlements" wouldn't have so much trouble with their lumbago, nerves, bad fingers, sore knees, corns, bunions and allergies to wood handles.
Anna Engelke was among those who went to Florida to visit with her 99 year old grandfather, Harold Martin, and his family.
Dorine Parsons reported that she is having PT on her arm but is doing well and looking forward to visiting friends & relatives in Creston.
Jerry Crank & friends have been doing work at their place on the West Fork.
It was learned that a PI (private investigator) has been busy working a case in the area. In addition there have been some insurance folks in the area working on something.
Jeannie Westfall, Richard McFall, Andrea & Brandon Ferrell, Don, Mia & Sue Ann Rhodes and Jeff Westfall were among those visiting Mr. & Mrs. Carl Ferrell & family. Brandon Westfall had a big birthday.
Chris Struss has returned from New Jersey and is working at Hardman's in Grantsville.
One of the Katzenjammer Kids was calling on Ann's Run, discussing no doubt trophy bucks, monster fish that he 'catched', mighty gobblers whose beards drag on level ground and other endeavors of which Baron Munchausen would be proud.
Reflecting higher corn prices and a federal mandate for ethanol to be used as a fuel as pushed by Archer, Daniels Midland as "an ecological move" the number of acres planted in corn in America hit a 63 year high with 92.9 million acres of which 73% was planted with biotech varieties. This is a 19% increase in acreage since last year. Some have noted that it takes 1 ¼ gallons of gasoline or diesel to make a gallon of ethanol but "mandates are mandates" and it makes politicians sound like they "care for the environment", etc. Of course there is a 50 cent tax credit on ethanol so all the new stills are held back only by the amount of corn that they can find to make into mash and then distill.
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