How sweet it is. Goodies are tumbling out of November’s proverbial Horn of Plenty. Only this harvest has lots of blue and far less orange. Such as Royals’ blue rising after orange construction markers disappeared along Interstate 29. Let us count our Platte County blessings a few weeks early before the turkey dinners arrive.
We’ll start small and work our way up.
How about these recent rain showers? An autumn drought is broken. The grasses and trees got a badly needed drink of water.
The rains fell just enough to bring moisture but not hard enough to cause flooding as they did in spring. Then after a few frosts and cold rain, another warm spell arrives to hold winter at bay awhile longer.
Perfect, just perfect.
Speaking of colors, the drought kept fall foliage from being spectacular. Some leaves just turned brown and fell, but the ever reliable sugar maples are scarlet and holding color this week. Some oaks are a bit lavender and red. Fall color may vary but invariably it is always pretty in some ways.
Yet orange and blue are the favorite colors this fall.
Let’s take orange first. Hallelujah: construction has finally ended on bridges on Interstate 29.
For job commuters into the city, what’s been likely the most difficult commuter season in Platte County history is at end. Multiple bridges from south county to north of Platte City were being worked on. A long, painful commute could turn into interminable crawl. But now the orange cones and warning signs are gone.
The highway is open and driving far easier.
Now for the big one, the other vanishing orange, as in the baseball orange. The jersey lettering color of the New York Mets baseball team is now fading away.
Pardon me while I scream: “YAHOO! Whoop whoop whoop. YEEHAW! Wahoo!”
Let me say what’s being said over and over this week: World Champion Kansas City Royals. World Series winners. Noble victors by all accounts. Can we ever hear this said enough?
One more time: WORLD CHAMPS!
That little outburst is for all you folks who during lean and losing times in the past 30 years still faithfully punched in the game on the car radio as you drove somewhere. You carried a little Radio Shack transistor radio with the antenna broke off into the backyard on a summer night and followed the action no matter the outcomes. You tuned in on television on weekends and sacrificed Sunday afternoon naps to see if the boys in blue could win at least one for the town.
Well now they’ve won the big one, again, and no longer do we cling to 1985 only. This is a championship without an umpire’s questionable call involved. And errors by the Mets or not, it took superior hitting, base running and pitching to get the job done. They did it, and it feels like we did it.
Welcome to blue town, a good kind.
Bill Graham, who lives in the Platte City area, may be reached by e-mail at editor@plattecountycitizen.com.