As school gets out for the summer, I am again reminded of just how "short" our summers seem to be now. June barely gets started before September arrives. I don't recall it being that way when I was younger.

And, it is not just the summers. The older I get, the faster time in general passes. I am too quickly approaching the "senior citizen" designation. I can see it looming on the horizon!

Apparently everyone else can see it too. I am no longer called "Miss" but "Mam" or "Lady" by strangers, and "youngsters" have started letting me ahead of them in checkout lines at stores. I appreciate their kindness, but I fear it is because they consider me to be "old."

I have found, however, two good things about the situation. I now have grandchildren to enjoy, and I have plenty of company. Time marches on for all us, and there is no point in worrying about it! So, enjoy the summer.

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Happy birthday this week to: Myra Fleming, John Troisi Jr., Randall Gay, Roy Head, Stewart Rackley, Tori Smith, Debbie Richards, Kim Bennett, Ginger Lanier, Robert Pierce, Shirley Dwight, Jacob Jenkins and Emory Rabitsch.

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Military Active Duty List: Ronnie Perryman, Charlie Troop, 108th Calvary Division, 4th Platoon, Afghanistan; Lance Cpl. Adam Lanier, U.S. Marines, 8th & I Marine Barracks, Washington, D.C.; E-4 Sr. Airman Roy Davis, U.S. Air Force, RAF Molesworth, United Kingdom; Lance Cpl. Patrick Barnette, U.S. Marines, Twenty Nine Palms, CA; Sgt. Adam Demshar, 44th Signal Battalion, Baghdad, Iraq; Cpl. Lee Ogden, U.S. Marines, Camp Pendleton, CA; E5 Petty Officer 2nd Class Eric B. Kelsey, U.S. Navy, NSA Naples, Italy; Senior Airman Charles F. Woods, Moody Air Force Base, Valdosta, GA; Stuart Burrus, U.S. Air Force, Barksdale AFB, Bossier, LA; SPC 4 Travis D. Motes, 1st Calvary Division, T. Hood, Texas; Capt. Donald Slade Burke, 735th Air Mobility Squadron Detachment 1 Commander, Richmond Royal Australian AFB, Richmond, Australia; Staff Sgt. Gilbert C. Sheppard III, 48th Brigade, 118th Field Artillery, Iraq; Petty Officer 3rd Class Jamie A. Yager, U.S. Navy, Marine Corps Base Hawaii; Petty Chief Officer Andy D. Crosby, U.S. Navy, Elroy Destroyer, Norfolk, Va.; Stephanie Crosby, R.N., U.S. Navy, Lafayette Destroyer; Jimmy Cooper, U.S. Army National Guard, 878th Engineering Battalion-Augusta, Persian Gulf ; 1st Lt. J.R. Taylor, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 25th Infantry Division, Iraq; SPC. Daniel Stuart, 18th MEDCOM, 121 General Hospital, Seoul, Korea; Jeffrey Sweat, U.S. Navy, USS Kauffman, MM3 59/E-Division, A-Gang, Norfolk, Va.;

Cpl. Larry Lamont Clark, U.S. Marine Corp, 2nd Marine Expeditionary Force, Camp Lejeune, N.C. Bagdad, Iraq; Khan Young, U.S. Navy, U.S.S. Kitty Hawk, Persian Gulf; Robert Milton Jr., E-3, U.S. Army, Ft. Stewart, Hinesville, Ga., Mission Kuwait; Arnold R. Mosley, 2nd Lt., U.S. Air Force, Randolph AFB, Texas; and Debra A. Mosley, Tech. Sgt., U.S. Air Force, Randolph AFB, Texas; and SPC Charles "C.J." Amerson, U.S. Army, Camp Adder, Iraq.