Uncle Vern

 

  We arrived in Mesa in plenty of time for Uncle Vern's 100th birthday party on September 17. His actual birthday was on the sixth, but they had pushed the party back in hopes of cooler weather. A vain hope because the temperature was hitting 100 by noon almost every day. After all, we were in the Sonoran Desert.

  The Arizona part of the desert receives up to 12" of rain per year which makes life for humans just possible. The early Hohokam people built hundreds of miles of canals to irrigate their crops before they disappeared. When white settlers, mostly Mormons, moved in, they used some of these canals for their own crops. Once air conditioning became available, the population skyrocketed to its current half million.

  But enough about Mesa, we were in town for Uncle Vern. Vern Karlson (the Navy lost the extra 's' in Karlsson) is Teresa's uncle and the brother of her dad Karl Enar who just celebrated his 105th birthday. Vern grew up on the farm near Roseau and joined the Navy during WWII. He served on a supply ship in the Pacific.

  He stayed in the Navy after the war, married Dotty and they had five daughters. The family was stationed on Guam for a while and Vern finished his Navy career in California. He worked various jobs before retiring in Mesa. He lost Dotty in 1993, and a few years later his daughter Kelly moved in to help out.

  Vern had a stroke a couple of years ago which slowed him down, but he keeps plugging along. He tries to get to the casino when the chance offers and to his favorite steak place. There's also the evening cocktail to look forward to. Life can be good at 100, despite letdowns on the body's part. Vern keeps up with the news and it's always a delight to have a chat with him. We wish Vern a happy birthday and appreciate all that Kelly does to keep the wheels turning.

Slice it Vern