This summer is a test of patience for berry pickers, drivers, and political watchers in Platte County. Abundant rain is boosting the blueberry and blackberry crops and picking them is something only patient people do.
This affects only a few of us. But what affects everyone is a construction season that includes the closure of the key Missouri 92 bridge over Interstate 29 and lane closures at times on I-29. This in an election year when politics should be straightforward but are bent in crazy angles by misleading ads and culture wars.
Heaven help us, many voters say.
A good thing recently is abundant rains. The grass is green and the wildfire danger nil. It’s raining as I write this. Let the firecrackers, fountains, and fireworks bring bangs and bright lights to the Fourth of July this week.
Bill Graham
Good rains in spring and early summer left my blueberry bushes loaded in June and they ripened early. Only berry pickers can fully appreciate the patience and finger dexterity involved in picking one blueberry at a time. Since they’re the size of a pea or perhaps a small marble, it takes a while to fill a bucket. But if you value a stash in the freezer for winter and a blueberry pie on the Fourth, the time is worth it.
Meanwhile, repairs on the Missouri 92 bridge are scheduled to last into August. An accident in winter had damaged the bridge. The catch for drivers in growing Platte County is that the highway and the connected entrance and exit ramps onto I-29 are very important for traffic movement. Detours are in place and working. But they’re inconvenient. As someone who has driven a lot in downtown Kansas City, and recently in St. Louis, I am a great appreciator of how easy traffic generally moves through Platte City. We’re normally just north of routine traffic backups, such as the southbound merge of I-29 and I-35 near the county’s southern border.
Now we find backups and driver impatience in places. For instance, at the northbound I-29 exit onto Route HH, which is part of the detours. There are two new stop signs now making it a four-way stop for safety. Residents of that area are not used to stopping on Route HH at that crossing, and motorists frustrated by a detour are loathe to stop anywhere. Sometimes within Platte City drivers looks in the rearview mirror to find a flustered motorist on their bumper who missed a detour turn. We’ll make it though. This will pass.
As summer goes on, berry picking is not over. Those same rains have produced a big crop of blackberries at my place and they’re starting to ripen. They are bigger berries than blueberries and they fill the bucket faster. But they grow on thorny canes that nick and cut if a picker is not patiently careful.
Speaking of thorny, have you noticed the appearance of weird political ads ahead of the August primary? Heaven, give us thoughtfulness and patience, please.
Bill Graham is a long-time commentator on Platte County and its history. He lives in the Platte City area and can be reached at editor@plattecountycitizen.com.