Can it really be the fifth Saturday of September?

Already?

Is it possible that this really is the last day of the month?

Where in the world does the time go?

Why it was just 82 years ago today that writer Truman Capote was born.

Can it just be 62 years ago today that the Munich Agreement was signed?

Remember that one? Czechoslovakia was forced to give up some of its territory to Germany.

Sounds like the county fair condemnation issue.

May we all look forward to the Munch Agreement.

Speaking of munching, yesterday my lady Jennifer and I took some time to drive south on Highway 525, all the way to the ferry landing in Clinton.

This time, instead of getting in the ferry line, we turned into the lovely Clinton Park for a picnic self-catered from Shirley’s Kitchen, across the street.

You know, that cute little trailer to the right of the ticket booths, with Shirley’s catchy slogans on the marquee?

Our family has been enjoying Shirley’s home-cooked chow for over two decades. Cheeseburgers, grilled chicken sandwiches, breakfast muffins with sausage or bacon, espresso, pop or just a bit of friendly conversation have been our preferred menu.

Naturally, Shirley offers more than great beverages and good chow. She and her friendly staff are also good listeners and great counselors. No wonder. Ask Shirley what classes she is taking this semester.

Over the years, Shirley has watched our girls grow up and our hairs fall out. She has fed our family and fed our friends.

She has watched docks be built and re-built.

She has watched and probably smelled more car and truck exhaust smoke than all of the cars and drivers combined.

For many years now, Shirley has watched and worked and cooked and cleaned and lived with the ever-changing Clinton ferry landing, always sharing her smile and an encouraging word.

Of course, life is ever changing.

Every moment. Every breath. Every thought.

Twenty years ago we were sharing good times at Mindy’s in Freeland or at Mayor Dolores Cobb’s Skippers in Langley or at Mike and Randy Diem’s Blueberry Hill.

We sure miss Mike’s porterhouse steak special. Once he even cooked it for us after closing.

We sure miss the mayor’s mashed potatoes with homemade brown gravy and daughter Pam’s adult beverages.

We sure miss the familiar faces of Mindy’s. Maurice. Blackie. Kay. Edgar and Diane. Of course, we still see Diane. Thank goodness she’s our neighbor.

Somewhere in my caboose files I have a Mindy’s menu autographed by bartender emeritus Tina. We all sure used to enjoy hearing Patsy Cline singing on the jukebox. What a voice.

Change.

I guess we might not have so many memories if we did not have change.

Change is all part of the program.

One of my favorite teachers, Dr. Ernest Holmes, has written and recorded much on “Change.”

In his 1958 text, “Practical Application of Science of Mind,” Holmes writes on page 22, “There are going to be changes in our lives from hour to hour and day to day, and we cannot escape them. It is the nature of the Universe. Let us accept change, make the most of it, and capitalize on it.”

So yesterday Pal and I capitalized on the pleasure of Clinton Park and its proximity to Shirley’s.

We caught some wonderful moments of blue sky and fresh Whidbey Island air while seated on a comfortable log overlooking the majesty that surrounds us, all while enjoying Shirley’s Kitchen creations.

Some things don’t change. The consistency of Shirley’s good food, whether in your car, waiting for a passenger or relaxing in the park nearby, is always there. Thanks Shirley for being one of our Whidbey Island constants, a true hometown hero.

Sitting in the park, the awesome splendor of our environs continues to astound us as we cherish the moments in grateful appreciation.

Twenty or more years ago while sipping and sitting in the Admiral’s Mistress, formerly located in what is now Clinton Park, I met a young gentleman selling artwork in a very courteous and polite way. I appreciated his non aggressive approach, so for only six bucks, I bought a blue foiled print entitled “Christ in Gethsemane,” printed in England by Duffer Prints, depicting Jesus praying in the moonlight, in the garden by the side of a rock.

The English print is framed and shares an honored space on a caboose wall between two action pictures of Jackie Robinson and a 1983 Pioneer Square purchase, an enlarged 11-by-17 page from an old “Peter Pan” book.

In this print, Peter is smiling big time as he flies with Wendy and John and Michael above their London neighborhood, following Tinkerbell, en route to the Lost Boys Casino. Don’t you know Peter and the Lost Boys went through some change?

Actually, the term “change” was used by the English as far back as 1691 when referring to coins of small value or low denomination. The terms “short-change” and “short-change artist” were Americanized in 1903 and 1921. Leave it to us.

Change continues.

No more Magic Bakery? No more Langley Bakery? No more La Paz?

By the way, is Whidbey Waffles ever open?

Remember the old vaudeville exchange uttered when two guys are talking on the street?

“Has your wife changed very much since you married her?”

“Yes, she’s changed my friends, my habits and my hours.”

Charles Kingsley’s poetic stanza regarding “change” goes like this:

The world goes up and the world goes down,

And the sunshine follows the rain;

And yesterday’s sneer and yesterday’s frown

Can never come over again.

So, sneer not, fellow change resistors.

We can still enjoy Blueberry Hill, now capably captained by our favorite singing gourmet chef Gordon.

We still do enjoy DA Sista’s and their family of home cooked cuisine at the Freeland Café. We can still bury our heads with glee in Neil’s steak and prawns at the Clover Patch in Bayview. Thanks to Julie and Wendy Jacobs, we can still enjoy a day or night or both at the Dog House.

Because of Shirley’s Kitchen at the ferry landing and the wizards who created Clinton Park, we can enjoy a quiet picnic by the plankton. Thirty minutes max if you park. Violators will be fined. Sure beats being mugged.

Bring on October.

We can handle it.

We’ve got our Whidbey constants and we’re ready for change.

Just not too much at once, please.