wards’ daughter and son-irilaw, Mr. & Mrs. Clint Conover,

wards’ daughter and son-irilaw, Mr. & Mrs. Clint Conover, had come from Alaska last month for a visit and took Dorenda back with them for a spell. She stayed about a month then came back solo, flying into Dulles without a worry in the world. (Melzie had some other good news. Peggy came home from the hospital Wednesday and she’s “doing real good.”)

Waverly and Lillian Frazier had fun with their grandkids, too. The two from Rapidan, Karen and Kim Colvin, and the one from Culpeper, kate Tharpe, stayed with them from Friday ’til Tuesday and they all had a real good time.

Judy Hitt’s expected guest Kay Lipscomb had to postpone her trip from Florida from Friday ’til Wednesday. So Judy spent the weekend enjoying the Flint Hill carnival on Saturday and the river at Laurel Mills on Sunday. She took Kevin Lewis, Randy Hitt, Mitch, Kerrie, and Tracy to swim.

Sunday Shirley Frye Hitt went to the Sperryville Methodist Church annual picnic at Front Royal at the 4-H center. She says it was good eating and swimming. Among those who went along were Donna Gayle Hitt, Gwen and Margaret and Daniel Bright, Justin Corbin, Dee Jenkins, and Wesley Cooke.

Shirley’s the one who spent the past week assuring everyone that there really are only two things that money can’t buy (and that’s true love and homegrown tomatoes.) Everyone sought out Shirley as the resident expert on country music to see if Aunt Michel was telling a tall tale about the tomato song. Tom and Anie Massie said they never heard it. Shirley says it is a “hit”—but she hears it on WMZQ, not Big K. So, who knows what went on during the “Joe Show” last week?

Now, wait—would we let a week go by without reporting on a big birthday bash? This one took the cake, a cute little cake with balloons baked at Nature’s Food in honor of Francis Hutchinson. He received a “belly-gram” greeting there and showed himself to be an even better dancer than the messenger. Later, Erwin Lesh and Sam Vanneman were among the Castleton neighbors helping Hutch cut the cake at his house. By then he was into rock-androll from the ’50s instead of that Scheherazade jazz. And he was still winning all the dancing prizes.

It just goes to show what Aunt Michele alw'ays says, ‘“Anybody who can dance like Fred Astaire will never be lonely.” So until next wreek, everybody dance— and if not with your feet, at least in your heart.