Catching up to do

An old acquaintance stopped by last week. Some of you may know him as well. His name is Murphy and he has some laws.

Actually, things didn't go wrong last week, they just went wild.

That's the way it goes in this business sometimes. We get our assignments for the week and away we go. The calander is usually quite full.

Things were moving along quite well last week and my regular assignments were all on track. I swung through Garrison on my way to an interview and as luck would have it, I was ahead of schedule. Those of you who know me may find that hard to believe, but that day, it was true. I stopped to talk to a couple of local guys who were hooking up a trailer to head out for duck hunting. We chatted a few minutes, laughed a bit and I was on my way.

So I am driving along about 15 minutes later and nearly half way to Milaca when my phone rings.

"Hey, Viv," my friend says. "I am not sure, but I think the Deerwood bank in Garrison was just robbed."

"Yeah, right," I says.

"No, I am serious!"

Well, I pulled over (Of course, I was driving and talking at the same time previously, very carefully, mind you, and I was using my hands free Bluetooth device.) I made one phone call and confirmed, the bank had in fact been robbed.

I am so thankfull for the tip I got from my friend. I always keep my sources confidential, so I am withholding his name. But he was certainly my best friend for the day!

I had been on my way to what I knew what would be an awsome interview. I felt badly I had to re-schedule hoping desperately I could work it out. We did, fortunately, and I turned around and headed back to Garrison.

I did my thing there at the bank. It turns out the bank was robbed at gunpoint only about 5 minutes after I had left the area the first time. I talked to the Sheriff, got the scoop and a few photos. They were looking for a dude about 6 feet tall, 225 pounds wearing a Twins ball cap and blue jacket. He had a goatee and mustache. The Goateed Gunman left the area driving a silver Toyota Camry.

I and was on my way again. We got the story on our website (www.millelacsmessenger.com) as quickly as possible for the breaking news, because that is my job, to get the news and get it to you as quickly and accurately as possible. The Internet helps the weekly paper become more like a daily paper when need be. and just for your information, we had our basic story posted before the local daily.

Anyway, excitement like that doesn't come along the sleepy litttle resort town of Garrison very often. And when it does, the news travels fast. By the time I had left the area back on track to Milaca, I had three more phone calls from some fine peeps in Garrison giving me the scoop. I thanked them each . I am always extremely appreciative to recieve such tips — anytime!

The cops were quite active in the area for the next few days stopping just about any silver or grey Camry, or anything even close. Several fine citizens in Garrison were stopped and even some searches of some area homes. One of which resulted in a family pet being shot and killed by an officer. (See story in this weeks paper.)

Watching the news last night, they showed photos of a guy who has robbed a few banks in Minnesota and South Dakota. The last bank he robbed was Tuesday, Sept. 18 at 11:30 a.m. at the Washington County Bank on White Bear Avenue in Maplewood. He is said to be about 6 feet tall and around 200 pounds, wearing a hat and goatee.

To, me, he looks an aweful lot like the Goateed Gunman of Garrison who robbed that little bank on Thursday, Sept. 27. The Garrison dude may be a bit older as he is said to have a "salt and pepper" colored goatee. Compairing the photos, the similarities are there. Brothers? cousins? or just a couple of friends? Or no relationship at all, they just happen to both have goatees and wear caps and rob banks and sort of look alike. Or maybe it is the same guy. Add a couple of pounds, or just a heavier jacket, and fill in the goatee with a couple of day's growth and I guess anything is possible. It had been a few days since the last robbery.

But just in case the Goateed Gunman is reading this, be warned, the peeps of Garrison are still looking for the silver Camry and you.

We finished off the Garrison week with an exciting Mille Lacs Crossing. An epic event of wind dancers in the form of kite boarders and windsurfers racing out across the lake on a course of 16 miles. Perfect wind and nice weather and a great bunch of folks. My hat goes off to all of the volunteers who made the event possible, expecially the local folks who step in and volunteer their time, gas, boats and equipment to give support on the water.

Tourists and locals lined the shore of Mille Lacs all along Garrison Bay for several hours to watch the colorful display of sails and kites. If you haven't ever seen one of these races, or watched the kiters perform, you really should check it out sometime.

I've had some catching up to do, but that was the excitement in Garrison last week. Keep track here and of course at www.millelacsmessenger.com. We will keep you posted.

Peace.

p.s. John, I know. I still can't spell. But I warned you at the beginning, this is unedited and apparently I can't figure out spell check on here either. Good thing you can't see the full moon right now. I am not 'wining' and remember " ... sometimes, I even put it in food."