The summer that I turned ten years old, our family went on an all summer camping trip. I don't remember all of the details, but Dad was working in different places that summer, so we tagged along in our little camp trailer. It was the funnest summer of my childhood.
My favorite campsite was up on the mountain between Elgin and Pendleton Oregon. A place called Tollgate.
Dad pulled our little gold and white camp trailer out of Elgin, past the lumber mill and up the mointain to Tollgate were we found the perfect campground.
A few days after setting up camp a nice lady forest ranger stopped by for a chat.
She gave us four kids big garbage bags to clean up the campground. We became proud members of the Woodsy Owl team and toured around on our bicycles picking up every scrap of garbage we could find.
I bet that was the cleanest campground in Oregon when we left it.
Most of the time we were the only campers, so we explored the woods and went anywhere we pleased.
A nice young couple did camp beside us one weekend. He played "Bad, Bad Leroy Brown" on his guitar and taught my little brother Todd how to play frisbee.
We would pick blue berries in the woods and Mom would make us blue berry pancakes, Yum!
Thursday, July 9, 2009
Wednesday, July 1, 2009
Dog House Repair Month
I can't believe July is here already. June has flown by in the blink of an eye.
Did you know July is dog house repair month? You better get out there with hammer and nails, to fix up that old dog house.
Fluffy's dog house is one of those plastic Igloo's, not to pretty, but it works well.
In August a few years ago, we moved to our new house. One of the last things we moved was the dog house and got a frightening suprise. When Dawn & I started to lift up the Igloo we herd the distinct buzz of a rattlesnake. I'm sure you could hear my scream for miles around.
Did you know July is dog house repair month? You better get out there with hammer and nails, to fix up that old dog house.
Fluffy's dog house is one of those plastic Igloo's, not to pretty, but it works well.
In August a few years ago, we moved to our new house. One of the last things we moved was the dog house and got a frightening suprise. When Dawn & I started to lift up the Igloo we herd the distinct buzz of a rattlesnake. I'm sure you could hear my scream for miles around.
Fluffy didn't tell me she had rented the basement out to a rattler.
Monday, June 29, 2009
Street Etiquette
I found a list of street etiquette printed in a news paper from the 18the century.
They where so prim & proper back in those days.
No yelling "Yo Bro" across the street.
"Ladies walking on the street are not expected to recognize gentlemen or friends on the other side of the road; to do so would necessitate habits of observation inconsistent with lady like respose."
I wonder what they would have thought about people walking down the street talking on their cell phones.
"Gentlemen will not swing their arms, nor sway their bodies in an ungainly manner when walking; ladies are never guilty of any such ungraceful action, and need no counsel in that respect."
No strutting or staggering allowed.
I thought these where quite funny. What allot has changed in the last 100 plus years.
They where so prim & proper back in those days.
No yelling "Yo Bro" across the street.
"Ladies walking on the street are not expected to recognize gentlemen or friends on the other side of the road; to do so would necessitate habits of observation inconsistent with lady like respose."
I wonder what they would have thought about people walking down the street talking on their cell phones.
"Gentlemen will not swing their arms, nor sway their bodies in an ungainly manner when walking; ladies are never guilty of any such ungraceful action, and need no counsel in that respect."
No strutting or staggering allowed.
I thought these where quite funny. What allot has changed in the last 100 plus years.
Saturday, June 27, 2009
Dirty Laundry
I've been washing our cloths at the dreaded laundromat since we moved into the camp trailer.
Twice I've gone to a dingy little place in Powell, that is right acrossed from the library, so after throwing in our dirty towels, cloths and getting the washers started I've got just enough time to run over to the library and check my email on their super fast computers. The only problem with that is, both times one of the washers quit cycling, so getting back half an hour later, I've had to wait an extra 30 minutes for the washer to run again. At least there seems to be very few people who use this laundromat.
I decided to try Cody yesterday and being summer and the tourist town it is, both laundry's where very busy, but the washers did keep going, although they cost about twice as much.
It cost 25 cents for just five minutes of drying. I kept chucking more quarters in the machines and finally gave up and brought home partially wet cloths.
At home I strung up a line acrossed the coral and hung the damp cloths on it. Sunshine and a breeze is much more efficient then tumbling around inside a dryer.
Twice I've gone to a dingy little place in Powell, that is right acrossed from the library, so after throwing in our dirty towels, cloths and getting the washers started I've got just enough time to run over to the library and check my email on their super fast computers. The only problem with that is, both times one of the washers quit cycling, so getting back half an hour later, I've had to wait an extra 30 minutes for the washer to run again. At least there seems to be very few people who use this laundromat.
I decided to try Cody yesterday and being summer and the tourist town it is, both laundry's where very busy, but the washers did keep going, although they cost about twice as much.
It cost 25 cents for just five minutes of drying. I kept chucking more quarters in the machines and finally gave up and brought home partially wet cloths.
At home I strung up a line acrossed the coral and hung the damp cloths on it. Sunshine and a breeze is much more efficient then tumbling around inside a dryer.
Tuesday, June 23, 2009
A Scary Camp Story
When I was a little girl we lived in a little pink house in Elgin Oregon. It had a huge yard with tree's, a small grass field and a big garden spot.
Our family had been planning a camping trip to Kalispell Montana when school got out. As children, we where quite excited at the prospect of catching a wild horse and bringing it home as a pet.
We practiced our roping technique's with larriett's made out of yarn on our bed post's and where quite certain we would catch a wild young pony and make it our own.
So with four excited kid's, a collie dog and a calico cat, we headed out to Big Sky country. We made our way through a corner of Washington, acrossed the panhandle of Idaho and into Montana to Kalispell, which sits between Glacier National Park and Flathead lake.
In Kalispell we stopped for a few days to visit my aunt Marveleen and uncle Dale. They even had a pony for us kids to ride.
We rode the pony double and bare back.
On one of those rides, I was behind my big sister Susan, choppily trotting allong, when I lost my balance on the slippery pony's back. With my arms wrapped tightly around Susans waist I fell off dragging her with me. Later that night while taking a much needed bath I noticed a perfect print of a pony track on my leg.
After a few days of visiting, we pulled out and found a quite little campground in the forest, in which we set up a tent. I was sure a bear would show up and have us for a late night snack.
I had a little blue Schwinn bike. My sister Paula and I spent allot of time riding our bikes around the campground, but I saw something frightening that kept us in close to the campsite.
There was a man in a dark army van that I would glimps now and then. He had long curly hair and looked like the bad man, who shot John Wayne, in the movie "The Cowboys". He might have just been an innocent camper, but when I would see that ominouse van, my heart would beat with fear and we would high tail it back to the safty of the campsite.
Our family had been planning a camping trip to Kalispell Montana when school got out. As children, we where quite excited at the prospect of catching a wild horse and bringing it home as a pet.
We practiced our roping technique's with larriett's made out of yarn on our bed post's and where quite certain we would catch a wild young pony and make it our own.
So with four excited kid's, a collie dog and a calico cat, we headed out to Big Sky country. We made our way through a corner of Washington, acrossed the panhandle of Idaho and into Montana to Kalispell, which sits between Glacier National Park and Flathead lake.
In Kalispell we stopped for a few days to visit my aunt Marveleen and uncle Dale. They even had a pony for us kids to ride.
We rode the pony double and bare back.
On one of those rides, I was behind my big sister Susan, choppily trotting allong, when I lost my balance on the slippery pony's back. With my arms wrapped tightly around Susans waist I fell off dragging her with me. Later that night while taking a much needed bath I noticed a perfect print of a pony track on my leg.
After a few days of visiting, we pulled out and found a quite little campground in the forest, in which we set up a tent. I was sure a bear would show up and have us for a late night snack.
I had a little blue Schwinn bike. My sister Paula and I spent allot of time riding our bikes around the campground, but I saw something frightening that kept us in close to the campsite.
There was a man in a dark army van that I would glimps now and then. He had long curly hair and looked like the bad man, who shot John Wayne, in the movie "The Cowboys". He might have just been an innocent camper, but when I would see that ominouse van, my heart would beat with fear and we would high tail it back to the safty of the campsite.
Saturday, June 20, 2009
Drive in Theater
We went to the "American drive in" last night and watched "Land of the Lost"
There is just something magical about going to the drive in, and there are so few of them left in existence anymore.
There used to be three drive In's around this area and for awhile they where all shut down, until an enterprising local lady bought the Powell theater and renovated it. It only cost's $10 for a car load and she serves hot dogs, hamburgers & nachos from the vintage refreshment stand.
Willie and I had our first date at the Cody drive in. It was the early 80's and we saw "Flash Dance"
If you get a chance, go to a drive in. There is nothing like sitting under the stars watching a movie in the big screen, munching on popcorn and hot dogs.
There is just something magical about going to the drive in, and there are so few of them left in existence anymore.
There used to be three drive In's around this area and for awhile they where all shut down, until an enterprising local lady bought the Powell theater and renovated it. It only cost's $10 for a car load and she serves hot dogs, hamburgers & nachos from the vintage refreshment stand.
Willie and I had our first date at the Cody drive in. It was the early 80's and we saw "Flash Dance"
If you get a chance, go to a drive in. There is nothing like sitting under the stars watching a movie in the big screen, munching on popcorn and hot dogs.
Thursday, June 18, 2009
You Might be a Redneck
"If going to the bathroom in the middle of the night requires boots and a flashlight, you might be a redneck."
Jeff Foxworthy hit this one right on the spot.
We rented an outhouse, since there isn't a septic to hook up to at our campsite (the barn) we do have water and electricity though and I even hooked up an antena and got the T.V. to work. It's a bit fuzzy, but we can get the local channels. Right up town, wouldn't you say.
There where several years when I was a teenager that we didn't have indoor plumbing. Mom & Dad bought 40 acres, on Cricket flat, outside of the beuatifull town of Elgin Oregon.
Dad is a great carpenter and built us a pretty log house, but it wasn't plumbed for awhile, so we had an outhouse.
Us kids wrote hillbilly grafiti all over the walls of the outhouse and yes, we kept boots and a flashlight by the front door for those spooky trips to the outhouse in the middle of the night.
Jeff Foxworthy hit this one right on the spot.
We rented an outhouse, since there isn't a septic to hook up to at our campsite (the barn) we do have water and electricity though and I even hooked up an antena and got the T.V. to work. It's a bit fuzzy, but we can get the local channels. Right up town, wouldn't you say.
There where several years when I was a teenager that we didn't have indoor plumbing. Mom & Dad bought 40 acres, on Cricket flat, outside of the beuatifull town of Elgin Oregon.
Dad is a great carpenter and built us a pretty log house, but it wasn't plumbed for awhile, so we had an outhouse.
Us kids wrote hillbilly grafiti all over the walls of the outhouse and yes, we kept boots and a flashlight by the front door for those spooky trips to the outhouse in the middle of the night.
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