Use your imagination.
Midnight. Full Moon.
The barnyards for miles around are slowly emptying. The word has been passed for weeks. Tonight is the much awaited performance of the annual barnyard ballet. This year, Paulina Porkiskova will be the Prima Ballerina. She, and the rest of the passel are already in their ten tens. Pig size for tu tus. There are now several hundred animals anxiously waiting around the lake. There is a hush as the show is about to start. Continue reading
By Jackie Deal
Amber is lost! Disappeared! Not to be found. I’ve looked everywhere. High. Low. Her favorite hidey hole. No Amber. The water heater repairman-prone across the kitchen floor, head under the sink- mumbles “I didn’t let the cat out. She’s not out.” With all the things Amber is, she’s not an outdoor cat. She’s a beautiful tuxedo cat, black and white, sensitive, independent but Amber is not an outdoor cat.
I frantically begin to call, “KITTY! KITTY!” She has never, ever answered me before but I try anyway. “KITTY! KITTY!” ‘’meow-ow-ow.” “KITTY! KITTY!” “meow-ow-ow”. She’s answered! I start to trace the pitiful meow. The living room? No. Bedroom? No. Kitchen? No. Aw, the bathroom. I look under the sink, behind the toilet, in the linen closet. Continue reading
Bob Feiler was able to salvage enough wood from the washout to build a temporary bridge. No excuses now.
The gas has been turned off to this appliance. We have had members tell us about smelling propane in the area. When we are ready to start using the kitchen and stove again, it will be inspected and the gas turned back on.
Here are a couple of pictures to illustrate the need for airflow under your sheds. This shed will need to be replaced because there was no airflow, and the floor has rotted away. Take a look at your sheds and if there is no airflow, please get the problem fixed before your shed looks like this one.
Rockey Shanahan #62
We had snow and now lots of rain. So much that the bridge between mile markers 0.9 and 1.0 was washed out. Please avoid this area. I will put some signs out today. Not sure when it will be replaced. Happy New Year.
Bob Feiler
Sutherlin’s Emergency Manager Brandan McGarr will give an overview of the City’s Emergency Management Department.
McGarr will speak on Tuesday, Jan. 11, at 10 a.m. in the Clubhouse. This special presentation to Timber Valley’s Emergency Preparedness Committee is open to all of the Park’s members and visitors. (Masks required.)
McGarr became a firefighter in 2004 and was hired as the City’s Fire Department’s Battalion Chief in 2018. Then on Nov. 1, 2021, he was promoted to Division Chief. He also serves as the Fire Department’s Training Officer and Fire Prevention Coordinator.
While in high school, McGarr became interested in the fire department and it is said he could be found at the local fire station almost every day.
One of our best RV experiences was volunteering in a membership park in Lake Havasu Arizona. We got to run parties, help with entertainment, and do a lot of really fun stuff. Our involvement with this has resulted in many long lasting friendships. Thanks to our many CRA friends for helping us, and me, get through
the last couple of years.
One day we got a call from friends from before we retired. Sandy and Jem were neighbors in Ct. “ We are in Phoenix. How about we come to see you over Christmas? “ Well great!!!
A bit of background. Sandy and Jem were from the UK. As was Rita. Because of her eyesight problem, Rita had especially acute hearing. Which was fortunate because, for some reason, I couldn’t understand a word Sandy said. My ears just couldn’t process her voice. Whenever we ran into each other, I had to get Rita to interpret.
So they arrive in Havasu, check into their motel, and come to the park. Rita and I were obligated to work Christmas Day, but we devised a special treat for Christmas Eve. We took them to Oatman, Az. Oatman is a tourist trap. But the most humane tourist trap ever.
Years ago the miners, who worked in the area, brought in burros to carry the material out of the mines. Eventually, the mines played out and the miners moved on. The burros stayed. After a while, some merchants decided to create a town. They quickly realized what a draw the burros would be, so they started feeding them. Pretty soon, at ten am, two dozen or so burros came into town from their homes in the desert. They were greeted by a growing number of tourists willing to feed them carrots. And watch staged gunfights and buy souvenirs of the occasion. Each animal was named and provided veterinary service if needed. When one died, the merchants grieved. When one was born, a celebration.
Driving Jem and Sandy towards town, we noticed the trees and cacti were all decorated with tin cans and other detritus of the desert. We made sure we arrived well before the magical ten am hour so they could have the full experience. We parked just outside of town and told our guests we had a special present for them and handed them each a ten pound bag of carrots. Their look of bewilderment coincided with the arrival of the burros. I can still see the look on their faces as they re-gifted their Christmas present. One carrot at a time.
We all have that one special holiday memory. Jem and Sandy are back in the UK and we have unfortunately lost touch. I know this for sure, though. At some time before the end of the season, they will think about their twenty four carrot Christmas gift that they kept for just a few moments. A very happy few moments.
So, no matter what happened during the past year. No matter how many lumps of coal in your stocking. No matter how many times you had to get back up, reach back and find that special holiday memory, milk it for all it’s worth, and have the best time you possibly can. But, don’t shoot your eye out.
—
Fred Prout
It seems like the whole world resonates with the sound and feel of
grieving. It has been nearly two years since the beginning of the “great
pandemic” and we are still losing loved ones at an alarming rate. Add to
that the number of people dieing of old age and other illnesses. Sometimes
it seems like our flags are in a perpetual state of half mast. We live in a new
world of partial or full isolation and our grief seems insurmountable. How
do we move forward in a world that no longer holds the ones we held dear?
Grief. The dictionary defines grief as the response to the loss of
someone or some living thing that has died, to which a bond was formed.
Although conventionally focused on the emotional response to loss, grief
also has physical, cognitive, behavioral, social, cultural, spiritual and
philosophical dimensions. Grief is like a fingerprint – no two people grieve
the same or for the same length of time.
Grief counselors and psychologists state that there are seven stages of
grief: shock or disbelief, denial, bargaining, guilt, anger, depression, and
acceptance/hope. Again no two people are the same. You may be moving
forward only to wake up one day to find you have regressed to an earlier
stage. That is normal! Death of a spouse is one of the hardest to deal with
and when that spouse is a soulmate it is devastating. Professionals have
documented and attest that soulmates are legitimate. When a soulmate dies
it is like a part of you has been ripped away and the grieving process may be
long lasting. When you lose your spouse you have to learn how to live as a
single instead of a half. Not only are you grieving the loss of your mate, you
are now faced with a new social and financial standing. Where do you fit in
in the new scheme of things?
You will find that some people are very understanding and
compassionate while other who may have moved on sooner, think you
should just suck it up and move on too. Ignore them! You will move on at
your own rate. There are no rights and wrongs. Talk to friends, join a
support group or write your feelings down. There are books and internet
blogs with good information and support. You are not alone. Eventually
you will accept and find your place in your new world. You will never stop
missing your loved one but you will learn to focus more on the beautiful
memories the two of you made together.
If you know someone who is grieving, be kind, listen to them no
matter how many times they need to talk. Your support can make a
difference. Your caring will be greatly appreciated
Ruby Bonham 12-10-2021