Friday, September 30, 2016

Leaves!


Today bunches of leaves fell, there has been some, here and there, not really enough to rake, but when mowed they got picked up, but, this, this is really the beginning!!!
 I love the smell of Autumn leaves, weird huh?  Things/feelings just roll over me at the smell.
 First day of hunting season tomorrow. We would be feverishly getting ready for the trip 'over the mountain' waiting for Dad to get off work and we would all fall into the car. Which Mom would have all made up into a huge bed in the back for all of us kids (3) and we would make the long trip from West of Portland to Redmond area (only about a 2 1/2 hour drive now) where my uncle lived and him and Dad and any other MALE friends would go out early in the morning.  Uncle Jerry would also make bunkers out of the hay stacks (bales of hay) with hollowed out centers and the 'guys' would bunk out there.  Mom and Auntie Thelma would be cooking up a storm for everyone  Kids would be running all over the place back and forth, in and out, doing what kids did.  they lived a mile off a main road on a ditch road, with no electricity or water for 8 years (they moved over here in in late 1947) no electricity or running water, Water was by cistern from the irrigation canal out front. they had  Outhouses, dirt roads, lots of cows and pigs, horses, chickens, dogs, cats (kitties) all over the place.  There were trucks parked all over the place, they had 140 acres and the trucks were mostly about the houses.  Old and new barns and ramshackle buildings everywhere, Irrigation ditches running through like little creeks, big old juniper trees to climb, Cousin Eric had tree houses here and there. It was always dusty and always had already started freezing at night.  It was kid heaven!!!
That road over Mt Hood was NOT like it is now.  It took forever, was long and windy and there was solid traffic all the way from Portland to Central Oregon.  Halfway there the road turned red as they paved with cinders.  You always knew when you made it, finally, to Central Oregon.
In the early 50's Grandma and Grandpa Larrance were already over there waiting for us kids to show up.  He was a part of the hunting party and she was a major force in the cooking.
Another Fall chore and I mean chore was picking up filberts (hazelnuts they are now called) we had 7 trees in our back yard and it was us kids job to get all of those nuts up and sorted.  The leaves of the trees are sticky and I always hated the feel of them and them sticking to your clothes and socks!
But the Fall hunting trips were the very best....
Good smells, lots of memories
Take care and God Bless... travel safely

5 comments:

  1. Sounds like a great childhood so much fun.

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  2. Your post brought back memories of my summers in Kentucky on my grandparents' farm.

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  3. What wonderful memories!!! Thanks for sharing!!!

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