No Pig, No pork.
I will now explain the above 'caption" with the following narrative.In the early thirties at our log home my oldest brother "Jack" was given a little piglet to raise.Of course that meant future chops, bacon etc. which meant a lot to our big family during this depression era. Jack named the little fellow "rosie". He (jack) took the job of making a pen, and caring for it with feeding and water and a makeshift shelter. over the next few months "rosie" grew to a pretty good size and my Dad made plans to stop feeding the big "porker" and let it feed us .
In the process of carrying out this chore the pig darted out of the open gate of the pen and took off running.My Dad was quite fleet of foot also and nearly caught "rosie" more than once but the pig (they are not a dumb animal),perhaps knowing its fate raced towards the nearby river. It jumped in the river and that was the last we saw of "pork chops".

"The Warm Man" hide and seek game "spoiler"
One evening while we were living in our Bell Creek log home, two of our cousins were visiting and all of us kids, (grade school age) and younger too, were playing hide and seek. It was dark outside but the lights from the house made a few areas visible except the big shed where Our old lizzy (car) was stored and Misc. item in the back corners. These corners made for good hiding places so some of us took turns hiding there.
One of my cousins was the first to mention a feeling in one of the corners of a "Warm" sensation.One of my brothers piped up saying he felt like there was a person hiding there. None of us kids wanted to go to the back of the shed any more because of the "warm man" lurking there. We quit our game ,went inside, and  never mentioned it again.  

Horse whisperer (My Dad)
I am proud of the reputation my Dad had of his ability to handle a team of horses. It seemed as though he could bond with any he was around or owned. And he did own a team of percheron draft horses that were said to have been 18 hands high.(they were big). He used them for logging as that was what he did for a few years when I was quite young. at night he would rub them down with gunny sacks and also used a curry tool to use on their muscles.I remember him talking to them in a soothing tone as he gave them their after work rub down. Also in the morning he talked to them as he walked beside and between them in the stalls as he was putting on the harnesses.
One morning there was a huge commotion out at the barn. My dad hurried out to see what was going on and discovered the whole back of the barn had been kicked to pieces. (the section behind the horses.). he said when he came back to the house that a bear had made the mistake of wanting to have some horsemeat to eat.  More of Dad and horses later. bye

The two settings of my Blog memories
Until I was about ten years old I lived (with my family) In the Log house built by my dad
this was at Bell Creek,  area named after my Granddad
At that age we moved to the Samish Valley. to an unbelievable Idyllic setting.It was a five acre
place nestled between two mountains with a creek (our water supply) that surrounded the sides and front of the property. There was a small barn that was used for the milk cow that we kept all of our time there.
We were able to fish the creek for trout and although they were small mostly, they were Sooo delichious
 This Blog was intended to show the two settings from my stories More next time Thanks.

Too many eyes for just one dog.
Some things stay pretty vivid in your mind. Such as, the following happening. When I was in my early teens,we lived pretty primitive, so to speak, and lived out where a cougar's (mountain lion") scream was ordinary at night. Well, one early evening I had opened the door of our out house preparing to leave when two shiny eyes was looking at me from about thirty feet away from  the reflection of the light from our back porch about two hundred feet behind me. Assuming it was "Thunder" our dog I said something to him (cant remember what), but as I turned towards the house and the back porch the light there showed Thunder resting there. Fastest trip from Outhouse to Our house ever made.  

Why wood my sister empty a drawer of her dresser ?
 The answer is hinted in the title of this blog. While my two older brothers and I were off to serve our Country during WWII our oldest sister (but still young) was more or less left in charge of things at our rural
home.Keeping enough wood on the porch for the cooking stove and the heating stove kept her younger siblings busy.and sometimes not enough wood was stacked on the porch. So at times she would transfer wood from the porch to her dresser drawer so that the required amount would be brought by the young ones leaving a little "cushion" for the wood supply. This happened probably once or twice but it remained one of the laughable things remembered by the family. 

Matching "wits" with the ouija board 
I was a young boy when I first heard of this (event). A Motor Stage (vehicle) was late on its return to Maple Falls (a small community) north of Deming Washington, and as the time began to worry some of the family of one of the occupants, one of the members said" let's ask the ouija board where the Stage is".of course just for something to occupy time while waiting. two of the family put their finger tips on the board and asked "where is the stage" the answer came as it spelled out "Sumas" It brought a chuckle from them all as Sumas was quite a few miles west of the stage route. About an hour later the stage rolled in and as the ones getting off they were explaining the reason for the delay. "A bridge had washed out before they got to Deming and they had to travel west to the bridge at Sumas to get back to the route.

 

A Rolling Stone Gathers No Moss.
Not True, Not True. My two older Brothers and I were always active (rolling) like most kids.
When our Dad built our first house (A log cabin) we three boys were made to gather moss
from the woods nearby to fill the gaps in the logs to keep out the weather and to make for warmth
from cold air. We were one year apart so I would guess are ages at 7, 6 and 5. I remember it well
and enjoyed the "gathering". My brother Dick did an "express strip" of clothes when a thousand legged worm ( that's what we named them) (lived in the moss) fell down his shirt. Just one of the unforgettable
happenings when we were young. Will try to get a pic. of that log cabin to show here later. 

How singing extended my lifespan.
I was 16 years old when I signed a contract with the Glacier Ranger station for the position of observer
(smoke) at the Copper Mountain Lookout  located on the U.S. Canadian border.This duty was shared by another young man so as to give 24 hr "lookout"for fire danger (Another Story)
Below our lookout, guessing about a half mile, Was a small lake from where we got our water. the terrain was steep so a zig zag trail was used.
One day on my turn to get water I reached the edge of the small pond, unscrewed the big cap on the water can when I heard a sound. Turning I saw the head of a Grizzly (or brown) I didn't ask. This bears head was 
as large as a washtub.He evidently hadn't detected me yet.I turned and remember screwing the lid back on the can (survival instinct) intending to use it as a float if I needed to jump in the water.
To make sure he knew of my presence I started singing, this made him aware of me being there because when I turned to check. He was gone. I filled some water in the can ,strapped it on my back and even today I still cant remember taking the zigzag route back up the hill. Glad he heard my Singing, Kinda hope it wasn't the reason he left.(just kidding).

Touching, seems to have a "language " of it's own.
Growing up, I remember a time or two when I had to "fetch" a switch for the "switcher" and the butt of the switchee felt a "touch". (That was one kind). On another occasion in school, I was thumped on the chest by a bully, I would label that a challenge that needed a quick decision. (another kind of touch). Then,as I experienced life in the "job" world I remember, on meeting anyone, that I continued to keep liking was the ones that showed that they liked me by touching my arm or shoulder as they greeted me.(This kind of touching speaks without words). Lastly, (example) If I happen to be in my home "Pondering" things such as 
finances, appointments ,health, etc. And my (love) my wife touches me as she scurries bye, then, (guess what).
I can mount my Steed raise my saber and charge any enemy that I would encounter ever.