Oysterville by Willard Espy
“Oysterville! Is that the name of your town?” asked Kelly-the-nurse in some disbelief. Nyel conceded that it was.
“Great name!” she said. “Sounds like it should be in a book!”
“It is,” was Nyel’s amused response. “Lots of them.”
“Oh, really? What kind? Romances? It sounds like a place for romance!”
It always surprises me when I come across someone who has never heard of Oysterville – a testimony, for sure, to my self-centered nature. With 10,000 plus names added each year to the guest book at the Oysterville Church, it seems as though the whole world should know about Oysterville by now. But of course, they don’t.
I suppose my surprise should be reserved for those who do know about our little village and I should be registering true amazement when someone says they’ve actually been there. Once upon a time, most of the folks one ran into in Portland had, indeed, been to Oysterville – or at least to the Peninsula. Now… not so much. Newcomers in Portland have outnumbered ‘the old guard’ and our little corner is not the primary get-away attraction it once was.
“So, I guess there are a lot of restaurants in Oysterville where you can get fresh oysters,” Kelly continued.
“Not really.” said Nyel, “Not even one.”
Oysterville by Sydney Stevens
“Really! With that name, Oysterville? Someone’s missing a bet. Bigtime!”
Nyel and I exchanged a brief look. Brief, but loaded with past conversations about the one-time fabulous self-serve al fresco dining on the deck at Oysterville Sea Farms. Not to mention the on-going, relentless legal harassment by Pacific County of our neighbor Dan Driscoll, Sea Farms’ owner.
Now, there’s a book that should be written! Certainly not a Romance. And not a Western or a Thriller or a Fantasy sort of book. Not even in the Mystery or True Crime genre. Maybe a new category altogether? Where are Carl Bernstein and Bob Woodward when we need them?
Several years ago we met a Portland couple in Oysterville. Their kids had given them a “limousine experience” for Christmas, and they chose to use the limousine to take them to and from Oysterville, which was one of their favorite places. I still remember what a great day they were having as they packed up oysters to take back to Portland. Kind of a fairy tale–a limo, fresh oysters and a little bubbly!!