February 4, 2024 If you want to biggest surprises and the most amazing fun: don't do your homework! This is the antithesis of every bit of advice I followed as a student or gave to youngsters in my 39 years as a classroom teacher. But I can only...
Today is the day that Anna's purse should get to Seattle. Fingers crossed! I'm not sure how the situation had developed on her end -- She was in Oysterville at the Red House with her two little ones, scurrying to get back home to 1) close on a...
Even though Oystervillains [sic] are a fiercely independent lot, there has always been a certain "shape" to summer -- especially over the last several decades. There are certain events and activities that take place each year and, whether or not...
For years (probably since I retired in 2001) I've considered Wednesday "Paper Day." It's the day the Chinook Observer is published and arrives early in the morning in my mailbox at the Oysterville Post Office. Lately, since we've been sheltering,...
Given all of our country's gun problems and controversies these days, I was a bit startled to see a full-page reproduction of an advertisement for "Reliable Revolvers" in an old Sou'wester magazine. Actually, the ad appeared on the back cover of...
Mescal Jean Smith, always known to us by her middle name, died last week at her home in Tygh Valley, Oregon. Her daughter-in-law kindly called to let us know. Though Jean and John moved from Oysterville almost six years ago, I feel Jean's absence...
It's probably similar at little post offices throughout the world. Our Oysterville P.O. is a gathering place for the locals – nowadays, not so much 'gathering' as 'see-you-as-I'm-passing-through – and it's a collection/disbursement area for news...
The U.S. Post Office is at it again. Oysterville is under attack. It’s not quite like it was last time when we were one of many small, rural Post Offices being considered for closure. No, this time our little Post Office will be staying open but...
I was feeling a little smug which is never a good sign… but, for once in my life I had sent out birthday thank yous in a timely manner. My mother would have been proud. And even though cards and gifts had become separated in all the surprise party...
“Getting the mail” is a Big Deal in Oysterville. I don’t remember mail being an ‘event’ in other places that I’ve lived – places where the mail is delivered house-to-house every day. In fact, in my childhood in Alameda, I think the mail came twice...
Most mornings we review our plans for the day over coffee – where and what our meals will be, what appointments we have, what projects we’ll work on. We also decide whether or not we’ll walk to get our mail, assuming we’ll be in town and that the...
Last night we got to talking about unforgettable “music experiences” we have had – times when we’ve just happened to be in a place where people spontaneously gathered and began to play or sing. For me, it was at a little roadside café on the way...