6
Wednesday, May 6, 2020 The Nugget Newspaper, Sisters, Oregon
Glimpses of Sisters:
Optimism
By Karen Keady
Columnist
I began writing Glimpses
of Sisters when an out of
town friend emailed and
asked me, <So, how are
things in Mayberry?= She
was treated to the long
answer. Today during this
time fraught with angst, I
want to write about opti-
mism, which is sometimes
difficult to foster, even dur-
ing <normal= times.
I have a <Business For
Sale= sign planted in front
of a business that is closed
by executive order 20-12. I
find that somewhat amus-
ing and maybe a great sign
of optimism 4 or that I am
too busy painting my kitchen
and doing yard work to take
it down.
The other day I witnessed
five tiny ants on a butcher
block table attempting to
haul away a chunk of corn-
bread 10 times their size.
They kept dropping it, or,
one of the ants did. I imag-
ined the ant conversation,
<Jeez, Herb, can9t you hold
up your end for crying out
loud!= Herb says, <Sorry
Al, I hurt one of my legs
and Heckle and Jekyll over
there are pretty wimpy too!=
I allowed the ants to carry
on because I have read too
many great articles by Jim
Anderson to kill anything.
Everything pretty much
survives around here.
A couple of weeks ago,
in a store parking lot, I
witnessed another sign of
McKenzie Highway is not open
optimism. A customer push-
ing out a cart out with three
packages of toilet paper
aboard was stopped by
another customer walking
into the store. As I watched
from a distance the body lan-
guage needed no conversa-
tion. Head shaking, shoulder
shrugging, open hands, led
me to understand what was
being said. The customer
with the three packages of
T.P. reached into her cart
and handed the other cus-
tomer one of her coveted
purchases. The best part of
this exchange was when the
receiver of the T.P. began
to extract money to pay
the giver, the lady shook
her head. No. No payment
required. The receiver put
her hands in prayer position
as her thank you.
When I was at the service
station to fill up my little car
the other day, the attendant
told a story of an invention of
some sort he has created and
has a patent attorney working
with him on it. Perhaps we
will see him on TV on that
show that features new and
creative ideas. From service
station attendant to entrepre-
neur! He seemed optimis-
tic about it. His story was
refreshing, especially in this
negative political climate. I
do not want to hear his opin-
ion about politics, nor does
he want to hear mine, since I
was a captive audience as he
filled my gas tank.
Small kindnesses, small
town life, observations and
life in Mayberry.
2008 WINNEBAGO VIEW
Want to get away?
While ODOT has fin-
ished its plowing operations
on the east side of McKenzie
Pass, the road is not open 4
to anyone 4 and won9t be
until mid-June.
The status of the roadway
from the eastern snow gate
to the summit has been a
point of confusion and con-
tention for several years.
ODOT plows a single
lane through the snow on the
road during the spring, and
then lets snowmelt do the
rest. Once the snow is melted
off, work crews sweep the
roadway to clear debris, dirt
and gravel, and patch pot-
holes created over the win-
ter. Opening of the highway
used to be arbitrary 4 the
gate was opened whenever
the work was done. For
the past several years, the
agency has determined upon
a consistent third-Monday-
in-June opening.
During the plowing and
maintenance period, the
roadway is closed to traffic.
However, cyclists and walk-
ers go around the gate to
use the roadway and public
perception has grown that
the road is open for cyclists
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4 car-free. That perception
has been promoted exten-
sively in the past and again
recently in local media
4 and ODOT Region 4
Director Gary Farnsworth
really wants it corrected.
<It9s not open,= he told
The Nugget. <The sign says
8Road Closed.9=
Farnsworth noted in an
email communication to a
couple of Sisters residents
last weekend, <as of last
week or so we have removed
the 8authorized personnel
only9 sign, because we have
not been conducting any
operations, which was the
exact purpose of the sign. If
and when we need to con-
duct additional operations,
we will post the signing
again.=
The main issue is safety;
the road is not maintained for
cyclists. And with COVID-
19 restrictions in place,
Farnsworth feels an even
greater sense of urgency that
the roadway not be used.
<For everyone9s safety
ODOT does not want folks
wandering up past the gate
while they9re working there,
especially if they have a sign
posted 8authorized person-
nel only,9= he said. <And
for everyone9s wellness in
potential use of the route,
ODOT is concerned about
the ability for folks to prac-
tice social distancing in
general.=
In his e-mail and a sub-
sequent conversation with
The Nugget, Farnsworth
acknowledged that there will
inevitably be use of the road,
regardless of closure gates
and signage.
<At the same time, and
while the gates are closed
into mid-June, we recog-
nize that many people will
continue to make their own
choices traveling by other
than car or truck or RV,
and are able to get around
or over the gates to use the
section of highway beyond
those gates,= he said. <We
(ODOT Region 4) do not
conduct enforcement of the
closure other than the gat-
ing, and we do not expect
other organizations (such as
USFS or law enforcement)
to conduct enforcement.
Therefore, such users of the
roadway are entering at their
own risk.=
Farnsworth told The
Nugget that he plans to con-
tinue to press for a wider
understanding that the road
is not open to cycling prior
to the mid-June opening.
Stay healthy and we
will see you soon!
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