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About Cottage Grove sentinel. (Cottage Grove, Or.) 1909-current | View Entire Issue (Aug. 30, 2017)
6A COTTAGE GROVE SENTINEL AUGUST 30, 2017 The Chatterbox Betty Kaiser Vacations don’t get better than this! The dog days of summer are dwindling down to a precious few. Sunny days and vacations will soon be a distant memory but those times will never really go away. I became aware of that as a group of my friends gathered for coffee and conversation. The subject of the moment was our childhood vacations. Nostalgia and laughter reigned as we shared simple stories from 40-50 years ago. Two of the women’s vacations always included big family reunions. Barb’s mother was one of 9 children and her father was a teacher. Fortunate- ly, her family had time to drive across country to Minnesota and visit relatives every summer. She said it was a wonderful opportunity to meet in a park for a huge picnic and get re-acquainted with all those cousins. Kaylen’s favorite memory was of family gath- erings at Shasta Lake in No. Calif. Her mother William only loves one person, my son-in-law, for the rest of us he evilly squints his eyes and hisses, swats and growls at us. Even my four-year old grandson walks by the cat announcing, “That cat is mean” and that cat is! William the Terrible, a stray, showed up in my daughter’s yard, walked up the rock wall, then climbed onto my son-in-law’s shoulder and has not left. The kitten kept growing and growing... into a 22 pound Maine Coon cat with black tips on his ears like a wild bobcat. And wild this cat is. That is until I turned him into a real pussy cat! I was staying at “his” home after watching Animal Planet’s, “My Cat From Hell” about playing with cats to tame their bad behavior. So, I took some garden twine and strung 1/3 of a plastic straw on it, and then secured it with a large knot. This way, when the toy is dragged on the fl oors, it makes an was one of 8 children. Some- times there would be as many as 100 cousins, aunts, uncles, shirt tail relatives and friends of the family camping on one of the islands with the ski boats on the water ferrying kids and kin around. Other favorite vacations in- cluded Sandie’s annual trip to a primitive cabin in the Sequoi- as without electricity or water. Lynn’s family trip to Disneyland shortly after it opened was one to swoon for. Shirley’s fam- ily didn’t go on vacations but she made up for it when she married Ernie and they discovered cruise ships. And fi nally, there was Toni’s mother who randomly declared vacations by announc- ing that Toni and her siblings didn’t have to go to school—everyone was going to the beach for the day! That morning with my friends got me wonder- ing what vacations my kids and grandsons found most memorable. Due to space limitations, I can just print a few of their responses but you’ll surely fi nd something that you can relate to. Our daughter Kathy was the fi rst to chime in and make me laugh. To set the scene— In the 1970s we owned a tent trailer. The fi ve of us toured National parks and the entire state of Calif. in that rig. My husband hated it. Betty, Kathy, Jeff and John loved it. We didn’t have to tow it or set it up. Kathy says, “My most memorable vacation as a kid would be our tent trailer in Yosemite with the boys sleeping in a tent outside and us (inside) hearing a bear.” Oh, yes. I remember it well. Kathy woke up in the middle of the night whispering, “Mom, there’s a bear under my bed.” The boys were outside probably with food in the tent! I elbowed Chuck. He fl ung open the tent door, looked around and said, “Nope. No bear here,” and went back to sleep. The next morning, we found remnants of the bear’s feast from the picnic basket that we had conveniently left out- side! Yikes! Son-in-law Tim’s favorite vacation was a toss- up. “For me,” he said, “It was at Hume Lake, rid- ing motorcycles in the Sierras and target shooting. In 1976, it was going to the east coast with the Ca- lif. Cavalcade of Bands (I played saxophone). We began in Boston and ended in Washington, D.C. on July 4th with fi reworks in the Mall.” Our daughter-in-law Betsy is a Middle School Teacher and classes started last week. She still had time to type this: “My favorite summer memories are at our mountain cabin. Swimming in lakes during the heat of day, eating an ice cream cone as it melted down your arm, staying up late, playing cards and sleeping outside. Doing all these things with the people you love the most. It doesn't get much better than that!” Paul, is our fi rst grandson, 26 years old and an EMT. His memories mimic that of the other three who had similar experiences. “My favorite childhood vacations were always going to Hume Lake. Being by the lake and surrounded by all the trees was the best playground a kid could ask for! We got to go swimming, play on “the log”, hike, explore and watch all the animals. The great part about being at the lake was the pace was always up to us. We could decide to lounge around the cabin and put together puzzles, or we could go explore a new to us part of the National Park that surrounded us.” Grandson Matthew is now 23 years old and a graduate of Pt. Loma University. I like to think that he speaks for all the boys when he said, “My favorite vacations as a child were the escapes to Oregonland! From the mystery adventures, to building tree houses, racing tractors, and beyond. I knew in Oregon there would always be some- thing special waiting for me. Being a Southern California boy the thought of snow, rain, and big green trees out the window seemed so magical. Top that with donuts, trips to U of O, and even the 99 cents store what more could a boy ask for?!” Thanks to friends and family for sharing. Now, dear readers, it’s your turn to share some good time vacation memories with each other. - And for a giggle: animal advocate and come- dian, Elayne Boosler, admits that she and her dog were soul mates for the following reasons, “We both took naps, we both skipped lunch, and we both hated the vacuum." Share your pet tips and tales. angelscribe@msn.com “Follow” Pet Tips ‘n’ Tales on Facebook. https://www.facebook.com/PetTipsandTales irresistible cat noise. From that moment on, I swung the string above, around, and over William the Terrible as often as I could. At night, on my way to the bath- room, I grabbed the twine from its home over the back of the kitchen chair. No matter the time, or how asleep William was, he came running, and was at my heals all the way to the bathroom, kill- ing his prey the entire way. He danced, pranced and jumped after his toy. Apparently, “William the Pussy Cat” was bored and angry about it, but not any more. Honestly, I think I saw him smile! Over the next four days, wherever I walked, the string and William followed me. As you can see by the above photo, he became my friend, no longer hisses at me and did not chew my face off during the photo – thankfully! Which proves you can tame a wild beast! Tips and Humor - Anne’s Whippet gets excited when she takes a huge plastic coffee con- tainer and places a small- er container inside it with a sock full of treats. The concept is like the Rus- sian dolls. It keeps him happy for an hour, and he glows with pride when he fi nally reveals the treats. Does your pet fear your vacuum? Pets fearfully purr-ceive that the ma- chines are growling at them. Sonja’s Ben doesn't trust it either, so he solved the problem by ‘safely’ observing it from the couch. - Ben is passionate about squirrels and look- ing for tips on how to catch one! Every time he spots one from a window, he barks, spins around, and charges out his dog-door to try and get it. SCORE: Ben=0 Squirrels=3,926. - Yard free-range chickens excavate your soil, eliminating pests without using pesticides, plus they daily deliver healthy eggs! - Suzka in Portland, Oregon suggests, "When you brush your pets, toss their fur outside near a tree or a bird feeder. Birds collect the fur for their nests. They pack it around their eggs, insulating them, keeping the eggs warm. You Can Help Cottage Grove Kids! Contact Betty Kaiser at 942-1317 or email bchatty@bettykaiser.com PARTY IN THE PARK Cottage Grove Faith Center would like to thank the following businesses & individuals for their donations & contributions which made our 17th Annual Party in the Park such a Huge Success! Due to your generous support, we were able to distribute over 300 backpacks fi lled with school supplies, 42 back to school hair cuts, and approximately 900 hot dogs and fun food items. ICE FOR SNO CONES CG Dair y Queen Cottage Market Killion’s Market Pinocchio’s Pizza Ron’s Conoco/Kwik Pik McDonalds – Cups & Punch CASH / SCHOOL SUPPLIES Cottage Grove Faith Center Brad’s Cottage Grove Chevrolet Emerald Fitness Club United Methodists (also “provided” diaper changing station) 6th & Gibbs Church of Christ (also provided all the clothing) Starfire Lumber Company Jonathan Backer, DDS Calvar y Chapel Living Faith BACK TO SCHOOL HAIRCUTS Volunteer as a Court Appointed Special Advocate A rewarding, professional volunteer opportunity in 10-15 hours a month helping Cottage Grove foster children to stay safe and healthy. Cottage Grove training begins this fall, with applications due by August 11th. Visit www.casa-lane.org. A powerful voice for abused kids Bochetto: Julie H. Body Works Salon: Torie, Lori, Sherrie Carrol Bailey’s Barbershop: Christi Dave’s Place: David, Rayme, Kayla, Carmela Lions Mane: Deanne, Dee, Kim New Creations: Judy, Jessica, Heidi, Kristi, Erica Salon 7: Shawna, Mar y OTHER CONTRIBUTORS Delight Valley Church – Cotton Candy Machine & Supplies Dr. Bahen with Emerald Valley Dental – Large BB Q Garland @ CG Garbage Ser vice – Dumpster & Trash Cans Jerr y Settelmeyer – Tents Grocer y Outlet – Help with Hot Dogs Riverside Church – Tables & Volunteers SVA – Entertainment ATA Northwest - Taekwondo Demonstrations Cottage Grove Police Dept. Cottage Grove Fire Dept. City of Cottage Grove Head Start If you are interested in supporting Party in the Park for 2018, please contact Sheila at sheila@cg4.tv.