OUTDOORS
MyEagleNews.com
Wednesday, September 28, 2022
A9
SHOOTING THE BREEZE
Lighten your load with a good mountain rifl e
n my gun library, each fi rearm
a muzzle brake. Whichever cali-
has unique features which pro-
ber you choose should depend upon
vide me with the full spectrum
the game you plan to pursue. Most
of both employment and enjoyment. of my steep country hunts are in
I think of it as a tool set, each mem-
the pursuit of mule deer. One of
ber of which has specifi c purposes to my favorite deer hunting cartridges
accomplish the task at hand.
is the oft-mentioned .25-
A couple of years back I
06 Remington. Other pop-
noticed a slight hole in my
ular choices would include
arsenal: I lacked a proper
the 6.5 Creedmoor, .270
mountain rifl e.
Winchester, and 7mm-08
Now this can mean sev-
Remington.
eral things to several diff er-
Being as I already owned
ent people. Any rifl e you lug
an accurate Remington
up the mountainside could
Model 700, I decided to
Dale Valade
be considered a mountain
modify this rifl e until arriv-
rifl e, so pardon me if our defi nitions
ing at the desired ideal mountain
vary. Ideally — to me — it should
rifl e. The Remington 700 is easily
have a quality lightweight syn-
modifi ed with a plethora of available
thetic stock, impervious to extreme
aftermarket products to choose from.
weather. As big a fan of gorgeous
Firstly, a Bell and Carlson
walnut stocks as I am, they are sim-
drop-in synthetic stock was located
ply too heavy to qualify. I prefer a
online and purchased forthwith; a
sporter contour barrel no longer than good friend glass bedded it for me.
24 inches. In some calibers, 20-22
Next came an aluminum trig-
inches may well be preferable.
ger guard and fl oor plate assembly
For me, a mountain rifl e should
as well as Talley aluminum scope
be chambered in something rel-
rings. These are simple and rugged,
integrating both the mount and the
atively light of recoil as the fi n-
ished product should weigh no more bottom half of the scope ring into a
single piece.
than approximately 7.5 pounds.
I then mounted a Leupold VX-2
That arbitrarily eliminates any-
3-9x40mm scope with long-range
thing “Magnum” unless it also has
I
Dale Valade/Contributed Photo
The lightweight rifl e is a perfect companion in rugged, vertical mule deer
country.
duplex reticle into the Talley rings.
Finally, I installed a Timney
510v2 Elite Hunter replacement trig-
ger set at 3 pounds. Timney makes
an excellent drop-in trigger, requir-
ing very minimal eff ort to install.
They also went through the trouble
of modifying the infamous Walker/
Remington factory trigger design to
eliminate those well-storied acciden-
tal discharges.
Even though this rifl e is much
safer and lighter to carry than it used
to be, I didn’t lose anything in the
accuracy department. Upon trying
some new handloads featuring the
excellent Hornady 117 grain Inter-
lock BTSP and Ramshot Hunter,
I was pleased to see it shoot sub-
MOA groups at 100 yards. Addi-
tional tests at longer ranges will no
doubt prove conclusive as long as
the “nut behind the bolt” doesn’t
wiggle loose.
O utlook
SENI
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R
I do believe fall has
fallen. Had to turn on
Prairie City
the little heater in the
office/studio so I could
Seniors
be comfortable typing
this missive. The house
heating stove has been
Rose Coombs
turned on, too, this last
week. Yes, the season
has definitely changed. But no frost on the cantaloupes yet! Derrol
keeps saying, “Aren’t they ready?” I just keep irrigating.
But we had cantaloupe today! Thanks to some leftovers from the
Cycle Oregon people, we each had a serving of cantaloupe and
watermelon. Hooray! Thanks, whoever you are. Along with that we
enjoyed chicken and rice bake, a green salad, and tapioca pudding
for dessert. Good and tasty meal for this change of season day. Our
sponsor for this day was Chester’s Markets. The table that got to go
first through the serving line semi-answered this question: What do
Mexican people call the avocado? They answered guacamole. The
answer is alligator pear.
Don’t know what that is in Spanish, but now you know. Our fun
fact was this: Avocados are classified as berries with a large seed. I
guess so! Del led the flag salute and Tom asked the blessing. Famous
birthdays include H. G. Wells and Stephen King. Now there’s
another unique pair! The quote for the day: “Birthdays are good
for you. Government statistics show that the people who have the
most birthdays live the longest.” Amen! We started a new door prize
drawing today — a free meal. Nancy Mooser was the first winner and
it was the first time that she and hubby had been able to come this
year! How about that?!
The Eastern Oregon Council for Independent Living brought a box
full of little baggies to give away. The bags contained a pen, hand
sanitizer, and COVID test kit. The bag also contained lots of info
about their programs.
Our volunteers today included Mary, Gwynne, Carla, Tom, Chris,
Theresa, and Pam. Thanks, everybody.
The cement block has sprouted a sign and seating for the People
Mover bus stop. I tried out the seats. Not too bad. Someday I may
have to try out the bus!
In Prairie City, we used to have the Grant Co. Mercantile (a
hardware store), the Prairie City Dept. Store (dry goods, clothing,
shoes), Prairie Drug (pharmacy) and four service stations (Shell,
Texaco, Cenex and Chevron). Those were the good old days! There
was even a Trailways bus stop at the hotel. And do you remember
your mailbox combination? Or your school locker combination? Or
your phone number before touch-tone dialing? These all went by the
wayside. So why do I still get calls from someone who wants to talk
about septic tank “helper” when I keep telling them it has been 10
years since I needed their product?! They are not keeping up-to-date
lists.
Ecc. 3:1 There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity
under heaven. 2 Tim. 4:2 Preach the Word; be prepared in season and
out of season. Col. 4:6 Let your conversation be always full of grace,
seasoned with salt.
The week of Sept.
18-23 was a traumatic
John Day
week for my household.
A medical emergency
Seniors
and a disaster with the
freezer thawing out and
juices and blueberry
Elsie Huskey
juice everywhere. It
took me two days
with my painful back
to get it all cleaned and ready for the new freezer to arrive on Friday
morning. God is testing me to see how I will respond to trauma in my
life. I feel like I did well. The pain in my hips was the worst of it all.
On Monday, Sept. 19, 15 in-house diners came to the desk. Carol
Roe and Janet Binger greeted them and made sure they got their
names in the daily drawing and were registered. When we sign in
(register), the state takes the information and knows we are active and
they fund us accordingly, which helps us continue supporting the
community.
Janet did the announcements. Even though she was nervous about it,
she did well. Thank you, Janet. Janice Kuhlman, Gloria Kulis’s sister,
led the flag salute.
The servers were from the Living Word Church: Carolyn Stout and
Carol Claire. Thanks, ladies, we sure appreciate your help with lunch,
your smiles and attentiveness to all the needs of the meal. It was really
nice to get to chat a bit with you as well. We dined on ham, navy
bean soup, carrots, cornbread, and cherry cobbler. One gentleman ate
his cobbler first and said he always has dessert first and then the meal
becomes the dessert. Most of us don’t have room for dessert if we eat
our meal first. Quite a theory and very interesting.
Forty-nine fresh meals and 33 frozen meals were delivered to some
who cannot come join us. The names of the drivers did not get on this
information sheet. I am so sorry, because those that deliver are very
special people. I am sure you all know who you are, so thank you all
for your service to our community.
Todays meal was sponsored by Katie Hoffman who is with the
veteran services office, so we want to say thank you Katie and the
veteran services office for our lunch today.
An abundance of veggies were on the back table provided by Chris
Bucholtz (not sure of that spelling, sorry). They looked so good, and it
was obvious they came right from the garden. Thanks for sharing these
veggies with all of us.
On Thursday, Oct. 6, Pacific Source is sponsoring the lunch for all
attendees. They will have updated information about their insurance
policies and will answer any questions you may have, right after lunch.
Corine Smaer of Cycle Oregon made a significant food donation,
but that is all we were told. Corine, thank you for this donation that
will help our cooks prepare great food.
Please remember to bring in all your pull tabs from vegetable and
fruit cans and sodas. They will go to the Ronald McDonald House to
assist them in doing the great things they do for people in need.
Bill Baucum won the Len’s Card and Kay Cotham won the free
meal. Congratulations, you two.
Some lunch-goers come a bit early to have time to chat with others.
That is my favorite part of the day.
We are starting to see some new faces. COVID sure interrupted
everyone’s lives for almost three years, so it is difficult to get back to
normal. A great time is had by folks who come to lunch at our center.
Come join us and find out for yourself. Where else can you get a meal
for less than $12?
Darlene Nodine and Carol Roe were at the desk on Thursday,
Sept. 22, to greet 33 in-house diners and made sure everyone was
registered and their names were in the drawing. These ladies have
been so faithful and done a great job while we go through the trials of
returning to normal. Thank you, Darlene and Carol.
Darlene did the announcements. Mya Ennis volunteered to lead the
flag salute. Thanks, Mya. Father Christy asked the blessing and even
started off in a little hymn. I thought it was very nice. Thank you,
Father Christy. The servers today were from St. Elizabeth Catholic
Church. The names didn’t get on the list, but they were superb. One
lady brought her three young children. They had made butterflies
from coffee filters they painted and tied in the middle with pipe
cleaners and passed them out to the lunch attendees. So cute. Thank
you, kids. I also saw them make a money donation at the desk. So
sweet. We dined on meatballs and gravy, real mashed potatoes, peas
with cute little onions in them, and cheesecake brownies. The meal
was sponsored by Chester’s Market. Thank you, Chester’s, for lunch.
Forty-nine fresh meals were delivered and the names of the ones who
delivered did not get on the list. Sorry, but thank you so much for
your service to those who need us.
The evening of Thursday the 22nd was the first day of fall. Fall is the
comforting season. A favorite of many.
Eastern Oregon Center for Independent Living brought gift bags to
share with all of us. They included a box with two COVID tests and
information on their organization. Thank you.
News of Alva Conley’s passing came as a shock to many of us. It is
always sad to lose people we have known a long time.
Rennie won the Thriftway card and Mike Johnston won the free
meal. Hope I spelled that right this time.
Colossians 4:5 & 6 Walk in wisdom toward them who are without,
redeeming the time. Let your speech be always with grace, seasoned with
salt, that ye may know how ye ought to answer every man.
We had a delicious
meal of chicken alfredo,
garlic bread, fresh green
salad, and various
assorted goodies for
our dessert. Our hard-
working chefs, Terry
Soo Yukawa
Cade and Carrie Jewell,
prepared it for us with
love. We so appreciate
their efforts and are truly grateful for them and their wonderful-
tasting meals.
Our greeters at the table were Bob Cockrell and Sue Cavender. Bob
led us in the flag salute and made the announcements. Yours truly
prayed the blessing over the meal.
We had two announcements. We sang the birthday song and wished
Judi Bustardo a very happy birthday. The second announcement
was that Spray Grange was having their eighth annual oyster feed on
Saturday, Oct. 1. The meal will be served from noon till 4 p.m. or
until they run out of food. The meal consists of grilled oysters, pork
loin, scalloped potatoes, coleslaw, biscuit, and dessert. Beverages
will be juice, water, and coffee. There will be a 50/50 raffle and door
prizes. All proceeds will go to pay for the utility bills for the Spray
Grange. The cost of the lunch will be $15 per plate. Hope to see you
all there as we help to support our surrounding areas and neighbors.
Did you know that we just had the first day of fall roll past us this
past week? Crazy, right? Not too long ago, we were all dying from the
heat. You can feel it already approaching, the winter is just around the
corner. I can smell the coolness, too.
Well, this fall weather is just in time to help us celebrate the
Buckaroo Fall Festival. Things are abuzz around here in Monument.
Yes, many preparations are being made for our upcoming event. I will
tell you all about the festivities for those who missed it.
I laid down some fresh straw in the goat shed along with some
peppermint oil. Good thing because we had a little rainstorm come
through, and goats hate to get wet. The peppermint oil is making the
shed smell oh so lovely now. For how long, that I don’t know. Ha.
I am going to be putting the billygoats with the girls soon. This will
give me baby kids that will be born sometime between March and
April. I know I will have bottle baby goats and so will have to prepare
mentally for that kind of responsibility.
It’s funny, but Belle still thinks of me as her mama because she still
follows me everywhere I go when I go into the goat pen. She has lost
all her baby fat and now looks like an adult goat. No more little fat
cheeks on her, either. She is cute. She does not seem to be as bratty as
she was when she was little.
I am hoping to breed her to either Remi or Yoshi. We will see what
kind of babies she will have, and hopefully she will let me milk her!
Proverbs 4:18 But the path of the just is as the shining light, that
shineth more and more unto the perfect day.
Monument
Seniors
The Hornady Interlock is a rel-
atively thin-jacketed bullet, but I
have enjoyed much success with it
on deer-sized game and for the price
they are very hard to beat. The sec-
ond most endearing feature about
the Ramshot Hunter is that it seems
to be, at least for now, relatively
easy to acquire.
Putting together a mountain rifl e
has been a fun project, and I highly
recommend the undertaking. The
best thing about any custom rig is
the only person it needs to please is
yourself. Therefore the options are
literally endless, and that is the very
best part.
Your back will thank you when
you have that much less weight in
gear to haul around this grand old
country in pursuit of your favorite
game animal. I don’t have a crystal
ball, but I might see a blacktail deer
hunt in my future!
Do you own a mountain rifl e?
Write to us at shootingthebree-
zebme@gmail.com and check us out
on Facebook!
Dale Valade is a local country
gent with a love for the outdoors,
handloading, hunting and shooting.
Or schedule
your FREE
private consultation
with
Donna
Steele
• Phone:
541-575-3518
Donna Steele, Local Pacific Source Medicare Broker
Phone: 541-575-3518
We offer a wide range of primary
care and medical treatment.
Zachary Bailey, MD • David Hall, MD • Raffaella Betza, MD
Zachary Bailey, MD • Janessa Sickler, DO • Emily Lieuallen, DO
• Janessa
DO • Emily
DO
James Cook,
FNP • Sickler,
Erika Adams,
FNP-C Lieuallen,
• Caitlin MacCoun,
MD
• Nora Jennings,
Healey, FNP
Clark, DNP
Brian
MD • Shawna
Robyn Jennings,
MD
Available Monday - Friday
180 Ford Road, John Day • 541-575-0404
Huffman’s
Family Market
Quality Healthcare ...close to home.
170 Ford Road
John Day
541-575-1311
112 E. 5th
Prairie City
541-820-3341
422 W. Main, 1st floor • John Day
If you have any questions or think you
know of someone who might benefit,
call: 541 575.1648
241 S. Canyon Blvd. John Day • 541-575-0529
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