PORCH PONDERINGS

Traveling in the Green Kingdom

So it's been a busy few days here. Wednesday we do 'Meals on Wheels', and that takes up the mornings. I was looking forward to the meal - salmon patties. Then I get there, sorry - we changed the menu - sliced ham instead. Really? Uck - I don't eat pork. So I don't stay. Earlier I had a call from the lady in charge of SE Montana tourism. Oh - by the way, a representative is coming your way about 1PM to tour the museum. Can you take her in hand for me, show her around? Kind of short notice, but since I am a board member, sure thing. So I grab something to eat, and meet Megan at 1PM on my wonderful porch. Then we make the short walk across the street and tour the museum. That takes about 2 hours, since I have to explain everything to her. So I didn't get to church as usual. But when she left to go back to Billings, I did get to put in some time at the thrift store. We love our volunteer time there as a church group. We have a lot of fun doing that. Plus it's for a good cause. Then after that I rush home, find something to eat and then head out to Musselshell to our first play practice.

I have a part again this year, if you can call two small appearances on stage a part. But hey! I'll get a picture on the board and my name in the program, so there! And you know, I'll deliver those lines like nobody's business. I have to come on stage with a casserole, I play an elderly neighbor lady, find an even more elderly man dead with his head in a cake, accuse the grandchildren of murder then yell loudly as I leave for the police. And then I yell for the police again at the very end of the show! Hmmm....elderly lady. Type cast.....whatever. I choose not to believe that but I know that is probably what they think. But I've got some ideas about costume and voice already. So there. It'll be a good laugh.

But we did talk about how to do this. With the virus on everyone's mind, how to do the crowds we usually get at our matinee on Sunday, since we have a lot of elderly folks that don't want to drive in the dark. And how to do refreshments. No cookies on trays for everyone to breathe on and handle, and how to do a sit-down dinner like we usually do. And then how to seat everyone in our little theater. Blast this virus business. We pray all will be resolved somewhat by September.

Then today hubby and I decided to take a road trip. He is on a mission to find local, raw honey. I knew of a store near Moore, MT. That is West of Lewistown. But before we take off for that excursion, I had to meet the head of the Headstart program here in Roundup. She wants to have Headstart participate in the M.U.D. program in the fall. I am the chairperson for M.U.D. - the Musselshell Unity Drive. Think of United Way and you know what this is about. Our name is mud. Weird idea. But anyway, we needed to meet since she missed the sign-up drive last month. So I got to see what Headstart here is all about, she met me, she got the paperwork. Life is good. But before I met her, Denise is her name, I stopped by RSVP and said HEY to Shelly for a moment or two. So we chatted, then I had to go see Denise. So I stepped away from Shelly's desk. And suddenly the robot vacuum takes off and goes to where I was standing. Scares the bejesus out of me!! Shelly comes around and says, "That's George." "You named your Roomba?" "Yeah, go back George!" Well, needless to say, that was just a little too weird. She was still fighting with the robot vacuum as I left.

As we drove through the green hills toward Lewistown and beyond, acres and acres, miles and miles of grass is being cut, mowed, and baled into hay. Those round iconic bales are everywhere. Then I saw a sign "Crystal Lake". It's in the Big Snowies. "Let's go there on the way back. We can go to Eddie's Corner, get something to eat and then go to the lake and eat." So we drive to Eddie's Corner. There's truck stop there, and an Amish store. Poor hubby, no bulk honey like he wants. I'm not sure he'll ever find what he wants. We did pass lots of bee hives in fields. Perhaps we need to get a bee hive and raise our own bees.

We get sandwiches, drinks, of course chippy things, and hubby needs chocolate then head back the way we just came. We take the turn. And start driving down the long dirt road. No signs, of course. We begin to second guess this decision. Aha! A truck ahead.

"Do you know - is this the way to Crystal Lake?" "I don't. I'm lost. I'm supposed to meet someone to drop off this baler." He indicates a big red machine attached to his truck. "But I don't know where I'm supposed to go." He's in worse shape than we are. We can turn on a dime. He can't. so we follow in his dust for a time. Then we lose him. Then another car. This one from Oregon. "Do you know where Crystal Lake is?" "That's where we're headed."

So we follow this car for another long drive up and down a dirt road, beautiful. Suddenly we see a sign. Finally going in the right direction. The road changes to blacktop at the forest service entrance and I suddenly understand why. 'Dear Lord Jesus protect me please.' I want to close my eyes but kind of want to see when my end comes. The road follows a ravine and my side of the car is suddenly a few hundred feet above a river and steadily rising. I lean toward hubby and want to crawl in his lap and suck my thumb. But then it comes to a parking area and we pull in. Whew. That was close. We find a place to eat, because the hike to Crystal Lake is 6 miles in. I am not interested in driving further along the ravine. But after our lunch we do hike a bit along the little water, probably a creek. Lots of wildflowers. Beautiful. Green and lush.
But then we're back in the car and back along that ravine for the drive home. Next time we go, we'll do more research. Find an easier way in. Avoid the ravine. That's my plan, anyway.

Here and there and back again, all in the same day. I'm tired, not bad for an elderly lady, I guess.








Queen Norma Jean