The Rock Wall

Spring fever did not kick in today for me with all of this cold, rainy weather. I didn’t even think about the fishing report until everybody had put on their winter clothes and headed home.

After enjoying the excellent fish fry at Fair Haven, as soon as we got the notice of the community breakfast, I told Kimball I wanted to attend. So Saturday, we kinda slept in, then headed to Fair Haven with the intermittent wipers engaged. Kept them on all the way there and back home. Kimball asked the usual question, which way did I want to go. With the wet roads we picked the one with the least curves: 54 to AA, then north to Y to C.

We made it about 9:15. As we were ushered into the warm kitchen, we spoke to Paulo and Loetta Bowyer, (who we had just seen at the fish fry), Chet Foreman  and Jerry Burch. We loaded our plates and went into the pavilion where somebody had left the refrigerator door open. I noticed that there were no bottles of condiments on any of the tables next to the eaves on the east or west side. The wind was whipping through the pavilion. I told Kimball if I had known it was going to be that cold, I might have stayed home.

Soon Neoma Foreman drifted to our table and the conversation distracted us from the weather. Then Jenise Burch came over and talked about upcoming events she and Jerry plan to attend in ElDo.  Neal Gerster came by as he emptied the tea and water containers. We go to Fair Haven so often we are just part of the crowd. A lady came to our table and asked if I was Kenny Long. I told her I used to be. She said she is the one who sends us the notices of events. I told her she could see what we did with them.

The highlight of the meal was when one of the ladies in the kitchen brought some sausage and biscuit and gravy that had just come off the stove. Hot food on a cold day really hits the spot.

A we left, we came to the 10 mph corner at Harwood. Kimball asked me if there was only one way in and out of Harwood. I told her to turn right. We went by the elevator , crossed the railroad tracks, then by the Ellerman residence. We took a right at the end of that street and Kimball asked if the the building out in the field was the old Harwood School. I told her it was. We followed the dirt road the rest of the way back to Hwy. AA.

Sunday we celebrated Davis’ birthday. Uncle Tom did an excellent job grilling the flatiron steaks. Kimball did a good job with the peeled shrimp. Margaret and I never saw any at Mom’s table when we were growing up. Margaret will only eat fried shrimp.  The rest of us at the table, except Reese and Nash, liked the peeled shrimp. There were lots of pitted black olives for Davis… and some of the rest of us.

• I know you’ve been accused of doing something of which you have no recollection. This time it was something good I did right here in ElDo years ago. Sharon West Lansing told Kimball I gave her a flower which she still has growing in her garden.  A college professor like Sharon could not have just any flower in her garden but she couldn’t think of the name. Kimball came up with the common name, Cow Slobbers. Nope. Then she tried Blue Bells, Nope.

• Kimball told me and I couldn’t think of the third name. Finally it came to one of us. Kimball called Sharon and it was good enough for her garden, spiderwort. KL