Wednesday, April 28, 2010

Out Trip, Pt. 4 - Surprise Gift and Memory Lane

Too Close for Comfort
As we traveled back toward Kansas, we stopped at another little County Library where one of Benjamin King's son's was born, thinking we might possibly find something there, but no luck. On one of those Missouri roads somewhere, we were behind a huge semi truck, and the car ahead of us passed him. As we started to follow that car and pass him, he came steadily over into our lane, thinking the other car was the last one, I'm sure. We were pretty much up even with the cab, so there was no chance to slow down and let him just go ahead of us, so Dad/Gpa headed toward the center ditch. At the very last possible moment, the truck driver saw us and yanked back into his own lane. We could see the trailer rock from the sudden change in direction! I watched in the rear view mirror and saw him quickly pull off to the side of the road. We're not sure whether he was sleepy and decided to take a nap, or maybe he needed a clean pair of shorts!

Wilderness Wireless
We passed a very, very remote rest area in Missouri - in the middle of NOWHERE, and the sign said "We have wireless"!! Guess they thought someone might be in dire need of communication with no people to turn to!

THE GIFT
Finally, we arrived in the great state of Kansas. Augusta, Kansas is where my great grandmother Maggie Jane (Harris?) Adams' sister lived and died. Her married name was Selvage, and I had corresponded some with one of her descendants who gathered all he could for that family. I made a couple of phone calls to Selvage names in the phone book, and one of them told me the person that was interested in genealogy. When I called him, he came to the motel to meet us. We talked for awhile, I showed him what I had on my computer for the family, and we discussed the problem with my great grandmother and her sister's surname. We are not sure what it was, and I wanted to be sure everything in Aunt Sarah's place of residence had been searched. He said it had, and nothing came up about their name. BUT --- he took us to his home and showed us all the stuff he had on the Selvage family. It was four large white three ring binders full of genealogy and pictures and stories! I asked him if I could go somewhere and copy some of it. He thought for a minute and said, "You know, I don't have any children and nobody else in the family is interested in this at all since Charles died (that was the man I had corresponded with several years earlier)......you can just have it!" I was dumbfounded! I will try to get it back to him after I take out of it what I want, but he didn't act like it mattered much. It was as if he had been waiting for someone that was truly interested in it! This man had never heard of me or met us before in his life!

Happy Town
We saw a little town sign as we passed about four houses and a gas station....the name said "Smileyville, Kansas"! Cute, huh?

Cousins and Aunts
We arrived in Wichita and called my Rintoul cousin, Dwayne. He was glad to hear from me, and we visited for awhile there. Their little granddaughter, Bayley, was there, too. It was fun; I hadn't seen him in several years. I also tried to contact Loretta, a Clodfelter cousin that lives there, but her phone number was no good and she wasn't in the book, so I had to give up.

We travelled on to Newton, KS where another cousin lives, Earl Rintoul (Aunt Mart's son). He and his wife both have had pretty serious problems with their health lately, and she been through several operations. He is eating very strictly, because he had another bout of angina and it scared him badly. We had a nice visit and laughed a lot. He's always been one of my favorites, ever since I played so much with him as a baby, before I left Garden City when I was almost 7. He is 5 years younger than I. I thought I would DIE as I watched them through the back window, waving goodbye to me. I cried for an hour, my Mama said! They were all I had for siblings, and I honestly didn't know if I could live without them! He was only 2 at the time, so I'm sure he doesn't even remember ever playing with me! His Daddy is the one that was killed in an auto accident when Earl was 9. Earl and his brother, Fred, were here to visit us, either when my Mom died or when Johnny was killed, I don't remember which, so some of you met them.

Next was Hutchinson, KS, where one of my two living Aunts lives. We couldn't get anyone to answer a phone that evening, so we got a motel and waited until morning. We just got to see Aunt Millie, which was good because that was my main concern. She is 89. She lives in a very nice assisted living home, and is still getting moved from her house. I think she's having some trouble with that change. It was good to see her, and to let her know that I think of her a lot.

We went on to Garden City that night and got there in time to see Aunt Vivian for awhile. She was thrilled to have us come see her in her assisted living place there. She is not one whit challenged with memory or her normal characteristics! We ate supper with her, and it tickled me to see how she had to be sure we "had enough" and that it "tasted alright" and kept asking if we "wanted anything else", etc. JUST LIKE SHE ALWAYS did when we would go to visit her in her own home! She will be 92 on the 4th of May, and her only problems are a few aches and pains! She called her girls, and Merlene and Kay were able to come see us while we were there. We stayed in Garden that night, and then went back to visit with her some more and had lunch with her. That is the best little place I've ever seen for feeling like a real home!

Aunt Vivian was a beauty operator and gave me my first permanent on those horrible old heavy rod electric machines! I was so little (because I had straight stubborn hair from day one) and that machine was SO BIG! Her original perm machine (the one she used on me) is now in the Garden City museum!

Down Memory Lane
Before we left town, we went on a little memory tour. We drove past my Grandma and Grandpa Rintoul's home, where I spent a lot of time during my first 7 years. It is still the same little house, but it is run down and there are no flowers!! Oh, my goodness, Grandma must turn over in her grave if she ever looks down on that little yard! She was SUCH a flower lover, and every morning, she would go outside to her back yard, in her apron (which she always wore almost the whole day because she cooked so much) fold her hands behind her, and stroll up and down each row of flowers. I watched her do that so many times, I can still see it very plainly! To see the little run down yard now almost makes me cry. That is the house where I went during my 17th summer to help take care of my Grandma while Grandpa was still working.

Another memory there is always, always seeing my Grandpa walking down the street, either going or coming from work, whistling a tune, pulling his big red wagon with his wallpaper and/or paint buckets, brushes and rollers, to do someone's house. He had a constant business and was very good at it, but he NEVER liked to drive. He did have a Model A sitting in the driveway, and he let me use it that summer to run errands and go to the youth group of the Christian Church.

Historical Honeymoon Site
We went by the house where my Mom and Dad slept on their honeymoon, and found out it has become an official historical sight! I'll try and attach that picture with this so you can see it as you think about the story I'm going to relate to you. (Interesting that we did this on what would have been Gma C's 95th birthday, March 25!)

When Grandma and Grandpa were married in 1932, it was considered almost an automatic thing that your "gang" chivareed you. A chivaree was some sort of trick like kidnapping the bride for an hour, or blindfolding both of them and taking them out in the country for a traipse in the wilderness. Never a very fun thing for the bride and groom, and I think they finally gave it up as a bad idea (I'm so glad!) However, Gma and Gpa C. knew they would be chivareed, because Aunt Mart's boyfriend at the time, who became my Uncle Charles, was such a teaser and he was usually the leader of the gang. Soooo, the house where my Gma and Gpa Rintoul lived was two stories, with the upper story bedroom perked on top of the first story (see picture). There were windows in the bedroom upstairs where you could actually get out and lay down on the roof of the bottom story. They climbed out there, knowing the gang was coming after them, and laid down on the roof after carefully shutting the windows from the outside. (They didn't have window locks in those days, and evidently no screens) They heard the group drive up, go into the house, look around in the upstairs, and finally, they gave up and went somewhere else to look, driving away. Gma and Gpa had won! They climbed back into the bedroom and went to bed..........only to find that Grandpa Rintoul had tied cowbells to the springs underneath the mattress! I thought that was hilarious, but I'm not sure they agreed at the moment! Remember, Gma C. was only 17! Think how embarrassed she must have been!

In the pictures, you'll see the house and then the placard that explains the historical status. I've been there within the last 10 years, and I know it didn't have that placard then. So that was really fun. As you look at the house, you'll see the little roof around the house at 2nd floor level, but you can't see it very well on the right side because of the tree.....but that's the side where Gma and Gpa C hid.

The Richard Paul Whicker Family
We drove on to Ft. Carson to visit Richie and Jessica and little Sierra Samantha, and to take her very belated little kitten picture. Got there too late to visit that night, but the next day we arrived there just in time for Richie to go back to work after an early lunch, as he was hoping to get off early that evening. However, instead, they kept him LONGER than usual, so we played with Sierra and watched TV with Jessica until he came in, then we took them out to dinner. Jessica made her announcement to us about being pregnant again! Sierra loved her kitten......in fact, I realized that when they are babies they don't even pay any attention to them, of course, but at Sierra's age, they are much appreciated by the recipient themselves!!

Richie had cleaned the house for us, and he was very pleased with himself! He said he should have taken before and after pictures so we could appreciate his efforts! Jessica is having a tough time, I think, with the beginning of this pregnancy.

After dinner, the three of them went to our motel with us, and Dad/Gpa showed them our 50th wedding anniversary video. Richie was tickled to see what he looked like 9 years ago! He also showed them most of the video Ry made for her Dad's b.d. He was very interested in all the planes Gpa had flown.

Homeward Bound
We headed for Utah the next morning, going through Canyon City on Hwy. 50. When we filled up with gas, there was a young man there with long locks, filling his truck. He had on beautiful silver earrings....made up of filigreed butterflies.....at least 1 1/2 inches wide!

We didn't stop to visit in Grand Junction because we were just so tired and wanted to get home. We will go there next week, if all goes well, and spend two or three days visiting with Aunt Max and Ben, and Aunt Lois and Uncle Gale.

We did stay in a motel there, and it was quite unique. A family from Bulgaria had purchased it, and their accent was so fun. They had put sweet little touches in the room, like a bouquet of flowers on the table with a nice doily underneath, and beautiful embroidered shower curtains. Everything was so clean! A much homier feeling than you usually find in motels, especially the moderately priced ones! We complimented them on the room and they seemed delighted!

We went to church in Fruitvale long enough to take the Sacrament and then headed home. A wonderful trip..........and also wonderful to reach our beloved Kaysville and our home and family!

Love,
Mom/Gma

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