Sunday Stills: Flowers...and...An Oregon Scenic View

This weeks Sunday Stills challenge was "flowers." As slow as this week was, I didn't run into many flowers when I had my camera handy. But Friday evening we had lots of time to kill, a whole 2 1/2 days to travel a little over 700 miles. We drove the first 200 or so, and stopped in Bend, OR so I could do some shopping on Saturday. On the way, we paused at the Peter Skene Ogden State Scenic Viewpoint on US97 near Redmond to take in the view, and there happened to be a few flowers handy. I'm assuming that flowering shrubs count. This part of the country has lots of scraggly evergreens, sage, and other plant life that can thrive in the cool dry climate. Its desert country up here. Not the kind you typically think of when you hear the word desert, but it is a desert none the less, and I think its beautiful!
That small yellowish shrub in the picture below is covered in little yellow flowers. I don't know what it is though. A close up:

And if you look closer here, past the bush in front, you can see a small plant with red flowers clinging to the edge of the cliff. Fragile flowers in a rugged environment.

And of course Dandelions...weed or flower? I think its up to an individuals perspective, and also where they are growing. As long as they are not in my garden or yard, they are a flower to me.To see more Sunday Stills posts from other participants, click here.

On to the rest of the post.

As I mentioned we stopped at the scenic view area. We've crossed the Crooked River numerous times as we go up and down US97 between California and Washington. I've wished to stop and see this gorge every time, but never new we could, thinking there wasn't' parking for a vehicle like ours. But this time, Malcolm asked if I wanted to stop, and had noticed that there was actually a parking area for the scenic view. It actually had truck parking! It always amazes me what we fail to see when we travel, which is, I guess, what makes this job interesting. We can drive the same road a hundred times, and see something new every time.

Anyway, so we parked and got out to take in the sights, and had thought we'd take the girls along as there was no one else there and they would have enjoyed stretching their legs. But the first thing that greets you as you walk towards the park is this sign.

After reading the lower sign, we changed our minds.

Peter Skene Ogden, for whom this overlook is named, was a frontiersman who led men from the Hudson Bay Company into and through this area.

This is the Oregon Trunk Railroad Bridge, completed in 1911. Prior to its completion, the only structure that crossed the gorge was a one lane wooden bridge that existed about a mile upstream where the gorge begins to taper off some.

To build the bridge, workers climbed a rope ladder to reach the construction sight. Also, once the two sides were completed, some scaffolding connected by a board plank were used to go between the two sides to work on the center, and workers joked about "walking the plank." I hope it was a high paying job.

There is something very artistic about bridges, particularly the older ones. To think that they built it in the early 1900's and it is still in use today. They don't build things like that anymore, to last like that, you know?

I was going to leave this tidbit out, but Malcolm thinks I should include it. Looking down from this vantage point, there was a ledge before it continued to drop to the river. And sadly, there was indeed a dog lying there that had apparently crossed the barrier wall and fallen.

A small waterfall drops over the edge of the gorge and trickles over the rocks to join the river at the bottom. The moisture is just enough to encourage plant life to cling to the rocky edges. The gorge was also full of birds flying from one side to the other. It was like looking down into a world in its own little bubble.

There are three bridges at this location now. The railroad bridge is the furthest to the west.

A few yards to the east are the other two bridges.The bridge in front is the old highway bridge, the Crooked River "High" Bridge. It was constructed in 1926, and at 295 feet above the river it was the highest single arch span bridge in the nation at that time. It was the only automobile crossing of the Crooked River Gorge for more than 70 years, until the traffic on US97 became more than the bridge could accommodate. In the early 1990's a new bridge was constructed, and the High Bridge was turned into a walking bridge.The new bridge, was constructed in the 1990's. The engineers tryed to stay true to the design of the other two bridges.These river gorges are amazing to see. Its a long way down there. The Crooked River Gorge is, in appearance as you drive by, very similar to the Snake River Gorge over in Idaho. We've driven by and along its edge many times as well, but have yet to be able to stop. It is on my list, an ever lengthening list, of places to stop and explore. We are loaded with meat and bone meal coming out of the Pasco, WA area once again. We'll deliver in Turlock, CA in the morning and I am keeping my fingers crossed and sending up a couple of quick prayers as well that from there we'll be heading to Ogden, UT instead of south for more onions or something similar. We are supposed to be heading home and we often get there by way of Ogden when we're coming out of California. We need to be back before next Saturday because Malcolm's baby sister is graduating high school and we promised we'd be there to share in her moment of glory (plus after 8 weeks on the road we simply need some home time). Keep your fingers crossed with me. I feel like we're kind of cutting it close, and I still have to get to town and finish up her graduation gift. But first I have to figure out what that's going to be. Any ideas?

Crying Over Onions

I almost cried over onions, in more ways than one.

For starters, we came down here to Brawley, CA to deliver fertilizer and then load onions. We got here Tuesday morning bright and early. We didn't load the onions till just now. An entire day of sitting around in the truck, with scant choices for food, nothing to do, and on top of it all, Malcolm's been feeling ickish (some kind of sinus/fluish type thing). I figure those are sufficient reasons to bring me near tears, and it was mostly the onions doings.

Brawley is a small town that sits between California's southern interstates, 10 and 8. We used to load meat and bone meal down here a lot, but haven't been in this area since last summer I think. Its amazing that they even get stuff to grow here. Its sandy, dry, and in the summer, our truck's thermometer has frequently read 120+ degrees. And that was back in the day when we were not supposed to be running our truck while sitting, according to California's Clean Air acts. (that was one law that we blatantly disregarded...and I'm not sorry for it!) Now, in our new truck, we are "certified" for idling...new engine standards and all that stuff. So we ran it legally this time around.

Another interesting thing about the Brawley area...

It is well below sea level.

Yesterday the broker didn't have the load info and there was a scary moment when he informed us that they had ordered 25 trucks and then only ended up with 10 truck loads. But we were guaranteed a load, so good for us and I'm sorry for whoever else headed this way and got disappointed.

Then the onion field owner wouldn't answer his phone all evening to give us directions. He finally showed up at the truck stop this morning to lead us and the other three trucks in that had showed up to load.

We were second in line, and it was a game of follow the leader. Down one road...

...and then another.

Its so odd to see them cutting and baling hay! Feels other worldly...and smells divine. I think fresh cut hay has got to be one of my favorite aromas.

Its also one of the few places you can go and see palm trees growing in hay fields. Those two things just don't seem to go together.

Finally reached the onion field, where we waited to load.

Had to wait for the tractor and the other employees to get there.

More waiting...

...and in the midst of everyone standing around waiting, Ella got interested in something, stood up on the wheel for a better look, and honked the horn at everyone. I slipped a little further down in my seat.

And then they were ready and started loading the first truck.

I didn't feel like getting out in the dust to take better pictures. I was busy finishing my latest book, and also playing on FaceBook. But we loaded last year in this same area and did it the same way so if you want a more detailed explanation of how it works, and also some better pictures, you can read The Story of an Onion, my post from last year.

Amazing, and I never thought it would be, but apparently an onion field can make you cry too. By the time we were nearly done loading, my eyes were burning and I was starting to tear up. Must be the fumes from the onions crushed under the tractors tires.

And just like last year, there was an amazing and disgusting amount of waste. Really really depressing, so much so that I didn't even bother taking a picture of it. I don't like to think about it. I'm still letting myself pretend that they come back and pick them all up and do something with them. Let me live in my dream world.

OK, I just went back and read that onion story myself. I must have been in a goofy mood that day. It doesn't really give any more details on the ins and outs of onion harvesting than this one does,, but it was kind of humerous if your needing a laugh. If you didn't figure it out from the pictures, the trucks actually drive alongside the tractor as it digs the onions up. They are sorted by 3-4 people standing on the tractor and then a conveyor tosses them into the trailer. And for whatever reason, they only take the really big ones, leaving all the, what I consider to be, normal size onions laying in the field to rot, I assume. So there you have it.

Visiting Friends and Doing A Little Sight Seeing

We have had a wonderful weekend full of visiting friends and doing a little sight seeing.




We loaded meat and bone meal in Wallula, WA on Friday afternoon. While we were there, another truck pulled in to load and turned out to be someone we know. It still amuses me that in a country this big, we frequently run into other drivers we've gotten to know, or met just once. In this case, it was a gentleman from South Carolina who also works with Mark, our broker. We loaded onions with him last summer in southern California. Ironically, he is working his way back to southern California to load onions, as are we. In fact we might be loading together later this week.



After loading, we went to the truck stop in Pasco, and a little while later Jerry, that South Carolina driver, rolled in. We sat in the truck stop diner and talked till 10:30 that evening. It was a really nice visit.


We spent the night there and then visited with Jerry again in the morning over coffee and toast. Malcolm and I didn't want to eat too much because we had a lunch date with another friend.



I got to meet another blogger! Marcee, also known as frugalmom, has become a blogging friend of mine. I don't know who found who's blog first, but we read each others, and I have so enjoyed sharing in her recent adventure of moving from Illinois to their new property in Washington. She's got land now, complete with a garden and fruit trees that I am seriously coveting! Animals are soon to come and I'm looking forward to reading all about it. You can too at her precious blog, Fancyin' The Farm Life.

Marcee, her mom who was visiting from Illinois, and her little man met us at a gas station on a corner near their home and we all enjoyed getting to know each other over a Subway lunch. Marcee is just as sweet and precious in person as she sounds on her blog. She even showed up with a beautiful bright yellow flower pot filled with these...

They are delicious and I'm having a really hard time staying out of them. Like the tissue paper around them was suggesting, they have made me happy happy happy!

After lunch, her little man got a tour of the big truck, and what kid gets in a big truck without getting to blow the air horn...several times. I was standing outside visiting with Marcee and I have to say, that horn is a lot louder from outside the truck than it is inside. I think I jumped three feet every time he blew it! The look of delight on his face was priceless.
After the tour of our truck, Marcee took us and the girls to their new home so the girls could play in the back yard with their dog, Darby. Darby is about the same age as Ella, and she is part Chinese Crested, and once the girls were side by side, you could really see it in her face, especially her erect spotted ears. Darby was beside herself with joy, actually so excited that she overwhelmed my girls a bit, which was good for them. They are usually the ones that are too much for the other dogs, so it was good for them to be on the bottom side of things for once.

Eventually though, everyone adjusted and we all had a great time sitting in the yard, visiting, soaking up some sunshine and fresh air, and watching the dogs run around chasing each other and having the time of their lives.

Eventually we had to get on the road and let Marcee and her crew get on with their Saturday. It was such fun and I hope we'll be able to get together again sometime. We're often in the Pasco area with a long weekend stretched out before us, so maybe we'll be able to make that happen sometime soon. Marcee, thank you for a wonderful visit and your hospitality and your wonderful cookies! And thanks to your family too. You have a beautiful home and an absolutely adorable and delightful family.

After we left Marcee's house, we drove about 100 miles down the road south and then west along the Columbia River. We stopped at Maryhill, WA because Malcolm has been wanting to see StoneHenge. OK, I know its not the real one, but this one has an interesting story. The girls were exhausted so they weren't too distraught at being left behind, but Paris did drag herself out of bed to make sure we weren't going too far.

The views from the Columbia River Gorge are just breathtaking, no matter which way you turn.

StoneHenge was built by a man named Sam Hill as a memorial for the 13 men from that county that were killed in WWI. Mr. Hill also built a mansion nearby, and had planned on starting a Quaker community. His plans were never quite successful, but his home is now the

Maryhill Museum of Art, which is open to the public and StoneHenge is part of the museum and sits near the property. I hope to one day visit the museum as well.

FYI, Marcee, this is only about 1.5 -2 hours away from you. It would be an easy day trip and the kids would probably enjoy exploring it. Just a thought.

The monument sits on a hill overlooking the Columbia River, and Mr. Hill is actually buried there. There is a stone staircase that leads down the hill to the grave sight.

The view from the memorial is amazing. The small town of Maryhill sits below and you can see miles of Oregon countryside across the river. Thanks to all the wind this week, the air was incredibly clean. I've not seen Mount Hood that clearly in a long time. It's on the right side just above the river.I couldn't decide which picture to post, so I put up three of them! I just couldn't get enough of looking out over the river!Once we left StoneHenge, the road drops down off the hills and we crossed the river. You can still see Mount Hood peaking up above the horizon, and a barge making its way to Portland.

We had dinner, and then drove about 80 miles to a rest area where we stopped for the night. This morning we have about 600 miles to do, a nice easy day's work. We just stopped in Madras, OR for some coffee and now I'm sitting here sipping my vanilla latte (and munching a couple chocolate chip cookies), soaking in the beauty of God's creation as we travel down US97. It smells SO good today! I don't know what causes it, but it smells like hay, and pine, earth, and home....where I will be in less than two weeks, God willing (please God?)!

To all my friends out there who are Mom's I hope you all have a wonderful and special day! And Happy Mother's Day to my Mom, Mother-in-law, and Grandmother! You have all three been a huge blessing to me, and I love you all dearly!

Good Help...

...is hard to find!

Here you see my #2 co-pilot hard at work.

But that's OK. Here's the #1 co-pilot picking up the slack.

Oh well...they're lazy lazy girls, but you gotta love them anyway. Honestly, given the option, I'd be in bed asleep too! And they are good company, asleep or awake, and really cute to look at.

Thanks for all the messages of concern and well wishes for Malcolm. Yesterday, after his break, he got up and when he got out of the truck to help me load some groceries, he was really sore and stiff in his legs. He's been taking ibuprofen though and this morning he says he's fine, just a little tender. I'm so very thankful that he didn't get hurt seriously and that he's apparently not going to feel the effects for days (so it seems).

My Husband Was Hit By A Car This Morning!!!

Before you start to really panic, let me first tell you that he's OK. He has a cut on his leg and some bruises, but thats all. If it were more serious than that, I doubt I'd be sitting here blogging about it, so you can rest easy.

Here is what happened...

We are in Ogden, UT and had just finished unloading at a pet food mill here. It is on a quite, dead end side street that doesn't receive much traffic. We were leaving when he saw that a truck pulling a dry van was having a difficult time backing into the dock. It was one of those docks that requires you to back into a cavity in the building, blocking the street while you are maneuvering into it.

Malcolm got out and proceeded to help the guy, telling him how far he could back up, when to turn, etc.

He had parked the truck on the right hand shoulder, was standing in the street, and the truck backing in was blocking the left hand side of the road.

A pickup, pulling one of those little flatbed trailers like you haul lawnmowers on, was in too big a hurry to wait for the truck to finish backing in. I was working on the computer and out of the corner of my eye I saw this pickup zip by, and though "what a jerk, and he ought to at least slow down some!" He was almost past when I heard a thump, and when I glanced over, Malcolm was sitting on the guys trailer. The wheel hub on the trailer had hit Malcolm and knocked his legs out from under him.

I'm so glad that he wasn't hurt worse, but furious with that driver. What an idiot! I sincerely hope he got the shit scarred out of him when he realized what he did (excuse my language)! Fortunately he did have the presence of mind to stop immediately and that probably kept Malcolm from being hurt worse.

Needless to say the driver got a really good tongue lashing from Malcolm. It was one of those events where you are in such shock that your mind doesn't really process fast enough. They guy apologized, sort of, and went on his way. And immediately after his departure, I realized I should have gotten his license plate and called the police, if for no other reason than to have them give him a second tongue lashing.

We're waiting to load now before returning to California with a load of potash. Malcolm just went to check in, and I don't see him limping but he says he's sore. I'd imagine so! I'm still in shock that this happened, and angry, and relieved. It could have been worse, so I'm also thankful. What a pickle we'd be in now if he had been seriously injured!

I usually am not a vindictive person, but I seriously hope that jerk is shook up past functioning today and has an awful day, thinking about what happened and being scarred.

Hang on to Toto...

...cause the winds blowing agian!

After a long weekend dragging our feet to kill time, we finally delivered this morning in Quincy, WA. It was a load of Calcium Nitrate that went to a fertilizer distributor.

From there we drove down to Wallula, WA where we are now waiting to load meat and bone meal at the Tyson kill plant here.

Along the way we drove east on WA-240, which is kind of a lonely road. Not a lot out there, but it dumps you out at Pasco. Its kind of sandy, dusty country and the wind was blowing for all its worth. We were empty too, and the wind was pushing the trailer around pretty bad.

We also ran into another issue...gee this looks familiar!
Who says the southwest is the only area that has dust storms?

It was only this bad for a couple miles or so, but it was pretty impressive!

And I missed them in all the pictures, they travel too fast, but there are about a zillion tumbleweeds traveling today!

Now its starting to drop big fat random rain drops on the windshield, and the hills and river that were clearly visible to the south of us have disappeared in a sheet of white. Keeping our fingers crossed that it holds off a while longer. They'll stop loading us if it starts raining, and we've just gotten started.

From here its back down US97 through Oregon and into California where we'll hit I-5 and shoot down to CA 99 to Turlock, delivering in the morning.

This week marks the one year anniversary of our working with Northwest Trasportation as our broker (if you don't count the summer before last when we worked with them for a few months). Last May we spent practically the entire month running up and down US97 taking fertilizer to Washington and meat and bone meal to California, over and over again! Do you think its just coincidental that we've just finished a fertilizer load and are now picking up the meat and bone meal, or do you think we'll be on that same freight lane again this year for May? Only time will tell!

As a side note, have you seen the pictures from Nashville, TN? Amazing! I've only seen a few but need to look some more up on the internet. I talked to my sister, Meagan, this morning to make sure she was good to go (she lives just south of Nashville in Murfreesboro) and also to check on interstate conditions for a friend of ours who has a load on its way to Atlanta. She said I-24 and I-40 are both closed in places and that TDOT has so many roads closed that they have run out of barracades and arn't even listing the roads that they've closed. There are just too many! I'm looking forward to her blog post about the whole thing. I'm sure there will be one. She said they'be been stuck at home for two days unable to go anywhere and are going stir crazy. I laughed and told her that sounded like heaven to me, but I guess when you CAN'T go anywhere, verses choose not to, its a little different. School was canceled today, but she's hoping it gets back on schedule tomorrow. She teaches middle school. Anyway, I may live in Montana, but part of my heart will always be in Tennesse and I was heart broken to hear about all this. My favorite places to shop in the Nashville area are underwater, including Opry Mills mall, and the adorable and historic town of Franklin. I'm just in awe of the whole event, and thankful that it didn't drown my home area of Chattanooga as well!

Sunday Stills: Controls

This weeks Sunday Stills Challenge was "Controls." Anything that's used to turn on or control a non-living device. Plenty of that in the truck!

The dash with all its gauges, switches, buttons, etc.

My keys, complete with keyless entry and the snazzy Kenworth key chain they gave us when we bought the new truck. Generous of them, wasn't it?

The "media center." On the right is the remote control for the XM radio. On the left is the mike for the CB radio, and in the center you'll find the CB radio itself, with lots of knobs and such, of which I know nothing about. I only touch the volume. If I turn the other ones I mess up all the settings. This is Malcolm's toy, not mine. I leave it alone!
The main and most important control...the steering wheel, complete with buttons to control the cruise, engine brakes, and buttons to flash the headlights and marker lights, and of course the horn (the puny one, not the loud air horn)My toy...the keyboard of my computer. Notice the finish has been rubbed off the space bar and a few other keys. I think maybe I've spent way to much time on the computer these past two years since we got this one!That competes our tour of the cab controls. But there are more in the sleeper. Mainly this panel next to the lower bunk which has controls for the overhead light, small spot light, refrigerator, AC/Heat, radio volume if you have it turned on in the back, and also a control for the bunk heater that heats the truck without having to run the engine. Also, as you can see, a clock with more buttons.

Lots of controls within arms reach in our little home on wheels.

For more Sunday Stills, visit this link. There are lots of interesting people participating and they all have a different perspective each week on the subject of the challenge.