No, not our wedding anniversary, but the date we bought this place. We arrived here in mid-June and took possession July 1st. 19 years here. Today would have been the 19th anniversary of the day I set the field next to the store on fire. Extra fireworks that didn’t sell, so I decided to play after hours. Oops!
Will we complete our 20th year here? Not sure. Probably. We’ve owned this place longer than any of the previous owners.
Our years here have been a mixed bag of feelings. Good friends made, good friends lost. Money made, money lost. Employees came, employees went. . . except for Jeannie. I expect that we will sell her with the store.
We’ve lost a few employees and friends due to death. All are missed and thought of around this time of year by Nina and I.
We’ve had new people arrive and good friends move. This is still happening today. Last month I met a new couple from Connecticut and I think they’ll be a great addition to the valley. Two marriages are ending and we’re not sure of where the spouses will fall after the split, friends or not?
Our children were raised here. They don’t identify as city folk and rightly so. So much of their lives are western country. Both show their country upbringing. I’ve been told that we made a mistake moving them out west, but since leaving them behind would most likely be considered illegal, here they are.
One special new friend that came during our tenure here was Erin. She is my little buddy and I hope she never leaves our lives. I will never like the circumstances of her arrival, but her addition to our lives is a blessing that parallels no other. The intelligence that child shows leaves me in awe. At 2 if an iPhone was placed in her hands, she would zip through it like an expert. Now she has her own iPad and loves the brain games loaded on it. My little buddy.
Armand and Shirley moved out here. Armand died, Shirley is still existing. Richard’s death destroyed her. We now have her sister Marylou with us. No real choice, but we’ll see. Shirley is not happy that ML is here at this point in time. She won’t talk to ML and that bothers ML. She won’t talk to me either and I appreciate it.
I have a love/hate relationship with this place. I love the area and hate the business. Of course the business brought us here and keeps us here. Nina is inclined to leave this area if we sell, but sometimes she leans the other way. I prefer to stay out here because of the friendships and the area itself. I love exploring out here. I’ve found ghost towns, abandoned homesteads dating to the 1800’s, rail beds that have never seen tracks or a train, undiscovered indian ruins, and old mines. Old cemeteries fascinate me and I love wandering among the dead and reading the head stones.
Next July 1st will mark our 20th year. I can see a party or b-b-q here if we still own the store. You’re all invited.
Keeping it real here people!