Road Trip, vol. 3

January 11, 1933 The next morning the man who owned the place came over to do his chores at his barn, and seemed rather surprised to find us there; but he made us feel very welcome anyway. We had a flat tire that morning, and he even offered us the use of his car to take it to a filling station a mile away to have it fixed. He had a small herd of cows there, and while he thought they were quite good-sized, we thought they were very tiny indeed. I doubt if any of them weighed much over 600 pounds if they weighed that much. Apparently, he had to buy all their feed, and also he never kept them in at night.

Later we went into Hot Springs to look around a little and buy a tire. While we were walking around, we were seperated, and had quite a time finding each other again. We didn't get started from Hot Springs until almost ten o'clock. We saw a few high hills later that morning, but we soon descended into the cotton country. Later we entered more or less of a swampy country. In one place they must have had a very heavy rain, because the water level in the swamp had evidently risen a few feet. At Fulton we had to cross the Red River by a toll bridge. The river seemed to be aptly named because it had a very red color.

We entered Texas at about 3 o'clock that afternoon. By that evening we had reached Greenville. The country that we had been passing through was mainly a plains country. We saw a good many negroes throughout the day. Most of them lived in rather squalid shacks, and apparently were in rather poor financial conditions.

It had been rather cold weather that day so we decided to drive all night as long as we were passing through plains country, anyway.

Road Trip, vol. 2

This is part two of a series taken from the journal of Uncle Alvin, who traveled with three friends from Minnesota to California in 1933.

January 10, 1933 The next morning we left Buffalo about 8:00 o’clock and after going through Springfield we really entered the Ozark Mountains. The hills really turned into mountains for height; though they were still composed largely of ground and were covered with forest. The towns became more and more back-woodsy. At Harrison, Arkansas we took a short cut to Hot Springs, going over State highway No.7. The road was very crooked and up hill and down, so that we made very poor time, but the delay was recompensed by the beautiful scenery we saw.

Shortly after, we passed through Jasper, which was really a one-horse town. We stopped there for a little while and just took notice of the inhabitants for a while. The people really seemed dull and might one say “backward”.

Going through the Ozark hills in Arkansas, we saw quite a few mountaineer’s shacks. They didn’t seem to have very much as means of support beyond a few acres of poorly cultivated land. In places we saw land so stony that we couldn’t understand how they could cultivate it, or how anything could grow. Most places the fields contained boulders and dead trees in profusion. I suppose the largest support the inhabitants have is moonshining.

We believed that we had a real depression in Minnesota, but after going through the Ozarks and after leaving them, we had changed our minds. We stopped at a filling station at Perry and spoke to the man there, who happened to be a German and who had traveled “right smart”. We had seen quite a few teams of mules hitched to an old lumber wagon and with four or five people riding on it. He said that it was getting to be quite an event when the people could borrow a mule and wagon, and make the trip to town. Most of them had owned Fords, but had to junk them. Most of the crop there is cotton, so that it could only be sold. Each man could farm about 30 or 35 acres alone, and as it could produce only from 1/3 to perhaps 2 bales per acre, and white cotton was only about 5 or 6 dollars a bale, it could be seen that it is very hard to earn enough to live on. Incidentally, or perhaps more a matter of necessity, the people had returned to the practice of raising as much of their food as they possibly could.

At this time we had been forced to detour because of an unfinished highway and just about dusk we got onto a very poor road. To add to our troubles, in several places the bridges on the road had never been built and so we had to go on old ones that happened to be there. In one place there was not an old one so we had to ford a small stream. Beyond this just a ways we went over a road that resembled a roller coaster because of innumerable dips and curves in the road.

We finally got onto paved road again and entered Hot Springs at 10 o’clock that night. We walked up and down the streets for a while before we hunted a camping ground. We finally stopped at a place where a house had burned down. We thought the place deserted but found out the next morning that it was not. It was so warm there that we camped without setting up the tent.

Road Trip, vol. 1

Seventy-five years ago, Uncle Alvin and his three best friends decided to take a trip from their homes in Belle Plaine, Minnesota to California. Alvin kept a diary of the trip, into which he poured his daily observations. Climb into Milton's 1931 Chevy 2-door with Alvin, Milton, Sydney and Earl, and let's make our way to the Golden State. (Note: with the exception of two photos I'll post in a later installment, the pictures I'm including are for interest only, and were not taken on Alvin's journey. They are, however, photos of the places Alvin and his friends visited.)

January 8-9, 1933 Left from Milton's at 10 p.m. The first night we drove over fairly level country and did not see much scenery. We had an awful time getting to Des Moines, but finally got there and lost Milton's gloves. Got into Missouri yet that morning at 8:15. Had breakfast just over the line near Rineville. We then drove on, entering the Ozark Hills that morning. We drove through some pretty scenery though the hills were not high. That afternoon we arrived at the Bagnal dam, going through a deep cut in a hill just before we got there. We walked part way across, taking a time snap from the dam. The lake was apparently flooded into a series of ravines, quite dry. The lake winds over a considerable section of country, and we saw it a number of times after we left the dam. The dam itself is a concrete structure about half a mile long. That night we drove to Buffalo, arriving there at 8:00 and camped there. It was the first night we set up our tent.

Week 2 with Jenny

No loss at the weigh-in last Friday, which I expected. (curses on Roadhouse Grill and those addicting peanuts!) But since then I'm down another 3 pounds. I'll report in after this week's visit.

I Have a Dream...

Last night I dreamed Sarah and I were taking the boys to school, and we took our regular route through Wild Animal Park (of course; where else?), when a lion and lioness ran out in front of us to attack. We hit them square on, and for the rest of the day the car wore lion carcasses on it’s nose. Until we stopped at a red light by the Mission Inn, where a pedestrian saw the carnage, and turned us in. Within minutes, about 15 park workers in lovely green coveralls came to remove the bodies. And to arrest us. They couldn't find us, because we were involved in a photo shoot for America's Next Top Model.

Good news: the boys weren’t late for school.

What was your oddest dream?

February Pie Sale

As of Friday, with nine days left, we've sold:

13,501

Just in case...

...I'm not awake at 3:15 tomorrow morning, I'm taking this opportunity to say Happy Birthday, Sarah! You are definitely worth the 46-hour labor. I'd do it again in a heartbeat for the joys you have brought me. You're caring and funny and strong, and you're trying really hard to be the best mom you can be. (It's paying off, too...the guys are amazing) I'm proud of how hard you are working to become self-sufficient. On your birthday, I wish you continued strength to walk this tough road you're walking. With God's help, you'll get there. I wish you wisdom as you strive to grow your great little guys into great grown-up men. I wish you love and tenderness and honesty as you build your relationship with Bill. And I wish you lots of good conversations on your cute little green phone!

I'm nuts about you, kiddo.

Momz