SUNDAY. . . .

. . . . . .I certainly can not brag about my bowling ability today. The final tally came to 131 for ten lines. Ernie, my coach, stopped by for a while and offered a few tips and I worked on them but it didn't help. I was consistent though, I don't know if that is a good thing or not but my high game of the day was 144. Got home in time to pig out in front of the TV and watch NASCAR until almost bed time.

SATURDAY. . . . .

. . . . . . .Not only did I not catch a fish today I also got rained on. I had my trusty umbrella so my reading was not interrupted. A couple of boats drifted by and I am sure they though 'lucky dog' when they saw me sitting there without a care in the world. Most of the boats have no tops at all because it interferes with their casting. I was happy to be wearing a jacket and I expect that to be a regular thing for the rest of the fishing season. I'll try bowling tomorrow, not that it will do me a lot of good.  LOL 

FRIDAY. . . . .

. . . . .No fish again today. It is really nice to be at the river though. A friend of Mel's, Dick, who lives in San Diego stopped by today to announce that he is in the area for his annual fishing trip to this region. He did land a Chinook in the Columbia yesterday and told me he planned on returning to the Cowlitz this evening to try for some Harvest trout. It will be interesting to see if he has any luck. I still have some eggs left from the batch Jordan gave me so I will be down there again tomorrow. 

THURSDAY. . . .

. . . . . I really expect to catch a fish tomorrow. My luck was so bad at bowling this afternoon that it can only get better at the fishing hole.. . .  .My scores were 112-126-104. I don't even want to know what that averages out to. I stopped by the market on the way home and stocked up on essentials but forgot the potato chips. It was a tough day all around.

WEDNESDAY. . . . .

. . . . .  .No luck at the fishing hole today. Jordan, Jeff Millers son was there and caught a small Steelhead so we have proof that fish are available. The rest of the day was drama free, I will go bowling tomorrow. That will be the last day of Summer League and we will have a meeting to prepare for the Winter League that will start next week.

TUESDAY . . ..

. . . . . .A nice day at the bowling alley. I scored a 156.4 average for the first five and 150.4 during the second five.  Coming home with a 153.4 for the day made me feel very good........I stopped by the new sporting goods store in Kelso and spent a few dollars on fishing gear on the way home. The temperature was below 90 today and the hope is that it will be like that again tomorrow when I return to the fishing hole.

The first picture above is a 49 Cheverolet exactly like the one I bought in 1954 in Kelso. I took the picture at the Longview Auto show last week.
The bottom picture show that overturned table I have been attempting to remove from the river. I have since given up on the idea because the sand fills in faster than I can shovel it out. Should the water drop another two feet I might try again but I doubt that is going to happen this year.

MONDAY. . . . . .

. . . . . I was up a bit earlier than usual this morning because I had promised a friend I would drive him to Vancouver for a doctors appointment. We were back by 10AM and I was at the river by 11:00. I didn't catch any fish and did lose hook, line and sinker as well as a great length of fishing line on a hangup. When I pulled on the line to retrieve my stuff the line broke right at the reel. That meant I did not have enough line on the rig to continue fishing. This all happened late enough in the day so I was home a bit sooner than usual. After installing another couple hundred yards of line I prepared the rig for the next fishing trip and then pigged out in front of the TV for the balance of the day. My plan is to go bowling tomorrow and return the fishing hole on Wednesday. 

SUNDAY. . . . .

. . . . . . Caren was not feeling well enough to make the trip to the Flower Show we had planned on so I visited the bowling alley this afternoon. The first five lines was a 150 average but I only did 141 during the second five. The final for the day was 145.2. I can see improvement, but it sure is slow in coming. I stopped by Safeway for gasoline and a gallon of milk on the way home. The weather is very good, Love it!

SATURDAY. . . . . .

 . . . . . I ended up going to the Car Show at the Fairgrounds with Ron today. They had a good turnout; a lot of cars from the early thirties up to 2007. Ron suggested I enter my T-Bird but I know it would create a lot of work for me to clean it up the way it needs to be in order to be inspected by the public. I did take some pictures and had intended to post them here this evening but I got wrapped up watching a movie and ran out of steam. The weather was just fine, I am not sure how much longer that will last but it is great in the meantime!

FRIDAY . . . .

. . . . . Spent another early afternoon at the fishing hole again today. There was no sign of a fish and few boats were seen. I have decided that I don't have the stamina necessary to dig that overturned table out of the sand. I make a good start on it and remove a lot of sand but by the time I get to that point I am too tired to continue. While I rest and wait for the energy to continue digging water fills in the hole again. Mel said to wait until next spring and see what the winter runoff produces in the line of results.. . . .Suits me, I have enough of that kind of exercise.

THURSDAY. . . .

. . . . Stopped by Frontier to visit Pauline after bowling today. She will be released to assisted living as soon as a spot is found for her. She is walking fine and is in good spirits but is aware of the possibilities for Parkinson's patients. Her Brother has had the disease for the past 15 years so she is well acquainted with her possible future. She is looking forward to getting out of her present location but it may be a few more days. . . . . Bowling was a great disappointment to me today, I began with two good games before the third one came along and produced a lot of doggy dodo. I was able to salvage a 138 score for the day. That is my present league average but far from what I can do on my 'off days'. I will be back at the fishing hole tomorrow.  

WEDNESDAY..

. . . . . . . . There was not much going on at the fishing hole today. I saw no other fishermen and I don't recall any serious fishing going on aboard the boats passing by. I did take a jacket with me and I am happy to have had it along. I was also smart enough to wear long pants. It seems fall is on the way. Darn it!

TUESDAY. . . . . . .

. . . . . My bowling session did not begin well today. I averaged only 138.2 during the first five lines and the first three were even worse.  I took a short break and gave myself a talking too before moving on to the second half of the so far farce.
The next five lines averaged out at 163.6. It would be great if I could do that on Thursday but I will have to wait until then to know if  that is even possible. An average of 150.9 for the day brings joy to my heart though!   . ....On the way home I stopped by Frontier convalescent facility to visit Pauline Harris but discovered she is probably there under her married name and I don't have that. Perhaps Bob or one of the other classmates who read this will correct me via e-mail. The weather was great today and I am looking forward to the fishing hole tomorrow.

MONDAY. . . .

. . . . . I delivered a third of my 'gift' fish to Mel today and spent another three hours attempting to catch one of my own. No bites. I did finish another book though and I think I fell asleep a couple of times. I saw proof of fish being in the river though, one was jumping around out there but not paying any attention to my artificial lure. I will make another attempt on Wednesday. I know that one day I will catch a good sized fish. Film at eleven.

SATURDAY and TODAY

. . . . .I spent three hours at the fishing hole Saturday but caught nothing. Jeff Miller came by with 6 steelhead he and his son had landed down river. He gave me one of them and I cut it into three pieces, I treated myself to one and gave another to Roy [ the man I rent from] Hill and his wife. The third piece will be given to Mel tomorrow when I next see him.. . . Today, Sunday, I visited the bowling alley and came out feeling pretty good about my improvement. The first five gave me an average of 152 and the second set returned the favor by also ending up with 152.. . .  .After bowling I picked up the doggy and some containers that I owed Caren for past goodies she had sent me home with and drove over tho their place to get acquainted with Luky, [that is correct, Luky] their new puppy. He is a cute little ball of fur and solid white. I think ChiChi took a while to get used to the idea of another dog in his life but things went well. The plan is to return to fishing tomorrow.

FRIDAY . . . . . .

. . . . . . Doggy and I were at the fishing hole for almost three hours today and our results were the same as they have been for the past three years. The new book I'm reading is good, there was no rain although the clouds were rather dark, the Blackberries are ripe and tasty and the river is still too high to dig more on that table. I may go back tomorrow, talk is that the fish are arriving!

THURSDAY. . . . .

. . . . . Did you notice that I failed to post yesterdays blog until five minutes ago? It was waiting for me when I sat down to write this one. . . . .Today was a fine day, no rain at all and not much sunshine to be happy about but it was warm. I arrived at the picnic shortly after 11AM and was there in time to help with some set up but most of it was completed before I arrived. I stayed until all of the things were packed up and Bob was ready to drive the loaded truck out. I was hanging on to a bag of 'chips' until just before Bob raised the tailgate on the truck so I tossed them inside too. When Bob reads this he will discover why there was a half bag of chips in with all of the other stuff. Most of the left over food was taken home by the 40 or so guests and I think I have enough to last me 5-6 days. Perhaps longer because I froze the ribs for later use. Three or four pounds worth after the bones were removed. It was a day to remember because our High School Trio played Banjo and sang some old songs. It is days like this that make me wonder why I ever moved to California 60 years ago. Too soon old, too late smart.

WEDNESDAY . . .

  .  .  .  .I didn't expect to get to the fishing hole today because I was scheduled to help unload some stuff for the picnic tomorrow. I found myself home from that little chore about 11:30 so after lunch I took the dog and spent almost three hours trying to catch a fish. .  .  .Fat chance of that though.  The river is still clear but it is about a foot higher than two days ago and it was raining for a while so I did not do any digging on that table. The rain was not heavy enough to bother me much and I used the time under the umbrella to continue reading my latest book. Arrived home at 3PM and settled in for the rest of the day.

TUESDAY. . . . .

. . . . . .I was happy to get to the monthly luncheon before the clouds opened up and dumped their load all over Longview. The rain was so heavy it it reminded me of a cow peeing on a flat rock. The lunch was fine but only five of us made an appearance. Perhaps the others are waiting for the picnic gathering on Thursday. . . . . After bowling I visited the bowling alley and was happy to walk away from there with a 146 average for the day. My consistency was good; the first five lines averaged out at 147 and the second five delivered a 145. Not bad for me, I feel I am showing improvement. I will not be bowling Thursday because that is the day of the aforementioned picnic. I stopped by Safeway for a gallon of milk on the way home and ended up spending $72 for groceries.   Life is good.

MONDAY. . . . .

. . . . .The weather was great for fishing today! Naturally I caught nothing but what the heck, it was nice just being there.  . . . I did decide to pick some blackberries to bring home while I was there. The only container I had was a paper bag and I filled it with berries. It was a small bag and weighed only about two pounds. Since I was in no mood to walk it to the car before leaving for home I sat it in the shade and ignored it for an hour or so. As luck would have it the paper bag soaked through and the bottom of it fell out so I had to do the best I could to salvage all the berries and get them home. I used a plastic bag that was in the trunk for any fish I catch. When I got home I put the container in the fridge and now I have to clean them and prepare them for use. I think I will make Blackberry pancakes one day. The strawberry pancakes I have been enjoying might have a competitor.. . . . Robin Williams died today, sad news.

SUNDAY. . . .

. . . . .Things turned out very well today; my bowling results were 148 for the ten lines. I was very consistent with no high scores or really low. I arrived home about 2:30 and sat down in front of the TV with a glass of wine and before I could work up an appetite Ron phoned and invited me over for a BBQ. I had a Moose meat hamburger with all the fixings and a Pepsi and Rum. Sol was there with a new girlfriend and he brought along a fishing buddy he works with. A good time was had by all. I got home at 6:20 and settled in for the night. It was warm today, will be a lot warmer tomorrow, or so they say.  Happy Birthday, Leonard!

SATURDAY. . . . .

. . . . .Doggy and I spent another four hours relaxing at the fishing hole again today. We notice several boats trying their fishing luck but they didn't seem to be doing any better than we did. It was another good day, I hope they continue!

FRIDAY. . . . .

. . . . . Another nice day at the river even without fish. I relaxed with a good book and dug away at that table a bit more. The problem with the table is that the sand fills in by the next time I get down there. Were the water to drop another foot I believe I would be able to shovel the sand out so it would stay out and perhaps retrieve the table. Perhaps that will come about before  August ends. We shall see.

THURSDAY . . . .

. . . . .  Things worked out fine at the bowling alley today. The start was a disappointing first game of 122 but I was able to come back with a 139 and a 167.  That made my average for the day four points better than my league average of 138. I felt pretty good about that. On the way home I stopped by Safeway and bought 15 gallons of gas for $54.00. That should hold me for a few days. R&R motors phoned and cancelled my appointment for my gear shift repair. The one they had found [used] was damaged and they know I would not want that so they will contact me when they do find one that looks as good as the car deserves. That means my plans are to go fishing tomorrow.

WEDNESDAY. . . . . . .

. . . . I had my breakfast finished and the laundry all caught up by 7:30 this morning. It was such a lazy morning after that that I decided to get horizontal and read for a while before having lunch and driving to Beaverton for my doctor appointment. . . . .Well, I fell asleep and did not wake up until 30 minutes before I was supposed to leave the house. It was a mad rush getting lunch and getting myself dressed but I left at 11:45. I usually walk up the nine flights of stairs to the doctors office but I was running too late for that so I took the elevator for the first time ever in that hospital. The echo cardiogram results were better than expected, my heart function has climbed to 40% from several years at 35%. That was a good thing but  my kidneys are now at stage three failure but they have been there before but dropped so I am guessing that will clear up too. Gotta' have hope, you know.. .  . . . . The drive to Beaverton and back was very nice, the weather is just the way I like it and the traffic flowed freely. Green lights and blue skies. Can't beat that!

TUESDAY. . . . .

. . . . . My bowling results were bad enough to make me feel hopeful about League Bowling on Thursday. My first five lines averaged 140.2 and the second set of five came back at 141.40. That averages out to about 140.8. That is a bit better than my league average so I hope to do at least that well next time I get down there.. . . . .Tomorrow I have an appointment with the cardiologist in Beaverton so I will not be able to make it to the fishing hole. Maybe Friday! 

MONDAY. . . . .

. . . . . .Turned out to be a good day. My bowling started out not so good but that was because I was trying to follow through properly with each ball I threw. It took about three lines to catch on to the routine and after that I did very well. The first five lines averaged out at 140.2 and the second five gave me a 157.4. I ended the day with a 148.8 for the ten lines.. . . . .Not bad for a kid! . . . .  ..  Mel told me there are Steelhead in the river but I am going to return to the bowling alley again tomorrow just to see if I can force myself again to deliver that ball correctly.. . . .  .I got home around 2PM and decided today was the day the doggy gets his bath. The one I have been putting off for so long. I filled the sink with cool water and dish soap then retrieved my heavy gloves from the trunk of the car but before donning them I picked up the dog to remove his collar, he snapped at me but did not really show a lot of anger so I continued the process without gloves. I am very happy to report that this is the first time in ever that I have bathed him without gloves! He is catching on! He even liked me after it was all over! In the past he has hated me for hours after the experience. He was nine years old this past April. Good dog, ChiChi!

SUNDAY. . . . .

. . . . . I drove over to Teigens and picked up Caren for our Birthday Luncheon. She has been a very busy lady lately and felt the need for some relaxing time. We had a nice visit with our Applebee's meal. She and I don't get a chance to visit too often so it was fun sort of getting caught up. Colton was not feeling well today and had been at the hospital last night being checked out. The problem was and still is sinus trouble. It seems he has some airborne allergies or something similar. I had Caren home by 3PM and Colton showed more life than he had shown earlier, he was out in the yard driving his electric tractor around the yard at full speed. It seems he always sets that thing at full throttle and goes like the wind. Today was no different.  Sick or no sick. Caren gave me some tomatoes from her garden and some ham out of the refrigerator. Along with some other goodies to eat. It was enough food to last me for the next three days at least. I arrived home about 4PM just in time to feed the dog before he fell into a starvation coma. His words not mine!

SATURDAY. . . . .

 . . . . .Doggy and I were at the fishing hole again today; the river is up a bit and there are a lot of weeds coming downstream. We caught no fish but I did find the handle to my fishing reel that I lost a couple of days ago. That means I now have two reels, three, actually, counting the one on the other heavy duty pole. Again, no fish were caught but I saw two small ones landed by boat fishermen as they drifted by. It appears that the chances of catching one or two this month is improving. How is that for positive thinking?

FRIDAY. . . .

. . . . No fishing today; I attended the Memorial Service for Rudy Teigen. The service was well done with several good speakers and a full house. Rudy had a ton of friends in this area. The food and visiting afterward was very good and luckily the church has an air conditioned basement 'rec' room for the gathering that took place when the service ended. The river has risen about 18 inches since the last time I was down there; I will check the new water flow tomorrow before deciding whether to go fishing or bowling. Another very nice, summer day, I hope they continue until after Christmas.