October 22 Valley Life column

October 22 Valley Life column

"As far back as 1892, there have been sightings of a strange water monster near Shoshone Falls. It's more than 100 feet long with large red horns and a yellow stripe down each side. And it's true," I said. "More than one person has seen it."

Humoring me, my friend asked, "How did it get here?"

"It was trapped in the canyon after the great flood."

"Right," my friend said.

As we watched the water bubble toward us, it wasn't hard to believe that we were watching a sea monster, lurking in the bottom of the lake, looking for something good to eat.

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October 15 Valley Life column

October 15 Valley Life column

"You're not the boss of me!" my son used to say when I told him to clean his room. I'm not sure where he picked up this attitude, maybe at school, but more than likely he got it from his dad, who would always say, when I asked him to do something, "Who was your gopher last year?"

"You," I would reply to my husband and "Oh yes I am," I would tell my son as I strived to keep the house in order.

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October 8 Valley Life column

October 8 Valley Life column

I've always been intrigued by barns, ever since I jumped from my uncle's hayloft after a dare from a cousin. I learned early barns build character, and even though I was only 6 years old, I remember every hiding place in that old barn, every cow we milked before we could play. Maybe that's why I was excited to learn Jerome was hosting a traveling exhibition organized by the Smithsonian Institution celebrating barns.

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October 1 Valley Life column

October 1 Valley Life column

In a eulogy for his friend Gene Van Guilder, Ernest Hemingway wrote "Best of all he loved the fall."

I think of those words every day as I gather pumpkins and harvest the last of my tomatoes. Out here at Pauly's Folly, we haven't had a killing frost yet, but the leaves on the birch trees are changing to a bright, happy yellow, signifying it's fall and time to reflect on summer before getting ready for winter.

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September 24 Valley Life column

September 24 Valley Life column
A recent trip to Hagerman Valley made me think about Johnny Appleseed. Not that I think about Johnny Appleseed a lot. Probably the last time I thought about Johnny Appleseed was back in grade school when I had to draw pictures, write a report and plant a tree in his honor. But some friends and I were driving through Hagerman Valley and this produce stand dared us to pass by without stopping. While my friends purchased melons and corn, I eyed the apples. Vacillating between green and red, Jonathan and Golden, there I was, looking at apples and thinking about Johnny Appleseed.
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