June 28, 2008

June 28, 2008

 

Happy Birthday to my sister-in-law Lorraine

Today was sunny and very hot, temperature somewhere around 100 degrees F. ( high 30's C. ), or perhaps a few degrees higher. I love hot sunny weather.

This morning we headed for Hedley, the little gold mining ghost town just west of us. Riverside RV Park Resort is about halfway between Keremeos and Hedley. Today was Hedley's Summer Vacation Celebration, a slightly early Canada Day celebration and the "official" grand re-opening of Woodlie Park, the town's little public park. We arrived at 10:00 A.M., just in time for the pet contest. Bo was entered. He won for "Best Pet Story", attached below. He received some neat prizes. Plural, because there were more prizes than entrants. HA HA HA ! The pet contest was sponsored by Karen Nendick, the widow of Ben, the excavation contractor who did the development work on our lot at Riverside RV Park Resort, and became our neighbour and friend. After the pet contest, we walked a few blocks to "downtown" and got settled in our folding chairs under the shade of a tree to await the parade. HA HA HA ... it was a pretty sad excuse for a parade, but we surely do admire the spirit exhibited by small town residents. While waiting for the parade our SKP B.C. Okanagan Chapter 33 friends Murray and Diane from Oliver showed up. We watched the parade and visited with Murray and Diane, while sipping on a cold Kokanee beer ( local B.C. brand ) from the beer garden set up in Woodlie Park. I caught a roll of septic system friendly toilet paper being thrown from the “float” sponsored by the local septic tank pumping service. Sure was different from the Rose Parade we attended in Pasadena, California a year and a half ago. I’m laughing so hard right now I have tears in my eyes !

After the parade we moved our folding chairs into Woodlie park to watch the local "talent" perform a "concert in the park". HA HA HA ... yup ... sure do love that small town spirit. Nothing like sitting in 100 degree weather watching some 7 year play a piano and sing ! HA HA HA ! The following act was a grandmother with her accordion and grandchildren. HA HA HA < SNORT > HA HA ! Oh, well, it was fun, and the setting was spectacular, with the old abandoned Mascot Gold Mine visible up on the rugged mountain, and 20 Mile Creek flowing by. We bought some tickets to participate in the Loonie Auction, whereby one buys tickets for a dollar a piece, then deposits them in the draw jars for whichever of the many items available for “auction” one is interested in. For each of the items in the “auction” a winning ticket is drawn. We didn’t “win” any of the Loonie Auction items. ( For my American friends, a Loonie is a Canadian dollar coin. )

I’m making fun of it, but we really do love this small town living !

 

The story of Bo, the little Alabama Redneck Terrier

 

We are full time RV'ers, having lived in and travelled in our RV since June, 2004. In early December, 2004, while in the Ozark Mountains of Missouri, we decided to head for Alabama and see the devastation caused by Hurricane Ivan which had blown through Gulf Shores a month and a half earlier. The day that we arrived at the campground we were staying at, Rainbow Plantation, there was a "potluck dinner". At the potluck dinner, the park's assistant manager announced that there was another lost little stray dog in the park looking for a new home. In the short period following Hurricane Ivan there had been a total of five stray dogs in the RV park, all adopted by travellers passing through. Including us rescuing / adopting Bo, two of the dogs went to Canadians.

Bo is mostly a Yorkshire Terrier, although it's probable that he is crossed with something a little larger than a Yorkie. He was about ten months old when we got him, unneutered, and undisciplined. We placed a "found" ad in the Mobile, Alabama newspaper, took him to the local animal shelter to be scanned for a microchip, and checked their lost dog notices. After a few days it became obvious to us that no one was looking for him. We headed west, planning to spend Christmas in Texas. We decided that this unruly little "Redneck Terrier" deserved a good Southern redneck name. We named him Bo, since we had found him at the campground RainBOw Plantation.

By the time we arrived in Texas we realized ... he really needed to be neutered ! On December 23 we phoned a veterinarian in Livingston, Texas to schedule a neutering operation. The vet said that since the next day was Christmas Eve, and he didn't have many appointments, he could do it then. So ... our first Christmas gift to Bo was to have him neutered. Merry Christmas, Bo !

Bo has been with us now for three and a half years. He has travelled about 135,000 km. with us, travelling by RV around North America, from Red Bay, Labrador, to Comox / Courtney, Vancouver Island, to Cabo San Lucas, Baja California, Mexico, to Wauchula, Florida, and everywhere in between.

Last summer we bought a lot at Riverside RV Park Resort, between Keremeos and Hedley, to use as a summer home base. All of us, including Bo and his 16 year old feline "brother", Teddy, love living in the beautiful Similkameen Valley during the summer. Although Bo does get a bit of "hitch itch" during the summer, eager to "go drivey" and resume our travel adventures in the fall.

Good dog, Bo !

DSK