So take a close look at the attached photo:
Have you ever wanted to get a little even? I remember my dad and John Murphy as two of the best story tellers and jokers and this certainly reminds me of them.
So, what do you learn in the Osage?
Living on a gravel road which dead ends at 1 mile north and 3 west from Grainola was a great privilege. First off when you see a little dust in the air, that means you have a visitor coming and we would watch them from the front porch coming. It was about 1/2 mile from the top of the first hill from our house to the front porch. I should also mention it was a great place to sit and watch the storms and an occasional tornado coming. Yep, we would sit on the front porch and watch the storm. The second great thing about living on the dead end of a gravel road is that you could ride your back as fast and as hard as you can muster. The only bad part is if you fall which Larry Wayne did once and it scun (slang for scratched the heck out of his leg, arms and body and even his face) him up something awful.
The third thing that was great about living on a gravel road is there were plenty of rocks and when you were having fun or even having a fight because you are mad, there are plenty of rocks. Yes, you can have a rock fight and not be mad. You do have to admit it is better throwing rocks at each other than shooting a gun at each other.
So I remember one time Kenny Kelsey was at our house and he was on one side of the car and I was on the other. We were tossing rocks like hand-grenades. At least that way you would not get hurt as bad as a hard thrown rock. EXCEPT, when one of those rocks is a little too big and sharp. Kenny's head decided it was too large and too sharp. It busted his head wide open and he bled like a stuck hog (that means it really bled a lot). Now, the good news is Kenny lived and it was only a few stitches, plus we did not get in trouble.
So, what do you learn in the Osage?
Some folks from the city think there is nothing to do in the country. Contrary to their thinking, there is an unlimited number of things to do, like finding rotten eggs. Sometimes it was the boy scouts which included Larry Wayne and his buddies but not me, but that is another story. Other times it was just some friends from church, Grainola Methodist, but we would find things to do. Living on the farm with multiple barns and lots of chickens you could always find a few eggs that had been laying around a little too long.
This story is about the time the boy scouts and I should remind you that Mom/Opal was the scout mother, were having an egg fights, rotten egg fights. Mom did not endorse it. I included myself in the hunt, but what we did was go through all the hay barns looking for abandoned eggs. Sure, enough there were plenty. As I was sneaking around the hay barn next to the milk barn I ran into Kenny Kelsey, who had an incredible ornery laugh, and I laid one on him and took off running. Then there was Pat Conwell who had peeled off the shell and just the thin film held the egg together. He tossed it toward the rafters in the barn just as Debbie Sue (my sister) walked out and it splatted right on top of her head. It was a very rotten egg. Basically, if you do not know it, rotten eggs are like Sulphur on steroids. I bet mom washed Deb's hair a dozen times that day just to get the smell out. As I recall she also used milk and even tomato juice to get rid of the smell. I don't know all the criminals involved but I believe Larry Stephens, Billy Don Head, Bill Snyder, Harvey Harrington, Glen Jones and Joe Conner were involved in the war. I can assure you that most of those boys are in this picture from 1956 but they all grew up.
So, what do you learn in the Osage?
