One of my favorite things was taking hay rides and they usually went for 9 miles, yes 9 miles. The reason was that it always started at our house which was on the dead end of a gravel road. There was no way out but over three hills (remember the bicycle story) past Vea Harris's house (home of Eddy) then you could either go north or south. One of the great things about Oklahoma is that everything is marked by section lines which usually have a gravel or paved road. If you don't know what a section is that is one mile by one mile which equals 640 acres UNLESS there is a correction line. Who says you don't know math or geography if you live in a remote place? How many folks know what a correction line is or why you have one? Well let me tell you a hint, THE WORLD IS ROUND. Send me an email if you can't figure it out and I will explain. Anyway back to turning north or south.
You see we lived in the middle of four sections which means we lived in the middle of four square miles and we typically took the road south from Vea's house one mile where you turned right or west toward the old Beaver Creek Bridge. Right at that corner you could see the Eaton's house (home of Benny, Cathy and Paul) and the Head family house (home of Head Country BBQ Sauce and Billy Don) then after about one mile you passed Helen Conner's house (Aunt Helen as I called her). It always seemed to me that you could find a coyote or bobcat or even a badger along the road just past Aunt Helen's house. Another great thing was you could see more stars and the Milky Way (not the candy bar) as clear as any place in the world. If it was a cold night and you stopped the tractor and trailer you could hear the oil field pumps from about 8 miles south pumping oil to the surface. I loved it, the sounds and the animals. There were always lots of rabbits including jack rabbits and cotton tails and back in those days there was very rarely a dear. It was always great crossing the old bridge with the wooden planks popping and the bridge crackling and creaking. Soon after the bridge you turned back north past Soup's house and the old red gambrel barn and then past Don Connner's (Mike and Ida's house). There were two miles before you turned back to the East and toward the Kelly's and what was once the Shumate's but before that Cal Lavely (I still have an old swing given to my parents and it is over 100 years old and sits in my cabana) and then after the Shumates (Sally and Janie) was David and Jan Harris (PET was her special name from the class of 71) but they basically built a new house (my dad and I built it). Before you got to the Shumate house there was a low water bridge where the water was generally running across the road and you drove through it. It was surrounded with trees and it was always very dark because the light of the moon was blocked and it made it a pretty scary place. When you got to the corner to go up to John Murphy's house you turned back south where you climbed a very long hill which was extremely steep on the other side as it dropped off to Vea's house. I promise if you drive your car fast enough over that hill you will leave the road, ask David or Jan.
I know that was a little long but between the stars at night, the wild animals crossing the road everywhere, and if you were old enough to have a girl snuggled up next to you those hay rides were about as close to heaven as one could get without dying. Cold air, hot chocolate and a bonfire were always part of what made it great. There is just something about a hayride that makes life a little sweeter.
Oh well, sigh, just thinking about how nice it was.
So what do you learn in the Osage?
You see we lived in the middle of four sections which means we lived in the middle of four square miles and we typically took the road south from Vea's house one mile where you turned right or west toward the old Beaver Creek Bridge. Right at that corner you could see the Eaton's house (home of Benny, Cathy and Paul) and the Head family house (home of Head Country BBQ Sauce and Billy Don) then after about one mile you passed Helen Conner's house (Aunt Helen as I called her). It always seemed to me that you could find a coyote or bobcat or even a badger along the road just past Aunt Helen's house. Another great thing was you could see more stars and the Milky Way (not the candy bar) as clear as any place in the world. If it was a cold night and you stopped the tractor and trailer you could hear the oil field pumps from about 8 miles south pumping oil to the surface. I loved it, the sounds and the animals. There were always lots of rabbits including jack rabbits and cotton tails and back in those days there was very rarely a dear. It was always great crossing the old bridge with the wooden planks popping and the bridge crackling and creaking. Soon after the bridge you turned back north past Soup's house and the old red gambrel barn and then past Don Connner's (Mike and Ida's house). There were two miles before you turned back to the East and toward the Kelly's and what was once the Shumate's but before that Cal Lavely (I still have an old swing given to my parents and it is over 100 years old and sits in my cabana) and then after the Shumates (Sally and Janie) was David and Jan Harris (PET was her special name from the class of 71) but they basically built a new house (my dad and I built it). Before you got to the Shumate house there was a low water bridge where the water was generally running across the road and you drove through it. It was surrounded with trees and it was always very dark because the light of the moon was blocked and it made it a pretty scary place. When you got to the corner to go up to John Murphy's house you turned back south where you climbed a very long hill which was extremely steep on the other side as it dropped off to Vea's house. I promise if you drive your car fast enough over that hill you will leave the road, ask David or Jan.
I know that was a little long but between the stars at night, the wild animals crossing the road everywhere, and if you were old enough to have a girl snuggled up next to you those hay rides were about as close to heaven as one could get without dying. Cold air, hot chocolate and a bonfire were always part of what made it great. There is just something about a hayride that makes life a little sweeter.
Oh well, sigh, just thinking about how nice it was.
So what do you learn in the Osage?
- You can't count the stars but you can count your blessings
- Home is where your heart is so keep it in the right place
- Get outdoors more and get some exercise, it is good for the soul
Thanks for your time,
gary@thepioneerman.com
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