November 24th
Am listening to Bach and getting some housecleaning done (supposedly) this morning. As on most mornings, I watched the Today Show, doing dishes during the commercials, from 8 -9 a.m. Have changed our bed and done several batches of laundry. Took Clarke’s library books and a paper sack he forgot over to school. Dropped off Forest Forum money at the SP office and talked to George Belden for a few minutes. Came home and ran. Made plane reservations for next week for Water Board meeting. Really struggling with my identity, what has happened in the past, what the future looks like, etc.

Last night Bob and I went to a Forest Forum meeting in Big Bar at Fish Tail Inn. Got quite a lot accomplished I think. Then when we got back we talked quite bit so am really tired today.Linda babysat.

Sunday we went out to the bridge where Bob was working, pulling nails out of the forms so we can “recycle” the wood. Built a bonfire and had a junk-food lunch—hotdogs, chips, marshmallows—then I helped Bob for several hours. The children stayed busy and the fire helped. It was a good day. Came back and had soup, cheese, apples, raisins and nuts for dinner, to counteract the lunch.

Since I last wrote, Florence and I have gone up Canyon Creek Trail through the Sinks and up to the falls and back to the main trail. We took lots of fall pictures. We had their dog Flip with us. Then I went up the Bear Creek Trail a couple of Fridays later. Took our dog. It was an overcast day but I really enjoyed it. Went up to where two creeks meet (one has falls right above the trail).

Last Friday I went up the Garden Gulch Trail. Rebecca and Jeffrey are taking an 8-weeks gymnastics class sponsored by the Recreation Department. It’s on Tuesday nights from 7:00 to 8:30.

I’m making the salads for tomorrow’s Thanksgiving dinner at Florence and Leonard’s. Fixed dinner for Florence and Leonard two nights last week and took some soup over another night. Have been working on my slides some. Took 56 slides to get prints made for an album on the bridge for Bob for Christmas. Am going to get some single larger prints of other scenes made for other people for gifts. Have ordered cards for Christmas. Got a good picture of the children and dog out at the ranch.

I’m thinking about phasing out of nursery school. Would like to just teach the night class.

Rebecca’s now taking drama during her lunch hour. I hope she doesn’t over-extend herself.

We’ve had only one rainstorm in the last three weeks.

Friday, Nov. 26th—11:05 pm—Bob is looking at aerial photos of the Downriver area—3 D. I’m about to go to sleep, am writing this in bed. Yesterday we got up late and ate a late breakfast. Bob went down to Manzanita Ridge and drove up the road to look at possible wilderness boundaries. We were due at Florence and Leonard’s at 3:00. Anne Marie was here for a couple of hours. I ironed some clothes and fixed a salad and got over there a little after 3:00. Ate with Nancy and Dave and family, Florence and Leonard, Scott, Stanford and Calvene. Afterwards Florence showed slides. Rebecca, Noel and Robin went to see the movie The Other Side of the Mountain, the story of the girl ski champion who became paralyzed. They came home red-eyed from weeping.

A little before 9:00 we went over to Dick’s where he had a house full of people, which finally assembled itself into a musical program plus audience. Mary Jo and Don Roberts, and Mary Jo’s three boys; the Don Williams family; Sandy Harger and her two boys; Scott, Dick and Michael; the Zadras. Pat Harger and two of the Olmsted’s played guitars and sang; Scott played his bongos. Then the Zedras did a piano and cello Bach; then they and Dick on trumpet played. Clarke fell asleep around 10:00. Michael stayed awake looking pale and tired. Bob and I took Clarke and Florence to Florence and Leonard’s around 11:30. Clarke and Jeff were to spend the night there. We took Jeff his jacket, shoes and pants and put him in a sleeping bag on the couch, then went home. Nancy and Dave dropped Rebecca and Noel off at our house around 12:00.

I got up around 9:00 the next day. Fixed scrambled eggs. Around 12:00 I took Rebecca and Noel over to Florence and Leonard’s. Ended up helping haul boards from under Aunt Nell’s house over to the new house. Loaded lots of it into the VW. Florence had all the children helping with the boys doing most of the under- the- house work. Then we moved boards from the attic by working in the garage. Nancy stood on a ladder, handing stuff down to us and then later she went into the attic and handed it to me on the ladder and I passed it on. Rebecca and Noel arranged the load in the truck (the little store truck). We ate lunch there around 2:00 o’clock. Florence and Nancy went to do insulation. I didn’t want to breathe any of that stuff so I took all the boys (Clarke looking very droopy) and came home. Left Rebecca and Noel in the little attic room curled up in a quilt hand made by Grandma Clarke – they were involved with dolls and chocolate-chips.

I took Clarke’s temperature and it was nearly 101 degrees. . Put him on the couch and put on Peter and the Wolf and he was soon asleep. Then I went out and hauled a number of loads of wood from the woodshed to the front porch; tied string around the hose coils; gathered the last hose and sprinklers and put them away; broke up small branches on the ground in the garden area and put them on the porch with the other wood.

Clarke woke up and I took his temperature again—down a bit. He has a thick cough. Around 6:15 I took Kent home, leaving Clarke in Jeff’s care, and brought Rebecca home. Bob arrived just ahead of us. He had spent the day at Big Bar Ranger Station going over photos and had also gone out Canyon Creek to see Jim Currin.

We had salmon steaks for dinner, thanks to friends of Florence and Leonard’s. Very chilly.

December 5th
Sitting here listening to a group of Canyon Creek dwellers who are helping firm up wilderness boundaries. They came last Sunday too. Have a few more this time. They’re all getting around the dining room table, extra leaf in. A very diverse group, many bearded.

I went to Santa Rosa Wednesday. Left the house about 5:20 a.m. It was dark and cold; road very icy most of the way to Buckhorn but O.K. down the other side. Smoggy in San Francisco. Smoggy in Santa Rosa. I did some book buying for Christmas in the Emporium. Got a ride over to our meeting at 4:00 p.m. Then Gary gave me a ride back and I ate dinner. Read all the kids’ books in my room. The next morning I got a ride with the secretaries to Rohnert Park. We finished up there by 12:30. Ate lunch and did a little more shopping, caught a 2:30 plane to SF. This time, instead of going to Concord, we flew both ways direct, which took us directly over Muir Woods and Mt. Tamalpias with a view also of the coast. Very pretty. The plane was an hour late leaving SF and I didn’t get to Redding until 7:30. I sat between a man who works with the school department in Mt. Shasta and a lady who sells herb pills (black walnut, sage, etc.). Got home around 9:20.

Friday I looked all over town for possible Christmas gifts. Saturday I worked on framing some of my pictures for Christmas presents.

Monday I read in Madeline L’Engle’s book that we are all afraid of the dark and I thought, “That’s it”. I’d been having some really strange dreams for the last couple of months. Fit right in!

The last two wilderness helpers left around 7:00 p.m. last night. Florence and Leonard came up while they were here, bringing us a Christmas tree.

I talked to Marne Wilkins last night and she wants me to run for the County School Board in her place. I don’t think that’s a direction I want to go right now.

Later that evening I wrote: We had a really good discussion at the night class tonight. I was feeling down at dinner time—tired and weepy. I took a paper I’d copied from Harper’s last year on the Family being out of style. Divided the students up in three groups and had each group read and discuss about a third of the article. They really had to strain their brains and a lot of extra conversations came into it also. Low attendance again though. One person seemed under a lot of strain and I think the group was pretty supportive.