A late september visit to the lake

I had an early fall trip planned out to Kamloops, and then Todd Mountain (Sun Peakes) for a gathering.  I decided that, it being a sabbatical year (and thus no teaching obligations), I should stop at the lake for a few days.    

It was late when I arrived, so I headed out to the back porch, turning off the house lights so I could enjoy the nighttime sky.   It never fails to take my breath away, the difference between the sky when you are in the city, or out in the woods.  I had some small flashbacks to sitting with siblings and niblings out on the dark porch during the summer Perseids meteor shower.   I did notice that the warmth of the summer nights had been replaced by something a bit crisper, so i headed back indoors to snuggle down for sleep.

In the morning, I got to enjoy the music of the local crows, flying around (and I think also checking me out too).  

I am not usually out at the lake in the fall, and was reminded of Arta telling me that it was always a very different vibe once the "summer people" have gone (ie all of us kids and grandkids who head off to our homes by late august like some kind of migratory bird).  She would say how much fun the 'regulars' (ie. Arta, Moiya, Wyona, and Glen) would have, just hanging out with eachother, and taking turns making shared meals.

the Douglas Fir on Lot 4

I thought I might just head down the road, and see if things looked much different in the fall.   I hadn't really told anyone I was coming (just Doral, Anita, and Bonnie Wyora).  

I thought it might be fun (and jealousy inducing) to let the summer people know where I was by sending them pictures, and seeing if they could guess where I was [insert diabolical laughter here]. 

the same trees reflected in the window

I stopped first at Richard & Miranda's cabin.  I like it that their windows are so reflective that I could take a selfie that captured both the cabin and the lake at the same time.

Then I headed off to Dan and Marina's place to enjoy a few minutes on their porch swing.  It would have been a bit more comfortable with the cushions.  And a bit more entertaining if i could have been sitting there chatting with Marina or the kids, but.... you take your pleasure where you can!

Resting at Lot 5

a selfie from moiyas front door

From there, it was just a hop skip and jump to Moiya and Dave's. 

Again, no one was home!  

That was a bit of a bummer.  I do often stop in there hoping that I will catch her in the middle of taking bread out of the oven, which gets me at least the pleasures of enjoying the fragrance, and the possibility of also snagging a few slices with honey and butter.  

I dealt with the disappointment by texting a photo of me to Moiya with the line "guess where I am?"   

And I then headed in the direction of Wyona's, after pausing to notice that Moiya's cherry tomato plant is still generating tasty little globes of happiness.  I couldn't stop myself from pulling off a tomato, and popping it in my mouth along with a leaf of fresh basil which was growing alongside it. 

From there, I headed over to the Bates house, knowing that Wyona and Greg were back in Calgary, and wondering if their trees would still be loaded up with fruit (I was still feeling a bit peckish, after that cherry tomato appetizer).  

The plum tree did have a few fruit still hanging on, but they did have the smell of having fermented right on the tree (little bags of booze-mash for the wasps?).  

The pear tree was also quite loaded up.   

But what struck me this time was the apple tree.  

Now, it is not that an apple tree is such a shocking thing:  they are all over the place on the property.  

But growing up, we were always picking them way too early, when they here hard nuggets of tart/sourness (and sometimes used as ammunition in battles against eachother).  

The 'weird' thing this time around was experiencing the trees in the fall, in the right season, when they were finally approaching apple perfection:  perfect for picking and eating off the tree. So yes, I did pick a 'red delicious' right off the tree, and enjoyed munching on it from Wyona's lawn, looking out over the lake.  

Glen hard at work

At this point, I seemed to be the only person out on the property.  So, I headed off to Glen and Janet's, knowing that Janet would be at work, but wondering if Glen would be hanging out at home.   

Within seconds, I could hear music playing from the direction of their garage, and knew I was in luck!   I found Glen there.  

He told me he was 'busy loitering'.  I told him I was loitering too.   He then had to correct me by SPELLING his activity. 

 

Glen's legs (loitering while lautering)

He was not LOITERING but LAUTERING.  Put otherwise, he was actively involved in his autumn activity of beer making, and at the 'lautering' stage.  

Perfect!   Because he had to sit there and hang out lautering, I could loiter at the same time.

   

Glen's grist grinder

While I spend every summer sitting out by the hops plants while thowing pots on the wheel, and I know those hops go INTO the beer, I have never been there when Glen was actually DOING the beer making.  

It was fun getting to see those pieces come together.

We started with 'grist for the mill'.  Or is that grist from the mill?  He showed me his homemade 'grister' to crack the wheat.  

It totally had the smell of the wheat grinder we had at home growing up.  Yes, he said, this is similar, but he is not aiming for flour, just cracked (gristed) wheat.

I got to hang out while hot water filtered from the top tank to soak the grist, which Glen had to stir every so often to break up the cake, and the brew filtered down, and then turned into wart (wort?), and then filtered into another pot, which would then get boiled later.   

I will admit that when he was stiring up the cake with a big stick, my mind was filled many images of witches stirring their brew.   This seemed the epitome of magic.

electronic wizardy?

I was particularly interested in the electronic gizmo thingy he had hooked up which was gradually raising the temperature of the brew.  

My interest was high because he told me he was simulatenously working on how to attach an electronic gizmo thing to the kiln, so that we can program the kiln to add more precision to our pottery firing for next year! 

Multitasking!   I was happy to see him honing his skills while brew-making, hoping they will transfer over to the pottery set up!

almost ready for the boil?

At that point on my travels, I headed under the deck to just run my fingers over the wheel and kiln.  I also had to stop to enjoy the grape vines threading their way up the side of their house, to the balcony above.  

love the vibrant white/green/blue in this photo

Those corcord grapes tasted every bit as good as they looked.   I love how those tart little things slip out of their skins (we kids called them 'slippery guts grapes'), and require your mouth to do the callistenics necessary to spit out the seeds.   Reminds me of childhood!

Having once again sampled the bounty of the land (supported by the planting and stewarding work of my relatives), I headed back to Lot #3 to meet up with Bonnie Wyora (at the end of her work day).  

Air still smelling as delicious as ever. 

 

another glorious sunset

Arta at the Gold and Green Ball (1946)

As I was leafing through Arta's scrapbook, some of the pages had me slowing down to look more closely at the memorabilia that had been gathered there.  Here is one of those pages.

First, I recall having seen this early photo of Arta.   

But somehow, I thought it must have been associated with a wedding: she looked like the flowergirl.

Flipping through the scrapbook, I saw that I only partly right.  Yes, she was a 'flowergirl', but not for a wedding. 

She got to participate in the 1946 "Gold and Green Banquet and Ball".

The program for the Gold and Green Banquet and Ball was taped into the scrapbook, along with photos and other memorabilia.  

I recall people mentioning "the Gold and Green Ball" when I was young, but I didn't actually have much of an idea about it, other than concluding that it must have been a big party, and and one put on by the church (ie. a church party of some sort).  I had some recollection of maybe being at such an event (or was that a false memory?), and of it happening in the church cultural hall.   

That is, I assumed that an event like this would happen at the church building, so it was something of a surprise to see that this event, while being a church sponsored event (indeed, by the MIA), it was being held not only in the big city of Vancouver, but also at the Hotel Vancouver.

I wondered how the Pillings ended up at this event.  I don't think that Doral and Wyora were living in Vancouver at the time, but I am pretty sure Will and Edna were?  In any event, this seemed to be somthing of a grand affair.  There was a menu included, and a Program.  Wyora clearly cared enough about it to gather signatures on her copy of the program.

I noted that the program included the "Crowning of Queen".  Presumably, the Queen of the Ball?   There was more information on the back of the program.  This included a list of 'officers' of the Young Men's, (Y.M.) and Young Ladies' (Y.L) Mutual Improvement Associations. 

That made me pause.   Growing up, we all went to "MIA" during the week, but it seemed a kind of church related social evening, and I never really thought about the legal form of an "Association" (something that now seems so obvious to me from the point of one who teaches Business Associations).  And so, the words like "President", "Counsellors" and "Secretary" started to take on a different sense of colouration to me!

As a ran my eyes down the page, smiling at the identification of the "Queen's Court", with its accompanying 'Ladies' and 'Gentlemen', my eyes fixed on the name "ARTA PILLING", identified as one of the four Flower Girls!   Now I found myself wondering how Arta Pilling (a young girl from Calgary), ended up as a flower girl at this rather grand event in Vancouver. And then, chek out the Page Boys:  Greg Bates?   Is that our own Uncle Greg Bates?  If so, how funny to see the two of them together on a program from 1946!

And then a few other pieces started to slide together as I considered the time of this event, March 1, 1946.  This is less than a year after VE day.   Inded, VE Day (Victory in Europe), was on May 8, 1945.  VE day also occured exacly on Arta's 5th birthday.   I guess that is a birthday to remember.  World War II officially ended several months late in September of 1945.  

I am sure that those long years of war were still very much on people's minds.  Indeed, there was also a little book mark from the event taped into the scrapbook, with a poem titled, titled "Carry On", which seems a very explicit allusion to phrases from the war. And so I imagine that at this event, people were leaning into more elaborate occasions for celebration and joy.  

So fun seeing all that captured in the scrapbook. Here are a few more photos.  I am guessing this one is the 'crowning of the queen'.  You can see Arta right at the front, facing out to the audience, holding up the edge of her dress.

Here is one with Arta, and her mother Wyora and Grandmother Edna.

I do love this little shot of Arta and another of the flower girls, on the dance floor together.   I wonder which of the other flower girls it is?

After sorting through these pictures, we starting poking around on the web to read more on the history of the Green and Gold Ball, and found this interesting blog post on these events in Britain.   It is a fun read.

•   https://ldsbritain.blogspot.com/2011/09/images-from-bygone-time-gold-and-green.html

ADDENDUM

I was looking through old blog posts, and found this one by Arta from 2016, which also references the Green and Gold Ball!

https://larchhaven.blogspot.com/2016/06/the-gold-and-green-ball.html

Moiya's Genealogy Quilt

 

Today Bonnie Wyora and I spent some time with Moiya and Dave looking at old photos, and talking about family histories.   

Bonnie found a photo of this old and much loved wedding quilt, the one where each family was invited to do a panel! Both Bonnie and I recall the care that was taken in piecing together this blanket of connections. 

We projected the photo up on to the big screen TV.  We had some difficulty in trying to decipher the letting that has begun to fade in the top left panel (which represents Moiyas grandparents on the Scoville side of the family)

Just as a refresher, here is a photo of Wyora Pilling's parents, Earl and Blanche.

Blanche Fisher and Earl Scoville

fading text...

The words Earl & Blanche are still visible, but other parts are harder to read.  Peering closely, we can see,

• Erva
• Wyora
• Ellsworth
• Leatrice
• Keith
• Elaine
• Estelle
• Monte

There is something I love about the fading of the names.  Or rather, the reminder that the fading is only the ink, and it is the result of 'use' and 'love.'   It makes me think about the work of memory, and how we keep things in our mind through returning to stories of the past.

On this front, there are some great posts that Arta did on her "Grandmother Arta" blog, about people on that panel of the quilt:

On Earl and Blanche, check this one out:  https://grandmotherarta.wordpress.com/2021/05/17/earl-scoville-and-blanche-fisher/  

For another on Wyora, try this link:

https://grandmotherarta.wordpress.com/2021/05/20/wyora-scoville-pilling-1914-1968-a-life-history/

Doral Pilling's High School Yearbook: The Coyote - Shelby High School 1924

A faded cover

This is another of the treasures we found while sorting through a box of Arta's papers:  her father Doral Pilling's high school yearbook.  

I will admit that I have never been that interested in yearbooks in general, but it was something different to be holding my grandfather's yearbook, conscious that it was over 100 years old.  Indeed, the cover was sufficiently faded to be close to unreadable.  I had to open it to know what I was really looking at.

"The Coyote" - a publication of the senior class of the Shelby High School in 1924.   A few things struck me.  First, his signature.  I remember my mom telling me that her father had beautiful handwriting.  I have to agree.   

A few other things were interesting, like the photos of the school, the principal, the board of trustees.... so much in the style of 1924!

Another interesting thing about the yearbook, is that it includes Doral, and Loran and Erva (they were all in the Shelby High School at the same time, and so all of them show up!

Here is the page with the seniors.

Here is the closeup of Doral

Along with that, here is his pet name.  :-)

Then, a bunch of photos that speak to sports!

In the JUNIORS, we find Erva and Loran.  Loran is on the back row, and Erva on the front.   I like it that she has signed the yearbook saying "your sister".

Erva and Loran were also in the Operetta class (again, he is on the back and she is on the front)

So interesting to read the class "history".

Also, their prophecy... the ideas of what might come to pass.

Also loved seeing them think about what it is that they would pass on to those coming behind.  There is some specificity here, as well as a reference to Doral's boxing abilities! [put in a link to other posts on boxing?]

I also was thinking about "advertising".   What businesses were around, and how did they promote themselves to this group of young adults?

FINALLY..... the "humour".   There is lots to be said here about the jokes of the time.

As a closing note, I found myself wondering about trade, economy and ADVERTISING.... what are the businesses who paid for advertising in this book (and why so many attorneys?... or is it because historically law firm were not able to 'advertise', so instead would just be acknoweldged for 'sponsoring' the yearbook?   will give that some thought)

Sinners and Mentors and Aging Well

What will my 60s bring and what am I bringing to that next decade of my life? Where do I go for answers? What are my resources? What are my options?

In the early morning hours (back in August) I asked my sister Rebecca what answers the book Aging Well had to say about that decade. To her best recollection, those who have the most life satisfaction are shifting from career building to mentoring, as well as consolidation of life lessons. I try to wrap my mind around that.

As the sun sets, Mary, Rebecca, and I negotiate our plan for the evening. The film Sinners is on Rebecca's must see list. Duncan has seen it twice in the theatre which is a hook for the three of us.

We three sinners struggled to operate the remote control, find the right streaming platform, and navigate the purchase options that we ended up purchasing it twice and were uncertain whose  credit card statement it would end up on.

Well, here I type three weeks later, and fear the consolidation lesson is ... "blog right away, even if you are tired, because you may not be able to retrieve your own opinion from memory when you are rested." The upside is, I will get to enjoy the film like it was my first viewing when I rewatch it.