Mixed Feelings

Today I was going to put together a post that had photos of me from when I was a pup up to recent days.

That was my plan, it being my birthday today.

But this morning when I went out to the flagpole and lowered the flag to half staff, I have not thought about much else, besides the day the towers fell.

Among the many who died, 343 of my brothers were killed at the World Trade Center.

It just makes my heart heavy remembering the awful sights and sounds of that day.

No funny photo post today, it's a day to remember other things.

Summer of the Potato Bugs

A couple of years ago we reclaimed the ground under the wood pile in the backyard, and started planting a garden. It's a small 30 x 40 patch of ground that in my pre-teenage years was the location of our raspberry patch. We spent several weeks removing the old wood, we cut down some trees, and now we have a pretty nice garden spot.

Over the years, dad used different parts of the backyard for our garden. In the picture, my mom and brothers/sisters are shown when the garden was further back, right in front of the corrals.  Then the garden spot was moved to the area in front of the chicken coop, where it was when I was old enough to help. Even though I enjoyed the results of the work, it seemed a daunting task to weed and take care of everything we had planted.

One of my clearest gardening memories comes from the year I was assigned to keep the potatoes free of “potato bugs”. I've since learned that Colorado Potato Beetle is the official name of this pest. These beetles were quite the problem in those days, doing their best to eat the plants. We’ve grown a few rows of potatoes in the backyard since reclaiming the space, but luckily we haven’t seen those same beetles on our potatoes.

My dad indicated that I could be a big help that year by keeping the beetles off the potatoes. He gave me a quart-size oil can, one of the cardboard ones with metal ends. The contents of the can had been used for the last oil change in the family car or for his truck, with just a little bit left inside.  My job was to routinely scour the potato plants to pick off any of the offending beetles, and drop them into the oil can through the little hole that had been made by the oil spout.

To encourage my potato guarding efforts he proposed a compensation plan. The “bounty” was a penny for every beetle that I had picked off the potatoes and dropped into the oil can. The greater reward to the family would be less beetle-eaten potato plants and a better crop.

I accepted the challenge, and along with my other gardening duties, I took to the potato patch often, to make sure I had every beetle possible in my oil can. Weeding was always a chore, watering was a bit more enjoyable, but picking the beetles off the potatoes was the best of all.

I’d like to think that we had the best harvest of potatoes ever, because of my diligence at keeping the plant-eating beetles in check. I don’t know if it was better than any other year’s crop or not, but I do remember what happened when we opened the oil can to count out the beetles.

Sitting on the back porch, my dad cut the metal top off of the cardboard side and began tallying up my work. After considerable effort to keep the bit of oil that was the beetle’s final resting place inside the can, we reached one hundred. Somewhere near that point I was offered a deal. My dad looked at the remaining beetles in the can, and said, I will give you $2.50 total. I don’t think he was trying to pay less than what was due - it was just a chance to keep the oily mess to a minimum.

I declined the offer. I wanted to see how many beetles there really were in the can. Dad continued counting, and finally came up with around 500 of the little oil-soaked beetles. I was as impressed as he was. I knew I had a lot of beetles in the can, but didn’t think there were that many.

I don’t remember what I did with the nearly 500 pennies that were my reward for a summer of beetle collecting, but recalling a memory like that from the gardens of my youth is priceless.

Rivalry, Renewed

When I was just a boy, I remember my dad taking me to watch my brother play at Romney Stadium, USU. I don't remember the year for sure, but I would guess it was 1980 or 1981, or thereabouts.

It was a beautiful fall day, about like this one I bet, and the big game had been the talk of the town for the last week. It was that year's renewal of the gridiron rivalry between Logan and Sky View, and I was going to watch the game! I was excited.

As we were walking towards the stadium, I distinctly remember two kids a fair piece off the sidewalk, in the grass, squaring up for a fight. I am pretty sure the combatants were from the opposing high schools, and I often wonder if they thought they were going to settle the matter of supremacy once and for all, with their fists.

I was quite amazed by this spectacle. I looked over my shoulder again and again to see what was happening as we continued up the walkway to the stadium. As is often with my memory, I focused in on that particular part of the event, and other than knowing where I was and why I was there, I don't remember anything about the game - beyond those two boys psyching up for the battle.

I started high school the same year that Mountain Crest went into operation. It may have been a sign of the times - 3 schools instead of 2 - or for some other reason, but the Logan vs. Sky View rivalry seems to have lost it's consuming traditions. I just had a short conversation about this with my brother, the one I had gone to watch that day long ago. He feels the same way I do about it, too.

He recalls the way it was back then. It was the county kids against the city kids. It was a big deal. There were activities like school against school burger eating contests at the A&W in Logan; big pep rallies; the usual pranks - a fever pitch leading up to the match on the field.

During my high school days there were some great valley football seasons too, especially the year just after I graduated and Sky View lost a close State Championship game at Romney Stadium, to the Mustangs of Hyrum. These yearly matches are still great games, but it just doesn't seem as consuming as it was in the "old days".

But tonight, it's the old Logan vs. Sky View rivalry renewed again. The burger eating contests are gone, maybe the fever pitch has largely gone too. I don't imagine the days leading up to the game have generated quite the same interest that they did in times past. It's still an exciting event for me because I remember the stories about the way it was. On top of that, Sky View will inaugurate their new field tonight, the first game ever on the new artificial turf, playing one of their oldest opponents.

I know that Logan leads the series, and I know that both teams have very talented players, but tonight I'm going to pick Sky View - because I'm an alumnus, and because it's a home game for them. Other than that, I will just be glad to be there watching two good teams face off, and enjoy the outcome whatever it may be - but a little bit more if my pick is correct.