July 11 Packwood, WA. - near Mt. Rainier

Wednesday

Breakfast with Russ and Kitty and then the 2 hour drive up to Dave and Darlene's.

Drove through Wonderland Campground in Naches, WA., where we'd had a lot for 8 years, eventually with a 5th wheel camper on it.  Spent many fun weekends there, and 6 weeks during 2012, when we came up from AZ.

When we arrived at Dave's, we saw John and Linda Cozad's 5th wheel.  We wondered why they hadn't been at Carol's, when they had said they would be.  We relaxed all afternoon, with we girls playing Rummikub.  At 4:00, the 25 or so of their friends arrived for a BBQ.  Most had heard Tom play two years ago and were anxious to see what he'd do tonight.  He kept them entertained for an hour and a half or so with several funny ones, serious ones and a new one entitled "The Angel Flight", that had most of them in tears.  It's about a pilot bringing home the body of a fallen soldier.

Here Dave was talking about on of the songs Tom Plays and sings.  The patio is along the side of their garage.  They have a nice A-frame home.  Since their name is Cartwright, they call their place The Ponderosa.


Thursday

Relaxed in their great backyard, played more Rummikub, and went to the clubhouse to show our Italy slides on the big screen.  Back to sit around the back yard, then hotdogs over the campfire in their big pit (it cooled down from the 93 the day before).  More music and watching a lone cow elk come into the yard, as she usually does.  Their yard backs up to a national forest.  Dave has seen more than 50 in those woods when the leaves are gone, and has had 30 in the yard at once.  He just leaves them alone.  If they started running, their hooves would tear up the lawn.  Their house is 3 doors from the golf course and pool.

Here are the Three C's in front of Dave and Darlene's camper:  From the left, John and Linda Cozad - he and Dave went to school together in Richland, WA. (Tri Cities).  He started at Hanford not long out of school.  Had cut part of his index finger off at a food processing plant, so couldn't join the military with that trigger finger partly missing - though he got into Basics and was on the range, shooting with the next finger, when the instructor told him to go get out!  Next:  Dave and Darlene Cartwright.  Dave served in the Marines 20 years.  Then us-Tom and Ev Campbell.  Tom served in the Air Force 24 years. 

Dave and Tom met at the Hanford Patrol Academy classes, where they were older than so many of the class, and had the military in common.  They decided we should all get together and Darlene and I hit it off.  She immediately told me I reminded her of her older sister, who had passed away.  Then they introduced us to John and Linda.  We watched our kids grow up, saw grandchildren arrive and grow, had many fun camping trips, and other get-togethers over 22 years, from 1990 through 2011.  I taught Darlene how to play Scrabble and she became proficient.  Linda enjoys Rummikub, so we always play that together.

We said our good-byes, got lots of neat hugs, and all turned in.  We told them we'd leave as soon as we awoke the next day.