Tales

How I learned to like coffee During the process of growing up around coffee drinkers, some people seem to naturally develop a taste for coffee. Even my grandchildren now watch closely whenever I pour myself a cup. You can always see it in their eyes.  It’s something new that they’ve never tried. This inevitably makes […]

How to scare a bear! When I am out hunting ghost towns I like to wander into the local bar and find the “old timers.” The challenge is to see if I can get them to tell me about their past. Typically, I get skeptic looks and silence— until they realize that I just may

And then the fight began. Well, it has been one heck of a day. My sides hurt so badly I can hardly move. I got a backache that won’t quit, a toe that points in the wrong direction, and a head that feels like someone is inside pounding to get out. On top of that

The Flaming Oil Can I grew up in a very small farming community in Iowa. We used to joke that the village had 75 residents and that 15 of them all lived in one little house up on the hill.  It was, after all, a good Catholic community. My father had a rural mail route,

Just the Bear Facts While visiting Alaska, my lovely wife, Joan, and I embarked on a hike to Exit Glacier. We hadn’t gotten too far into our adventure when we spotted a group of about 50 people, stopped in a huddle along the trail. As we got closer, the click of camera shutters grew louder,

Some people just really annoy me. I was in Anchorage, Alaska just relaxing after spending time metal detecting at Ganes Creek.  My wife was due to arrive the next day and I had some time to spend awaiting her arrival. The day was beautiful, with the sky clear and the sun shining brightly. Of course,

Smedlap Learns to Ride I lived in Arizona for over 10 years and during that time I began riding and finally racing motorcycles. It was all desert and mountain riding, and it was back in the 1970’s before mono shocks, gas-filled shocks, 4-stroke engines and all the high-tech equipment people have nowadays. We just put

Who me? The Mean Grandpa? I never viewed myself as a mean grandpa. I always viewed myself as a kindly, huggable old grandpa. The kind that makes all grand kids want to jump up on and sit in his lap grandpa. Certainly not a “Mean” grandpa. Not sure how it happened but one day the

Does it feel like extortion yet?   Well maybe not yet but we are in the beginning stages as we near the presidential elections. A few years back I received a request for a political donation. It was from a group that I had supported in the past.  As I reviewed the mailing I realized

The First Tale From the Past What a kindly old man taught me. Part One I am often asked where my love of old ghost towns, history, and the Ol’ West comes from. I owe that to my father’s strict discipline, and a lesson he taught me with one of his friends. My father owned