A car wash was included with my car servicing last week and the weather gave me a few days to enjoy it. I crested the hill going out of Vader on Sunday to see clear blue skies, the valley full to the brim with white fog and Mt. St. Helens sticking her brilliant white head above it all. Picture perfect, but I didn't stop... The rest of this week looks like rain almost every day. According to my weather-station guy, December had twice as much rain as all off September, October and November combined. Sure hope it helps us get through a dry summer.
This will be a pretty busy week, activity-wise. For the ladies, Wednesday is the Women's Club monthly luncheon meeting at noon in Pioneer Hall. All ladies in and around town are invited to bring an addition to the salad bar. Then on Thursday, the Red Hat ladies Gather at 2 p.m. in Pioneer Hall. Among other things, they will plan for their monthly Outing on the 28th.
Friday night's Dinner at the Café will be Linda's Slow-Cooked Pork Chops. The all-inclusive meals include everything from beverage and salad to dessert - a bargain for $10. Reservations are required - call Linda at 295-0875 by Wednesday.
This Saturday, the second one of the month, brings us the Social Club's Town Potluck at 5 p.m. in Community Hall. Everyone is invited and asked to bring a dish to share (although there is usually plenty if you don't have anything). The Social Club business meeting follows. This group does so much to help the town, especially when it comes to hospitality. Their biggest undertaking is the management of the Café, but they are involved in many other things, too. They will provide refreshments at the upcoming Long-Bell movie showing on the 21st and the Castle Rock Band Concert on February 1st - which is a Monday.
Card Bingo is on the calendar for Sunday at 6:30 p.m. at the Café. The name of the game says it all: it's Bingo played with Cards. It requires zero skill and costs a maximum of $2.70 for an evening of fun with neighbors. Recently, the cumulative "7 of Diamonds Dime Pot" was won more times in one night than all of last year. (Only the first winner had anything to collect.)
This coming Monday is a Federal holiday (Martin Luther King, Jr. Day), which means the Post Office will be closed.
Karaoke will follow Burgers & Soup at the Café on Monday. Food is served from 4-6 p.m. with Karaoke starting about 6:30. Burger choices include beef (1/3-pound), chicken or veggie burgers and mostly homemade soup. The new menu reflects the first price increase in over 5 years.
The Senior Lunch menu on Tuesday the 19th will be Chicken Cacciatori with Mashed Potatoes and Glazed Carrots. That's quite a meal deal for a bargain price: $3 if over 60, $5 for others. The meal is served at noon in Community Hall's Dining Room. Please call 295-3813 to make or break reservations by 3 p.m. on Monday.
All readers are invited to attend the upcoming Long-Bell movie being shown on Thursday the 21st at 2 p.m. in the Auditorium. As part of the AMVETS Ryderwood History Project, the historic 1926 silent movie is about the Long-Bell Lumber Company, the owner and developer of Longview and Ryderwood - Ryderwood's "world's largest logging crew" provided the timber transported to Longview's "world's largest sawmill". At the time, all systems were very "high tech".
Three panel members will be available to narrate and discuss the film: Jim Tweedie, author (The Long-Bell Story, 2014) and mill specialist; Jim LeMonds, author (Deadfall, 2000) and historian; Larry French, retired logger, Ryderwood resident.
Reminders: Long-Bell movie at 2 p.m. on Thursday the 21st; Castle Rock School band and choral concert, Monday February 1st at 6:30 p.m.