Chapter 1: The New Homestead

“Hi Dad. Thanks for coming for me,” I smiled, hauling my bags out through the arrivals area before shaking his hand.

“Good to see you, Joel,” he said, giving me a big hug. “You look well. I take it Gramma was feeding you well.”

“Yeah ... not much variety, but it was good. I’m just glad I’m here now. Stimulating conversation wasn’t on the menu there. I hope this new town is better.”

“I think you might be in for a pleasant surprise,” Dad grinned. “It’s not exactly the ‘hick town’ you might be expecting.”

“Good to know, Dad. It doesn’t look like much on Google Earth. Looks like a long drive, too. Let me know if you want me to spell you off.”

He smiled at me and nodded. Whether he would take me up on my offer remained unanswered.

“I decided to take the scenic route today,” Dad announced. “It’ll give you an idea of the countryside and how different it is from Iowa.”

“I’ve got a map of Oregon with me,” I said, opening it up. “Which way did you choose?”

“I thought we’d take I-84 east along the Columbia Gorge to The Dalles, then south on 197 and 97 to Redmond, then east to Clarksville. Should only add an hour to the shortest way. Have you eaten lately?”

“Yeah, I had a snack when I changed planes in Denver. If we get a chance, I could maybe use a refill in a couple of hours.”

“Sure. We’ll stop in Hood River and give you a break.”

“Nice car, Dad. This yours?”

“Company car. I bought your mother a new car when I traded in her old one.”

“I’m sure she’d be happy about that,” I said with a smile.

“Yes, she insisted on a four-wheel drive SUV, so I got her a Ford Escape. She’s very pleased with it.”

“I hope I can make enough money this summer to maybe buy an old beater for myself. I’ll probably need one sooner or later.”

“Don’t worry about it now. We’ll work something out for you,” Dad reassured me.

I wasn’t sure what he meant by that, but I assumed he’d tell me in time.

“Tell me about the school, Dad.”

“It looks very new from the outside. Your mother has been there and says it’s very nice. It’s the central school for the whole of Crook County and quite large. I think you’ll be quite happy there.”

“Crook County? I assume it was named after some bandit?” I laughed.

“I guess so, but I’m sure you can find out,” Dad said.

I was tired and stiff from my long trip and it was a relief to get out of the car at Hood River and stretch my legs. Dad knew of a nice place for a meal, so I followed him into a two story building. The restaurant was on the second floor and we walked up to see a large open room with quite a few tables, along with a bar and several TV’s. It also had a great view of the Columbia River.

The menu was pretty standard, but the smell from the kitchen whetted my appetite and I was ready for food. A quick look and I chose a hot turkey sandwich and a coke. Dad just had a snack. The meal came quickly and I attacked it like I hadn’t eaten in a week. I finished my meal and headed for the rest room before we resumed our journey.

Mount Hood is a very big mountain standing on its own and looked to me like it might have once been a volcano with its classic cone shape. I noticed that Mount St. Helens was not too far north. We cut off the Interstate at The Dalles and headed south. I have to admit it wasn’t anywhere near as boring as it looked on my computer. I was beginning to get a better feeling for where I would be living and maybe it wouldn’t be quite so far from civilization after all. I’d know soon enough.

Along the way, Dad and I chatted about everyday things. The high school I would be going to was quite some distance from the house, so I’d have to bus it each day. Mom was looking into that and had already had my school records transferred. I’d be back eating cafeteria food once more, not my favorite choice, but perhaps it might be better here than my school in Davenport.

Dad told me he thought I’d like our new house. It was a lot bigger than our old one even though it was a rancher, not a two story like we had in Iowa. It was four bedrooms, which surprised me. There was just me along with my parents, so why four bedrooms? My older sister Lana was married and living in Denver. Maybe they were just making sure they had room for visitors.

I fell asleep about a half hour after that nice meal and missed a lot of the scenery along the way. I felt the car slowing now and then, probably as we passed through a small town, but after a quick look around, I kept my eyes closed for the most part. I could use the rest. Finally, just as it was about to get dark, we arrived in Clarksville. Well, actually, we arrived at my new home. I never did get to see the town. The rest did me good and I was more prepared to meet Mom and get settled in.

“Oh, it’s so good to see you again, Joel,” Mom gushed, as she gripped me in a bear hug. “It’s been over six months since we left you in Davenport. How are you? Did you have a good trip? How are Gramma and Grampa? Are you tired? Are you hungry?”

I didn’t have a chance to answer her stream of questions until she finally ran out of steam. I got the general impression she was glad to see me, and left it at that. I started to answer some of her questions and that seemed to calm her down. I grabbed my baggage out of the trunk and Mom showed me where my room was. There was no doubt this was a bigger home than our previous one and much more modern. My room was also much bigger with a large bed, dresser, desk, and a TV. I was suitably impressed.

I did a brief tour of the house while Mom prepared a sandwich for me along with the expected glass of milk. It was certainly bigger than our old house, but without the stairs ... or, as I discovered, a basement. I assumed they had no worries about tornadoes. Also, I noticed a separate garage in the back. It looked like it was set up for at least three cars. I’d have to ask Dad about that. And then there was the lawn: a very big lawn. Like easily over an acre? There were some nice big trees along one part of the property but I couldn’t tell whether they were ours or a neighbors. Mind you, I didn’t see any sign of a neighbor.

Lots of questions to be answered, but I was too tired to worry about more questions at that moment. I’d been on the road for the whole day and I was still tired from both the time change and the travel. I decided the smartest thing I could do was to go to bed early and hope I’d be ready to go in the morning. I said goodnight to my parents and headed for my room. I switched on my television and was surprised and happy to see that it was connected to cable. I lost count of the number of channels available, but obviously far more than I expected. After channel surfing for a half-hour or so I switched off the set and the bedside light and put my head down. It was only nine o’clock, but with the two-hour time change I was ready to get some sleep.

I woke up just after six the next morning, a little earlier than normal for me but again, I assumed it was due to the time change. It was Sunday, so I didn’t expect my parents to be up this early. I took a look at the indoor and outdoor thermometer and saw it was 60° already. I remembered Dad telling me we were over 3200 feet elevation, so it would get cool in the evening, but warm up quickly when the sun hit the land. I pulled on a pair of jeans, a sweat shirt and my runners and went outside to look around. My first interest was to see what was in the garage. Unfortunately, the door was locked and I knew the garage doors were on automatic openers, so I’d have to wait to explore that building.

I walked out in the large back yard and looked around. In the distance I could see a mountain range; the Cascades I guessed. I’d spent enough time looking at the map of Oregon to figure that out. Mount Bachelor was likely the large mountain that didn’t look that far away in the west. According to my map, it was about forty miles from Clarksville.

Except for the birds, it was quiet that morning. I guessed we weren’t near any highway or I’d have heard the traffic. In fact, looking around, it didn’t seem like we were near anything. I saw no sign of neighbors, but then we were in an area of hills and trees, so that might be hiding some buildings.