Easter weekend has a very full schedule

WILD ONE--Depending on where you were this past week, you may have had some really crazy weather, which included lots of wind, rain, hail or if you were headed over an area of higher elevation, even some snow! While we had a slight blip in our power and several bumps, we didn't have a major outage here, but I know lots of other areas certainly did. While we got a break on Sunday for awhile, Monday was blustery and rain and hail were back in our area off and on. Here's hoping for some drier stretches of weather soon!

NOT READY?!--Once again, having one of these storms roll through is a huge reminder to be prepared! From all the whining and complaining that I saw on the news, there are still some folks who just can't seem to understand the neccesity of the 72 hour Emergency Kit. With all the pre-warning that we've had for these storms, it's just ridiculous to be so unprepared. Just think if this had been a major earthquake with no warning? How would you have faired through it all? If this storm really caused you a lot of grief, it might be time to re-evaluate your emergency plans. Check out the FEMA website or contact your local Emergency Management people.

SPECIAL DAYS--Those celebrating birthdays from April 13-19 are Logan Britt, Kael McKinley, Brent Mahitka, Bryan Ledtke, Brock Cothren, Gage Horman, Dan Keilwitz, Reggie Bonny, Janine Helms, Stephanie Olsen, Margaret Strueby, Leota Souvenir, Tawnya Paine, Phil Doumit, DeDee Crouse, Misty Shook and Carolyn Pedersen.

Those celebrating anniversaries this week are Mr. and Mrs. Greg Parker, Mr. and Mrs. Tim Parker, and Dawn and Steve Macchione. Hope all of your special occasions were fabulous!

COFFEE TIME--If you're looking for a spot to get an espresso, you can now head over to Skamokawa Vista Park and enjoy a fresh brew on the weekends, with hours of Saturday 7 a.m. to 2 p.m., and Sunday 7:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. Beginning May 15 the coffee trailer should be open seven days a week, with hours to be announced soon.

BINGO TIME--It's time to head to the multi-purpose room at the J.A. Wendt Elementary School this Friday, April 14, and play some bingo! This is a fund raiser for the Wahkiakum County Fair and there are just a ton of prizes this year, as well as raffle tables and of course, that chance to win a ham for Easter dinner this coming Sunday. All the fun starts at 6 p.m., with doors open at 5:30 so come and join the fun and win some terrific prizes that Cheryl Backman has rounded up from our very generous local businesses and even quite a few in Longview, so kudos to all of them for their help.

MOVIE NIGHT--If you're not into bingo, maybe you want to check out the Friday night movie at the Community Center in Cathlamet. This is an adult comedy, which will begin at 7 p.m.

BOOK SALE--If you're a book lover, you've got two days to take advantage of the book sale going on at the Cathlamet Library, which is located above the community center. You can attend this on Friday from 2-5 p.m., or stop by on Saturday from 10 to 4 p.m., and see what treasures you can add to your own library.

GRANGE MIC NIGHT--This Friday, the Skamokawa Grange will be the place to be if you're a singer or musician or both, as there will be an "Open Mic Night" April 14 at the grange from 7:30 -10 p.m. You are invited to come and share your talent, with the cost of just one dollar or a can of food that will go to the Food Bank. This event is open to the public and to people of all ages, so get out the fiddle or the guitar and play us a tune, or just belt out a song. Refreshments will be available for purchase. For further information contact Jerry Ledtke, 795-3434.

On Saturday, April 22, everyone is invited to join the Grangers at Vista Park Beach for a "pick up the trash" day in honor of Earth Day at 10 a.m. Things are always washing ashore or flying around in the wind, so it's nice to have folks who are willing to chip in and help clean this wonderful area so it's minus any unattractive and unwanted trash!

BUSY, BUSY WEEKEND--We're going to hope for some sunshine this Saturday as there are several things going on that would really be more enjoyable if it were dry. First off, the Lions Club will hold their annual Easter Egg Hunt at Skamokawa Vista Park that morning, so be sure to get those little ones there on time or they'll be out of luck, as you've never seen kids move so fast as when there's candy eggs to be found. Of course, they want to find those special eggs too, as that means an extra prize!

Then there's going to be the first "Bunny Hop" Car Show and Shine over at the Roadkill Saloon, so that would definitely be more enjoyable in the sunshine. This lasts from 12-3 p.m., with trophies being awarded at 3 p.m., so come and bring your car down and maybe you'll go home with a trophy.

If you've got logger blood, you'll want to head down to Naselle to Appelo's Archive Center, where they will hold their Seventh Annual Logger's Reunion. This is always a good time to swap stories and meet those guys who have made their living in a tough industry.

EASTER TIME--I hope you all have a wonderful Easter, as that's coming up this Sunday, April 16. As always, your church will undoubtedly have special services that day and every church in our county is more than happy to see new faces in their congregation. You may be fixing a big dinner for your family that day, but if you're not up to that, don't forget our local restaurant always has a nice Easter dinner, so stop by the Duck Inn for a dinner that gives Mom a holiday from the shopping, cooking and cleaning! To make reservations, call 795-6055.

REDMEN HALL--The Friends of Skamokawa want to remind you that there's plenty to see at the hall, and with Mother's Day happening just next month, you might even find the lady in your life a real unique gift up there. Of course, you ladies are always welcome to come and treat yourself to a new book or other locally made gift item, as the gift shop has plenty of unique things to check out. Art exhibits are always changing up in the River Life Interpretive Center, so if you haven't been up there, take a climb up the steps and check it out. For more information, call 795-3007, Thursday through Sunday, noon to four.

FAMILY GATHERS--Many of our immediate family members and close friends gathered together this past Sunday to say good-bye to my sister-in-law, Peggy Pedersen, as we laid her to rest with her husband, Ralph. The two are now together in heaven, on what would have been their 62nd anniversary. We were blessed with blue skies, albeit a bit of chilly wind, but beings we've been dealing with so much rain lately, we were very happy for the dry time for this ceremony. Afterwards we all headed to the Duck Inn for a lunch, which nephew Mark said was to be provided for by his Mom, so that was very unexpected, and so like Peggy! And her sons! We were pleased to see Peggy's grandson, Adam Pedersen there, as he flew in from his home back in Virginia, so that was special. Also, another grandson, Gabe, was there with his wife, Annie and their baby son, Luke, who Peggy just got to meet at Ralph's memorial in January, so it was great to see them, as they traveled from the other side of the state for the day. All in all, Peggy would have been quite pleased that we enjoyed this time to gab and swap stories and we enjoyed the picture board that her son, Tim set up for us to look at, as it was a great viewing of her life from a child, to a bride and to a Mom and grandparent. She was one tough cookie, having battled cancer for several years after she was given two months to live, so we were blessed to have her a long as we did. Rest in Peace Peg. She may be gone, but she'll never be forgotten.

OUT OF THE PAST--This week back in 1947, the week's weather began really hot and stayed that way for several days before turning to rain and sunshine and then just plain ole rain. For Grandma Elsie, it was a busy time as telephone operators were still on strike and she was working at the local Pacific Telephone & Telegraph Company. Grandpa Everest and grandson, Ralph Pedersen rode their horses to the Girl Scout Camp out the Elochoman and had dinner out there. Grandma was busy getting gifts ready for the Pochahontas party as well as cards and packages for niece, Susan Shane and her brother George, as he'd had to have some surgery. There was a huge disaster in Texas that week as three ships exploded and thousands were dead and injured. Locally, Ed Olson passed away that week.

In 1957, the week began with a rather nice day but a huge, miserable storm showed up the following day and George Everest, who was working for the PUD, was very busy taking trees off the power lines. According to reports, the winds hit 73 mph at the mouth of the river. The week was mostly an off and on week with showers now and then, followed by cloudy conditions and then some sunshine for the last day. It was a unique siting in the Columbia River that week, as Corky Prestegard got off the submarine he served on right at the Puget Island jetty and walked home! Grandma took a nice walk to Janie Aker's house where she bought some homemade towels to give to her sister, Jean, for her upcoming birthday. Grandpa Everest headed out to Grange night, where he won a dish full of candy during their Easter doings. While Krist and Carol Pedersen had to go to Seattle, two year old Marshall Pedersen went to stay with the Andy Fudges, while his sister, Kay, (me) stayed at Grandma Elsie's. A couple of days later, it was discovered that I had come down with the measles! Beings I wasn't really sick, I helped Grandma make Easter eggs and kept her company while she baked seven loaves of bread and made a bunch of goodies for the upcoming Easter holiday. All this according to Grandma Elsie Everest's diaries.