Growing up hillbilly years; By Jen Donier

I was raised in the foothills of the South Eastern Cascade Mountains.  My dad was one of those people who attrached people he was charismatic.  But he also liked his family around him and kept us on a pretty close turf.  We  moved several times during my early childhood.  Finally Settling in Klickitat County living sometimes in Husum and other times at Trout Lake which was the town in which my dad spent most of his boyhood.  

Dad was always bringing in folks to feed who were down and out and mama put up with them, but we did not trust everybody.  For awhile we were sawmill brats. Living in sawmill housing owned by The Hollenbecks.  We had a lot of wildlife around us and had a lot of temporary wild pets from time to time as I grew up.   We had a pet skunk named Petunia until she made her escape one day.  Pet magpies and crows mom nursed back to health. Us kids rescued squirrels and chipmunks from the jaws of the cats sometimes they made it other times they didn't.  We had raccoon, pet deer and an opposum along with a myriad of  domesticated animals such as cats, dogs, chickens, cows, horses and goats.  

My dad had one eye having lost it when I was a baby in an auto accident.  He wore a black patch over the empty socket usually. He found and old red felt hat he took to wearing and started collecting odd and end pieces of jewelry which he pinned all over his hat.  He was never seen without a hunting knife on his belt and often carried a rifle with him.  All of us kids were taught how to hunt and fish and a lot about woodlore and survival.  We explored the local caves and climbed trees, hide from strangers that might pass by.  Occassionally dad would decide that us kids did not need to go to school for a day and take us on a jaunt into the hills prospecting or berrypicking, fishing, hunting or  some other such event.  He always taught us something on those jaunts and we grew from learning things.  Sometimes Mama would come along and other times she opted to stay home and fix a nice meal for when we returned, tired and hungry and full of the day's adventure.  Dad taught us all how to use a rifle and made us practice shooting at targets. 

We all knew how to hunt but I did not like hunting and killing things.  So tried to get out of doing it as much as possible.  Once my brother thought he would like to shoot at a blue jay.  We were all with him and dad asked him why he wanted to shoot it.  My brother said just because.  Then dad told us that we should never shoot anything just because or for the fun of it. We should only shoot for food and be ready to eat what we killed or in self defense only and for no other reason.  My dad asked my brother if he wanted to eat the blue jay.  Making a face he said no.  He did not shoot the jay and we learned a lesson.  That all life is precious and to think seriously why you would shoot something and the consequences afterward.  If it would be of benefit or worth or value.  

We learned to cook on a home comfort wood cook stove and for a couple years dad had us live without electricity or running water.  We had a creek near by in which we packed water from and we washed our clothes on a washboard.  Hanging them on the line to dry.  We churned butter and made cottage cheese and mom taught us how to can and put up preserves.   We made jerky and dried fruit as well.  

We always had a garden and lots of chores to do.  Our social life was school which was most the time, cousins and the children of mom and dad's friends. Sometimes we attended one of the local churches, sometimes the Baptist Church, sometimes the Presbytarian and sometimes the Seventh Day Adventist church.  Mixed with stories from dad and grandma about American Indian legands and lore and belief and astrology.  I grew up with quite a colorful background and many colorful characters entered into my life throughout my childhood and adolsecnce.  Sometimes people that dad brought home would stay the night or for a month or more, depending on how down on their luck they were, and how long mom was willing to put up with them. Some remained life long friends of the family and others drifted on never to be heard of again. 

We sang songs around the wood stove in the evenings because we did not have a television.  Dad would pick his quitar and us girls would sing all kinds of country western songs of the day and oldies as well.  One of my brothers would play the harmonica and another learned how to play the saw.  Sometimes we got glasses with different levels of water for chiming sounds and sticks for other rhythm. Dad had a great voice for quite a long time and he could really yodel and he taught us all how to yodel too, We would go up on a ridge about a mile away and he would yodel to us and we would have to yodel back. 

As we girls got into our teen years my dad had a tendacy to give any young man even showing the  remotest interest in one of us,  his full attention.  We could not date without a chaperone.  He would demand the boys intentions and all the while he would have his hunting knife out sharping it with a whetstone.  Sometimes commenting on the sharpness and throwing in off the wall comments of things like "ever casterate a calf"?  or  "ya think this knife looks sharp enough"  Of course the poor guys would gulp and say no sir or yes sir. 

Well then he'd say" so ya want to date my daughter, where you taking her?" " When you plan on bringing her back."  "Oh and one of her brothers is going along, thought I better you let you know that."  One such date was my first date with Bill and my first kiss. My mom chaperoned that date and I had a nice time and mom made sure we had a few minutes alone.  But then Bill was drafted and went into the army and overseas.  Dad let me write him for awhile but after a few months  we stopped writing.  By the time he got home, we had both moved on. 

With Bill out of the picture other guys came around, Danny, Kenny, and others and dad started telling the boys they could call him "Wolverine Dave" and then he would ask them what kind of music they liked.  They would of course tell him, thinking that they might be getting a break.  Usually things like Buddy Holly, Elvis and even The Beatles.  Some would say Country and Johnny Cash or  Hank Snow.  Then my dad would ask what their favorite songs were and they would usually tell him that too.  Then dad would tell them his favorite music was country and he liked Old Johnny Cash he was a pretty good singer and Sonny James etc.  Then he would say my most favorite song though is

"Wolverton Mountain" ever hear of it?  Most of them had and they would gulp.  It made us girls so mad because if we did go on a date often the guy was afraid to ask us out again.  But they were afraid not to at least ask the first time either.   Daddy just did not like it that us kids were growing up so fast.  My brothers were younger than us girls and having them on a date was not exactly fun either.  They would say I am telling dad if you kiss that guy or I see ya trying to hold hands.  Arrrggh little monsters!   We did not date needless to say much for sometime.  

We did go to the school dances but dad came too.  One date my sister had ended up taking both me and my sister because my date missed the bus from Portland, Oregon.  Dad came with us and brought along his guitar.  Earlier at school our P.E teacher had us girls run four miles around the school and back. It was May and one of my shoe soles came lose so I took off both shoes and kept running barefoot. Big mistake. I ended up with blisters on both feet due to the hot black top.  I would not quit even though the teacher offered to give me a ride the rest of the way back.  When I was half way around.  So I did not dance much that night anyway.  Hollis my sisters date did pick me and dance with me for two dances but mostly danced with her which was fine and dad danced with me and a couple of school mates.  Then dad started playing his quitar and telling stories and everyone loved it.  Though they were all sort of afraid of him too.  

The time did come when we started going to one church pretty regular and it was there I met my husband. He too had been raised a bit backwoods and in similar fashion.  He was not afraid of my dad and nothing my dad did would make him back away.  At first I didn't even like my husband. I thought he was rather weird, he would come up and stand behind us girls who were talking in a group at church and we would see him and stop talking because we of course were talking about the boys. The group would break up for awhile and reunite and pretty soon we would see him coming up behind some of us. We did not want him to hear anything we thought about the guys.  He wrote me letters a few times and I nicely answered back but thought I liked someone else and did date another guy for awhile. But it turned out we did not have much in common.

We went to several church outings and church youth outings and met a lot of other young people.  AJ would usually be there too. One was at a skating rink and I did not know how to skate worth beans never having had the opportunity.  AJ found the opportunity to skate with me and I was floundering around and slipping and sliding and trying to grab onto anything to keep from falling on the floor.  He kept trying to reassure me and I just was not good on wheels.  Finally I overbalanced and down I went and much to my embarassment grabbed ahold of his crotch area.  Oh I was flaming and wanted to get away from him. He acted like nothing happened and steered me back to saftey.  Where I quickly thanked him and eagerly turned to someone else asking if I wanted something to drink.   

The next time I saw him my dad had invited a lot of church people to our place.  I had not seen him for about a six weeks.  We had a great time that day with everyone bringing food for potluck and AJ made me laugh with things he said and did, just being goofy like putting a huge maple leaf on his head, which for some odd reason I thought was hilarouous.  My sister had a suitor too and she liked him but he was to shy to ask her on a date.  Then my dad suggested we all take a drive up to the huckleberry feilds and check out how the berries were coming along.  So everyone piled into about four different cars and followed my dad for about five miles to his destination of "Honeybee Springs" where he had a claim staked and there were lots of berries ripe on the bushes.  Having learned to slip away and hide from people I ran ahead and thought I would hide from some of the party and jump out and scare them.  I was the fastest runner in my school and could out run most the boys.  So here I was hiding thinking I was going to surprise everyone and AJ sneaks upon me.  Scared the willies out of me and I took off running through the woods and brush being quite familiar with the terrain.  But I could not elude him and he caught me just as I approached the parked cars and my sister and some of the others came out of the woods from below the cars.

  I was so shocked that this guy could out run me.  We then all went back to our place and after awhile people began to leave for home, most had a 45 to 65 mile drive from Trout Lake to Portland area or to Hood River area.  Just before AJ left he gave me a huge bunch of stamps asked me to write him.  He lived in Newberg, Oregon.  I said ok and did for about six weeks.  Then circumstances changed and a lot of things happened.  I ended up leaving home, my folks moved and  I ended up down in St. Helens, Oregon for awhile working caring for an elderly lady for a couple of months then for a couple who had twins and both worked.  I saw AJ at church finally as he did not come every week but would visit other churches in the area.  When he saw me he came up just as we were supposed to be sitting down. And said " I have many desire's" Then walked away.  ARRRGH that was frusterating and I did not know what he meant by that and burned to know.  I did not get a chance to ask him that day and it was not until another six weeks that we found ourselves togather again. 

From there he asked if he could date me and I said ok. He worked swing shift and so would come by where I was staying and we would sit in his car for an hour before he went to work just talking and found we had a lot in common.  Then he asked me on a date. February 22nd.  I had also been asked out by another guy that same time for the same date.  I told him I was already committed to go with someone else.  He said well what time will you be back.  I had been asked to a church brunch with another guy that was sort of interested in me but actually was trying to get to know my sister through me as I learned later.  So I told AJ I would be home by noon.  He asked me if I minded if he brought along his twin sister and brother both teens at the time and If I liked snow tubing.  I told him I did not mind if he brought his sister and brother and that I loved to go snow tubing.  We had our first real date on his 21st birthday, February 22nd. 

I packed sandwiches and made hot chocolate after I got home from the other date.  After that we dated exclusivly and had lots of fun. He would often come pick me up after work and would just drive around in the country listening to the radio and talking. 

We got married April 20th that year of 1970 and have been togather ever since, through thick and thin, joy and sorrow, good times and bad, hurt and laughter and four wonderful children and I would not trade him for the world.  Dad told me I got me a real man.  He said he is the only one I could not run off and so he was man enough to marry his daughter.  

Stay tuned for Honeymoon Sweet. when my husband got to know me a little better LOL.  And watch for other stories of my child hood years like a Night at Boulder Creek and the Bee Tree Man or the Ogre.  I am going through old photos to put with my stories when and where I can.