A difficult weekend, continued

By LEON YOUNGBLOOD

If you read last week’s column, you will recall bad luck was the only kind available to me, Mason and Hannah last Columbus Day weekend, which went something like this:

The main reason for wilderness camping trip at Briar Circle was, I was supposed to pick up live fish Thursday for Doris’ Pond; but deliveries were canceled because the supplier did not have enough orders.  So, I waited until Friday to go to the shack and got there after dark.  The power was out.  This was no big deal as far as camping went, but it was irritating.  Mason, heir to the Briar Circle property, and friend Hannah arrived after I did, and set up a tent by the light of the Harvest Moon.

BRIAR CIRCLE

Next morning, we assessed drought damage.  I had brought some trees to plant, but it seemed too dry.  In fact, trees and bushes I had planted months ago had died of heat and thirst, and this is where I’d put a “frowny face” emoticon, if I did that sort of thing.

There was a chance for chilly weather, so Mason and I attempted to ignite the pilot light on the gas heater.  That’s when we discovered the outside tank was empty due to a leak somewhere in the system.  Mason wanted to get breakfast at Pam’s Diner in Talihina, so we would exchange one of the three empty 15lb propane tanks for one that was full while we were in town, and everybody was happy.

After a good breakfast, surprise, surprise!  My truck would not start!  The good thing about this was, this is how we met Tony and his associates Chopper and Harley at Spike’s Garage.  Harley is a parrot, Chopper is a large dog, and they are fine people.  Beware of Harley, though.  He bites.

Phone service is not dependable in the Ouachitas, but we were finally able to leave a message on neighbor Kevin’s phone asking if he could help us out.  I suspect he sometimes wishes he had never given me his number, but he came to Talihina and picked us up, and we stopped by Dollar General for a propane tank.  Kevin has been helpful more times than I can count, and his friendship is appreciated.  It was not his fault when later that day we attached the camp lantern to the propane tank and found the handle on it was impossible to turn!  Kevin had long since gone home, and we certainly were not going back to town!  We did have a couple of one pound propane bottles and “made do” with what we had.  Outside, flashlights were not necessary, thanks to the full moon.

I chose to stay at the shack a few extra evenings, with tentative plans for Mason to pick me up the following weekend, but Mason and Hannah had obligations and had to leave by noon Sunday.  Noon came—Hannah’s car would not start.  Something had been left on; the battery was dead.  They phoned Kevin.  The moral here is, don’t give your cell phone number to people prone to incidents, accidents and minor misfortunes.  Kevin jump-started their car, though, perhaps just wanting to make sure they left.

Neighbor Larry had been out of town, but he checked on me Columbus Day, or Indigenous Citizens Day, if you prefer.  He got the solar power working, he filled a 15 pound propane tank for me, and we speculated on fringe and redbud trees.  Wednesday he and his wife Lorna gave me a lift home.  It seemed the thing to do, with the run of bad luck I was having, and their kind generosity is always appreciated.

So, there is the summation of my difficult weekend.  I’ve had worse times, but the unusual “one darn thing after another” order of misfortunes beat any run of luck I ever had at Briar Circle.  If this sort of thing has happened to you, let us know.  And incidentally, you can help our good fortunes by advertising in or subscribing to the Heavener Ledger e-edition.  Please do it today!      

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