Sharing mishaps with raspberries and boat navigation
On Sept. 28, this scribe was not in attendance at the weekly Tuesday breakfast. A more important task was in order and this scribe had an official excuse.
Fortunately, there were some of the OFs who would take names and advise this scribe if anything interesting went on. It was reported some stories were different and topical. This saved research into notes not used from previous gatherings.
On Tuesday, the Old Men of the Mountain met at the Middleburgh Diner in Middleburgh. One of the OMOTM is a gardener of sorts like some of the others, but this OF’s specialty is raspberries. This OF’s raspberry patch is substantial and he has friends (and strangers) come and pick the berries.
Raspberries have a taste all their own, and are used in many dishes, mostly desserts. Is there a raspberry ice cream, or a raspberry cookie? The OMOTM who grows the raspberries never heard of any. However, just a quick check on Google gave many cookie recipes and suppliers of ice cream.
The raspberry-growing OF (on the Tuesday this scribe wasn’t there) decided to bring to the breakfast cups of raspberries for all the OFs in attendance and pass them out. Which he did; however, there is going to be surprise for one of the recipients.
After the breakfast, the generous OF with the raspberries hopped on his motorcycle and headed home.
When he arrived home and went into the house, the OF’s wife greeted him with, “Hi honey, where is the dog food? I went to the fridge and all I found for the dog was a cup of raspberries. I don’t think the puppies will be too happy with that.”
Oooops — the generous OF grabbed the cups of raspberries for the OFs from the refrigerator and took them to the breakfast. Some OF is going to get home, open his cup of raspberries and find — guess what? This scribe hopes the OF knows how to bark.
Search for the S.S. Minnow
The alternate scribe also reported that one of the OFs continued his tales of boating on Lake Anna in Virginia so once again the report goes back to last week. The location and cast of characters are the same.
This particular story of the lake had the same OF with four friends in the boat and this OF was taking them for a ride to show them the lake. Apparently, the OF thought it would be cool if he showed them the S.S. Minnow (which was reported he “discovered” last week). However, he entered what he thought was the right river (numerous rivers drained into this lake) but it wasn’t right.
The OF said he went up the river, found no Minnow and the water started getting shallower; now it was about four to five feet deep. The OF said he knew this was wrong, so he turned around and went back to the channel.
He turned right and proceeded up and spotted another river and thought that was the right way and he went up this river about two or three miles and the water started getting shallower. Again, the sonar showed only four to five feet of water. Wrong way for a second time so the OF went back; by now the friends were getting a little anxious.
The OF again headed up and spotted another river and it sure looked like where they came in — same thing though, three to four miles up, shallow water, wrong again, back again.
Another turn, found another river, same thing, kept going up this river, after traveling for a while the water became shallow, another wrong choice. By now, the OF knew he was lost.
The OF decided to go back to the channel, which he knew was 15 feet deep, and he would head back down instead of up and keep maintaining 15 feet by checking the sonar.
This he did and, after some time of riding back, one of his guests in the boat said, “Hey, I recognize that brush. Didn’t we come through some brush to get in this channel?
The OF turned and went through the brush, traveled a little ways and there was the lake.
As an OF was relating this story that the other OG had told at the breakfast to the OMOTM, this scribe thought, “Now do we not only have the S.S. Minnow, but we are on the African Queen going through the brush to get to the channel, only the boat is without Katharine Hepburn.”
It seems the OMOTM who were at the Middleburgh Diner have two choices. Be sure to check the containers of raspberries you may be given, and be careful about getting on an OF’s boat, or you may be in for an adventure, and these forewarned OFs were: Robie Osterman, Miner Stevens, George Washburn, Jake Herzog, Marty Herzog, Bill Lichliter, Harold Guest, Wally Guest, Jake Lederman, Lou Schenck, Russ Pokorny, Jack Norray, and not me.