Addicted to Bingo

          When the boys were younger and we were poor, we would find activities within the community that were either free or inexpensive.  We would often go to the library or join a group from a chapter of the Foresters.  Every once in a while we would go and play a few rounds of Bingo.  It was offered at a dollar a card.

          Richard had noticed that when he takes Jaime to church on Wednesdays that there seems to be extra cars parked around the building belonging to the Elks club.  Seems that Bingo is starts at 6:00 but goes until 9:00 or so.  He thought it would be something we could do while we wait for Jaime during the hour she is gone.

          Bingo is NOT something I could do every week.  It’s a once-in-a-while somewhat fun time, but it would get boring week after week for me personally though I know there are some who thrive on it for some reason.  They are nice.  All of these Bingo players and hosts/hostesses.  I do like the people and their attitude, but it turned out to be more expensive than we had predicted. 

One has to purchase an entire packet for 11 dollars.  There are at least 15 papers of cards in which players are marking from two to six cards – depending on the game or pattern.  And there were so many helpful to guide us on the process of each game – what was expected and what each card contained.

Jaime was with us for the entire time as the youth will be going to the temple on Saturday and so did not have an activity scheduled for last night.  It was fun to watch Jaime having fun.  She won a Bingo.  Neither Richard nor I had won ourselves – but we were there just to play and have fun.  Winning would have only been a bonus. 

It was fun.  I was impressed by all of those willing to assist.  Several had invited us back – and perhaps we will.  Maybe once in a while.  But not every week.  We would not be playing all of the games anyway as one of us would have to take Jaime to the church and then pick her up.  I think that would be a good time just to leave . . . that’s when I start getting sleepy and desire to go to bed.  I would rather sleep than play Bingo.

Dash VB#3 Values & Beliefs

Do you feel your beliefs and values are shared by most of the people you are surrounded by each day?  Or do your beliefs set you apart from those around you?

The answer to both questions is “Yes”.  Allow me to elaborate:

Less than half of all those living in Salt Lake are LDS.  Not all LDS are active.  Though many wards have great support and members work well together, there are just as many whose members may go through the motions each Sunday but may not carry it out the remaining six days – like the “Come Follow Me Program”  -  I’m just curious.  Although I have good friends in the Church who really do live a Christian life 24/7,  I didn’t often feel my values were the same as others living in Salt Lake. As a whole, I usually felt so uptight with the hurriedness, the crime, profanity, dysfunctional relationships, etc.  I was part of the minority – which is not a bad thing.  Evidently, I’ve been part of the minority my entire life but was unaware.

          Here, in the entire state of Oregon, the LDS population is less than 4%.  In Myrtle Creek at least half the population share standards, values and beliefs that are common enough to hold to the community together.  Overall I see people who serve others, who are concerned for others’ welfare, and who live Christ-like lives.   Oh, I know not everybody does.  There is still evidence of crime, profanity and dysfunctional relationships.  But I haven’t been uptight or experienced the stress that I did while in Salt Lake.  I miss my friends and family that I left behind.  I value the friendships I have made in Oregon.  I am more at peace.

       Of course, some of my beliefs are different than those around me.  As I explained in this post, my views on death are different than the average. The LDS church is the only I know of in which the talks that are delivered during the meeting each week are given by members of the congregation and not the same minister each week.  In fact, I will be delivering a sermon tomorrow in my ward.

 Many of my values are based on religion and the way I was raised.  I'm grateful for my values.

Four Areas to Acheive

          I post about my classes as because it is part of my current life.  Although the class was last mod, it still affects me, and I didn't have time to post last month as I may have this month.  I had two classes last mod, but don't generally post about my assignments or discussions in accounting.  They're boring.  Even my instructor said they were boring.  That made me laugh.  The subject of accounting is so one dimensional.  Answers have to be exact.  Everything is black and white.  Blah, blah, blah . . .

          Critical thinking, on the other hand, teaches aspects of human behavior and the way our minds work.  There isn't right and wrong in the same sense as accounting.  Not everything is black and white as with math.  Not only is there a huge variety of grey shades, but huge explosions of many colors.  Perhaps I should have gone into journalism . . .

          I've shared a bit of my assignments and discussions from my critical thinking and feel the desire to share more as there is always more than one side to the story or situation and I need to learn how to accept both (or all) side.

          Roland was getting on my case for not posting to the discussion board first thing on Monday morning, but we had specifically been told NOT to post until after we had received further instructions in the lecture itself.  The first week's discussion was to define critical thinking and include examples of how we think in various settings such as social, political, environmental and religious, which are most important and why.  This is what I posted to my first discussion:

"My husband and I have different opinions on practically everything except possibly religion, and even there we are in two different stages of understanding or development.  Let me give you some examples of how we vary.

"Economically:    When we lived in Salt Lake, we always had a tremendous amount of garbage to fill our cans each week.  The sanitation program in the area had recently sent around flyers to introduce a recycling program, and we could pay to have a recycling can for about the third of another garbage can. 

"I accepted offer believing that I was helping the economy in addition to having more room for whatever I was disposing of.  Problem is the men in my household refused to learn to sort - which is more crucial now that we live in Oregon than we did in Salt Lake.

"I view that recycling helps create jobs;  my husband looks at recycling as more cost to us both financially and time-consuming.

"Politically:         I have always had a problem with the media's interference announcing the outcome of an election before everyone on the west coast has even had a chance to vote;  some voters get cocky thinking their candidate is going to win as it was announced and may not even bother going to the polls.  The media is not always a reliable source and sometimes the cockiness has cost those who didn't vote because they believed they had it in the bag [I think the results of this last Presidential Election for example]

"Socially:   Salt Lake felt like it was all about business and growing.  No one could leave the house without marketing being thrown in our faces.  Life depended on gain.

"Here, in the part of Oregon where I currently reside, they have no clue what marketing is.  They have social events to bring the community together - not necessarily to raise money.  We're a close-knit community. I prefer the simplicity.  My husband likes the complex.  I Hate competition.  He sees it as necessary.

"Religion:    The population of the area I currently reside is less than 3500 and yet there are 17 denominations of faith. It's good to have a place to meet and share Christian beliefs (or what have you) but there are certain sectors that are ousted by others.  For example, we recently asked to use one of the rooms in the LDS church we attend; we needed space to host my daughter's birthday party as there were several friends that she wanted to invite - more than our house would hold;  we needed a larger space but without a large cost.  Some of the kids she had invited couldn't come because their parents didn't want for them to be in an LDS church specifically.

"I think the most important issue to me is how we interact with one another and how we're accepted.  I love the friendships I have made within this community.  I am not suspicious of people as I was in Salt Lake - often wondering what a person wanted from me or what he/she was trying to sell.  I like having friends who are interested in real friendships and not just what I can do for their business or political career."

St. Patrick's Grunge Pledges

                Our Saturdays are usually tied up with plans - most of the time it's been going to Roseburg to do shopping, though there are the occasional weekends our plans are attending various activities here in Myrtle Creek or surrounding areas.  Occasionally we actually have a free Saturday which is what I had supposed this last weekend, but Jenna reminded me that I said I would drive her over to the pool to watch the "Grunge Plunge". 

                Most of the pictures I share are cropped screenshots of live event video posted to South Umpqua Memorial Pool page on March 17, 2018

  

                On March 4 last year, South Umpqua Memorial Pool held its first ever "Grunge Plunge".  I didn't even know about it until after the fact - which is actually kind of weird as social media, namely facebook, seems to be this town's most important source of marketing. It appears that there were ten jumpers last year.

2017 Jumpers holding up awarded t-shirts saying:

I Survived South Umpqua Memorial Pool's 1st Grunge Plunge

          Those that had pledged help raise 2,600 and added a pooling carpet to the hurtful cement floors in the dressing rooms and spruced them up to look nice.  Their goal this year was to raise over that amount - which they did.

         The pool site was/is in need of a makeover and the Grunge Plunge provided the community with a unique fundraiser by making pledges for certain individuals to jump into the grungy (and I would imagine frigid) pool that, although covered by a tarp since September, has still had elements effect the conditions of what was once clean water.  

SUMP facebook page cover this month

            I think Jenna would like to do the jumping, but the jumpers have to be over sixteen years of age.  I like that as she had been sick last year and was barely getting over her cough this year.  Four teachers and principal challenged their students to raise at least 200 dollars.  They announced that each of them would jump for every 100 raised after that and if 600 was raised, all five would jump.  There was also call for a germ phobic who said she would go in if 1,000 was raised.  They also challenged South Umpqua High School.  I didn't notice a response.  

 

            This year they did not have to jump as individuals but could do so in groups.  They could also choose to jump from either side of the deep end (shallow end still covered in tarp) or they could go off the diving board.  There were 13 groups or individuals that were sponsored to jump.  We had representatives from Coffenberry, Myrtle Creek Fire Department, State Farm and the mayor among others.  

            Josh Norton was the emcee who passed out awards/trophies before anyone jumped in. Our mayor received one for his attire 

our mayor accepting his award

and the water treatment boys received one for the most money raised.   

2018 trophy

Toward the end, Josh challenged one of his lifeguards to jump as well.  He didn't seem happy about it but accepted the challenge.  Josh jumped in last and thanked the community for the amount of money that was raised: more than twice the amount as last year.

See the crowd all around the pool

calm waters before the jump

Before the jump

After the jump

water with jumpers

            It was a fun event.  Crowded.  I'm happy that it was recorded as It was easier to watch and identify some of the people on the video than it was from behind the fence.  Jenna had gone inside to stand with the crowd to cheer on the Coffenberry instructors.  I prefer standing away from the crowd - or next year - sitting in my pjs and watching the video.  Then I don't have to worry about parking either.  I LOVE living in a small community!                    

Not Bad for Under Two Years

          When I was 7th grade, the mandatory history class focused on American history and Utah history.  We had first did a brief study on Europe and the reasons given for explorers making their way to the American continent. 

I don't recall a lot on either Revolutionary or Civil Wars though I'm certain that each was mentioned.  We cruise through Utah history as 95% of the class had been raised in the LDS church and obviously knew more about Utah's history than the text book - which had Joseph Smith martyred by hanging - in Utah.  Joseph Smith was not hung nor did he live long enough to see the Church move toward the Utah territory. 

          That is just one example that I remember.  The instructor was not LDS, but he could see that the class wasn't going to budge - weather right or wrong. I think we ended up skipping three chapters.  It was toward the end of the year anyway.  So how much of what we had already learned had even been accurate?  The entire book could have been done on speculation without resources to back up the so called information.

          Jenna's social studies have been focusing on pyramids and castles????? That's all well and good for those of us who live abroad, but wouldn't it actually be more useful and beneficial to start with your own state and country before expanding into places you might not actually ever get to.  I'm almost 55 years old.  The only castle that I've seen is the one Walt Disney had built for Disneyland.  It doesn't fit the history of the castles that Jenna has been learning about.

          We live in Oregon now.  I want to know about Oregon, specifically Douglas County.  I want to know the history of the things that are tangible to me - not the man-made architectures that I may never see.  All history is important - but not all are priorities - not for me anyway.  I've been trying to understand this county ever since we got here.

          The other day I was visiting with my friend Carolyn (mentioned in this post) and she showed me a Douglas County visitors guide (2017) that had come with the latest edition of the newspaper she recieves (I'm guessing Sunday's edition of the News Review)

         I'm aware that there are many who may live in a state or country all of their lives and not see any tourist attractions.  I am proud to say that I have seen (or are at least familiar with) more than half of what is considered Douglas County's top 10. 

          Before we were fully unpacked, one of the first things that we looked into was getting library cards. Roland found a video of the Roseburg Blast.  Wow!  Very informative.  It was mind blowing, heart breaking . . . very well done, I thought.  Certainly a lot more informative and more impressive than the Douglas Museum of History and Natural History.  After having visited many museums in Salt Lake City, the Douglas Museum was actually quite disappointing.  In this case, I am happy to have watched the video first.

published August 7, 1959

           I'd taken pictures of the lumber yards shortly after we moved here.  Some of these I've already posted back in 2015.

taken in Riddle

Glendale

           Even Myrtle Creek had once thrived on lumber dependency.  See here and here

from the Myrtle Creeks Day Parade July 2015

This was the picture in the News Review brochure

Ireland Trucking participates in July and December parades

           I had only learned about the owls earlier this month.

           Roseburg isn't always windy, but does seem to be windier than myrtle creek.  Just this past Saturday we had looked sheds before moving to inside the store and finding plastic owls and other finds for our yard and house.  The wind was howling something fierce and it felt like the tin sheds would rip out and blow away.

          I have been to Crater Lake only once.  This picture was taken in September when my brother Corey, came to visit.

taken September 2015

          I have not heard of Little River Rapids.  I have pictures of both north and south Umpqua rivers.  Mostly South - as the Umpqua bridge in these photos takes you from I5 ramp 108 to downtown Myrtle Creek

North Umpqua September 2015

North Umpqua July 2016

South Umpqua from railroad tracks of 4th St. January 2017

North Umpqua July 2016

South Umpqua November 2015

South Umpqua January 2017

South Umpqua November 2015

South Umpqua March 2017

         

          I have not been to Yoncalla.  I am familiar with its name and location on the map

  

now called Yoncalla High; taken from web

          I think we had gone to Drain when we were looking at houses.  I would have guessed "Douglas High" would have been in Roseburg

          I am so NOT into sports. 

scanned from News Review's Visitor's Guide 2017

          In addition to the 10 things to know were articles that featured great parks to visit, spectacular waterfalls (I had only been to Watson)

Watson falls from Corey's photos

and music.

Also a little blurb on Diamond Lake.  Corey and I stopped by to take pictures when he was here in September 2015.

I cropped this from one I had taken at Diamond Lake

Corey took this one of me

          There was also an article that featured Historic Oakland a city north of Roseburg. 

We missed the 2016 event, but I will be certain to put this on my agenda for 2018. 

Looks fun.