MIXED BAG--Saturday was a mix of weather from clouds to sunshine to rain and then repeated over and over, so the walk to the mailbox may have started out dry but by the time you came back up the driveway, it was raining! While not ideal, it sure beats the steady downpours that wind up causing us to flood, so I'll take the "sometimes wet" routine any day!

On Sunday, depending on where you were, you may have been in the middle of a huge hail storm, as those in Astoria were sending out some fantastic pictures of the "white" area; it looked like a snowstorm had hit! At any rate, we only had some gusty winds and heavy rainfall here at my house but as we all know, every curve in the road and every valley can experience a different weather event around here. By nightfall, we were down in the 20's; those clear skies sure sent the temperatures plunging, so it's no time to take those extra blankets off the beds just yet!

SPECIAL DAYS--Those celebrating birthdays from March 11-17 are Gretchen Mahitka, Azery Gribskov, Lucy Bosch, Colin Stewart, Brandy Britt, Grace Helms-Lampitt, Karen Lawrence, Gage Robinson, Linda Barth, Mary Thomas, Milton Doumit, Mikie Scott, Carson Cothren, Steve McKinney, Jason Nettles, Cecelia Kuhl, Brieanna Olsen, Elizabeth Norris, Kristie Williams, Terry Goble, Mariah Souvenir, Mark Fladebo, Kelly Zink, Paul Ehrensberger, Dwight Blackshear, Amy Bernard and Gene Healy.

Those celebrating an anniversary this week are Tracy Carroll and Serene Snow, Ray and Terri Slape, Bill and Shelley Olsen, Kevin and Janelle Gilligan and Mr. and Mrs. Ace Logan. May all of you have wonderful celebrations this coming week!

My apologies to Haeden Schillios, whose name I misspelled last week when I mentioned her upcoming anniversary to hubby, Jake; nine years yesterday, March 10. I do hope they had a wonderful celebration.

THIS SATURDAY--The monthly Flea Market at the Wahkiakum County Fairgrounds is back so come on down this Saturday, March 13, from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., and find yourself a great deal! There are multiple vendors and lots to choose from, so head this way this Saturday!

SPRING FORWARD--We need to "Spring Forward" this Sunday, March 14. While many are still wanting the "Fall Back, Spring Forward" routine to come to an end, so far, those folks have been ignored and we're still dealing with the "might show up late, might show up early" routine. There are pros and cons to both plans I guess, but for now, it's just up to us to deal with it, but all I know is, I'm really going to miss that hour of sleep that I supposedly gained this past Fall!

DOING BETTER--I was happy to hear from Linda Stiltz, who says she and her hubby seem to be recovering and feeling like they can join the human race once again, so we were happy to hear that bit of good news. You may recall that they had gotten Covid earlier and both had a real rough time, with Linda having to be life-flighted to a Vancouver hospital, so we are sure glad she's back home and feeling so much better now. Here's hoping they both stay on the path to recovery with no extra trips back to the hospital.

GOOD JOB--I have to say, my experience for receiving the Covid vaccine was certainly a positive one. The whole procedure was run with great efficiency I thought, with a bit of paperwork to fill out, a short wait, a quick and easy shot process and then just a 15 minute wait at the end to make sure one didn't have any immediate side effects, so hey, easy peasy! Kudos to all those who have helped out in making this busy time run so smoothly, as it takes mulitple people to make this assembly line vaccination process run smoothly. Good job, everyone!

GREAT PAGE--The Wahkiakum County Photography Page on Facebook is run by photographer, Rene Westbrook, and has really grown, up to almost 600 members now. Just a reminder to everyone who wants to join, you do need to answer the questions asked of you to become a member. It's a great group to showcase your photos of our beautiful area and everyone enjoys all the gorgeous sunsets and sunrises, and animals, etc., so no matter what you're using to obtain such gorgeous pictures, it's just fine. It's all about showcasing the area's many wonderous views so we hope those who join will respectfully obey the "non rules" other than answering a few questions. I have to say, those living in areas where they see and are able to photograph those stunning colors during these recent sunsets, are truly blessed.

Our local Skamokawa Resort owner, Shannon Britt has posted some truly awesome photos of sunsets lately so we appreciate her sharing them with us. Just another reminder to spread the word to those who would love to visit our local area and have a great place to stay and enjoy an absolutely gorgeous view while they're here, the resort is a perfect place to stay!

NEW OWNERS--Just wanted to give a shout out to Ronnie Rhyner and her partner, Becca, as they are now the proud owners of the Skamokawa Farmstead Creamery here in Skamokawa, once owned by Vicki Allenback. We were happy to see someone come in and take over this dairy and keep all the "kids" happy and continue on the cheese making and such. I hear Becca is in charge of making the lotions and soaps out of the goat milk as well, so those items will be available to purchase too. Ronnie and Becca say you are welcome to stop by and check out all their new "kids" as they just had triplets, and if you're a Facebook user, you can like their page and keep up with how they're doing via their video clips. Welcome to the neighborhood, neighbors!

ST. PADDY'S DAY--Next Wednesday is the big day, as it's the day to wear green and chow down on some Irish delights! Now lest you forget, I'm here to remind you that in order to avoid getting a "pinch" while you're out and about, you've got to be wearing some green! So, whether you're Irish or not, it's a good excuse to have a "green" party, and enjoy a green beer or two along with that Corned Beef dinner, (check your local eateries for specials) so here's hoping all of you have a very Happy St. Patrick's Day! And that's no blarney!

GO MULES--Here's hoping all of our sports teams are continuing to do well in their respective games and some games that had to be canceled will resume soon for one and all. Go Mules, Go!

GOOD DEEDS?--Lots of folks are still being generous to various groups and organizations that are struggling right now, and once again, I'd like to say "kudos" to all of you who do, but I'm still asking for a favor when it comes to one of our county's treasures, and that's our WC Historical Museum in Cathlamet. Work is underway to install the kinder lighting (old fixtures can ruin historical items) and there's work to be done to get the "new" display cases useable, as they need some new glass shelves, etc. So, if you have it in your heart to spare a little cash, it sure would be great if you could send some to the historical society so that this job could be completed. You can send your donation to WCHS at 65 River Street, Cathlamet, WA 98612. If we all could give a little, it could add up to a lot, and it sure would be appreciated, so that this "house of history" can continue to live on in our county. Your help would truly be appreciated!

OUT OF THE PAST--This week back in 1946, the first few days were wet and cold, and even snow appeared on March 15, so it was not so nice. Luckily, the weather turned out real nice the next couple of days, so that helped lift everyone's spirits.

The week began with the WHS senior girls being guests at a banquet held for them by the Business and Professional Women's club in Cathlamet, which began with a dinner at city hall. The theme of the evening was "Our Women, Yesterday and Tomorrow" and the guest speaker was Mrs. Julia Butler Hansen, and she spoke on the topic of "The Pioneer Women of Cathlamet." The current president of the club, Mrs. Leona Quarles, spoke to the girls about the purpose and aims of the club. A piano solo was given by Alene Mooers. The girls had taken part in an essay contest, with their theme being, "Our World to Build" and first and second prize winners of the contest were named with Joyce Mooers coming in first and Alene Mooers coming in second and both would be entered in the state contest. General Chairman of the event that evening was Mrs. Maren Tholo, with her three assistants: Mrs. Donna Hutton, Mrs. Herbert Springer and Mrs. Adene Feiring, who were all given high praise for the manner in which the evening events had been arranged and presented.

The war department notified a local family, Mr. and Mrs. Frank Miller, that their son, Frank L. Miller, who had been killed in 1945 in Okinawa, would be receiving the Purple Heart posthumously. He had also been wounded twice before during his time in the service. His brother, Gracian, had also been in the war and had been in North Africa with the Army air forces, but he had fortunately made it home and was currently working with his father at Miller's Garage in Cathlamet.

The Everests received a letter from their youngest son, Marshall who said he may be coming for a visit from back east the following month, and they were very much looking forward to it.

On March 16, Carol Pedersen and her sons, Ralph, Frank and David, all came over from Puget Island to come to the birthday of their cousin, Gene Healy and then they all went to the show.

The following day, Mr. and Mrs. Cuddy invited the Everests to travel with them to Longview where they went to see the movie, "Leave Her to Heaven" and then went out for dinner. It had been an enjoyable day out of town.

All this according to my Grandma Elsie Everest's diary.