Early this year, the family drove north to Canada, making it up to Calgary, and hitting Yellowstone and Glacier along the way. Near Edmonton, they got a ride on a snow tractor to the top of the Columbia Glacier. Daughter Julie wandered off and fell partway into a crevasse. Bob and Ruth managed to rescue her before she was lost.

While following the Columbia River, Bob saw a road grader ahead, and drove near the edge of the road. The surface was not too firm, so it gave way, and the car, a red '51 Ford convertible, went over the edge and into the Columbia River. Fortunately, the rear tires kept the entire car from entering the water. The road grader pulled the car out and they were able to continue.

Later in Canada, they drove on a very rough road - the Canabaska Hwy (sp?), and blew out 3 tires. They had to drive on the rims part of the way so they could get back to civilization. They purchased the local 6-ply Canadian tires, but this cleaned them out, so they had to turn around and go home at that time.

Ruth continued fixing up the house, working, and raising her 2 toddlers. The family went to the newly open Disneyland this year.

During the Christmas holidays, Ruth became pregnant.

Bob recalls:

In 1955 I visited San Martinez Chiquita Canyon where an old hand dug water well served a level 10 acre parcel. Due to neighbors boring deeper wells and to the increased population in the area. it was necessary for the resident to deepen this dug well. The 200 foot deep well was 6 feet square timbered with redwood. to ground level. His do-it-yourself method started by erecting a braced timber gallows supporting a pulley block over the hole. 300 feet of 3/4 inch hemp rope threaded through the block with a hook down the hole and a hook for his car,driven by his wife was used. He rode a 50 gallon bucket down the hole, his wife backing the car according to signals made to her by his son at the top of the hole. At the bottom, he with pick and shovel loaded the bucket and signaled it to be lifted to the surface, he waiting below while his wife drove, his son dumped the diggings , bucket sometimes going down with timbers to extend down the bracing, this routine repeated hundreds of times to lower the bottom a few feet each day. Not many people will accept these working conditions today.

In 1947,when Ruth and I were starting the house on Landa Street, we did something similar. I bought 300 feet of 3/4 inch hemp rope and a pulley block which I tied to an oak tree above our building site. I had delivered to the curb 5 cubic yards of mixed rock and sand. I had also a sheet of aluminum, 3 x 6 feet which I made a sled with pine sides. Ruth drove the car down Landa Street while I loaded the sled, walked it up, dumped it, pulled it empty down while Ruth backed up, we repeating the routine many times to get the 5yards and30 bags of portland cement up the hill.

Bob recalls that in a minor traffic collision with no apparent damage, where both drivers agreed to dismiss the incident, that: 1) the other driver later decided to get his insurance to pay to fix a scratch, and found he needed to file a police report, which he did. 2) The state of OR sent Bob a letter asking him to show up in court, which he ignored. Hence the state of OR may still want him back.