Chapter 4

Living on this farm in Arizona brings back lots of memories. I remember my first driving experience there. My mother and brother were out in the field and I don't recall why but I could see them in the distance. Now my mother had this big black and yellow Dodge. I think it was a 1958,the ones with the big fins in the rear.

I decided to sit inside and listen to the radio. Well, I had this bright idea of starting it up for the keys were hanging inside. So, I did and put it in gear. My mother happened to look toward the house and saw the car slowly backing up. Naturally, it scared the daylights out of her and she came flying. But I had stopped the car and put it back in park. My dad decided I needed to learn to drive after that. He had an old panel truck and it was a manual transmission. I would have been in 5th grade I think but he taught me well. In a short time I could drive that old panel truck all over the farm and loved it immensely :)

I remember taking Drivers Ed in Indiana when I was 15 and the girl ahead of me chosen to drive first. Back then you learned on a manual transmission and begin in the large high school parking lot. This girl had never driven and we weren't wearing our seat belts. Needless to say after abrupt stop to stop he hit the brakes on the car and made us put them on.  When it came to my turn we buckled up and I took off smooth as silk. He said, "You have driven before." I told him I learned in Arizona when I was young. We went around the parking lot twice and headed out on the road. I enjoyed that summer for it meant the taste of growing up would soon take me to places I alone could explore.  But, I thought that poor girl was never going to get out of that parking lot. LOL

This farm in Tucson had an irrigation ditch that ran in front of it. I enjoyed sitting by this big old tree that was next to it. One day I was sitting there kicking my bare feet in the water and heard something so turned to see what it was. A large water moccasin snake was slithering down the tree beside me. I froze for a minute afraid to move but knew I had to get off the bank before it got to the ground. I got up, jumped over the ditch and ran inside the house and woke up my dad. He brought his gun out with him and shot it. I was very curious as to what it's skin felt like and reached over and touched it. I got in trouble for doing that and had to go inside. LOL

We had this large air conditioning unit that sat on the roof of the house. One early morning we were all awakened by this extremely loud knocking noise that filled the rooms with an awful echo. No one knew what it was or where it was coming from. And then it subsided and was gone. Next morning about the same time it came again. The third day my dad was pretty irate from being awakened so dramatically. He discovered it to be a big woodpecker that had decided to beat on that air conditioning unit. After about a week the sound disappeared because dad eliminated the problem.

Arizona compared to Indiana was a different planet. Tarantula spiders, Gila monsters, Scorpions, lizards, blood spitting horny toads and on and on. But I wasn't afraid to live there and would watch these amazing creatures with wonderment and enjoyed the outdoors whenever I wanted.  My best friend was a Mexican girl named Barbara and at her house I found the wonderful taste of Mexican food. Her mother shared recipes with mine and Aunt Jane and mom would enjoy trying them out. Jane would sew and I remember a Indian Sqaw dress she made that was full of fancy trim. Somewhere there is a picture of that I am still searching for.

I have always enjoyed unusual and simple things in my life and enjoy taking things that look like nothing and transforming it to a piece of beauty. My favorite clothes even today are jeans and cowboy boots. I guess those still remain with me from living out west. I love to drink "Tab" (a diet coke product) that is almost impossible to find. One day I was talking to my doctor and mentioned the drink Tab. He laughed and said "I had a friend in college that drank that... I didn't still know they still made it." LOL  I don't like to wear watches yet always wonder what time it is. I am good on the computer yet have trouble figuring out the buttons on the radio in the car or the television remote. I love going to garage sales and old junk stores or antique shops. I love feeling the history and finding treasures that one has labeled trash.

I get bored with the house if it never changes. Therefore, I move things, or repaint or replace when I feel an urge to grow or just need a fresh feeling around me. If it is something I love and decide to part with I always hope that whoever gets it will feel what I did from it. And yes, I love words yet sometimes in real are very quiet and can't find what I wish to say. What made the net so special for me is the privacy it offered. I am not one to be in front of a large crowd all though I love to perform but in my own home. Sometimes when no one is around is the best time for me to be me. It is rare for me to feel so much freedom with someone I love that I can play to my heart's content.

I enjoy many foods and like to cook but far from a great chef. I can make baskets and a few crafty things but don't enjoy it enough to do it often. LOL  I wish I did. I love to play pool, the game "Horse" in basketball or "Around the World." I am not much of a TV watcher or movie goer. It must grab me from the start before I become a part of it but then it owns me until it is over.

One of my favorite places is a library yet I have read few books to be honest. I have read three poets work in my life. They were Rod McKuen, Emily Dickinson and Merrit Malloy. If it is a book that touches me from the beginning I will not put it down until it is finished. But I could sit in a library all day and write just from the feel of the books on the shelves.

I love listening to music and some songs I use to feel as I paint or write. I find the most creative atmosphere from songs from soundtracks such as "Indecent Proposal" or "Message in A Bottle" etc. There are always these great moving songs to be found and one never knows which one it is until it happens. But I love almost all types of music and depending on my mood will enjoy them all.

"Funny how we grow older and want to experience so much more from life and notice the ticking of the clock is so loud."

©belladora

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