It's Thanksgiving Day in Maple Valley. How can there be a scandal hanging over town when it's time to stir a sense of thankfulness for all the good things that people enjoy and take for granted? If only for a day, the folks who are still very worried about Sylvia Meisner are stepping back to …
Continue reading Scandal at Maple Valley – Episode 18: Thanksgiving Day
I'm thankful for cereal. Where would we be without cereal? Where would parents be without cereal. Cereal answers so many life questions, it's almost a miracle. In the cereal aisle I'm like a kid in a toy store five days before Christmas. What do you eat when you don't know what to eat? Cereal. What …
I'm thankful for coffee. I love coffee. I always have. I really love hot chocolate, but if I had to choose between one or the other or never have it again, I would choose coffee. I think I was four the first time I had coffee. I've been hooked ever since. I associate different flavors …
I really hate to say this, but life has moved on in Maple Valley. Sylvia Meisner has been missing for five months. All the arguing has stopped, thankfully. The summer tourist season everyone looked forward to has ended. The Founders Day Celebration now seems forgotten. The Old General is being prepared to take visitors to …
Continue reading Scandal At Maple Valley – Episode 17: Death in Maple Valley
It would be a tough task to say something about Bronner's CHRISTmas Wonderland, in Frankenmuth, Michigan, that hasn't already been said, written, broadcasted, and reported many times over. Even for those who find Christmas to be something other than "the most wonderful time of the year," Bronner's is special. Open 361 days each year, my …
I have always loved camping. But I have a serious question. Why? Why do people move themselves to another location for maybe just a few days, take everything they have to so they can do all the things they do at home somewhere else, use a smaller stove, smaller sink, public toilet and shower, and …
I'm thankful for hobbies. Anyone who follows "A Coffee State of Mind" knows my main hobby is model railroading. I've written about it many times. I started with HO trains when I was fifteen. For Christmas that year I received a small "HO train set" that included an engine that didn't run right, five cars, …
The Maple Valley Short Line RR is now operational. I can successfully run two trains simultaneously on two long lines. The outer loop rises to four inches at 2% starting at the Maple Valley River Bridge. The inner line completes a circuit by passing through two tunnels, crossing the Maple Valley River, and winding through …
Continue reading Wiring the Maple Valley Short Line – Part 2
I'm thankful for hot chocolate. Does anyone not like hot chocolate? Does hot chocolate mean the same thing to everybody? If you enjoy hot chocolate, how do you like it? With whipped cream? Marshmallows? With a little bit of something else? Do you prefer real hot chocolate made with milk? If you prefer instant hot …
I'm thankful for hunting. Well, at least, memories of hunting. Monday is the first day of firearm deer season. When I was young I used to get almost physically ill with anticipation of going deer hunting. Until I was old enough to carry a real gun, my BB gun was my companion. I don't like …
A Coffee State of Mind 