Christmas in Maple Valley has come and gone. Intense anticipation in the weeks before Christmas keeps everyone in good moods and actions with lots of "Merry Christmas" and "Happy New Year" greetings in the streets and shops. Hundreds of visitors came to town on The Old General just to take in the sights and sounds …
Continue reading Scandal at Maple Valley – Episode 20: The Bat Suit
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 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
Stories are swirling in Maple Valley. This isn't new to anyone who lives here. News in Maple Valley means people are talking about things that other people wouldn't consider to be news at all. But because Maple Valley is such an important tourist destination for thousands every year, we tend to think things that happen …
Continue reading Scandal At Maple Valley – Episode 16: Miss Wonderment
A real miracle happened in Maple Valley! A miracle to the folks who live here at least. Do you remember Randy Herbdahl? Of course not. Probably no one outside of Maple Valley knows who Randy Herbdahl is, but everyone here knows him. Six weeks ago, Randy Herbahl was the least favorite person in town. He …
Continue reading Scandal at Maple Valley – Episode 14: Founder’s Day Celebration
It was really only a matter of time before the search for Sylvia Meisner became more serious. Oh, not that folks haven't been serious already, they are. They're serious about a lot of things like taking care of all the visitors to Maple Valley that arrive, literally, by the trainload every day. They're serious about …
Continue reading Scandal at Maple Valley – Episode 13: Sylvia Meisner’s House
In case you haven’t been following the news in Maple Valley on a regular basis, I will fill you in. Sylvia Meisner disappeared nearly a month ago. Several people saw and spoke to her one day, she was gone the next. In fact, figuring out who the last person to speak to Sylvia actually was …
Quintin O'Dillmotte's alarm clock screams at 4:30 a.m. He wants to be the first one up, the first one on the streets, making sure everything is ready for the Maple Valley Independence Day Celebration. He is very proud to be the chairperson of the planning committee for this great event. Overcoming the crape paper disaster …
The last train out of Maple Valley left the center of town at 9:00 p.m. Many visitors stayed all day to help us celebrate the start of tourist season. We expect all of the trains to be full today and all available tickets tomorrow are gone. Two big celebrations within three days means a tremendous …
Quintin O'Dillmotte has been working very hard to bring our town to complete readiness in anticipation of the Maple Valley Independence Day Celebration. Erasing all potential reminders of the crape paper disaster of last year is more important to him than planning for this year. So far, talk about a repeat has been minimal. Everyone …
A Coffee State of Mind 