Wyoming Breezes

Canadian Pay Phones photo by Sheila N. July 2013 Sheila snapped this photo while on a recent trip to Canada with her husband and another couple. These two Canadian phones are in much better shape than this phone in Douglas, WY . Have you spotted any pay phones in your community recently?

Of course the carnival animals put on a big show of smiling for the general public. However,  I was witness to the "behind the scenes" treatment of the animals, and it was not a pleasant.  Warning : those with weak stomachs should not read any further. Small children may be traumatized by the following scene. . . I heard muffled cries and whimpers coming from these bags. If carnival personnel hadn't been in the area, I would have rushed forward to free these poor animals. I feared for my own safety, as brazen carnival workers displayed the stuffed bags practically in front of the Sheriff's Office.  PETA was nowhere in sight, but this photo is evidence of the inhumane treatment of carnival animals. We must put a stop this abuse!

Open Class entries Fremont County Fair Riverton, WY July/August 2013 I entered 13 items in the County Fair: some in Open Class and some in Fiber Arts. Open Class entries could be made with any type of fiber; however, the Fiber Arts entries required a natural fiber content. Open Class entries, ribbon and premium awarded: Spring Violets Vest - blue ribbon - $6 Baby Surprise Jacket - blue ribbon - $6 February Socks - blue ribbon - $6 Vintage Doily - blue ribbon - $6 Holiday Apron - blue ribbon - $6 Fiber Arts entries Fremont County Fair Riverton, WY July/August 2013 Fiber Arts entries, ribbon and premium awarded: Reader's Wrap - red ribbon - $5 Fraternal Twin socks - red ribbon - $5 Rainbow socks - blue ribbon - $6 Headband - fourth place - $3 Sky Scarf/Cowl - fourth place - $3 Dishtowel - fifth place - $2 Dahlia doily - blue ribbon - $6, Best of Show rosette - $40 Vintage d...

Dahlia awarded blue ribbon and Best of Show at Fremont County Fair Riverton, WY July/August 2013 I had two unexpected surprises at the fair: my doilies each won rosettes and a $40 award. Since I was gone the last two years when the fair entry forms were due, I was unable to enter Dahlia ; thus, I entered it this year. It not only received a blue ribbon but the Best of Show Rosette as well. The competition was stiff, so I am beyond honored to receive this award. People's Choice Award Fremont County Fiber Guild Vintage Pattern Challenge Fremont County Fair Riverton, WY July/August 2013 Since the fair was celebrating its 100th anniversary, the Fiber Guild had a vintage pattern challenge. Fair-goers voted on the items guild members displayed in the challenge. I had no idea that my vintage doily had won until I picked up my items at the end of the fair. It was a pleasant surprise. Mrs. Canon, who introduced me to knitting doilies, would be proud. The story of Mrs....

Baby Surprise Jacket started and finished - July 2013 approx. size 2 or 3T The buttons on this Baby Surprise Jacket were sewn on the morning entries were due at the County Fair. I knit the collar at the Community Band concert the night before - nothing like coming right down to the wire. Yarn: 2 skeins Plymouth Encore (color #517) Needles: size 8 circular Pattern: Baby Surprise Jacket by Elizabeth Zimmerman. awarded a blue ribbon Fremont County Fair Riverton, WY

Lt. Col. Ralph Stevens and Susan Cope (rank unknown) Misawa AFB Officer Bowling League Fall 1979 One activity on base that helped me socialize with those outside of the school/teacher circle was the Officer Bowling League. An Army Lt. Colonel, Ralph (shown above) was the captain of my team; he commonly said, "One for the team. . ." when members clipped only one pin from a spare. Ralph got married in the Spring of 1980: it was the first and only military wedding I've attended. The ceremony was held at the Club Mutsu (officer's club), and when he and his bride exited the building, they passed through a line of raised sabers. I found this site which has old and new photos of the main buildings on Misawa AFB, many of the old photos were taken about the time that I was in Japan.   In the basement of the Mutsu was the officer's bar called Davy Jones' Locker. Upstairs was a restaurant that was open on weekends. A large bar on the main floor was only used for...

Susan's Woven Stripes started July 17, 2013 Sheila's mother, Susan is an artist with a crochet hook and knitting needles. She creates everything from lacy crochet doilies to baby blankets. Her hands and mind are rarely idle. In the last year, I've taken my knitting bag and knit with Susan a few times. It was during one of those visits that I saw the numerous Woven Stripes blankets she knit. Susan adapted Woven Stripes from some other patterns, and her stack of notes in a file folder prove it. In the folder are large and small papers covered with notes and various stitch counts that she has tried over the years. On a recent visit, Susan shared her pattern with me. It is a fun knit. More than half the blanket is knit, but I don't have a current photo to share. The small ball of yarn shown on the left is used to knit the left border of the blanket. The other yarn sources are alternated every two rows. The woven stripes are created with slipped stitches. I love...

Bubblegum Western Region Oddball Baby Blanket started May 2013 Needles: size 9 Stitches: 106 Yarn for my section: Caron Simply Soft Stitch pattern for my section: Checks and Ridges Update : October 23, 2013

Display outside Safeway grocery store Riverton, WY July 2013 Fourteen pallets of Pepsi products were used to build the display outside the local Safeway store to celebrate the Riverton Rendezvous and Fremont County Fair. It reportedly took the beverage company most of the day to create the display. Pepsi products are manufactured and bottled/canned by Admiral Beverage in Worland, Wyoming.

TOPS #1 Riverton, WY July 2013 I have always loved watching the County Fair Parade, but this year I was actually in the parade. The Fair is celebrating its 100th anniversary, and coincidently, the Riverton Take Off Pounds Sensibly (TOPS) group is celebrating its 50th. The woman in the white shirt started the first TOPS group in Wyoming, right here in Riverton, and she is still an active member of my club. It was fun to see the parade from a different perspective.  To prevent the parade entries from bunching up, the organizers had traffic control at the top of High School Hill. They enjoyed joking with the drivers and those on the floats. This woman wanted the large umbrella we had on the truck. Even though it was overcast, the sun bouncing off of the pavement was hot. Flags and spectators lined the parade route.  It was fun to see the anticipation the the children's faces. Many of the entries threw candy that the children eagerly sc...

Every Spring, my colleagues and I gathered at the airport to say "good-bye" to teachers transferring to another country/base or going back to the USA. We toasted the individuals to wish them safe travel and good fortune in their new assignment.

Old Faithful geyser Yellowstone National Park July 2013 A visit to Yellowstone National Park is not complete without viewing Old Faithful . A portion of the crowd gathered near Old Faithful Inn, waiting for Old Faithful to erupt.  My sisters and I were there along with hundreds of others to watch this somewhat predictable geyser. Even though I've lived in Wyoming all but two years of my life, I've only seen Old Faithful three times. More information about Old Faithful and Old Faithful Inn can be found here  and here .

Hot Air Balloon Rally Riverton, WY July 20, 2013 This was the 33rd year for the  Riverton Rendezvous Balloon Rally , and out of those 33 years the balloons have been grounded only 2 years (last year was one of the two).  This year, the sky was a brilliant blue and cloudless. . .nearly perfect for hot-air balloons. You may remember that I was disappointed that Humpty Dumpty did not fly last year , so I was delighted to see that he was back this year and that his feet actually left the ground. Humpty Dumpty FLEW and SOARED and had LOTS of company. . . even those that came from far, far, away! Previous posts and photos of the rally can be seen here .

Light Me Up Western Region Oddball Baby Blanket started April 2013 It was fun to add the last section to this colorful blanket. Needles - size 10 Stitches - 128 Yarn for my section: Caron Simply Soft (Blue Mint) Stitch used for my section: Box Stitch Update: September 9, 2013

Wild Bison Yellowstone National Park July 2013 Last Sunday while my sisters were visiting, we made a road trip to Yellowstone National Park. We saw some beautiful country and some pretty stupid people. The buffalo behind the man in the photo came up from the river, not more than 10 feet from this crazy man who no doubt wanted the "perfect" photo. Many tourists don't understand the concept that the animals roaming in Yellowstone National Park are wild and dangerous. Every year, buffalo gore (and sometimes kill) tourists who do not heed the National Park Service warnings to keep their distance from the animals in the Park. Despite their size, buffalo can move quickly. Note the twitching tail, flattened ears, and wide eyes of the buffalo in the first photo - all signs of an agitated animal. For the record, ALL of the photos in this post were taken from inside the vehicle. Taken from the safety of the vehicle not more than 60 feet from the man in the p...