Muleskinner, Until I went to 8th grade none of the schools had any kind of equipment except swings with slidesand monkey bars. For the 8th grade they bussed us into Manistique to the high school which also had the 8th grade. There was a gym
there but 8th graders couldn't use it. That was my first year of getting hot lunch at school. At the time this pic was
taken we lived at the end of a dead-end road about a mile off the highway and in the woods. One of my chores was to keep
the woodbox full for the cookstove. One of those that had a water resiviour on one side and a long warming shelf across the top. Most of my time was spent in the woods with my dog, learning to trail animals, making bows and arrows, sling shots, carving toy guns, and climbing trees. There was a beaver dam there and I'd sneak up close on my belly and watch
the beavers. Also learned how to kill my first porky and snare rabbits, which were both food for the table. That was one of the few places we lived in that had electricity and in evenings we listened to stories like The Lone Ranger, Roy
Rogers, Straight Arrow, Tom Mix, and the Shadow.
When I was 13 years old i started working for the school teacher in Gulliver weeding her flower and vehetable garden.
For about 4 hours a day and 3or 4 days a week. Saved my money and bought a used bike. We had no car so I really was proud of that bike. After I got the bike I could ride into Gulliver and play with the kids there. Done a lot of swimming
and ice skating in winter. When I was 14 I sterted working for our church We had a one room church with metal folding
chairs. It was my job to make sure the floor was swept, the chairs were lined up straight with a hymnbook on every
other chair. I'd ride to the church on my bike before each meeting and get it ready for each service. Besides the
Sunday morning service there was a Midweek prayer service on wednesdays. In colder weather I'd turn up the heat on
the oil space heater so it would be warm for the services. I made a dollar and a quarter a week for doing that.
i was the only one of any of by friends that had a job outside of home and that made me feel pretty good.
Like Fossis, we made stilts too. Then one day I started to see how high I could make them. On the ones that we had,
the blocks were about a foot off the ground. The first high pair had the blocks about 3 feet up. Then I kept raising the
heights until the blocks were about 6 feet above the ground, To get on them, I had to be on a ladder. Then to get
off, I'd just shove outward and drop to the ground. I have a photograph of me on a pair about that high that I made
after we moved down here.
Thanks alot for your interest.
bbqbull, Yup, this school is on the south side of Highway 2 with a building across the road that looks just about like it.
The minister of our church lived there. Two of his daughters are in this pic.
Thanks for looking.
Ray
