The Adventures of Nellie and Doris: All the Rest and Yet So Many More

 

When I was almost 24, we moved to Portland. We rented a small two-bedroom house that sat on a corner. The property sort of blended into the streets because there were no sidewalks--those didn't arrive for several years. We had plenty of yard because the landlord also owned the empty lot next door. Adding to the yard, our house sat back from the street. We had a line of trees along one street and a lovely blooming cherry tree in front of the house. Of course, all those trees went away when the county put in sidewalks.

Our house was small and a bit drafty. This was because at one time a former tenant's car was parked too close to the house and slid under it. Without rugs, wind rushed through the flooring. Under the house was actually an unfinished basement, if you’d call it that.  Besides mud and bricks and other debris from the side of the house, that’s where the water heater hung out. And the opossum and feral cats, and so on. But the rent was only $130 a month, which the landlord never raised in the 15 years my sons and I lived there, so what did one expect?

Nellie lived across the street in a nice three-bedroom mid-century modern house that she and Bobby bought a few years before we moved there. Nellie was about 28 when we moved into the neighborhood. In a sense, we grew up together with our kids the same ages and we were pretty close in age as well. 

She was the best friend I could ever have. That woman never said no to any of my crazy ideas. 

     *Hey! Let’s walk up to Mt Scott Park and roller skate!

     *Hey! Let’s walk to Dairy Queen for exercise and treat ourselves with a Peanut Buster Parfait!

     *Hey! Why don’t we go get those special donuts and eat them while hiding from the kids!

And I could always count on Nellie for great adventures.

There was the time she noticed someone in my house when no one was home. And then helped me deal with the police. Or the time she saw movement in the house, called Big Earnie, a state trooper, to go check it out…only to have him escort my son to school. 

The time someone stole my car and she was shocked when I yelled out, “Where’s my car!?!”  She had watched it drive away, thinking it was me in the drivers seat.

And let’s not forget the time the neighborhood kids filled my car with crumpled newspapers and put a “Just Married” sign on the car. 😁

How about the times she and our neighbor Shirley would see me get out a ladder in order to get something off the roof and come running over to make sure I never went up that ladder just in case my clumsy self didn’t fall.

And the talking. And laughing. And crying. And did I mention laughing?

All the attempts to lose weight—we tried TOPS and that chocolate candy that hinders appetite. Dang those chocolates were not very good but better than nothing.  One before meals was recommended but a bit more of the chocolate couldn’t hurt…. Weight Watchers was our most frequent attempt. Measuring, weighing, eating.

 

 And, of course, the store. The neighborhood Kwik Mart. I’d visit her while she worked. She’d visit me while I worked. We’d both clean up the shelves, or “face” the products together while the store wasn’t busy. Heck, we’d both face the shelves at Tradewell up the street when we’d shop there. Habit 😂

 

We didn’t see as much of each other after I moved up north of town, but we kept in touch.  When her nephew Winston died and she was afraid I was also gone, I rushed to her. And there we were, laughing and crying and talking. When she had a stroke, I rushed to the hospital to be with her. And there we were, laughing and crying and talking.

Her diagnosis of pancreatic cancer was a shock to us all. I spent time with her when she was back in hospital, twice driving through the ice and snow. Her sister, Mary, and Nellie and I would be laughing and talking. I’d save my crying for the drive home.

Nellie hung in there at home for many many months on Hospice Care after she stopped chemotherapy, often surrounded by her children, grandkids, great grandees. I would call every few days and ask if she wanted company. She often did and I’d come over and chatter, bringing our memories together to the surface. I was fortunate to be with her earlier on the day she died. One more adventure, this time without me.

While it’s impossible to write every adventure we ever had—so many forgotten, so many memories lost—my sweetest times with this remarkable woman were just every day every way every moment. 

And now I have these simple words to remember my friend. We did grow old together, just not old enough.

and so it goes~~~

peace

The Adventures of Nellie and Doris: The One About Nights

Recently Missy reminded me of how Nellie and the kids ate dinner with their dad. Bobby worked nights while Nellie tended to the family or worked at the store during the day. The kids had little opportunity to see their dad as they were in school while he was sleeping in the daytime.

So, Nellie would cook dinner, pack it up, and then toss the kids into the back of their camper-shelled truck. They had made a bit of a camper in the back, including a table, chairs, and a bitty sink area. Then they would drive out to Bobby's work and all together they would have dinner. Every night they drove the 10+ miles up to Swan Island in North Portland. Brilliant!

Now, I am a person who needs to write about or talk out problems and issues in order to work them out. Since I was going to school days and working nights, I had little time to chat with anyone. Nellie would often come over to the store for a visit (and sometimes give me a potty break), but the neighborhood store was often too busy to really talk. So, I would call her many nights for these chats.

Nellie was a great listener. I'd call after she had gone to bed--Nellie was a very early riser. She had to get up in time to make Bobby's breakfast and then get the kids off to school, right? Therefore, she was an early bedder. I'd usually call when I went to bed and she would answer and let me talk. She would put in an occasional "Uh Huh" so I could know she was listening. And I'd talk about that guy who fathered my sons, or the guy who broke my heart. Or the guy I was falling for. You know...issues!

Now here's the real adventure.... 

Probably everyone in the world knew that Nellie slept in the nude. I mean she wasn't secret about it, so we just figured she had cover-ups when she went into the rest of the house. She didn't flaunt it, but we *wink wink* knew. What I never realized was that the house had only one phone--on the kitchen wall. None in her bedroom. So when I called--after everyone had gone to bed--she'd come out of the bedroom into the hall, out into the living room, and sit naked on the couch while I chattered, lamented, complained. For long periods of time. 

Now I wonder if she had at least a blanket during the cold nights...

Nellie was such a great person. She never complained that I called and she had to jump out of bed to sleepily sit starkers on that couch with a phone glued to her ear. For long periods of time. 

No, she was my friend, a wonderful star. No complaints from her. 

None from me when she needed to take a nap after she got off work weekends at 3:00p--I mean there were often about 500 people living and staying at her house--as I just started my shift. So, she would come to my house when my sons were gone, visiting their father, to take a nice long nap on my water bed. 

No complaints when I would go to her house to visit after the kids headed off to school when we should have been doing housework. 

No complaints when her dog, Sunkist, would come sleep at my house (you know...those 500 people across the street) while I studied or dusted or something.

We never complained about one another because we loved one another. We were all about laughter and adventures and teasing and raising kids and bitching about family people. 

No complaints.
Always love.

and so it goes...
peace~~~

The Adventures of Nellie and Doris: The One with All the Food

That first spring after we moved into our little place in SE Portland, I decided we needed to meet the neighbors. We invited the families around us for a neighborhood potluck.

Everyone brought tables and outdoor chairs, plates and silverware, cups. We lay it all out on our front yard--the best open space around the corner. 

Shirley made the taco salad. Nellie made the macaroni salad and fried some chicken. I made something, probably chili. I made chocolate chip cookies. Shirley made a fruit pie. And Nellie made something gooey and yummy.

The adults ate and laughed. What a great idea! And kids ran around free as the birds, or as the monkeys, chasing and laughing. What a great idea!

We continued this neighbor get-together over the years. After we went up Mt. Hood and picked huckleberries--Shirley made the pie for us that time. After one of the kids did something to celebrate. And along the way, we added people to the group.  Candy and Bill--owned the little market across the street. Whatever fella I was dating at the time. Friends of the kids.

And Shirley made the taco salad. Nellie made the macaroni salad and fried up some chicken. And Candy brought the coleslaw. And I made chocolate chip cookies and probably some chili.

And later we moved the potluck to Mt Scott Park and included the same old people, but added kids' spouses and kids' kids. And then it expanded to include kids' kids' kids. And Shirley made the taco salad. Nellie made the macaroni salad and fried up some chicken. And Candy brought the coleslaw. And I made chocolate chip cookies and black bean chili.

And again we moved this annual get-together to Home Town Buffet. After some of the people had sadly left us, as well as the adults getting older, it became easier to meet indoors--until Pandemic hit.

These days we met at Olive Garden, just Candy and Nellie and Mary and me. Candy et al would have the soup and salad. I'd have salad and bread sticks :) 

The final get-together with Nellie was celebrating Christmas last year in 2023. We had Shirley's kids and partners, Nellie and Mary, Candy and me. 

And so it goes.
peace~~~

The Adventures of Nellie and Doris: The One With the Roadtrip

It all started when I graduated with my Bachelor's Degree from Portland State University. I graduated with a degree in Speech Communication, in Sociology, and a minor in Journalism. I was an over achiever....

Not long afterwards, my long-time partner left me. In my devastation, I immediately cut my hair--why do women always cut their hair?--and tried to think what I could do to start over with my life. The same-ole same-ole just didn't sit well. I needed to get away and start over, bringing my sons along with me to our new lives.

Nellie and I talked over what I could do and we came up with a real change for my life. I could move to Southern Oregon and live as a free-lance journalist. I had been working as a columnist for a local paper, ghost writer for a local political figure, as well as a news journalist for the Vanguard. I was offered a house rent-free (for tending the house) on the Klamath Indian Reservation. I thought I could do it. So, Nellie and I decided to drive down to Sprague River to see the house and meet the neighbors.

As we both worked at Candy's Kwik Shop on the weekends, we were granted permission by Bill and Candy to take the weekend off. We grabbed the kids, tossed them into the back of the truck camper-shell, packed up some food, and took off.  Nellie's brother Dan wanted to come along, so the three adults crammed into the cab. Off we headed out the 278 miles.

At about 45 miles south, the truck started acting up. We pulled into a gas station in Salem to see what was the problem.  Oooops! It was the radiator! To repair, it would be an overnight wait. What to do. What to do.

Nellie and I looked at one another, looked at the truck, looked back at one another and said in unison, "Well, we are already almost half way there...let's hit the road!" And off the truck-load of people went, continuing the trip south.

We did okay along I-5. If needed, we would pull off the freeway and get water at a gas station, then roll back onto the freeway.  A few miles south of Eugene, we exited the freeway onto Highway 58, also known as Willamette Highway.  This route runs southeast to Klamath Falls, a "short-cut from driving I-5 all the way down the Willamette Valley and turning east: more like an "L". Hwy 58 just by-passes all the main towns as it gently moves across the mountains. It is a scenic roadway will goes over the Cascade Range, past beautiful alpine lakes and sparkling reservoirs, and through two national forests. 

We headed across Oregon along this gorgeous road. As a side note, Dan'l was quite the mischievous guy. I loved Dan so much. He always made me laugh and was simply full of life.  But he had a little trouble with the law.... In the cab of the truck, we sat with Nellie driving, me in the middle, and Dan'l shotgun. When he'd see a car heading toward us, he'd duck down just in case it was a cop and that cop could catch a glimpse of Dan, recognize him (both cars going 65 mph), and turn around to arrest him.  For what? Who knows. So Dan'l would duck down to hide, leaving Nellie and I to look like romantic partners. Yeah, it was a game, right? We all laughed a lot on this trip.

Now, the radiator.... It didn't heal itself and here we were on a gorgeous scenic route going through two national forests.... Yes, the truck heated over and what could we do? Well, lookie here! There was fresh snow on the side of the highway! So, we'd pull over and everyone would jump out--adults from the cab and all four kids from the back camper-shell. And we'd search for trash with which we could pick up snow. We found a couple cans, a plastic sandwich container, and maybe a cup or two. And everyone would grab up what snow we could and that was how we cooled off the radiator. Every few miles. We'd simply pull over and the circus would start up again, us looking a bit like the Keystone Cops.

We were all still laughing when we hit Klamath Falls--Nellie and Dan's parents lived there--and immediately took the truck to the repair place. After dinner with their family, we all settled in for the night.

The next day we went to the reservation for a tour. It was a grand place. The house was a simple mid-century model, one level. The yard opened up to the rest of the homes. It would be a good place to start over.

The trip home was uneventful. Dan'l stayed down in Klamath Falls, so no drama with approaching cars and possible cops. The radiator was repaired, so no snow bunnies hopping along gathering snow. We arrived back in Portland, unloaded the truck, and went back to our everyday lives.

As another side note, my sons did not want to move from their home and their father sued me for custody. The process was much too painful for my sons, so I decided to stay where we were and simply move through the dramas in my life. And we all lived happily ever after.

My beloved friend, my wonderful Nellie. I will always miss your grace and quiet humor, your desire to go along with whatever I said we could do, your laughter. Your beautiful soul. And our adventures will live on always in my heart.

 

and so it goes
peace~~~

The Adventures of Nellie and Doris: The One on the Fourth of July

 

 

It was such a great day, playing at the lake, eating great food, and mostly, hanging with friends. July 4, 1980 (or so...what's a year or two anyway?).

Scott, Baby Boo, me

Nellie and I thought it would be fun to head up to Salmon Creek for the day, and then watch fireworks at Fort Vancouver that night. So we went all out.  Mary--Nellie's sister--and Doug and family all came. Nellie and Bobby and family all came. And my friend Scott, my sons and April--our little Baby Boo--came.  Scott and I often took Baby Boo (our neighbor's grandgirl) with us to fun places.

Mary and Nellie and hubs

Nellie made the macaroni salad and fried the chicken--this I can swear to because she always did that.  We probably had beans and taco salad and chips. Lots of chips. And a bunch of dessert stuff. Food was one of our great pleasures. Laughing and eating and enjoying ourselves.

 

We spent the day swimming and playing. The kids ran around like crazy, and Baby Boo was the darling of the group. Everyone, even the kids, rolled around with her. 

As the day wore on,  we decided it was time to head down to Vancouver so we could get good seats at the fort. I love fireworks and am the oooher and ahhher in the crowd. We were looking forward to the wonderful show and Scott and I were looking forward to seeing Boo's reaction to the fireworks. Everyone was excited.

We arrived at the fort and found parking. Everyone jumped out of their truck or car and my kids from Scott's van. It was specially made with a ramp so Scott's could escape in his wheelchair. I started to lower the ramp for Scott to exit and the ramp stopped. Just stopped. It wouldn't lower. It just sat there open but up in the air. Bobby and Doug looked over the ramp and couldn't figure out how to lower the ramp. He was stuck! 

The kids were disappointed that we had to leave; so, we decided they chould stay with Nellie and Mary, including Baby Boo, so they could watch the show.  Scott and I decided we would drive over to Bill and Candy's place (owners of our store) and have Bill fix the ramp. Like my dad, Bill could fix anything.

Well, anything except the ramp, that is. No go. Nada. Too bad; so sad. What the heck...we might as well stay on the street and watch the neighborhood firework show that Bill and the neighbors were presenting. Scott stayed on the open ramp and I stood around the van. After a bit we decided to head downtown where Scott lived in hope of figuring out how we could get him out of his van.

The Fort Vancouver fireworks were over around 9:00 and my kids and April Boo and all the Nellie family, headed home.  Boo was returned to her grandmother and my sons were put to bed.

And what were Scott and I doing all this while? Why, we were entertaining the local firefighters. That's who we had to call in order to rescue Scott. After some thinking and trying, he was finally put on the ground. We waved and thanked the firefighters and headed to his apartment. He went to bed and I headed home to my family.

As the years go by, the adventures of Nellie and I were able to continue. The two of us continued to do crazy fun silly things. Sometimes Nellie would end up with all the kids with me following her lead in the world. Sometimes I ended up with the kids and Nellie followed my lead into the world. But always together. We always had the best of times. Always.

And so it goes
peace~~~