I am Gary, one of Dad's ten children. He was a super Dad. What we didn't get in nurture, we got in structure and boundries. Dad was the ultimate challenge. To conquer Dad was to conquer ones own self. After that, everything was easy.
We didn't need TV. In recent years, I thanked him often for all of the fun we had growing up. His response was, "I had a lot of fun raising ya!"
* From our inner tube and plywood raft - Finley Lagoon, Columbia River, Kennwick, WA
* to the black lights at Christmas, Rockwood, Oregon
* to the Sopwith Camel truck in Rockwood, Oregon
* to Highways and Hedges (Montgomery Street House), NW Portland, Summer '70
* to my first plastic model for my birthday already built by Dad, '30 Ford Model A Roadster Yellow Jacket Monogram, February 1963
* to the World's Fair roller coaster - the Mighty Mouse, Seattle, Spring '62
* to the Dad-made art box full of art supplies, December '69
* to the Big Box swimming pool, 601 NE 181st, Gresham, OR, '66
* to the cardboard-and-tape John Glen Rockets, Kennewick, WA '62
* to the A-frame goat barn, Rockwood, OR '66
* to the eight-foot sailboat kit in Kennewick, Washington
* to the Kumanogawa River in Toyama
* to surfing on air mattresses in Kawailoa, HI
* to his own invention - the swing totter - in Rockwood, Oregon,
Gary Spinnett
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Gary,
ReplyDeleteAbout the inner tube and plywood raft, is that the one that was painted green and sank?
And the Big Box swimming pool, is that the one at the 17905 NE Glisan house where we wanted a swimming pool, so Dad handed me a shovel, and we dug the hole, and Dad lined it with clear pastic? I think that's why I have lower back pain.
And the swing totter in Rockwood. Gary, remember you almost killed yourself on the swing totter - I think it broke, and you did a mid-air flip and landed on your back - very scary!
Steve Spinnett
Actually, the pool you are talking about is at the 601 NE 181st house.
ReplyDeleteSteve Spinnett
The big box pool was the big deep rectangular one made of wood, painted light aqua on the inside, also lined with plastic. It was over my head but we floated on inner tubes.
ReplyDeleteI also was catapulted off the swingtotter & injured myself. Besides getting the wind knocked out of me, I fractured my wrist. It was never treated or diagnosed until I was over 40 when arthritis set in. It's now fused. At the time of injury, Grace made me a sling out of a diaper & Gary made me a crutch out of wood. (I must have hurt my leg too).
Sue Spinnett Horton (#5)