blade310
Member
Down where the end of our back yard met the garden, we had a burn pile.looking down from the house it was on the far right corner. We didn't set anything out for the trash man. Don't even know if there was a trash man. Everything went to the burn pile. once a week my older brother Rick and or myself would haul the trash down there and burn it. Mostly we did it together except in the winter .Then who evers turn it was would be on their own. I remember once In the winter I was the one hauling the trash down to burn it. Usually three or four bags,so alot of times you had to make two trips. In the winter you really wanted to make just one trip. Especially if there was lots of snow on the ground. On this day there was lots of snow on the ground. My dad had given me his zippo and I was to take good care of it. Anytime he gave one of us his lighter we were pretty nervous til we returned it.
I struck the lighter and went to light the trash (usually there was newspaper in it to light). but the wind blew the flame back on my hand and I jerked back and dropped it. Opened. When I turned to bend down and pick it up I kicked snow on it and covered it up. I hurried and dug around and pulled it out. I tried to light it again and it would not light. I knew if I had messed that lighter up I would be in some serious stuff. I couldn't get that thing lit to save me. There was snow in the lid and the wick was wet and it was windy. I stood there for I don't know how long wondering how I was gonna tell my dad I broke his lighter. Finally I heard my dad whistle. My dad was very hardcore about this. If he whistled we dropped what we were doin' and came runnin'. Off I went with that lighter clenched tight in my hand I knew I was a gonner. I started to pucker up. by the time I got close to my dad I had tears in my eyes. " What the ell you doin' down there". That did it.The pressure was to much I started bawlin. Between guffles I told him what had happened. He looked down at me for a second then patted my shoulder and said,"go see if your mom has some matches.
One day in the spring we had been hauling weeds and branches etc to the burn pile and burning it. This had been goin' on most of the day. My dad would rake it up into piles and we would take it to the burn pile and toss it in. We also hauled stuff from the garage and the trash from the house. It was like a burn day.About an hour before dark we were told to watch the fire til it burned down. Then my dad took off. We figured he was headed to a bar. It was always good to be in bed when he got home from the bar.
Rick and I stayed with the fire while Don and Mike headed for the house. Mike was pretty young but always tagged along when we worked in the yard or garden.
I remembered from earlier there were a few cigarette butts that had come out of the trash and were laying around. Just as it was starting to get dark I decided to find one and puff on it. Well I saw one And reached down and picked it up. But it wasn't a cigarette butt. I guess because of the light from the fire and the little bit of light as it was getting dark,it just looked like a cigarette butt. It was part of a smoldering branch
daggonit! Of course Rick went in to a laughing fit. :angry: Remembering this made me think of one day that I was set up at a flea market in southern Ohio. It was about time to pack it up.
But I had not done real good all day so I was staying as long as I could. the people had thinned out til there was only a couple still looking around. A young boy about maybe ten,eleven came by and reached down and grabbed this Item. (it may have been a stainless steel handled pocket knife,or a zippo or a key chain I can't remember for sure.What ever it was,it had been setting in the hot sun all day long)Anyway he picked it up and through it back down real fast and started shaking his hand. I said, "get em' while there hot!". The boy gave me a very,very odd look and turned around and went in side. I found out later his dad had a shop inside. As I was putting my goods away about fifteen minutes later the boy came back with a man and as they came up to my tables I heard the boy say "This is him".I thought,uh oh.I didn't want to tangle with anyone.I was hot and tired and thirsty. I am six foot four and at that time weighed about two twenty. This guy was not a whole lot smaller than me. I don't know if he came out intending to give me a hard time or not but he didn't.alot of times the inside dealers would come out and look around at the end of the day to see if they could get anything at a real bargain. Alot of times people who are set up out side don't want to haul things back home and will let things go real cheap just to get rid of it. What ever the reason,I was glad he didn't start trouble. Every time I think of the expression on that boys face when I said what I said to him,it cracks me up.
One of the things we enjoyed doing while we were burning trash was to get a stick and put it into the mouth of a plastic bottle (Clorox bottle?) and hold it over the fire til it started to catch fire, then we would move it around and drop flaming drops of melted plastic around. In the summer time we always had to stay with the fire til it burned down. This was most always in the evening. One evening we were burning trash in the summer and it was already dark.Rick And Don and I'm sure Mike, and I were there at the burn pile. I don't remember what Rick and I were doin'. And I don't know what mike was doin. He was never in the way but he would be there alot of times just observing. He had a temper though. One time Rick and I had a fairly good size spider in this old aluminum saucer sled.(Do you remember those?) We wouldn't let the spider get out .Every time he tried to climb up to the side we would tilt it far enough so that the spider slid back towards the middle. Mike for some reason wanted to join us and tilt the saucer but we wouldn't let him. His temper got the best of him.He ran up and stomped down on the edge of the saucer and the spider flew up and hit him in the chest and bit him. Mike let out one serious screech and took off for the house just as fast as his little legs would carry him. and of course Rick and I found this to be Knee slappin',side splittin' funny.
Getting back to the burn pile. Don was havin' a ball with the melted jug . It was a fun thing to do. He was all serious, making patterns and going back and forth. When it cooled off enough to stop dripping good he stepped back towards the fire to get it going again and tramped in one of those hot puddles.Barefoot. He didn't just screech,he screamed at the top of his lungs. he was hopping around on one foot holding the other leg by the ankle.The melted plastic was stuck to his foot.I think Rick used something to knock the plastic off but I can't remember for sure though.Don might have went up and got help from mom.I do remember that Rick and I found the humor of this incident to be extra delicious.
I absolutely love to sit by a camp fire.I wonder if this has anything to do with that burn pile, or if maybe its a purely instinctual thing. It doesn't get much better than a good cup of coffee and a nice warm camp fire on a cool evening. Thanks once again for your time and your eyes.
I struck the lighter and went to light the trash (usually there was newspaper in it to light). but the wind blew the flame back on my hand and I jerked back and dropped it. Opened. When I turned to bend down and pick it up I kicked snow on it and covered it up. I hurried and dug around and pulled it out. I tried to light it again and it would not light. I knew if I had messed that lighter up I would be in some serious stuff. I couldn't get that thing lit to save me. There was snow in the lid and the wick was wet and it was windy. I stood there for I don't know how long wondering how I was gonna tell my dad I broke his lighter. Finally I heard my dad whistle. My dad was very hardcore about this. If he whistled we dropped what we were doin' and came runnin'. Off I went with that lighter clenched tight in my hand I knew I was a gonner. I started to pucker up. by the time I got close to my dad I had tears in my eyes. " What the ell you doin' down there". That did it.The pressure was to much I started bawlin. Between guffles I told him what had happened. He looked down at me for a second then patted my shoulder and said,"go see if your mom has some matches.
One day in the spring we had been hauling weeds and branches etc to the burn pile and burning it. This had been goin' on most of the day. My dad would rake it up into piles and we would take it to the burn pile and toss it in. We also hauled stuff from the garage and the trash from the house. It was like a burn day.About an hour before dark we were told to watch the fire til it burned down. Then my dad took off. We figured he was headed to a bar. It was always good to be in bed when he got home from the bar.
Rick and I stayed with the fire while Don and Mike headed for the house. Mike was pretty young but always tagged along when we worked in the yard or garden.
I remembered from earlier there were a few cigarette butts that had come out of the trash and were laying around. Just as it was starting to get dark I decided to find one and puff on it. Well I saw one And reached down and picked it up. But it wasn't a cigarette butt. I guess because of the light from the fire and the little bit of light as it was getting dark,it just looked like a cigarette butt. It was part of a smoldering branch
daggonit! Of course Rick went in to a laughing fit. :angry: Remembering this made me think of one day that I was set up at a flea market in southern Ohio. It was about time to pack it up.But I had not done real good all day so I was staying as long as I could. the people had thinned out til there was only a couple still looking around. A young boy about maybe ten,eleven came by and reached down and grabbed this Item. (it may have been a stainless steel handled pocket knife,or a zippo or a key chain I can't remember for sure.What ever it was,it had been setting in the hot sun all day long)Anyway he picked it up and through it back down real fast and started shaking his hand. I said, "get em' while there hot!". The boy gave me a very,very odd look and turned around and went in side. I found out later his dad had a shop inside. As I was putting my goods away about fifteen minutes later the boy came back with a man and as they came up to my tables I heard the boy say "This is him".I thought,uh oh.I didn't want to tangle with anyone.I was hot and tired and thirsty. I am six foot four and at that time weighed about two twenty. This guy was not a whole lot smaller than me. I don't know if he came out intending to give me a hard time or not but he didn't.alot of times the inside dealers would come out and look around at the end of the day to see if they could get anything at a real bargain. Alot of times people who are set up out side don't want to haul things back home and will let things go real cheap just to get rid of it. What ever the reason,I was glad he didn't start trouble. Every time I think of the expression on that boys face when I said what I said to him,it cracks me up.
One of the things we enjoyed doing while we were burning trash was to get a stick and put it into the mouth of a plastic bottle (Clorox bottle?) and hold it over the fire til it started to catch fire, then we would move it around and drop flaming drops of melted plastic around. In the summer time we always had to stay with the fire til it burned down. This was most always in the evening. One evening we were burning trash in the summer and it was already dark.Rick And Don and I'm sure Mike, and I were there at the burn pile. I don't remember what Rick and I were doin'. And I don't know what mike was doin. He was never in the way but he would be there alot of times just observing. He had a temper though. One time Rick and I had a fairly good size spider in this old aluminum saucer sled.(Do you remember those?) We wouldn't let the spider get out .Every time he tried to climb up to the side we would tilt it far enough so that the spider slid back towards the middle. Mike for some reason wanted to join us and tilt the saucer but we wouldn't let him. His temper got the best of him.He ran up and stomped down on the edge of the saucer and the spider flew up and hit him in the chest and bit him. Mike let out one serious screech and took off for the house just as fast as his little legs would carry him. and of course Rick and I found this to be Knee slappin',side splittin' funny.
Getting back to the burn pile. Don was havin' a ball with the melted jug . It was a fun thing to do. He was all serious, making patterns and going back and forth. When it cooled off enough to stop dripping good he stepped back towards the fire to get it going again and tramped in one of those hot puddles.Barefoot. He didn't just screech,he screamed at the top of his lungs. he was hopping around on one foot holding the other leg by the ankle.The melted plastic was stuck to his foot.I think Rick used something to knock the plastic off but I can't remember for sure though.Don might have went up and got help from mom.I do remember that Rick and I found the humor of this incident to be extra delicious.
I absolutely love to sit by a camp fire.I wonder if this has anything to do with that burn pile, or if maybe its a purely instinctual thing. It doesn't get much better than a good cup of coffee and a nice warm camp fire on a cool evening. Thanks once again for your time and your eyes.
