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Staying at the Ranch I remember when I was a boy, my parents would pack up me, my brother and sister and we would drive to Colorado at least once every 2 years to visit all the family on my mom's side. My dad would drive the whole 14 hours only to stop for gas and us kids when we needed to "go". We would usually get there in the middle of the night, my mom would carry my little brother and my dad would carry my sister while I would walk half asleep into the ranch house. Us kids slept in the basement. Grandma kept 3 large beds in the main part of the basement that we would sleep in. Each bed would have many quilts and blankets and the blankets were tucked in under the mattress so you could feel the weight on your chest. I would always try to squirm in under the covers without pulling the blankets out from under the mattress and then be really cold for that first five minutes until the sheets warmed up. Also kept in the basement was the furnace and the hot water heater. It was sometimes scary trying to go to sleep after my parents tucked us in. It always seemed that the furnace wouldn't turn on until after we were alone. I would pop my head out of the covers and look at the orange and blue glow of the gas flame. From in the basement you could always hear the adults talking to each other in a muffled Charlie Brown type adult voice and the floor creaking above you as they walked. The next day would always be bright and sunny, sometimes I would wake up around 6am to hear my deaf grandfather mowing the yard. Getting out of bed was the hardest part, the cement floor would always be so cold! But, soon emptying my bladder would be more important than that cold floor. |