Oh where to begin the story of the most eventful day we had while down there. Mike and I were still laying in bed (a little before 9am) when I heard Dustin come into the house and ask Kim (his mom) for his overalls and some ropes... then I hear Kim say something about "where is she..." and "shouldn't you take some lassos..." It was obvious by the tone in their voices that something was wrong and that Dustin was on a mission to fix it. So Mike popped out of bed got dressed and was downstairs lickety split to see if he could help (I am telling you, he loves this farming stuff)! Dustin never turns down a willing hand (so I am told) and off they went... Dustin, Bob (I think was his name) and Mike... by the time I got dressed wandered downstairs and inquired about the day's happenings, I saw my dad and Wayne go flying by on Wayne's Kubota RTV... Kim explained that a mama cow had fallen into the River, had been there probably overnight and that the boys were off to try and get her out... So, I being the big farm enthusiast that I am took a shower, put on some makeup, blow dried my hair and then made my way down to see what was going on. Hence the pictures of the cow already out of the river... sorry but as important as good pictures for my BLOG are, a nice warm shower in the morning is still more important :) So here is what I saw when I hitched a ride down through the pasture to take some pictures...
The cow is out of the river but still in shock from being so cold. Mike said that he got to go down in/near the water, lean on the cow and get the ropes around her waist (well, right behind her front legs and right in front of her back legs)... meanwhile, Dustin hooked her up to the winch on the front of his jeep (shown later in the post). Mike was covered in mud but I saw nothing but smiles out of him all day long :)
Since she was out but still in shock and possibly suffering from hypothermia they needed to get her up and walking around and get her calf back nursing ASAP.
Now that the cow is okay and headed to the barn... it is time to put the "toys" away. Mike got to drive the tractor back to the barn... I tell ya, boys and their toys!
Yeah, I'd say he is having himself a good ol time.
This is what Mike rode out to get the cow in (he had to bounce around in the back)... and then Wayne drove it back up to the barn, but Dustin says he may bring some of his toys up this next summer to take up to Silver Lake... I hope so. It would be GREAT to see everyone.
After about an hour and a half in the pasture Mike got cleaned up and was very hungry. So what better to remedy that than a piece of Aunt Jane's homemade apple pie and a strong cup of coffee? Notice his friend, Rat, that thinks pie sounds like a very good idea too! I think Rat needs some clothes like Earle has to stay warm on the farm down there... I am going to see what I can do to remedy the situation for him :)
Whew... instead of leaving for West Virgina (we were actually staying in Gallipolis, OH) for the tour of where my dad remembers spending his summers as a boy we didn't hit the road until close to noon. We had to drive about an hour before the "official" tour began. I think this next part was very bitter-sweet for my dad. He was so excited to get all the way back to the farmhouse (when I say "get all the way back" I mean it... the farmhouse is at the end of a two track that is impassable when there is snow or rain), but it was not at all what he remembered... It is not even livable anymore. Back in its "Glory Days" the farmhouse slept something like 20 people, was a brillant white, had a big garden, and was the place where memories were made if you were a Casto growing up in the hills of WV. However, here is what we saw when we got there...
It was definitely not even livable. Last time we were there was I was 12 (so it was 14 years ago) a family was at least living there. I remember vividly because we had to park the car and walk almost a mile over two creeks just to get there and then when we did my dad was so excited to show us around until the lady met us on the front porch with a shotgun telling us to get off her property! Anyways, my dad was brave enough to venture inside this time and take a few pictures. Unfortunately it is no longer the place that he holds so fondly in his memories. None the less, it was good to hear him reminiscing about all of the GREAT childhood memories he had there.
Isn't it a shame? Did I mention that they didn't have any running water EVER? Just an old fashioned hand pump and an outhouse.
After our visit to the Farmhouse (and many other landmarks that hold a very special place in my dad's heart) we went to the Mount Olive Cemetery where MOST of my dad's relatives seem to have been buried. Most every tombstone (I would say 80%) had the CASTO name on them.
Here is my dad and I standing by one of the many!
And lastly, we went to the post office where Wayne's mom delivered mail on horseback oh so many years ago... if you look closely at the sign you can see that the post office was actively used until 1992! Pretty cool, huh?
Well, Mike and I have a ton more stories to tell, but at least you can share in some of our good times through this BLOG posting :)
A special thanks to the Jividens for being such gracious hosts.
A special thanks to my parents for taking us along.
A special thanks to Mike's parents for Earle sitting.
And finally, thanks to Mark for getting us a cow (it is already sliced and diced and in our freezer).
We can't wait to go back and visit... or perhaps just stay?!?!
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