Category: Jack’s Jaunts

The Sound of Silence

By Jack Olson

Listen. Carefully. What do you hear? As I write this I can hear the motor in my refrigerator freezer humming. It does that from time to time. I live in an apartment building and there are all sorts of noises from the many functions of the building. You might call it “building noise.” I can hear a little traffic on Broadway and someone putting trash in a dumpster in the alley. None of this is bothersome. A person gets used to some sounds, and they don’t interfere with life going on, or even thinking.

Continue reading The Sound of Silence

A Yukon Dream Come True

Article & photos by Jack Olson

“There are strange things done in the midnight sun
By the men who moil for gold;
The Arctic trails have their secret tales
That would make your blood run cold;
The Northern Lights have seen queer sights
But the queerest they ever did see
Was that night on the marge of Lake Lebarge
I cremated Sam McGee.”
~ Robert Service

I had a beloved, eccentric speech teacher in high school who first enthralled me with thrilling tales of the Yukon. Continue reading A Yukon Dream Come True

Bryce Canyon National Park 2000 Revisited

Article & photos by Jack Olson

Bryce Canyon Navajo Loop Tr.
At the bottom of the canyon on Navajo Loop Trail

In June 2000 RMOWP congregated at Bryce Canyon for an annual conference which we planned some years before. We wanted to choose a location which would be spectacular, and memorable, for this auspicious year. For those of us oldtimers who attended that one it turned out to be one of the most exciting conferences in our history. Let’s return to that conference to show you a bit of what you can expect at the 2016 conference. Continue reading Bryce Canyon National Park 2000 Revisited

Passing the Torch

article & photos by Jack Olson

 

wind effects near Dutch windmill
Melinda (L) & Amy (R) experiencing wind effects in Holland

What is even better than returning to a place you love? Returning with your wonderful, extraordinary, fun nieces. We did it, we really did it. In 1988 I traveled to Europe with Amy (age 21) and Melinda (age 18). Amy had one more year in college to finish; Melinda had just graduated from high school and was moving on to college. It was a perfect time to undertake our “trip of a lifetime”. I think we all know there are many trips of a lifetime, but this was their first one. Continue reading Passing the Torch