Spring 2015
Archie was the only kid around and he went all over camp. He even went out to where they was
running the steam shovels, graders, and dump trucks. One time he rode from sun up to sun down on
the big bulldozer where his clothes got soaked in fuel oil. Mama got mad and said his clothes was ruined.
The ‘dozer driver, Buck Tom, told Archie he was the best co-pilot he ever had. Everybody was his best
friend but Sandy the foreman was really his friend. Sandy was always telling Archie stories about the
good old days and Archie come to believe that things were better back then. And the men were tougher
and smarter.
After dinner all the men would gather behind the cookhouse and build a bonfire. There they would
sit down and start telling stories. Archie always sit up close but he kept quiet because he didn’t want
to get sent to bed. Sandy would tell about the big bear hunts he went on when he was a boy. Buck Tom
would tell about growing up on the Indian reservation in Montana. Charlie Livingston (Done Gone
Broke Charlie) would tell about the big cattle drives outta Texas. Joe Blow from Idee’ho would try to
tell stories but everybody told him to shut up and sit down. Archie remembers the best story of all word
for word:
Sandy says, “Cab, we wanta’ know how a broken-down old stiff like you got hooked up with a beauty
like Millie.”
Cab, with a sparkle in his eye, says, “Well, I’ll tell ya…she chased me all over the country and when
I got down and sick in bed, she caught me.”
Sandy laughs. “We don’t put up with any Tomfoolery around here. Give us the story or we’re
gonna think bad things abo WN(