Post Office

C'ville had three mail deliveries a day. One each from Downieville, Marysville and Nevada City. Thus starting at about 10 am til 2:30 in the afternoon about three to five senior men had the excuse to sit on the bench in front of the Post Office and discuss the serious problems of the day while waiting for the mail. Their language was not always in the best taste.

This was at the same time several of my schoolmates and I discovered how easy it was to make a corn cob pipe with a hop fine stem. We tested what burned best and found the flaky seeds off the Indianweed plant was the most plentiful easy to stuff in the pipe and keep alight. The curly bark off the madrone tree made fine 'cigars and tasted like good wood smoke, as did the injun weed. The little curly bark off the manzanita bush tasted so sweet and burned so hot to the tongue that it was the smoke of choice. Leland was with us when we decided to smoke up in the school belfry. As we were coming down from the belfry we were greeted at the bottom of the ladder by a snickering girl saying that the teacher knew what we were doing up in the belfry and were we gonna get it! Those old men at the Post Office had tattled on us!

Young John G. was about six and staying with his grandmother, my mother in C'ville for the summer. He was absent when his parents arrived one Friday afternoon. Grandma explained John would be along shortly from 'over town' at the Post Office. Sure enough, down the road young John, hands in pockets, sauntered up to his dad and greeted him with "Hello you ole bastard!" John's dad had to turn his face away so young John would not see him laughing!