and he saw her standing there...

This isn't a great picture, but I love it... it was taken from a slide and then it's been out for years and has faded. I'm actually surprised that I got it to look this good...

Joe and I traveled around the country in 1976, looking for someplace we could get along. Along the way we learned one of life's great lessons. If you can't get along here, you can't get along anywhere. A cheap lesson after all, because the trip was a treat (not counting all the battles). We traveled all over the country, hitting about 30 states and a bunch of miles. We fought in JUST about every state, but still had some incredibly good times.

We had a cat named Lucifer. He was all black, and it seemed fitting. He was a cat's cat. He, who hated riding in a car anywhere, seemed to know we were fixing up the VW camper to go away, and he sat in it while Joe fixed it... He refused to be left behind, and we were happy he decided to go along. He slept in between us in the small bed in the back of the van-his back to me, as I never moved, and his paws to Joe. Anytime Joe moved, Lucifer would put out a claw or two and Joe would roll back over. I watched this happen more than once, and marveled at Lucifer's cunning, and the fact that he never once woke up Joe!

We ended up in my favorite campground in Joseph, Oregon. Lucifer was never chained or tied or in any way restrained the entire trip. It was a different time. We figured that it was his idea to come along, and if he ran away, he was a big cat and could take care of himself. He, of course, never lost sight of the camper, in spite of the times he seemed to disappear.

The deer come to the campground in Wallowa lake. They seem to know that they will be fed (not so much anymore) and NOT hunted while they are there. One day, both Lucifer and a deer caught sight of each other, and were mightily confused. The deer, as you can see, has her feet splayed, ready to run from this incredibly small cat (she knows the scent of cat, but was so curious she overcame her fear). Lucifer, who had been grazing as she, on the long grass around the camper, was just plain curious. I crept up to make certain that he didn't startle the deer (or she, him). I love this picture. I have one of them grazing together just before this shot was taken. I love that they are more curious than afraid...

He hated when we came home and stopped camping...

me!