Bridger’s Volunteer Fire Department must have spent the weekend on high alert as my dad finally torched the funeral pyres of Russian olive trees that had dotted the pastures for several years. Why was the fire department at Defcon 5, its highest state of readiness, you ask? That would be because of dad and his long and glorious history of ditch burning that has gotten out of hand. I think he has been the proud sponsor of their annual fishing trip for the past couple of years. So when dad decided that the stacks of dead Russian olives had to go, I think you can understand why everyone was a little jumpy.

Fortunately, the burning was a great success: the only thing to burn was what dad wanted to burn. (My condolences to the fire department, but you’ll just have to get a different sponsor this year for your fishing trip.)

Mom won the “First Duck” award last summer during the Jim Bridger Days festival. But we all know what it was really for–keeping dad’s pyromania tendencies at a safe level.