Overview

Ten year old Ralph lives with his mother and step-father on the family farm in north central Kansas. It's 1938 and Ralph's 4th grade year ends in a few more days. School is dismissed early as the older boys ignited a stink bomb in the girls' gym. On his dining table Ralph finds an opened letter from his sister. Sis is marrying her beau Geoff. The local inter-gender conflict continues to escalate as the town girls exact revenge by stealing the boys' clothes from the swimming hole. This war contrasts to the peaceful preparation for joining man and woman, namely Sis' wedding. After the wedding Ralph and his mother travel to Kansas City to attend a grand newlywed reception staged by Geoff's wealthy parents. Ralph is awed by his first visit to a big city and is surprised by a previously unseen side of his mother, her amazing adaptability in dealing with these hoity-toity folks. Sis and Geoff invite Ralph to join them after the honeymoon to camp in the Colorado mountains. Ralph has never seen a mountain before. He rides the Pullman to Denver (his second large city visit) to discover adjustments to married life are going poorly. What can he do to help them?... For the mountain ascent the climbing guide's daughter, Nora, is lanky, athletic, savvy with mountain knowledge...and pretty...and Ralph's age... Mountain climbing proves dangerous as Long's Peak claims another victim...

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9781530397990

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Ralph Neighbor was bred in Kansas, born across the state line in Missouri but raised back in Kansas, in greater Kansas City, which would seem to make him a city boy. However, the old saw 'you can take the boy out of the country, but you can't take the country out of the boy' rings true. Rural family ties had a strong pull. He spent as much of his formative years as parents would allow in the maternal family's home province of Downs, Kansas in the north central part of the State. There he took in the culture, attended local celebrations, contributed to local mischief, listened to stories from aunts and uncles and cousins, grandfather and great grandfather. With adolescence annual autumn pheasant hunts become part of the picture. A little later came extended drives with Grandpa Floyd all over the countryside and through nearby communities, Floyd supplying colorful nonstop monologue regarding who used to live here and who used to live there, and what they did and what happened to whom and when, and what those so-and-sos from the government had done to mess up the country in general and farming in particular. Ralph has always been a good listener. Ralph did his college at Kansas State University and medical doctor training at Kansas University. He trained in Obstetrics at the hospital where he was born. He delivered many babies over the next four decades, first in Kansas, then in Washington State. Ralph and partner Pam raised four children and enjoy seven grandchildren. Ralph plays bass in orchestra, big band, combo and worship. His other interests include model railroading, hiking, hunting and all aspects of fly fishing.

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