Hi everyone,

Well it certainly has been a very strange week for us here in Victoria. I'm not sure how much it would have been mentioned overseas, but we have been without gas supplies since last Saturday. Apparently Victoria has one of the highest ratio of gas users in the world and one plant provides 90% of gas throughout Victoria. The plant had a big explosion last Friday and sadly 2 people were killed and several others burnt. I guess they were lucky that there weren't more deaths.

Anyway consequently all people have had their gas meters turned off and we have had to make do with the electricity. The problem is that many homes are like ours and rely solely on the gas! We have gas heating, cooking and hot water. So far we've been managing though. The weather has been very mild and we haven't needed a heater, and I went out and bought a frying pan to cook in and that seems to be OK so far. No real disasters anyway.

The showers however, were a bit of a problem, but Rod hunted through the garage and found a big electric pot thing that I used for preserving and bottling fruit, and bought that in. We can heat up enough water for a reasonable sized bath which has been good. So at the moment I feel as though we are camping and making do with what we've got. While I consider that we've been very lucky though, a nice hot shower, when I can thoroughly wash my hair properly, wouldn't go astray. :-))

Lots of businesses have had to close because they need gas to run, and milk and bread have been in short supply too. So things have been very difficult down here for many people for the past week, and there's no signs of when we'll get it back on. The families who are really feeling it are those whose bread winner has been laid off through no fault of their own. Many families are definitely hurting.

It really has made me think that it would have been easier living in the Waltons times, when they were fairly self sufficient. You know, they had their cow, made their bread, and chopped wood for their oven and hot water. Certainly there's something to be said for that type of living.

Well that's it from me for the week. It's back to school next week for the final term of the year. It promises to be very busy too.

Goodnight everyone,

Karen.

Hi Karen and other Walton Digest members:

I haven't written for quite awhile. I am a single stay at home mother of a 17 month old baby girl named Heidi so hopefully that will explain a lot, and other members will understand. At this stage, it is hard for me to have time for myself. My husband works many hours as a Computer consultant, and sometimes 6-7 days a week. Anyway, my question mainly is regarding Ellen Corby. From your latest digest, it seemed apparent that she is living in some time of facility. I know that she had suffered a stroke many years ago, and I admired the fact that she had returned to the show, and been in many of the reunion movies. Is she O.K.? How old is she? My husband's father also had suffered from a severe stroke for many years so I feel a special understanding of what things must be like for her.

Last night I was up late, and just happened to catch an old Mike Douglas show on VH1. I don't know whether you get that channel in Australia, but who should show up but Richard Thomas. He said he was 25 years old, and was moving on to other projects. He read some poetry he had written, and said he had had a book published with his poetry. Does anyone know anything about this book? Has he written any others?

Well, that's all for now, and I will try to write more often. I hope your problems with the lack of gas clear up quickly.

Wendy

KAREN'S COMMENT: Hi Wendy. Richard has had a couple of books of poetry published I believe. Does anyone know any more about them? As for Ellen, she would be close to 90 now. Her birthdate is listed on my "Where are they now" part of the site, but I can't access it just at the moment. Does anyone have any more current information about her?

Do you remember an episode from 1974 or1975 when Grandma was reading to Elizabeth from the Rojankovsky book of Fairy Tales? The problem with this was the episode took place in 1935 or 1937 and the Rojankovsky books didn't come out until the mid 1940s.

Best of wishes

Donald

KAREN'S COMMENT: That's an interesting point Donald. I don't know anything about these fairy tales.

Hi Karen and everyone,

I would like to thank everyone for answering my questions.

Take care, Nancy

KAREN'S COMMENT: We aim to please Nancy. :-))

Hi Karen and Fellow Walton Fans,

I hope you all have been well. It's cold out today in San Mateo, California and we have had some rain as well.

I wanted to mention that I really enjoyed watching Cindy, Ben's wife, develop as a wife and mother. Remember when Ben was first dating Cindy they portrayed her as being a little spoiled with that red flashy car! But later she became a wonderful, loving and nurturing wife and mother. She really cared about the Walton family and became like a sister to the Walton children. I will always remember the scene where the Walton boys go off to war and Mary Ellen and Cindy are standing there arm in arm, crying as they watch John-Boy, Jason, Ben and Jim-Bob walk down the road. The look that Grandma has on her face at that moment is another image I won't forget.

I know I have said this before, but one reason I love watching the show, and why I watch with my little girl, Natalie, is because the show is such a fine example of family values. It also shows youngsters what life was like in the United States during these times. Times were hard, but families, friends and neighbors pulled together. These are positive images that I like my daughter to see!

Karen, thank you for this wonderful digest. I have it to look forward to every Monday!

Good night everyone,

Silvia

KAREN'S COMMENT: That scene that you mention Silvia is one of the most poignant in the whole series I think. One of the girls mentions that all the women can do is to wait. I can't imagine how it would have felt to have your whole family of boys heading off to war and never knowing if they will return.

HI ALL, I hope that every one is well and happy. I want to thank every one again for answering my questions . I think it really neat that I had so many people response . well any way ...back to the Waltons. I don't know what season we are on .I don't know about any where else but lately there had the shows all mixed up as far as the order that was first show. I loved the last night when grandpa took Elizabeth fishing. I loved Will Geer. I get such a kick out of him. The show where they told about his death is so sad that I SIT AND CRY. When he die it must of been hard on all the kids .He watch them all grow up. form what I read. there was real close to him and that he was like a grandfather to them...... bye for now Nancy

KAREN'S COMMENT: Actually one of our newer members wrote that the episodes were all mixed up too. I thought she may have been in England but perhaps the fault is with TNN.

Hey....cool site on the Waltons! Very nice. I myself have just begun working on a Richard Thomas site, I was wondering...maybe you could link to it? I think he's a great actor, and not just for the Waltons. Here is my site. Feel free to pay me a visit.

http://harlock.simplenet.com/richard_thomas/index.htm

Thanks...and goodnight, Karen. ;-)

Cristian

KAREN'S COMMENT: Cristian is not part of the mailing list, but she sent me this letter during the week and, after I had looked at her site, promised her that I would add a link and also mention it to you. She is only just getting it put together, but she has some lovely pictures of Richard Thomas from The Waltons, including some very nice ones of him with "Jenny". She is a part of the Waltons Webring now. Please support her page by visiting and letting her know if you enjoyed your visit there. It's always nice to see more Waltons photos on the Net. :-))

Karen,

Thanks for the reply. Mike was an older brother I believe. We used to play music and were in a number of community theater productions in north Idaho. I will follow up with the fan club. thanks.

Jonathan

KAREN'S COMMENT: Jonathon's was another letter which I received this week, from a non member, but I thought I would share it with you. He wrote asking if I had an address for Mary McDonough, because he was trying to track down her brother Mike, a friend from college. A while ago we mentioned that we had spotted both a Michael McDonough and an Ellen McDonough (think it was Ellen but may not have been) and wondered if they were related to Mary. Anyway as you can see it would seem that Michael was an older brother, but I'm still not sure about the sister.

Hello again Karen,

The "Quincy" series from the late '70s is currently being shown again in the UK on BBC Television, and this week, in the episode "Promises To Keep" there, for a short sequence, appeared Peggy Rae, who endeared herself as the jolly and buxom Rose Burton in the Waltons 9th Season. The same jolly character, which makes me wonder if she was the same off screen as on! I hope so.

Arthur D

www.surflink.co.uk/users/arthurdungate/index.htm

KAREN'S COMMENT: Good old "Quincy" employed a lot of Waltons actors. I'll keep my eyes open.

Hello Karen !! Just wanted to let everyone know that my husband and I will be taking our annual trip to Charlottesville, Virginia next week for 4th wedding anniversary. First stop is (and always will be) THE WALTON'S MOUNTAIN MUSEUM !!!. This will be our fourth visit to Schuyler, Virginia and I am really looking forward to it. We tried to arrange to have our vacation coincide with the Walton's Reunion but it didn't work out. The weather should be great and all of the leaves should be starting to turn so it looks like it's going to be another great vacation in Virginia !!!

I don't know what season we are up to so I will tell you my two favorites from Season 5. I love "The Firestorm". I like the way that John-Boy sticks to his beliefs as a journalist even though the community is upset with him for printing excerpts from "Mein Kampf". The best (or should I say "strongest") part of this show is when Reverend Fordwick is going to burn the German books in the fire and John-Boy picks up one of them and says that he wishes that someone could read German. When Flossie Brimmer stands up and begins to read, and you realize that it is the bible that she is reading from, I get a lump in my throat every time!!! My second favorite from Season 5 is "The Hero" (which ironically, was on last night). I liked the way that Sheriff Bridges was portrayed as a "reluctant" hero. When he talks to John-Boy about his war experiences, he really is shown as a compassionate man who fought for his country even though it went against his belief to kill another man, regardless of war. In this episode, he is brought forward as a wonderful addition to the community.

Well, that's all for now. I will let everyone know how our trip to "Walton's Mountain" goes when we return in two weeks. Take care Karen and Goodnight !!!

Sharon

KAREN'S COMMENT: They're both great episodes Sharon. I let the talking point rest for a couple of weeks, but perhaps we should start thinking about favorites from season 4. If I get enough letters in I'll put them in next weeks digest. Have a wonderful time at "Walton's Mountain" and please let us know all about it when you get back.