You can take the girl out of Idaho, but you can't take Idaho out of the girl

One of my favorite things to do in the fall is to return to the place was I was raised. Rupert, Idaho. I can't adequately explain how it makes me feel to return Rupert to visit my sister and her husband. Out of the seven children in our family who were raised there, she is the only one who remains. Driving back into town is like going into a time machine. Not much changes in Rupert. Many of the same places we use to frequent are still there. Just driving around town conjurers up so many memories of people, events and places where we lived out our lives for more than 30 years. Rick and I took a long tour around town and saw so many of the places I use to go when I was young. He was such a good sport and seemed genuinely interested in listening to me chatter on about this and that. The smells, the sights, and the sounds (or lack of sound, just peace and quiet) reminded me of my childhood. Harvest was in full swing and we saw HUGE mounds of sugar beets, fields ready to be harvested and huge storage bins for grain and potatoes. The "Sugar Factory" where the sugar beets are processed was in full swing and the distinctive odor permeated the air. I haven't smelled that smell for quite awhile. If you've always wondered how they get sugar from sugar beets and sugar cane, read this summary. Sugar beets are tough and hardy and can be bounced around and even stored on the bare ground for a period of time until they go through the factory for refining. Potatoes are a different story. They are treated with the utmost care and are often harvested and put to bed during the winter months until the next spring them they are processed and many of them are turned into French Fries.
Check out this farmer's blog for a descriptive narrative and pictures of what a potato harvest is all about. Interesting stuff!
We came home with 100 pounds of those lovely Idaho spuds, compliments of Tim E. and his lovely wife Cari. They were so kind to visit with us and to take us out to their potato cellar and tell us more about how things are done on a potato farm.

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