Milt Reynolds: Thinking Out Loud

Night Route Most of my work is inside buildings with no windows, walls covered with exposed conduits and ducts. But sometimes I get to work outside, away from machinery and scaffolding. Sometimes my boss assigns me to drive a route that follows the outskirts of the company's property, servicing several stations along the way. The route is about 24 miles long, roundtrip. The early morning air is fresh and the sun rises with optimism. Wildflowers, sagebrush, meadowlarks, antelope, rabbits, and coyotes can be spotted. Traveling the route during the day is wonderful, of course, but I think the nighttime has a deeper impact upon me. Night reduces my world to only what I can see. The closest light is my headlight, showing only the road ahead and a bit of the roadsides to my left and right. I might see a mouse scurry quickly across the pavement. A glance to my left shows the orange and white factory lights of the plant. To my right I can see scattered white lights marking pum

Safely Home They are home and they are safe. Soldiers from Delta Company, 3rd Battalion, 116th Cavalry, arrived home in Hermiston today. Family and friends and supporters welcomed them into town with a motorcycle escort -- members of local bike groups and police. People with yellow ribbons and flags waved and cheered along Highway 395 as the troops made their way through town. An aerial truck from the Hermiston Fire and Emergency Services department raised a large flag over the entrance to the National Guard Armory. Reporters from several television stations and local newspapers set up video cameras and interviewed family members and supporters. Mayor Bob Severson handed out small flags to the crowd. Dozens of posters and signs were distributed. I overheard a bystander relaying a text message from a friend, "They just passed McDonalds!" The armory is about a mile south of the restaurant. Sirens sounded in the distance. The rumble of motorcycles brought the first