Names is portent stuff in the mountains.  If ya aint got a name then nobody knows who you is.  We get a Christin name when we is borned down in the flat lands.  That helps ya get introduced in the mountains, but if ya stik around up in the hills you is gonna need a real mountain name.

Names come from most any source.  Some folks want real bad to have a certin name, so theys names themselves that.  Others start gittin called something right off the bat and that stiks with em.  Extra ordinare doins can and have been the best naming sources.

Wy listen to this:

We wuz up at rondeevoo back in ’90 doin normal stuff what all rondeevoo folks wuz doin.  All the little mountain people wuz up on a hill playin and us growedups wuz jawin and cleanin guns.

Suddenly we hears one of the little ones a whailin away.  Callin out for help, he was a hurtin.  I recollect it sounded sumpin like—“Hey Ho in camp—Cut a Ho—Cut a Hey”!  Which is universal mountain lingo for “Help me Bad”!

We alls jumped and saved him from dire disaster.  As we wuz carry’in him offen the mountain I called out –“Bones, git some ice in a wet cloth, this boy needs some fixin and he is too young to drink whiskey”!

Most ever one heared my call and others, besides Bones ran for wet cloth, ice and whiskey.

One such mountain folk, has a skunk proof entry to theys lodge.  It sits sorta high up, so ya need some logs or rocks or sumpin ta help get ya high nuff to get in.

They got in, grabbed some whiskey and started out.  Musta fergot about the first step cuz that wuz missed.  Musta fergot about the second step cuz that wuz missed and whenit wuz all said and done and the dust settled there they lay with a broke leg.

Now we got two a hurtin!

There wuz lots of help come runn’in from all the camps and down the mountain the two of em goes in a big wagon.

We talked some that night about what happened and there is go’in ta be a naming come next Willow Creek Council fire.  We had lots of names ta pick frum like “Rock Face”, and “Dusty Bottom”, but there aint no escaping names like “Tumbles” and “ 2 Breaks”!

Bears Butt

July-Aug 1990