Memories of Past Times

  Little Boshkung Lake was where I almost learned how to waterski! I say almost because I got up once or twice, but managed to fall within a second or two. Other members of my family, and many other Inn guests, managed to get up to get up on their skis and, more importantly, to stay up! There was one exception, my father. Back then we were using very low speed motor boats ( maybe a 5 or 10 horsepower outboard motor ). Needless to say, getting up on the skis was difficult when starting from the water. So, we improvised by sitting on the front end of a canoe and then when the speed was sufficient to stand up, we would “ gently ” slip off of the front end. This worked beautifully for most of the skiers. However, there were a couple of exception, my father and me! My father tried several times to “ get up ”. He would “get up’ but immediately fall. I think the last time he tried was the “final straw”. This time he sat on the front of the canoe with his skis gently skimming across the w...

  The Matabanick Inn is located on Little Boshkung Lake . This is where my second swimming trauma took place. The first, you might recall, took place in Southampton when my two older siblings ( as rumoured ) tried to push me off the Southampton peer in my carriage. Fortunately ( as rumoured ), a kind older lady prevented this from happening ( as rumoured )! This time they weren’t involved, good for them! I was about 4 or 5 when this almost tragedy took place. I was playing a shallow pool of water near my parents. Some how, I slipped under the water and was almost drowning. One of my parents’ friends caught site of my predicament and ran to the water and pulled me to safety. After that “ near death ” ( exaggeration ) experience, I was quickly given swimming lesson, and was watched more closely. Over the years at the “ Mat ”, I became a very good swimmer. Swimming was a very important part of the summer activities, so becoming a good swimmer was paramount. Little Boshkung La...

Part of the joy of spending summers at the Matabanick Inn were the Archers . They were an amazing family and really catered to their guests. I think that was one of the reasons our family vacationed there, for so many years. Fortunately for me, they had a son my age, Donny. Donny and I became instant friends and we spent many happy hours having fun! One of the activities I remember most were card games. Our favourite was a game called “Tonk”. On rainy days, we would gather in one of Inn’s common areas to play. Many of the times we played, it would include Donny’s two cousins. One of his cousins was a cute girl who I fell in “puppy” love with! Those games made the rainy days more memorable. There was, of course, many more adventures, but the rainy day “ Tonk ” captured a “ young ” boy’s heart! ( How do you play Tonk? “ Tonk is a  matching   card game , which combines features of knock  rummy  and  conquian . Tonk is a relatively fast-paced game that can b...

The Matabanick Inn , back when we vacationed there, consisted of cottages and the main lodge and dinning room. There were a number of out buildings which I will describe later. Normally, we would stay in one of the cottages. I can’t remember if we ever stayed in the lodge itself. In the beginning we would eat most of our meals in the main dining room. At first, the whole family would be at the Inn for the whole summer, with the exception of my dad, who would come up on the weekends. Gradually, my brother and sisters, who were much older than me, drifted away to enjoy their own summer experiences. Fortunately, the owners ( the Archers ) of the Inn had a son, Donny , my age. We began “ fast ” friends and someone to “ hang ” with. As a result, I had someone to play with during those “ long summer days ”. I’ll talk more about Donny and me in another segment. The memories of these wonder summers are filled, mostly, with happiness and fun! The Inn’s cottages we stayed in and the meals we...

Although  Southampton  was my first summer memory, it really didn’t leave much of an impression. The only real memory of  Southampton  came later, when my parents drove to  Southampton , with me “ in tow ”, to revisit their old family cottage. My only memory of that trip, I was about 7, was seeing an old “ Gramophone ” record player. Any other “ memories ” were those of my 3 siblings and, as I have mentioned before, I’m not sure of their truthfulness or their accuracy. My first “ real ” summer memories were of the  Matabanick Inn  ( now known as Matabanick Cottages ). The Inn is located between  Minden  and  Dorset  and is on the shores of  Little Boshkung Lake . We summered there for approximately 7 – 8 years. This when and where summer started to mean something to me. To give you an idea of my full impressions of my summer life, I’m going to break up my “ Summer Memories ~ Matabanick Inn ” story into a number of segments. Aft...