Comments on: Nooksack: A Washington Town Left to Decay

By: Darrel Z

Darrel Z — Sat, 21 Nov 2009 02:09:53 +0000

My three other brothers and I grew up in Nooksack. I was going to point out that the post office is still operational, but James beat me to it. One of the biggest memories was when the mercantile (Sturmans) burned up. I think that was the last of the bigger business to go. I now live in Olympia, but whenever I go near there, I just have to drive thru the old neighborhood. It certainly has changed. We used to live next to the “church camp”. It is now mostly a residential area.

By: James

James — Wed, 20 May 2009 00:54:41 +0000

You have captured an interesting side of Nooksack. My parents have lived in this town since the early 90’s and while there is certainly some of the decay that you speak of, it is quite a quaint town with it’s own charm. The post office is in fact operational (although quiet small) and sits across from the City Park. There is, in fact, a bit of renaissance that has begun to take place.

By: Ken

Ken — Sat, 12 Jul 2008 20:58:17 +0000

Amy,
I noticed that your writing is very good. The villian in your story that failed to buy that house for you was only doing it for your own good. You weren’t allow to wander because we just wanted you to be safe.

By: amy

amy — Mon, 23 Jun 2008 05:38:14 +0000

Blaize & Jon, Thanks for your comments and stories.

I didn’t have any access to abandoned places growing up, since I lived in the suburbs and was not allowed to wander as a kid. Even so, I’ve always dreamed about abandoned houses and fields and woodlands… In college I lived in the redwoods; I rarely found abandonments, but I did find many objects and shelters left there by students, hikers, and wanderers.

However, now I’ve been in Oakland nearly 2 years, and the longer I live in the city, the more sway urban and industrial areas have over me too.

By: Blaize

Blaize — Fri, 20 Jun 2008 16:49:07 +0000

I haven’t experienced the abandoned-deep-in-the-forest that you talk about. I would be interested to see that. I am, because of my upbringing, extremely fond of abandoned-in-the-middle-of-the-desert-or-prairie aesthetic.

I am intrigued by the different types of abandonment that people like to explore. Some people are generalists, but others seem to focus on industrial sites or housing or medical sites. When I see that kind of focus I wonder about the backstory. What made that person seek out that kind of thing, and not seek out others?

By: Jonathan Haeber

Jonathan Haeber — Fri, 20 Jun 2008 06:50:22 +0000

I have similar experiences to Blaize’s, and Washington was just around the corner from the family farm in Oregon, so I can definitely relate to the differences in decay between the town and city. An abandoned home deep in the forest is like nothing else. There are plenty of those in Oregon, and nothing the likes of which we find here in the Bay Area.

By: Blaize

Blaize — Wed, 18 Jun 2008 15:12:53 +0000

When I was growing up, we went to a lot of ghost mines in Colorado and throughout the southwest. Not into the mine shafts, of course, but all around the works. My parents are both science geeks, my dad is especially interested in geology, my grandma was a rock hound, and my sister and I learned that tailings piles promised pieces of fool’s gold and, occasionally, turquoise. I blame my interest in abandoned things on these outings with my family.

Your story, where your dad promised you future ownership of the dilapidated, is great. And you do, in my mind, have a certain ownership, at least in words and images.