Page 1 of 10 
 
Washington Women’s Heritage Project records, 1900-2000 
University of Washington Libraries Special Collections 
Susan Quant Bianchi 
May 25, 1992 
Cassette 5, Side 1 
 
 
Linda C. Meuter  00:02 
I'm in the home of Susan Quant Bianchi, interviewing her on her life history. Sue, what about 
your career outside the home? Did that take a standstill? Or were you moving on in pageant life? 
Or what was the direction that you took there? 
 
Susan Quant Bianchi  00:20 
A real change of direction happened this spring. Prior to this, altogether, I worked with seven 
individual Blaine contestants, and in '78, Patty Imhoff, who was director of the Miss Whatcom 
County pageant, called me and asked me to come in and train all of the Miss Whatcom County 
contestants, and I really loved that. That was even better, you know, the on-- the only negative 
part of that was that I didn't get as close, you know, that one-on-one closeness that you get. But I 
loved working with 12 girls. There were usually 12 contestants, and there was so much to teach 
them all, you know. And then I also felt like I was going to the pageants now, and I was seeing 
12 well trained girls instead of one, or two, or three. They were all-- they all knew what they 
were doing. And the funny part of that is, I continued working with the Miss Whatcom County 
pageant, you know, until just two years ago, but another Blaine girl didn't win. Never has 
happened that another Blaine girl won. So, I know there's a big difference when all girls get a 
chance, you know, at equal training. And along that same period, I started working on fashion 
shows. I worked on the-- with the March of Dimes fashion shows for several years, and I worked 
on Planned Parenthood fashion shows, and I helped train teen models and work with the 
children. And that was just another totally different thing to do. And the fun part of that was 
Mike and Kevin got, for several years, got to model in all the fashion shows in Bellingham, they 
loved it. Kevin even modeled, I think, two years ago, in a fashion show. Because, you know, I 
have friends that do them. [?Lynn Barron?] still does some of the major shows in Bellingham, 
and through conversation, learned that Kevin used to model when he was, you know, more or 
less a child in all those fashion shows so-- and he's tall, and slim, and looks great in clothes. So 
she said, Would you like to model-- still model? So he modeled two years ago in the March of 
Dimes fashion show, and he absolutely loved it. Also, I started judging at this time. I was asked 
to judge the Miss Ferndale pageant and various others. All to-- you know, I judged the Miss-- 
later, I judged the British Columbia pageant. Was a three weekend gala affair where you wore 
evening gowns and they had a ball, a grand ball, and you went to the horse races. And it was, I 
mean, their-- they put on a show, and they treat the judges to three weekends of, you know, like, 
you're royalty. And so I started judging, and another thing I did was work with speech 
Page 2 of 10 
 
competitions. And every year they have a speech competition through the Peace Arch Park. And 
I judge that, and that helped a lot with, you know, learning about speaking and, you know, 
developing that part of my expertise, even though, as I am talking on these tapes, it's different to 
be on this side of it, and I'm much better at training than being on this side of it, I feel-- it feels 
awkward. It really does. It feels awkward to be over here talking and doing this part of it. I'm 
used to being on the other side, where I train and I show them how to do it, but I don't have to do 
it. So, my life-- 
 
Susan Quant Bianchi  03:52 
--went a variety of ways at that time. And you know, I was really busy, but I was, every single-- 
there's a difference when you're busy and every single thing you're doing, you enjoy. And I 
enjoyed every single thing I was doing. And as I mentioned, Patty Imhoff was was director in 
years to come. Like five years later, I think she and I were co-directors of the pageant, and she 
and I've been friends since '78 and, you know, just added more dimensions to my life again. And 
I met more people, you know, I met a number of young women and a number of older women 
that are still involved in my life. So it was good times for me. 
 
Linda C. Meuter  03:57 
--you're doing a [inaudible]-- 
 
Linda C. Meuter  04:34 
Now, how was Stan's life going at this time? Was the fishing going on in Lummi, or? 
 
Susan Quant Bianchi  04:46 
We were still trying to think it was, but it wasn't. We still spent part of our summers, you know, 
out there when he was fishing and then camping. But we weren't making any money. It just-- it 
finally got to the bottom line was, you know, we weren't making any money out there anymore. 
So about this time, his mother and stepfather bought a license for Bristol Bay, and they had no 
intention of fishing up there. They had a boat to go up there, and they asked Stan if he would 
captain the boat. So that summer, Stan left for Bristol Bay, and was devastating to the three of us.  
 
Linda C. Meuter  05:25 
How old are your boys then?  
 
Susan Quant Bianchi  05:26 
They were like-- this was '78, four and five, five-- five and six, right in there. And, I mean, they 
cried and cried. And, you know, a month, they couldn't understand a month and they were 
paused-- they were, you know, they were afraid Dad was going to crash in the airplane. They did 
this for years, I mean, and still to this day, it is traumatic when he goes. Last year, he left, and 
Scott lai-- couldn't even stand up. He had to lay down on the seat in the airport, and he cried, you 
know, we didn't leave the airport for 20 minutes while he's crying. You know what-- you know, 
What are we going to do without our daddy? We've become a really close family unit this time, 
and to see Dad-- really close, do everything together. And there's something fearful too about it. I 
worry. I've always worried, you know, when you have a fisherman up north, you worry that 
something's going to happen to him. And so there's always that fear element too. And I have to 
be truthfully-- truthful. All of my life, I've been afraid of the dark, and all of my life, I've been 
Page 3 of 10 
 
afraid of being alone, and that has never gone away. You know, I don't know if I-- I think way 
back when I mentioned trying to beg myself into my sister's bed. Well, I'm still the same way, 
and I was terrified. You know, how-- I could-- I couldn't sleep with him not here. So I would 
pace the floor at night, and wander around the house, and positive burglars were going to break 
in at any second. I mean, I tried-- I did this after the kids were in bed. No, I would-- and one of 
them would sleep with me. They, you know what? They were at the age where they thought this 
was great. And each night, one would sleep with me, and that would help. And I always tried to 
make sure that they didn't know about my fears. But, you know, I would fall asleep as the sun 
was starting to come up. And I did this for 35 days until he came back home. You know, I was a 
total exhausted wreck. And I never really liked... I never really liked doing things without Stan. 
Pageant, yes. You know, the female things that I do, yes, but the family things, no, you know. I 
take the kids to parks and we go do things. But it wasn't the same without Stan. And it was-- it 
always felt lonely. There was a big hunk of our family missing. So for the-- he's still gillnetting 
in Bristol Bay. He goes every summer. He's gone since '78, so that's almost 15, 14 years he's 
been going to Bristol Bay, and it isn't any better now than it was then. You know, we still hate it, 
but I've come to accept it. I accept that-- I accept for one thing, that, for example, I've been able 
to be an at-home mom. And when Scott was born, I was able to be, you know, home with him. I 
didn't have to go out and earn that second income. He's out-- he's earning the second income that 
most women go out and earn. And so I've been able to be at home, which is where I wanted to 
be, and I wanted to be at home with Mike and Kevin. And Kevin was so sick that he was really 
never well enough. I couldn't go to work. He didn't sleep through the night, and he wasn't well 
enough until he was, you know, 10, 11 years old. And then right after that, I had Scott, and I was 
at home, you know, with him, and I'd always planned to go to work. When Scott was-- went to 
school, I always planned to go to work, because at that time, Michael would be in college, and 
the next year, Kevin would be in college. So, that had been my plan, and then I got cancer. So 
here I'm at home, and we need the money from Bristol Bay. I mean, it's just a fact of life. We 
need the money. It helps pay the taxes, and it helps pay the insurances, and, you know, we barely 
scrape through on one teacher salary. So I've come to accept it. Even now, people are going-- 
know, people go, Whoa. How can he leave you? You know, you're so sick and I just, I just let 
them-- I'm real clear about it, that we have no choices about this. And this had, you know, it has 
to be, he has to go. And you know, also, the boat's in his-- I mean, the license is in his name. 
They can't fish it without him. So, the year I had Scott, he stayed home as long as he possibly, 
possibly could, you know, so that-- hoping to see Scott be born. But they finally called and said, 
Stan, you have to come, because the season was going to open and they couldn't take the boat out 
without him. So you know, he's needed up there for that reason also. So even though we hate it, 
we-- I've come to accept it. It's interesting. It's like we're going through this whole second phase 
right now, because when-- Scott's now six years old, and when Mike and Kevin were that age, 
you know, they just cried and, you know, and so on and so forth. And now Scott's going through 
the same thing, I just realized, you know, it's just not any-- it just doesn't get any easier. 
 
Linda C. Meuter  10:16 
Well, it must have been a joyful time when Stan returned from Alaska each year.  
 
Susan Quant Bianchi  10:20 
Yeah, it was exciting. And, you know, the funny thing is, is one year, right in the beginning, I 
left Mike and Kevin with my sister Kathy, and I checked into a motel and did the whole thing. 
Page 4 of 10 
 
And you know, it worked for Stan and I, and it was exciting for us, but I came to realize that St-- 
the boys were as excited to see him as I was, and it just didn't seem fair to them. So I never did 
that again. I mean, all of us are at the airport waiting for him, and the kids are jumping up and 
down. And you know, we just-- it's a family reunion now. You know, when we make very-- we 
get, we got very good at making ways to be alone after they got home.  
 
Linda C. Meuter  10:59 
Did you did you have contact with Stan when he was in Bristol Bay? Or would-- 
 
Susan Quant Bianchi  11:03 
--not a lot-- 
 
Linda C. Meuter  11:03 
--that period of time, just 35 days of not knowing, and just waiting-- 
 
Susan Quant Bianchi  11:07 
--first he will call, you know, before they're fishing, when he's working on the gears, but as soon 
as fishing starts, you don't hear another word, and so you just feel like you're sitting on, you 
know, pins and needles. And I didn't-- I never hear from a man until he calls and says, I'm on 
airplane flight such-and-such, you know, pick me up tonight at 10.  
 
Linda C. Meuter  11:24 
It's roughly a month or three--  
 
Linda C. Meuter  11:26 
Were there any other women that you knew that were in the same position? [Inaudible] fishing? 
 
Susan Quant Bianchi  11:26 
--it's about a month. Yeah, it's about a month, yeah. So, yep, the homecoming is, you know, it's 
wonderful. And you realize how much you miss each other and how much you'd maybe take 
each other for granted the rest of the year, you know. And I also realized how much Stan does 
around here, you know, and what all the men's jo-- you know, like the garbage. You know, being 
responsible for everything, you know, not only the three kids, you know, which I-- but 
everything that makes the house run. There's never anyone else to help fix a meal or just listen to 
a story, or listen-- you know, or take them-- they've played summer soccer and-- or take them 
wherever they had to go, or-- you know, and also in the summer, you know, the second day after 
they get out of school, what's their words-- first words are, I'm bored. You always-- and cannot-- 
so it's during that time, it's always, you know, every day, can So-and-So come over, can So-and-
So come over. So it's not just, you know, the-- a couple of kids, it's more than a couple of kids, or 
they're going over their friend's house, or you're trying to make the summer fun for them because 
they are down and lonely. So you're going-- you know, you're making that extra effort to take 
them to swimming pool almost every day, or down to Birch Bay every day. Or, you know, we go 
up to White Rock and go to the playground. So you overdo it also, so you burn out there. And 
then you have to come home, and it's late, and the garbage has to be hauled out, and the flowers 
are all drying out, so you have to water everything. And, you know, there's laundry to do. And I 
mean, the whole cat of-- the whole can of worms is your job, and there's no one to help you.  
Page 5 of 10 
 
 
Susan Quant Bianchi  12:39 
Not really, no, not really. A couple, but their husbands go for the whole summer. And-- no, no, 
come to think of it, they go with them. They join them. They fly up. And so no, not any others. 
At all. So it just-- you know, the hardest part's the week before he leaves for us. The week before 
we leave, we start mourning, you know. And each day our mourning gets worse, until the day 
he's leaving. I don't sleep the night before he leaves, and then that-- the morning we're driving to 
the airport, it's just like we're all in mourning. And then as soon as he says on the airplane, we 
can start counting down the days till he'll be home. But the week before he even leaves, we can't 
even start counting down, you know. So it's, it's-- 
 
Linda C. Meuter  13:39 
 --the drudgery of... 
 
Susan Quant Bianchi  13:49 
Yeah, it's really, really hard. So... I don't know. Yes, it's great to get him back home and like I 
said then, you know, we do a lot of fun things as a family now, and as great a time as Stan and I 
had skiing last year, the next year, we made the decision to include the boys. So, as soon as 
winter came, we taught them how to ski, and Mike, and Kevin, and the four of us would all head 
up to Mount Baker. It took him two times on the rope tow to be-- and then they were chair skiers. 
So I always had Mike and Stan had Kevin, because Kevin was pretty accident prone, like falling 
off chairs, and looking around, and he would be talking, he would ski off the edge of a bank. 
You know, he never knew what he was doing. Michael was the better skier. And there's also 
some places at Baker, one that their skis didn't touch the bottom by about this much. Up and Up 
Run, I think it's called, and their skis wouldn't touch so... 
 
Linda C. Meuter  14:58 
You mean, like a foot off the chair. 
 
Susan Quant Bianchi  14:59 
Foot-- yes, there was no ramp. It was just a mound of snow, and their skis were this far-- well, 
they weren't even that-- I'd have to pull them off, and I wasn't that good. This was my second 
year of skiing, so, you know, I could barely get myself off without falling. So I'd have my poles 
in one hand and be trying to get up, and have my arm on them, and pull them at the same time 
and, you know. But we started also then, you know, once they were skiing at Baker, that they-- 
that-- how-- Valentine's Day, Haggens' called us, and they had a cabin at White Pass that we 
could use. And that was one of the best ski trips of that winter. We all arrived at White Pass at 
midnight, because Haggens are these slow people about getting ready. You arrive at their house 
at eight, ready to go, but they're not ready till 11. They're still doing their laundry, you know, and 
going to the store to get the food. Anyway, that's... You know. So we arrive about midnight to 
White Pass, but the snow was about-- oh, it was this deep, and there wasn't, you know, a breeze, 
and it was just-- the snow was just laying on the trees, and it was just so-- remember, it was just 
like it was so still, we had to walk this kind of winding trail up to the cabin, and we had a 
toboggan, and we had all this stuff to haul. So, you know, and the kids were crying at first 
because it was midnight and they'd been sleeping, and now they're out, and they're expected to 
carry their load at miss-- I mean, there was so much that everybody had to pitch in and help. And 
Page 6 of 10 
 
in order to get us all up there, and in the cabin, you couldn't drive up. We had to park at the 
bottom, and it was quite a ways, but it just kind of made us feel like we were troopers after a 
while, and we got all our stuff up to the cabin. And they have night skiing at White Pass, and that 
was our first experience at that. So we skied there for two days, and the kids really became good 
skiers. I mean, their skiing really developed at White Pass, because they skied two full days and 
nights, and, you know, we were hardly off the slopes. So that was fun. And I think that year we 
took them to Bachelor at spring vacation, and Bachelor ended up being our most favorite ski 
place. We have two favorite ski places. One is Tod Mountain up in British Columbia, and our 
other is Bachelor in Oregon. And-- but every spring vacation, we went to Mount Bachelor, and 
we stayed in the seventh mountain, and the kids could ice skate after skiing. And then we found 
another place called Sunriver, and that became the ultimate, and when I've asked Michael, What 
was your favorite trip that we ever went on? He is-- it's the trip that we went to Bachelor and 
stayed at Sunriver. It was so fun at Sunriver that instead of skiing five days, we skied, I think, 
three days, and stayed at Sunriver too. There was horseback riding, and river rafting, and trails to 
ride. They took their bikes. There were, you know, hundreds of miles of trails to ride. And that's 
in-- you know, hot tubs, and swimming pools, and restaurants, three restaurants, and we stayed in 
a kind of a condominium that was more separate. It wasn't so large. They were all smaller 
buildings, so you felt like you had more privacy. But our bedroom had a fireplace, you know, 
and the living room had a fireplace, and then there was a deck up above where the kids could all 
sleep. It was the best place we ever stayed.  
 
Linda C. Meuter  15:00 
So you had snow on the mountain and biking on the trails? 
 
Susan Quant Bianchi  15:19 
Yes. 
 
Linda C. Meuter  15:19 
At the same time?  
 
Susan Quant Bianchi  15:22 
Yeah.  
 
Linda C. Meuter  15:24 
Really?  
 
Susan Quant Bianchi  15:24 
Yeah. Well, this was spring break.  
 
Linda C. Meuter  15:25 
Oh yeah, right. So spring skiing and-- 
 
Susan Quant Bianchi  17:27 
--it was spring skiing, but Bachelor's just high enough. I mean, you ski Bachelor all win-- all 
summer too. That's where the Olympic team does a lot of their summer training. So on the 
highest peaks, there's snow. And the skiing is still really good at Bachelor's, at-- in the spring. 
Page 7 of 10 
 
[?Clear take?] you know, like the top two-thirds is whizzing good, and then all of a sudden, it's 
just like somebody put the brakes on you, and you hit the slush. But, you know... There's-- 
Kevin's a fair-weather skier, so he always did better, you know, at Bachelor and on spring 
vacation. He always would get sick and cold, and his hands were like ice in the wintertime. And, 
you know, if you can spring ski, and-- my favorite thing in the world is to be able to ski without 
gloves, without a hat, you know, without a jacket. Ski with my bibs and maybe a sweater or 
something over it. So we skied almost every weekend, and the kids, by the end of the year had 
passed me and would whiz to the bottom and, you know, jumping over the moguls and going, 
Come on, Mom, come on. And I'm standing the top, still kind of going, Doesn't that look, you 
know-- and they kept getting little-- I like the beginner slopes, you know. Intermediate too, some 
of the intermediate, but they were doing some hard-intermediate stuff by this time. And, you 
know, afraid of going down nothing. We bought Michael a cowboy hat for Christmas one year, I 
think it was the next year, and he ski-- he would ski under the chairs, and he was just little, like 
seven years old, and everyone in the chairs would be yelling at him, Way to go, cowboy. And it 
was just, it was so much fun and, you know, we took a couple of-- we did take a couple of trips 
without him. We took one to Tod without him. There were 10 of us. It was a big planned thing, 
through Burlington and Blaine. And there were 10 of us all together that went. We got on a train 
and took the train to Tod Mountain. But it was the group we went to, they were all crazy. And 
what started was one group started playing jokes on the other group, and the jokes just never 
stopped for three days. And one of my favorite stories is, we went to a Chinese restaurant, where 
you go in and sit down, you have to take off all your shoes. So we-- by the time-- when we 
finished our dinner, the group next to us had taken one of every shoe and gone back to the hotel. 
But we have a friend named Jake Creasey, and they'd taken both of his, and left us there with one 
shoe. And the snow was this deep, you know, so Ken [?Marcuson?] put Jake on his back and 
hopped him out to the vans that we had rented. And, I mean, we laughed about stuff like that. 
Some of the jokes got carried away, but, oh, they were blowing with straws, stuff under the-- 
under the doors and, and, you know, bubbles under the doors. And it was just like being kids 
again, you know, no worries, and just have a good time. And so we had a couple of trips like 
that, that were no kids, you know, and just adults. But it got to the point where-- 
 
Linda C. Meuter  21:29 
--adult kids.  
 
Susan Quant Bianchi  21:30 
Adult kids, yes. But it got to the point where Michael and Kevin were as good or better skiers 
than us. And it's the same old story, they love to go. And it was kind of like, Why leave them 
home, you know? They just love to go. So it got-- so we just took them everywhere we went. 
And I think we counted up that we, all together and in all the years we skied, and we skied until I 
had Scott, all those years, we skied 11 different mountains, and bought pins, and they wore these 
cowboy hats, and they had the 11 pins on their hats. But we-- the-- and every mountain was a 
different experience. I remember driving up to Hemlock. It was kind of like going up to Mount 
Baker. It was straight up. And that time, Jan and Jerry Boykin went with us, and Jake and Jo 
Creasy went with us. And another time we went to Tod, there were four motor homes in the 
entourage that was going. So there was always a number of families that went, Haggens went 
and and Boykins went. And we'd taken after skiing, we'd take the sleds and the toboggan-y 
things out, and the kids would be, you know, doing that, until we would call them in. And, you 
Page 8 of 10 
 
know, but there'd be-- it'd be almost-- and even at Stevens, there'd be three, or four, or five more 
homes all lined up, and all people we knew, and all the kids were all about the same age. So we 
felt like we learned, you know... We skid at Silver Star, and Big White, and Whistler, and 
Grouse, and Hemlock in Canada and... Oh. And another favorite place of mine is Timberline. 
Have you ever been there?  
 
Susan Quant Bianchi  21:30 
Huh? 
 
Linda C. Meuter  21:30 
Adult kids. 
 
Linda C. Meuter  23:04 
No.  
 
Susan Quant Bianchi  23:05 
We left Bachelor once, and we pulled in at Timberline. It's a-- it's a national historical 
monument. They've made it, I forget... I guess that's what they call it. Anyway, we just drove in 
and my mouth fell open. This building was so absolutely incredible. And we were on our way 
home, but Don and Stan went up and signed us in for a night in the hotel. And so we got to stay 
in this place. And it was made by the-- you know, it was made during the Depression under 
Roosevelt's term, where, instead of putting-- I don't know if I have this for sure, absolutely 
straight, but not all men went to prison. A lot of them went on work release programs. They built 
this, and the whole thing was made out of stone. There was a fireplace that was, I think it's like, I 
think three stories high in the center, and there's alcohol-- alcoves everywhere. It's noted to be 
kind of an intellectual place to go. A lot of intellects go there just to read and get back to nature, 
not skiing, but they, you know. And you'll pass an alcove and there'll be someone in there 
reading, and just getting back to nature, and getting back their vibes, or whatever they do. But we 
were there to ski, you know. But that's the most beautiful place I've ever seen. Of all the places 
we've ever been. Just, you know, I've always wanted-- I want to go back there too. So skiing 
was-- skiing took up lots and lots of years, and... 
 
Susan Quant Bianchi  24:35 
And-- the best memories, because since I've gotten sick, Michael and I talk a lot, and, you know, 
we do a lot of reminiscing. And I asked him one night, you know, what all of his favorite-- what 
were his favorite memories? And, and he'll name going to Sunriver. He'll name the trip we took-- 
and we skied every New Year's Eve, that was a tradition with us too, every Christmas Eve and 
Christmas... Excuse me, every New Year's Eve and New Year's Day, we ski so-- and that just 
was a tradition every holidays. You know, we got tired of the party scene, and the drunks, and 
the whole, that whole thing. And so, we would go somewhere where there was night skiing, and 
we would night ski on New Year's Eve and sing Auld Lang Syne from the chair... And he 
remembers those times. And he remembers going on-- one Christmas we left, and we went to 
three different mountains in three days. And you know, we were one place, Christmas-- New 
Year's Eve, and another place, New Year's Day. But he remembers all those trips and they're his 
favorite times. He names them as his favorite times that our family-- even above camping for 
him, that was-- but he was a wonderful skier. He later, when he was a senior in high school, was 
Page 9 of 10 
 
a junior ski patrol. He tried out for the team and made the team, and he was on the junior ski 
patrol team. 
 
Linda C. Meuter  24:35 
Some great memories.  
 
Linda C. Meuter  25:20 
Up at Mount Baker. 
 
Susan Quant Bianchi  25:49 
Up at Mount Baker, yeah, and he taught little kids how to ski. So, you know, he never stopped 
skiing. I stopped when I had Scott. Stan became ski advisor for Blaine High School, and he skied 
for several more years. You know, if you can call that skiing, taking care of 30 students that can't 
ski. But Stan did that. Mike would go, and Mike is-- Mike continued until he went to college, but 
it's kind of hard to fit it in his schedule now. But he skied from the time he was four until he was 
about 18, straight, every winter. So he was--he's a wonderful skier. 
 
Susan Quant Bianchi  26:27 
Yeah, yes. And you know, one of my favorite times of camping, and I think it's because every 
camping trip I took was with my family, and Stan was along. And Stan did the things that men 
do when you're camping, like at the wood or start the fire. And I only-- one time, once had this 
other experience. Stan was in Bristol Bay. It was the next summer, and Stan was in Bristol Bay 
fishing, and Kathy, my sister Kathy, said, Why don't we go camping? You know? And-- she's 
that way. I mean, let's just take off. With the four kids, she has two kids also, one I mentioned 
earlier, she's four days older than Kevin, and then she has a little girl, a year older--or a year 
younger. So it's four children within about a three years, you know, span of time, and they were 
all close. And so, it was just, Let's take off tomorrow. Let's go camping. Where should we go? 
Guys, let's go to Blue Lake. So she had a tent, Coleman stove, the whole works. She's loading it 
into her car. And, you know, I've never even put up a tent. I mean, we do motor homes, right? 
You know. So she's got the tent, and the whole works. You know, I feel like I'm kind of a 
pioneer, you know, because this is not my style. But we got over there, and we're putting up the 
tent, and setting up a campsite, just the two women. And the kids were running around having a 
great time. It ended up to be one of my most memorable trips, and I mean, I remember every part 
of it. There was a windstorm, and it was so windy that Kathy and I absolutely couldn't stand it. 
So we went to the outhouse. We were reading these wonderful kind of romantic history novels, 
you know, and so we went to the restroom, and we're doing our reading for about an hour, 
because at least took us out of the wind, and we came back and the tent had blown over. And the 
whole thing, and the kids were laying all in there with this tent, just kind of, you know-- 
 
Linda C. Meuter  26:43 
Well, Sue, it sounds like skiing and camping were the traditions that your family grew to love 
and bonded you as a family. 
 
Linda C. Meuter  27:11 
--[inaudible.] 
 
Page 10 of 10 
 
Susan Quant Bianchi  27:46 
Well, it wasn't totally on him. It kind of blown off of them. So, you know, here we were in the 
middle of the night, it's about two o'clock in the morning, with our stakes and hammers again, 
and the wind, you just were fighting it, but, you know, again, I felt like Pioneer Woman and-- 
trying to get this tent up and, you know, and just doing all the cooking. And we rented boats and 
went all over Blue Lake and there's a number of lakes in that area. We took one day trip to 
Chelan. They have the... 
 
Linda C. Meuter  29:25 
There's a ferry, I think. 
 
Susan Quant Bianchi  29:26 
Oh, there's a ferry there that we ended up taking on our way back home. But there-- we went to 
Steamboat State Park, and-- not Chelan, Steamboat State Park, and I forget what the city is above 
it, but we asked there, What was the most beautiful thing to see in the area? And they told us 
about these falls, and I don't remember the name of them, but we started off looking for these 
falls, and we're on this grassy, dirt road forever. And as the miles proceed, we are sure that they 
have told us the wrong story. And you know, we are continuing and continuing along this dirt 
road. And finally we turn this road, this-- the bend in the road. And here were these falls, they're 
up here, coming down. And it was gorgeous. It was absolutely gorgeous. I don't know. We just-- 
every day, we went somewhere else. We saw a different lake, we packed a lunch, and, you know, 
spent it somewhere and had a new experience, and Kathy's really good at that. I'm not. I'm not 
good at that, and Kathy is, and so I kind of followed along, and I'm glad I had that experience in 
my life. So, it was fun. 
 