Sunday, June 26, 2011

The church where Bonnie is working has an older congregation. They just love our Bonnie. The priest is also a professor of philosophy but he is not too much of an egg-head. He gave a very well balanced sermon that included Kierkegaard's study of the binding of Issac, this morning's old testament lesson, and common sense wisdom.  They have a little pipe organ which was nice to sing to. Worshiping using the Rite I service required that Yvonne and I stay on our toes. It was a pleasant change from Rite II.

After church we went to coffee hour to meet the parishioners and have a bottle of cold bottle of water, not hot coffee. (The environment dictates some very different norms.) Everyone was really friendly and interested in our trip and we heard stories about RVing. (We do not view ourselves as RVers.) We said our goodbyes to the parishioners and give Bonnie a hug and got on the road again.

We continued to drive into pine woods and forest and rolling hills. The overcast skies finally broke and we had lots of sunshine. It is plenty hot and the humidity is becoming a factor.

Shreveport LA came up very quickly. Yvonne tried to find BBQ for lunch before leaving TX but Stanley was determined to keep driving. Then Rosemary (the GPS) found us two BBQ places in Shreveport. The first was "O Taste and See BBQ and more". We headed off the freeway only to find a little pink house that was closed, it was Sunday after all. We tried again and Rosemary found "Shane's" and we were off. This time "Shane's" had been swallowed by a housing development. There was no sign of it anywhere. So we gave up and munched on mixed nuts and V8 juice and kept driving down smaller and smaller roads towards Lake D'Arbonne  State Park.

We pulled into the nearly empty campground, registered and went to look for our camp site. Stanley was going to have to back in so Yvonne got out to assist. As she opened her door, the buzz sound of cicadas accosted her ears (These bugs only come out every 13 years and have waited for Yvonne to decide to travel to this side of the US). Now many of you know that Yvonne has some serious feelings about bugs, especially flying bugs, UGH!!!!!!!! She closed the door to decide if she was going to get out of the truck. She gathered her courage and out she went. The sound of the cicadas comes in waves, when the wind blows through the trees or when there is a disturbance on the ground they strike up the band. She quickly got used to it (that is what she says).

After we got set up, we got a cold beer, and walked down to the lake. We went onto the boat dock out into the lake. There we saw two herons and one egret posed picturesquely on tree stumps sticking up out of the lake. We took some pictures and headed back to the air-conditioned trailer. We were really beginning to feel the heat and the humidity. We stayed in the trailer writing the blog, catching up e-mail and fixing dinner. Then we got out the bicycles to tour the campground. Unfortunately we had not looked at the road as we came in. This campground is on the banks of a lake. There is no direction from our trailer along the lake shore to anywhere in the campground that is not uphill and really uphill. It is just no fun to walk the bike to the top of the hill and then coast down. We did not stay out too long because it was hot and the walking was too much work. What did we expect?

After a good night's sleep we left for Kathy Sproles house in Tuscaloosa AL.

Saturday June 26, 2011

We awoke to the bright West Texas sun and a healthy wind blowing dust everywhere. Not a dust storm just the "regular wind". The smell of oil is in the air.

We got out of Midland about 8:30 after a quick cold cereal breakfast and a review of tire pressure.

Bonnie Morrell (our host for the night) had e-mailed directions about how to get around Dallas. There is much construction going on. Bonnie and Chuck live near a lake northeast of Dallas in the suburb of Rowlett. It is hard to imagine a lake driving through all this sand and scrub.

About Bonnie and Chuck: We met them when Bonnie came to Good Shepherd to be our deacon. We became good friends sharing dinners and church projects. Bonnie invited me to be a part of her leadership team for the annual women's retreat and my career as a retreat director was born. She taught me so much with Kat Olgetree as art facilitator so when they moved to Texas, Kat and I were able to take over leadership of the annual women's retreat and continue the Good Shepherd tradition.

About 45 miles north east of Midland is Big Spring - a good size town. Of course it's economy is based on oil but off in the distance we see a field of wind turbines (as only could be done in Texas there must have been thousands of acres of these machines all stately turning and churning out electricity) that gives us some hope.

A little ways outside of Big Spring we spy some table top mountains stretching across the horizon. this is a change from the monotonous flat land of yesterday. We begin to see more and more green trees but the land and grass is still dry and brown.

Last night Yvonne looked up Abilene on the internet to see what we could visit. She found a museum called "Frontier Texas" That covered the frontier years of 1780 to 1880. We decided to stop and take a look. As we drove into Abilene on the "old road" through the light industry part of town we passed a hand written sign on top of a pile of wood announcing "Farwood 4 sale". We laughed for blocks. Let’s hear it for phonics education. 

The museum was an interactive, holographic journey, with video stories and lots of hands on exhibits. It was very well done and a little reminiscent of the Steinbeck Center in style. It took a little over an hour to go through the Museum. So it was time for lunch. We asked for a Texas BBQ place and were sent to Sharon's BBQ.

We walked into a cement block building, linoleum floor, and cafeteria style buffet. Stanley had Sharon’s Special, a BBQ brisket sandwich with sauce and his choice of veggies.  Yvonne had a BBQ chicken sandwich and a green salad.  Surprisingly there was a VEGGIE option on the menu (a big sign on the wall).  When I asked about it they said it was my choice of the salad and veggie buffet.  I could choose from coleslaw, potato salad, macaroni salad, cooked green beans, corn casserole and green salad.  YIKES!!!!!!  I decided the chicken would be better for my body. 

The place was full of locals with farmers and folks, a couple of military guys and us.  We were really out of place but the food was great and it was fun to be there. 

Back on the road we drove on towards Dallas.  The drive was uneventful until we reached Fort Worth/Dallas where the traffic went crazy.  It took us an hour for us to get through the two cities down town systems.  The northeast of Dallas we ran into freeway construction, detours, and single lane roads.  We finally pulled into Bonnie and Chuck’s only getting a little lost along the way. 

Bonnie had a great bottle of wine chilled for us (Mad House Wife) and we sat down to catch up.  Chuck had just returned from a dialysis treatment and was a little tired.  But they took us to their favorite Tex Mex Restaurant which we thoroughly enjoyed.  After dinner and back at the house, Chuck headed for an early bed and we sat up with Bonnie for conversation and laughter.  She asked for updates on many of you and we filled her in as best as we could. 

Tomorrow we will go to church with her, St. David’s in Garland TX, and then head to Louisiana.

Friday, June 24, 2001

Today we leave the McMillians after a wonderful visit with lots of stories and laughter.  We got out right at 9:00am after some creative hitch coupling because of their very steep driveway.  We stopped quickly for gas and found the freeway.  Oh, this day is just going so easy.

We drove about 10 minutes on the freeway that circles around the south side of the city, when there was a loud startling bang.  We were passing a semi-truck and I thought the truck had blown a tire but Stanley shouted AH S*^&%T.  We quickly pulled off with our hearts pounding and walked around our rig.  No flat tires; we were fine.  It must have been the semi because someone had a flat and (thank God) it was not us.  Still shaking we got back on the freeway and settled in for a drive across the Texan desert to Midland TX.

We are making better time today.  The speed limit for trucks is 70 and for cars is 80.  The miles are rolling along.  We are driving in-between short mountain ranges all around us on a rolling highway between mesquite and dry grass. We pass an occasional field of alfalfa or an orange grove.  We are driving through what Texas calls Big Bend Country.

When we left I-10 and vered onto I-20 the mountains faded into the horizon until all round us was nothing but flat land as far as our eyes could see.  We passed an exit sign for "Boracho Station" (Drunk Station).  We can envision, in this desolation, where that name came from.   

Pecos, TX is on our route today so we are going to stop.  Pecos Bill and Judge Roy Bean come to mind.  Signs along the highway announce the "West of the Pecos" Museum.  We pull off into town and follow the signs to this quaint museum.  It was housed in the original saloon and the Orient hotel.  This a museum that houses the memories of those who lived in the area.  Personnel collections of barbed wire, arrow heads, pre-historic mammoth tusks and ephemera from Judge Roy Bean.  There was a old-school auto-matronic bartender who told the story of a gunfight in this saloon complete with bullet hole in the wall. 

There were 50 rooms in this museum and many of these rooms were decorated to show the life as it was for lawmen, ranchers, doctors, banker, schoolmarm, saloon keeper and their families. 

Pecos began as a crossroads for indian migrations, overland cattle trails, Calvary exploration and westwards bound pioneers fording the Pecos River.  Within 30 miles, old cattle and wagon trails such as the Butterfield stage line, Chisholm and the Goodnight -Loving Trails crossed at such river crossings as the Emigrants Crossing and the Horse-head Crossing. 

We are trying to collect cookbooks from each stop or state.  Our first one was at Appache Junction in Arizona.  Today we collected "Recipes of a Pichfork Ranch Hostess: The culinary Legacy of Mamie Burns" as our second cookbook and the one representing Pecos. 

We asked for a good place for lunch and they suggested Mexican, Mexican, Mexican, Mexican oh yes and Chinese.  We decided to keep driving and eat the lunch we had in the cool chest in the truck. 

We left Pecos and it is just flat land all the way to Midland.  When we got to Odessa the dash of the truck lite up to tell us that one of our tires was going flat.  As I had parked in a dirt lot in Pecos it was not hard to believe.  I pulled off the highway and measured the psi of the tires.  Each was different with the passengers side tire being 48 psi , the two rear tires being 45 and 46 psi and the driver front being 42.  I was sure that was the culprit. 

There was a big truck repair station down the frontage road so we went in there and put air in the driver's tire and went on.  Got into Midland and the dash lite up again.  Pulled into the AV park and found we did not have reservations but they had just had a cancellation (some one who wanted shade) so all was fine.  We unhooked the trailer and drove into "Bill Williams" tire center and had the shop look at it.  I am sure that they though I was nuts.  We had started with too much air in the tires.  In this hot environment they should not be above 40psi when hot.  They got it straightened out and we were back into camp for a BEER and ICE CREAM.  All was fine.  The perfect end to another good (although somewhat tense) day.

Thursday June 23, 2011

For those of you who do not know Bill and Marilyn, they are friends of 39 years.  Bill and I met while working together at Valencia High School in Placentia CA.  He was the choir director and music teacher and I was the drama teacher.  We conned Yvonne to play for the musicals that we produced with the high school kids.  Over the 7 years that we worked together we produced about 14 musicals but we both remember the 4 and ½ hour production of How to Succeed in Business without really Trying.  My first musical directing experience (I did not know that we could cut scenes or musical numbers from the show).  We have kept in loose contact sense then when Yvonne and  I went to Hartnell and Bill and Marilyn moved to Greeley CO so Bill could complete a PhD in Choral Conducting.  Though Yvonne and I have remained in one place they have moved around trying to find a school of music that fit Bill’s viewpoint.  This finally happened at the University of Texas at El Paso.   They have one son who is now married with two little boys and another child due in three months. 

Today Bill and Marilyn took us on a tour of El Paso.  We went to UTEP and were shown around the university and specifically around Bill’s world, the music department.  This university has an interesting architectural style (Bhutanese) what all but a few buildings still follow.  The first president's wife had visited Bhutan and Tibet and fallen in love with this style and convinced him to base the university buildings on this style. 

We visited their church where Bill was the music director and is now retired from that position.  They showed us the down town area, the Rio Grande, the Border Fence.  We drove through the Franklin Mountains and were able to see how really large this city is (600,000). 

Then it was back to the house for more conversation and wine (a really good Robert Strong).  The conversation covered soup to nuts and by 10:00 was not slowing down for the second night in a row.  We knew that the morning was coming and we finally call a halt and it was off to bed. 

We are blessed to have this solid friendship that has been maintained between the four of us regardless of the time apart.  Where all topics of conversation are allowed with graceful disagreement at times.

Wednesday June 22

Leaving Apache Junction at 8:09.  One of our camping neighbors suggested a good breakfast within walking distance at Sundance Bar and Restaurant.  He promised that the waitress was the funniest ever and he was right.  The locals flooded in for their coffee, breakfast, and conversation – getting up to pour their own coffee and then working each of the tables, including those that were not local (us)

The waitress was a graveled – voiced desert rat who was loud and called everyone “young’un”.  With slightly off color comments and teasing for all.  She waited tables her whole life and we saw her handle 7 large fully loaded plates as if were nothing. 

The decor was “Arizona”  with paintings of the desert, horses, and native Americans.  Pottery, feathers, horse shoes, and a strangely decorated ladder graced the walls and counters.  Three beautiful potted orchids seemed and odd addition to the eclectic collection to Arizona kitsch.

Back to the trailer to finish packing up and pull out.  Our route today is east on Highway 60 to Globe Arizona and then south east on Highway 70 to intersect Interstate 10 at Lordsburg New Mexico and then due east on to Las Cruces and then south to El Paso.

Leaving Apache Junction on 60 we head towards the Superstition Mountains.  The old mining town of Superior (1882) is at the foot at the southern end of the mountains where they say a fortune lies in the Lost Dutchman Mine. 

The next towns of Miami, Claypool, and Globe are also old mining towns- originally silver but it looks like borax or something.  Globe’s historic down town and museum look very attractive as we drove through. 

Coming out of the mountains we dropped down into a large agricultural valley, the Gila Valley.  There are acres of mostly alfalfa, some cotton, cattle and horse ranches.  This was a very surprising sight after soo much desert.  Of course all of these fields are surrounded by desert ( it is surprising what you  can do with just a little water).  We spent most of the afternoon driving the length of this valley and then it was back into the desert. 

Out on the flat desert we passed a sign announcing the Continental Divide at 4,825 ft.   This seemed counter intuitive.  The Continental Divide that Yvonne knew as a kid was 14,000 ft. and covered in snow. 

A little earlier   we had begun to pass signs for “Taylor Freeze”.  These were hand painted signs every mile or so (much like the Burma Shave signs of yester year) advertizing SHAKES, FREEZES, ROOT BEER FLOATS, BURGERS, FRIES.  Now we had had a great breakfast but the relentless bombardment of these signs began to convince us that it was time for a mid morning snack.  Besides the temperature had risen to 103 and even in the truck it was hot. And that Root Beer Float would cool our brows.  We entered the little strip town on the lookout for Taylor Freeze.   We spotted it.  It was an old-school drive-in.  We turned in only to find the “CLOSED UNTIL JUNE 25” sign in the window.  NO-O-O-O!!!!! We cried pounding on the steering wheel.  WE NEEDED THAT ROOT BEER FLOAT. 

Disappointed we found a Sonic Drive-in a little further down the road and pulled in but it was not the same. 

We intersected Interstate 10 at Lordsburg New Mexico and turned east for Las Cruces the land became green again and we had more agriculture because this valley was along the Rio Grand River.   At Los Cruces we turned south and were in El Paso in 45 minutes. 

The McMillan’s live on the north west side of El Paso which, because of the Franklin mountains and the Rio Grande River is shaped like a capital “W”.  When we arrived, we backed the trailer up their driveway not realizing how steep it was.  There was no way to make it level and their guest room was ready for us so we went in and settled in for a wonderful evening of drinking red wine, catching up and laughter. 

Day 2 Tuesday June 21

Another bright and beautiful day dawns in Temecula.  Nana Joyce took us outside to watch hot air balloons floating down the valley in the cool morning air.  After a lovely breakfast we left about 8:20.  Today’s drive is through the desert.  Right now we are driving through the Cahuilla Indian Reservation and on to Palm Desert by of the Palms to Pines Highway.  It is very rugged territory out here-dry sage brush and creosote bushes and huge boulders standing on end.

We pulled up to 3000 feet and dropped into a beautiful valley.  From there we will climb up to Pine trees (probably 5000 feet) and then drop down into Palm Desert. 

It is warm!!! with a slight breeze.  Our first day in shorts.  My body is beginning to remember this feeling of being warm without being covered up.  (No Yvonne was wearing cloths)

We just stopped for gas in the town of Anza- a mostly Native American enclave, a couple of gas stations, a community hall, and a market.  A little further down the road a casino.  We have passed through the pines now nestled against giant boulders and mesquite.  We stopped at an overlook which had a self guided trail with plaques which explained about the plants, animals, and the Cahuilla Indian culture and history.  It is amazing the tenacity of the people to prosper for centuries in this inhospitable environment.

Down the mountain side we rushed with the trailer pushing us all the way into Palm Desert.  It is no longer the sleepy desert town that Yvonne knew.  More shopping centers, housing developments, gated communities, golf courses, and hotels – too many.  Miles of grass and water features, ponds and fountains (soo wasteful).  What a contrast between the Cahuilla Indians and this town.

Our next stop was at the Mayflower County park, right beside the Colorado river.  IT WAS HOT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  Yvonne felt a little wobbly after walking across the park to look at the river and the folks with the water toys. (Later we found that it was 111 degrees. )

We headed out across the hot desert.  Yvonne drove for a while and when she was not driving she tried taking pictures out of the window of tamarisk trees, dry washes, and odd signs.  Many are unsuccessful but it kept her occupied (thank god for digital cameras).

After a long drive we entered Phoenix around 4:00.  Lots of traffic.  We had a little shopping to do so we pulled off and let the traffic clear.  We arrived at our KOA in Apache Junction, an eastern suburb of Phoenix.  The campground is a tipical with a pool, store, water and elect at each site.  Our AIRCONDITIONING WORKS.  When we set up we looked at the thermometer in the drawer it was 99 degrees.  At 8:15 it is 81 in the trailer and 88 outside.  It is too hot to eat so we are having a glass of cold pinot grigio and a sandwich and then to bed.  Tomorrow to El Paso.  It was 113 there today. 

Monday June 20

The kids all got up and saw us off and we went directly to the Bagel Bakery at 7:23 AM (don’t tell the kids that we did that because they will be mad) for breakfast. 

It is a beautiful sunny morning in the Salinas valley. The mountains are all standing in brightrelief against the summer sky. Patches of rich black soil alternate with the green of broccoli, lettuce and the vineyards. Sprinklers are turning the sunlight into rainbows and Gods creation shines its glory and praise. 

California’s hills have already transformed to gold.  Driving on highway 46 over to highway 5, we cut through shining hills of dry grass.  The river bed trees are green against the dry pasture land.  The vineyards are heavy with fruit and potential just like this trip.

Then it up and over the grapevine and down into the smog of LA.  As usual, we are once again convinced that we made the right choice to move to Salinas. 

The phone rang and it was Bob and Sally Stockton who knew we were coming through.  They wanted to meet us for lunch.  They worked out the particulars and we both met up at Tom’s Farms, a farmers market with a restaurant.  Had a great lunch with them, catching up on this year’s activities and making plans for them to come up and visit. 

Then it was off to Grandpa Dan and Nana Joyce’s house in Temecula.  We arrived there at 4:30 and after an awful parking attempt by yours truly and not falling of the edge of the driveway,  we went in for a beer. 

We had a lovely evening of talking, catching up with them and telling stories.   We then walked outside (after the sun and gone down) and viewed their new cactus and succulent garden.  This garden is supported with drip irrigation, a bird bath, rattlesnakes, and eye catching desert plants. 

After Banana Cream Pie we headed off to bed.

We will be up in the morning and head for Apache Junction. 

Remember.  Become a follower and help us find interesting places to visit along the way.  Bill S already sent us the dates for a Renaissance festival. 



A full day of packing

Meghann gave us a gift today and took care of Kevin's girls (this is our normal Grandparent day).  We have been moving our stuff into the trailer.  I did not know that it would hold so much!!!!!! but we are going to be gone for a month.  We are so looking forward to seeing all of you. 

Preparation

 Well for a simple trailer trip of 6,000 + miles it sure takes a lot to prepare.  You will notice that we have a lot of help from the girls. 

 They think that if they hide under the sleeping bag they will be able to come and no one will notice.  (I am sure that the parents would not complain).

Baylee found the mirror and the little girl that lives in it.  How much fun is that.

We will start this trip on Monday June 20 and make the first leg of the journey to Temecula and visit Nana Joyce and Grandpa Dan.  We will let you know how we do through LA and the freeway parking lots.