Sep11
Posted on Sep 11 by Ruth Davis
TRAVELOGUE Part 4: Mendocino, Then and Now We finally arrived in Mendocino on the California coast on Monday, May 24. Mendocino is a picturesque tourist town in northern California. Once a booming lumber mill town, Mendocino is now designated as a Historic Village, and that’s why we are here volunteering. We work for Mendo Parks, a non-profit organization that maintains and staffs the historic buildings and visitors centers within the state parks in this area. When we pulled in, we met Amelia, our volunteer coordinator. She showed us to our campsite, dropped off our volunteer vests and working papers and, the next day, we went to the police station in Fort Bragg to be fingerprinted. Instead of inking our fingers, the woman used a live scan computer program. We chatted about the technology, the area, and we asked her for restaurant recommendations. She told us that the best fish markets are down by Noyo Harbor and only open Thursday through Sunday, so we opted to share an order of fish and chips from a recommended Mexican restaurant...
Sep11
Posted on Sep 11 by Ruth Davis
Flexibility. Following the energy. Asking for what you want. This is life (on the road). DAY 12 On our last day in Brigham City, we drove out to Promontory Point and the Golden Spike Historical Park, where, in 1869, the Central Pacific and the Union Pacific Rail lines met to create the first transcontinental railroad. The original wood burning Jupiter engine and the coal burning 119, have been refurbished and are used in the daily re-enactments of the historic event. The Ranger mentioned the ATK Rocket Park nearby, so we stopped on the drive home to see actual NASA rocket boosters and missiles. The reusable rocket motor from the Space Shuttle was 159 feet long. One placard showed the two rail line grades in the background, and the space program items in the foreground, remarking how only 100 years separated the two innovations. DAY13 Welcome to Wells, Nevada, the Gateway to the West There is not much to see between Brigham City and Wells, NV, except so much wonderful wide open space. The dry stretches of desert are dotted with...
Sep11
Posted on Sep 11 by Ruth Davis
Flexibility. Following the energy. Asking for what you want. This is life on the road. Day 6 Painted Rocks Campground, Yuba Lake State Park, Utah We were supposed to leave on Monday for our next camp site, but it was so quiet and spacious at Yuba Lake State Park, with only three other campers in the entire campground. So we stayed an extra day. Marika spent much of the day outside with her binoculars, watching the birds. She saw western kingbirds, Bullock’s orioles, yellow warblers, Blackburnian warblers, western tanagers, white crowned sparrows, killdeer, mourning doves, Canada geese, white pelicans, black billed magpies, a robin, and some swallows. And Tillie and I did something that was bigger than a bucket list item, all about a dream come true. She ran next to me while I rode my bike. She watched me, I watched her, and we rode the length of the camp road, twice. She loved it, I loved it, and Marika took pictures of the whole thing. Day 7 Yuba Lake to Antelope Island I was expecting the day...
Sep11
Posted on Sep 11 by Ruth Davis
Flexibility. Following the energy. Asking for what you want. This is life on the road. DAY 1: Wednesday Our first traveling day was a success. We drove 168 miles via I-17 and Highway 89 from Phoenix to Cameron, Arizona, just 30 miles north and east of the south rim of the Grand Canyon. We used half of our $140.00 fill up of gas, made stops for propane, pooping, and checking in to our campground. Five hours later, we were leveled in the dusty dirt, and cooling off inside the RV at the Cameron Trading Post, overlooking the Little Colorado River Gorge. The Cameron Trading Post was established in 1916 as a place to trade with the local Native Americans. They still sell and showcase gorgeous Native American art and craft items. There’s also a motel, restaurant, and RV Park, where we spent the night. After dinner at home, we left Tillie alone in the RV for the first time, and drove across the highway to the restaurant for some Indian Fry bread to go. It was crispy...
Sep03
Posted on Sep 3 by Ruth Davis
We’re past the halfway point of our volunteering gig here in Mendocino on the Northern California coast. Three and a half months done, one and a half months left to go. Both of us agree that this is the most beautiful place we’ve volunteered, with all of the moist green, the redwoods, the headlands, the ocean, the rivers, and so many gorgeous wildflowers, plants, and blooms everywhere. I asked Marika, “Could you live here?” “Too cold,” she said. “Too isolated and hard to get to,” I said. But boy, are we enjoying it all while we’re here. This past month, we had a very different work schedule. Instead of working at the Ford House, we were scheduled to only work at the two campground visitors centers. And it was every weekend. At first we were both upset. How come no one else was scheduled at the campgrounds? How come we didn’t have a single shift at the Ford House? And why were we the only ones working every weekend? And then I remembered that the new couple...
Apr06
Posted on Apr 6 by Ruth Davis
It’s been four weeks since Marika’s hip replacement surgery, All went very well, and, according to her surgeon, she is healing ahead of schedule. She gave up her walker and is now sporting a cane. She’s driving and running errands, and even went to a friend’s house for some backyard birding. I did a great job as her care helper. She got her meds on time, had clean laundry, dishes, groceries, had her potty moved and emptied every day, and I even found ways to make getting her TED hose stockings on more fun. I felt like I was channeling my father, the efficient caretaker, while trying to infuse some of my mother’s compassion in the mix. Still, Marika will tell you I was too controlling, and she couldn’t wait to be independent. So while she was recovering, I continued to get things ready for the house sale and getting back on the road. I’d gone through all of the “things” in the house, and was starting to look at storage spaces for our boxes of stuff...
