April 21 2015 DAY 45
Oh my, what a day! Right now it sounds like a bunch of chickens cackling. (Too many sisters in one room). I am in Oakhurst CA at the home of my aunt Georgia and Uncle Jetton. After driving several hours I walked in the kitchen entrance to three rooms full of old people (my age) all sitting down listening to the pick’n and singing. In case you don’t know what pick’n and singing is you need a lesson on people from Arkansas. And that is where our family comes from. You can take the girl out of Arkansas but you can’t take the Arkie out of the girl. In this case you can’t even take the Arkie out of OLD WOMEN!
What a fun night. Georgia and Vela (my mother’s sisters) singing their Hillbilly tunes, one harmonica player, who also sang with the most beautiful voice I have heard in a long time. His voice reminded me of George Beverly Shay who was a voice from the long ago past. There was also a base guitar player that added a lot to the ensemble. Not only did Georgia and Vela sing they pulled in aunt Annie in too (another sister of my mom). Their voices harmonize beautifully together. It was especially fun when Vela did the chicken dance. I’ll see if I can upload a video. Well, I tried to post the video and it did not work.
Woke early this morning so I could go work out before hitting the road again. I packed everything up last night so all that needed to be done was load the car. Of course it doesn’t sound like much to do….WRONG! I have so many little bags to load and arrange that it always takes longer than I think it will. Finally got on the road at 11:00 a.m. I was trying to get to Oakhurst as early as possible because of the shingding. But, I was late. I had an opportunity arise that I didn’t want to miss. Last night when Betts treated me to dinner she told me her daughter lives in Fresno and she thought I would be going through Fresno and perhaps I would like to stop and meet her. Remember Betts is the maternal birth grandmother to out daughter. Her daughter is our daughter’s biological aunt and her children Rebecca’s cousins. I love meeting Rebecca’s birth mother’s family. So, I called her and stopped in tot see her family. It was delightful. I really enjoyed meeting Janice and her husband Lazarus and two of her 6 children. It fills in pieces of Rebecca’s genetic traits. Thank you Janice for such a delightful time with you and your family albeit short.
It took about two hours to drive from Orange County to the other side of LA County. I can’t believe the throngs of people, the crowded freeways and congested traffic. But…the signs were great. No problem following California traffic signs and highway markers. Such a pleasure when compared to several other states I have gone through. After leaving the Los Angeles area the terrain becomes mountainous. Long climbing roads with trucks laboring up slowly in three lanes. Cars passing at about 55 to 60 miles per hour. It seemed so odd to see hundreds of trucks climbing the mountain all packed end to end, side to side for as far as you could see. Coming down the mountain the trucks had to stay under 35 miles per hour. As I hit the peak of the mountain I could see between a Vee of mountains the valley way below. It looked green and lush…until I saw the rest of it as the mountains dropped away. The ground was parched and dry and the old growth of grasses in some parts looked almost like powder due to the dearth of water over the past three years. Entering the fourth year of drought 98 percent of California is in drought. Some parts of California are without water and must have it trucked in. The news last night reported that this is the worst drought in the last 800 years. It would be interesting to know how that could be figured out.
The San Joaquin Valley produces food in abundance because of the kind of soil and temperature that the plants needs. Warm days and cool nights create the environment needed. It is one of the leading producers of food for our country as most areas allow for more than one crop.
After driving quite a few miles the valley opened up to green, beautiful orchards and fresh growth of ground plantings. As far as the eye could see the irrigated crops grew lush and green. Water is so scarce I wonder where it comes from to irrigate so many thousands of acres of farmland.
The drive from Fresno to the Yosemite area was absolutely breathtaking. I drove during the golden hour of sunlight, right before dusk. The orange sun swept across the mountains and the flat lands turning the dried grass into golden flames. As the mountain became steeper I could look down upon rows and rows of undulating land. Though my glimpses were quick and fleeting I could see the valley below nestled like a baby in a bassinet, enclosed and secure among what appeared to be rumpled quilts of gold. The only altitude sign I saw today stated that I was at 2,300 feet above sea level. There were mountains much higher than where I was but I think that is about the highest elevation I went over. As I drove down to the lower levels a little sign stated that I was entering Oakhurst with a population of 13,300. Tomorrow I hope to go into the national park area of Yosemite.
To be continued when I live another day…
April 20 2015 Day 44 TOO MUCH STUFF!
I wish I could have “done” the trip before I did the trip. I would have taken a lot less. Too many clothes, too many shoes, too many do-dads I thought I MIGHT need and TOO MANY BOOKS. Who has time to read? Besides, all I’ve been doing is adding to my library everywhere I go. Just too many good books in the resale shops.
Today was a gift. It was a day that I was originally supposed to be in transit. Since my plans changed I stayed one day longer than planned so therefore I didn’t have any plans, so therefore I could do what I wanted. And what I wanted to do was go through everything I brought with me, cull, pack differently, and get ready to hit the road tomorrow. It was much needed. Betts wanted to go out to dinner with me so after I was finished with laundry, emptying everything out and repacking, we skedaddled out of Linda’s hair for awhile and went to Marie Calendar’s Restaurant. It has been years since I have been to a Marie Calendar’s. It was delicious. In the front when you come in they have all their assortment of pies, for which they are famous, and the calorie count of each piece of pie. These calorie counters were upward of 690 calories per piece up to about 960 calories per piece. That took the craving away for me. Privately however I still yearned for a piece of coconut cream pie. My favorite pie. Instead I ate a kale salad. It was excellent!
I loved this day with my exercise and solitude and quiet. I have not had enough solitude time the last few days because I haven’t been traveling. I look forward to the long hours in the car with just God and me and my new CD, TIMELESS, by David Hollandsworth. I love the titles of his compositions. As the title of the piece comes on screen I listen to see if I hear the title in the music. And, you know what, it does. Here are the Titles: 1. Awakening; 2. Carried by the Wind; 3. Alone; 4. Timeless; 5. Black Rose; 6. Through the Door; 7. First Frost; 8. My Heart is Yours, 9. First Signs of Spring; 10. Lake Effect; 11. Shimmer on the Water; 12. Nostalgic; 13. Pause for Thought; 14. Quiet Waters; 15 Touch; 16. Waterfalls, 17. View From Here; 18. Mournful Waltz; 19 Flow; 20. Pause for Thought ( piano solo). I see on the CD case is his web address if you are interested. davidhollandsworth.com
Linda and her sons had the interview today from the Orange County Register. The article is to be in the paper the Thursday before Mother’s Day. Linda said that the interview went well. I was in the bedroom going through all my STUFF during the time when the photographer and reporter were here.
After Betts and I went out to eat we went back to her house and picked oranges. Oranges are difficult to pick in case you want to know. Bets brought out a long stick with a caged basked at the end and one side of the basked had elongated prongs that were longer than the basket with curved tines. You reach up into the tree with the picker and let the tall tines trap the orange below it and give it a strong tug. The When the orange lets go it falls into the basket if you are lucky. A few fell on us instead. These oranges are falling from quite a distance and are very large and dense. I would not want one to land on my head. We picked two big bags. I will take them with me to share with my few host families. They are dense and very juicy. Supposedly juice oranges but I love the flavor and texture so I eat them. They taste how I imagine an orange is supposed to taste. We are still eating avocados from the last house. The next place I am going has horses. I don’t think I’ll be able to take any of them with me.
I’m going to bed so I can get up early, work out, and get on the road between 9:00 a.m. and 10:00 a.m. I’ll aim for 9:00 which could mean 11:00 a.m. It is 6 hours on the mapquest but for me that probably means 7 to 7 and 1/2 hours for my bladder. It is so good I am traveling alone. Like I said before, I get along well with myself and I am very patient with everything I do. I’ll get there when I get there and absolutely no one to gripe at me. The way I talk it sounds as if my husband must gripe at me a lot. Actually he does not. And honey if you are reading this, I MISS YOU A LOT!!! Actually I miss you a TON. (Inside joke)
By the way, I’ll be driving all the way to Yosemite tomorrow to visit my Aunt Georgia and Uncle Jetton. I have been informed to be as early as possible as there will be a lot of people coming to their house and they will be eating early because afterward there is going to be some picking and singing. I look forward to that. But, I’ll get there when I get there because I have been informed you can’t get on the freeways before 9:00 a.m. unless you want to be inching along in “rush hour” traffic when the 8 lanes of scores of freeways turn into parking lots.
April 19 2015 Day 43 A day of good “Betts”
This will be the fastest blog ever because I must get to bed on time. That means I have 12 minutes.
This is Sunday Sabbath. My favorite day of the week because I love to go to church and then spend time with the Lord in the peace and quiet of my library, which unfortunately sits quietly at my home, empty and alone. The good thing is, is that God is here with me in Orange County California. It is just a little more difficult to find peace and quite, not to mention solitude. No ones fault but my own. I don’t want to miss anything. Even now I sit at the central location of the home, the dining room table. Bob works on his computer at the opposite end of the table. A big artificial fern sits in the middle of the table obscuring our view of each other. He is quiet. The T.V. is not. Linda is doing what women of the house do, being constantly busy. She has a big day tomorrow as the news crew from the Orange County Register will be here as well as her sons to do the interview regarding the Mother’s Day article to be published.
My trip to my cousin Mary in Tehachapi will not be happening. The reason being, I forgot to call her back to confirm the date and since she hadn’t heard from me she and her husband went on a trip. I will be so sorry to miss seeing her. I haven’t seen her since the reunion in Russellville 4 years ago. I told her what I really wanted was to come and see her quilts. She makes the most spectacular quilt designs. I’ve only seen pictures and really wanted to see them up close and personal. (I hope you know I was kidding when I said I wanted to see the quilts more than her).
I will be leaving So. California on Tuesday morning. I will be driving at Yosemite National Park area to see my Aunt Georgia and Uncle Jetton. I look forward to arriving as they already have a houseful of company and it will be exciting to see everyone. If I am not mistaken my Aunts, Vela and Annie will be there when I arrive. Jetton told me on the phone to get there as early aspossible as they are expecting a lot of people over to their house on Tuesday evening and would be having music and a dinner. Music means getting the guitars out and the southern voices blending into beautiful harmonies. Lots of music in my mom’s family, singing and picking. It is always a fun time.
Enough about tomorrow, back to today!
Up at 6:00 a.m. Showered and readied myself for the first church service with Betts. I actually arrived at her house ON TIME! I attended church with her at the United Methodist Church in Tustin Ca. Excellent service and good teaching. Pastor started a new series today on “UN-CHRISTIAN”, the cause of why those who are not Christian do not want to be. He will talk about all the reasons the unbeliever does not want to be a believer after being around those who claim they are Christians. Very sobering.
After service Betts and I drove over to St John’s Lutheran Church of Orange to join Linda and Bob at their church. Again, another great place to worship. St. John’s is quite a campus. There is a preschool there as well as Kindergarten through 8th grade school. The school has over 700 students and the preschool has over 150 children. We enjoyed a singing concert this morning of the entire Kindergarten class. It was unbelievable. Words sang with the sweet pure diction of children who are taught to speak well. . The children were amazingly well behaved. When they filed down from the stage they all sat in rows of reserved seats for the rest of the service (and sermon) without a peep. We were sitting behind them. They then filed back up tp the stage at the end and performed once more. Again, once it was over they filed out respectfully and orderly all the way down the long side aisle to the outside. There were between 50 and 60 children all Kindergartners. Very impressive behavior for children so young.
On the way from the car to the Lutheran church Betts and I met an interesting group of…well, let’s put it this way…it was a group. This group was on the front porch of a house. One skeleton (with clothes on) two “older men”, one Mastiff that probably outweighed me. His name was Newman. Newman was a giant of a dog. I wish I had taken a photo with him, My face was probably less than half the size of his face and my head a lot smaller than his. He was amazing and so docile and gentle. This place had a detached garage full of beautiful relics of the past. I had my picture taken in an old old buggy. There was also a 1926 fully restored Buick that was built like a limousine inside. It was so beautiful. It is so fun to meet such interesting people and interesting dogs while walking to church.
By the way my time is up and I’m not quite finished. So I’ll speed on ahead. Betts and I came back to the house and I made a lunch for Betts. It was a good one too but remember not all people appreciate the kind of foods I like to eat. Cooked trout, crumbled with avocado slice on top. The bread was some of Bob’s friends bread and so delicious. We had salad with kale, cabbage, broccoli and Brussels sprouts. I also served small carrots, a strawberry and half of an orange.
After lunch we went to a Goodwill Store and had fun browsing. I only bought one book for $.89 so I could give it to someone. God will direct as to who will receive it.
Then, we went to church again. The concert was at the church Betts attends. It was mostly middle aged to older men and women and they did an excellent job. Quite a list of the old old songs of yesteryear” like “Gimme that old time religion…” It was very good. Aftewards we went back to Betts’ to pick up my car, drove to Linda’s and she had a delicious dinner waiting for us. We had roasted pork, mashed potatoes, gravy, green beans, asparagus, bread, and oranges (fresh ones off a tree). Oh my, it was good! Better than good. Betts left for home and here I am.
A fun day to let happen around me. Thanks for listening. Pretty boring I suspect, but still good for me to log it so I will remember it.
Good night
April 18 Day 42 Battleship Iowa
Well, another Surprise Day!!! I found out last night that there is a Farmer’s Market here in Orange California close to where I am staying. Linda’s husband Bob said he gets up every Saturday and goes and asked if I would like to go. I followed him in my car as I had only about 45 minutes to stay before meeting my husband’s two sisters in Anaheim to go out for breakfast with them (Faith and Jon) and with Faith’s son Wade.
The market was spectacular. Such beautiful displays of fresh fruit and produce I’ve never seen. So different than our farmer’s market in Madison Wisconsin around the capitol. Ours is also a spectacular event but has very different offerings depending on the season. I think the Madison farmer’s market opens the last week of April and goes through part of October. I was so surprised to see such an array of food so early in the season. Oranges and lemons and grapefruits and avocados and blueberries, raspberries, and strawberries all fresh from farms in the outlying areas. Not much farmland close by. Lots of nuts with various flavorings and seasonings, jams, and personal products such as soaps and oils. Breads and cakes and cookies and unbelievable pastries that I could’t even begin to name. All so amazing. Vegetables so big that I could hardly believe they were real. Every kind of vegetable that we don’t usually have available until late July or August. Squash, Shallots, greens of many varieties, even dandelion greens, sweet potatoes, several varieties of onions, carrots, farm fresh organic eggs for $7.00 per dozen. Yes, I said SEVEN DOLLARS PER DOZEN. (I didn’t buy any). So many foods to feast my eyes upon and to take pictures of. Took them all with my camera so don’t have any to post. I get so focused when I am intent on camera work that I forget to get my IPhone out and take a few. I was exhilarated with just feasting my eyes upon the beauty of the “REAL FOOD”, to smell it and at times caress it. I just couldn’t help myself. I love working with live foods. I love eating live foods, foods that have not be processed, cooked or boiled or baked. Just to smell the food made me happy! But I only purchased some Brussels sprouts and some fresh picked oranges. You see, Brussels sprouts are one of my most favorite foods. Bob brought home some bread that is so tasty that I even ate a piece. I don’t normally eat much bread but this bread was so exceptional. Ciabatta bread is what Bob called it. Crispy crust with lots of air holes in it. I loved it. Glad we don’t have it accessible close by where I live. And if it is accessible please don’t tell me where.
I left the market and drove to Anaheim on the grid layout of the city. This must have been a very planned area at one time. Before homes were “planted” on the flat coastal lands the grids marked the boundaries of the orchards. Orchards of oranges, lemons, and grapefruits in precision rows, defined the first roads, Before the citrus were planted the area was planted in vineyards. In the late 1800’s a blight killed off all the grapes and the fields were planted in groves of citrus. Dave’s father came to Orange County in the early 1900’s. At that time he could have purchased as many acres as he wanted for $2.00 an acre. He didn’t have the funds to do so. Orange county was originally part of the Los Angeles County. When all the orange groves were planted the area was separated from Los Angles County and called ORANGE COUNTY. When I moved here in 1973 many of those orange groves still existed. The are all gone now. In their place are high density apartment buildings and closely crowded homes, all in straight squared blocks. Major streets stretch from east to west with other major crossroads from north to south. The major long streets are at least 4 lanes wide and the most of them are 5 lanes wide. The middle lane is enclosed with double yellow lines and is a turning lane of safety when trying to turn left or right against the traffic, either crossing the traffic to turn or when trying to get across the street to turn against the traffic. Wish we had this safety lane in Madison. There is a lot Madison planners could learn from the both the flow of traffic in this heavily traveled area and in the designs of their parking lots.
Well, lets’s get back to my visit with my sisters-in-law. We went to Denny’s which is their favorite eating place. Wade met us there and we had a nice breakfast. It was too short and I didn’t even get to take one picture of Wade. He does not like his photo taken and I honored his request to not take any pictures of him. My loss. After our breakfast Wade left and we three women headed out to Long Beach to visit the docked Battleship IOWA. I would like to share a bit from the brochure I received this morning:
“Battleship IOWA was designed as the lead ship of the world’s last class of battleships. She was completed at the Brooklyn Navy Yard during the frenzied early months of World Ward II, and joined at the Navy’s Atlantic Fleet in February 1943…IOWA’s designers created an armored steel box about 500 feet long and about 80 feet wide, put all the critical components of the ship inside it–the big guns, machinery, fire control , magazines, engines and boilers, communication and navigation systems, and then they built a ship around it. This armored box is called the Citadel, and it extends from just forward of Turret One to just aft of Turret Three below the second deck.”
So many other interesting facts I learned. To just walk on the decks and climb the steep ladder stairs and gaze out on the waters of the Bay gave me a melancholy feeling as I thought of all the perils and horrors of war, wondering how many men walked on those decks who did not come back. That ship played a strategic part in the war. To see the close quarters that housed 3,000 men gave me a reality check of what it would be like to live in such a confined area for months and months. There are way too many facts to relate in my short time frame. Finding out what I did makes me hungry to find out more.
We finished the tour and headed home. The day was clear and light winds blew. It was so beautiful down by the water. We crossed a beautiful bridge and scooted in to the traffic lanes of frenzied drivers. A bit a rudeness goes on on those freeways. If you put your blinker on the car to signal a lane change the car on your blinker side will accelerate and try to block you from coming over into their lane. My little Kia Soul has learned how to change lanes without signals. When in Rome….
On the way home Faith drove by the home where she and her siblings (one being my husband) grew up. The house was ready for Dave’s family to move in to in July 1948. Dave was just a baby and lived his life in that house until after he graduated from Fullerton State University. The house was sold after his mother died. I can’t remember the date. The house brings back nostalgic memories of my children going to grandma and grandpa’s house. Our little toddler stretching to reach up and touch the chimes of the doorbell on the outside of the house. Memories of our little two and three year old walking with Grandpa to the corner store for a treat. They loved going to grandma and grandpa’s. And of course they were always angels!
We had a nice afternoon eating at Faith’s house, sharing stories and taking photos. All too soon my wonderful day with my family was over. Linda had dinner waiting for me and I knew I couldn’t miss it. LINDA IS A REALLY GOOD COOK! And it was delicious. There was trout, asparagus, rice pilaf, a grand salad, and I contributed a strawberry.
I made some phone calls long overdue, planned my itinerary for next week (sort of) and wrote this blog. I know these blogs are long but since my days are so packed I haven’t had much time to write in my journal so this is the part of the journal writing that I can share. I will close with a Goodnight!
April 17 Day 41 Ronald W. Reagan Presidential Library
“Once you begin a great movement, there’s no telling where it will end. We meant to change a nation, and instead we changed the world” Words spoken by Ronald Reagan’s Farewell Address to the Nation on January 11, 1989.
Today is a memorable day in this trip. Visiting Ronald Reagan’s Presidential Library and Museum was spectacular! Of the four Presidential Libraries I’ve visited this one now ranks as my favorite. It is located about 45 miles north/west outside of Los Angeles. The 100 acre site sits on a high mountain top overlooking the valley. It consist of 100,000 square feet in 24 different galleries. Just so you know, 100,000 square feet is really a lot!
One of my favorite exhibits is the Air Force One plane that is positioned in a glass enclosed building. When you are in the cockpit and look out the window it actually feels as if you are flying. No photos are allowed to be taken inside the place due to security measures. A helicopter sits in the building also.
Linda and I had a marvelous day. The facility closed at 5:00 p.m. So went to a nearby Costco and spent 2 hours browsing and sampling before Linda found all she needed. Then… we each had a soft serve yogurt and drove home. By lolly-gagging- at Costco for two hours we missed all the traffic jams coming out of LA. The freeways are so full of people when it is not rush hour that I don’t even want to think about subjecting myself to the freeway between 4:00 p.m. and 7:00 p.m. Thus, our Costco stop did exactly what we planned it to do.
Our entire day was taken up with the Library. No great exciting stories to tell other than I was entirely focused on what I was seeing and hearing.
Good night one and all.
Visions of Poetry 