We left the mountains yesterday. Traveled down thru the foothills, then across the Central Valley to the Sacramento River and Sugar Barge RV Park.









We'll be staying here a few days to give our Wi-Fi and computer seminars.

It's not often that Chris is rendered speechless. The view going into Yosemite Valley did it. Awesome does not begin to describe it. The pictures do not do it justice.
This is my first visit to Yosemite. Most of the falls are dried up at this time of year. That means we have to come back in Springtime to see the splendor of the rushing water and wildflowers.
We left Odie in the motor home and drove the car down into the valley. Then we took a bus tour up to Glacier Point. The driver gave a wonderful narration on the ride. He stopped near El Capitan so we could see the rock climbers doing their thing. Mere specks on the rock face.
Then up, up, up to one of the most spectacular vistas in the world. We could see hikers on the point of Half Dome through a telescope. Then it was down, down, down to the valley floor. Most of the people on the bus tour took the bus back down. Chris and I walked down the "Four Mile Trail" which is closer to five miles back to the car. I don't think Odie would have made it. There was some question whether we would make it! Just kidding, we really enjoyed the hike. We only saw five other people on the trail. One woman was running UP! It looked like she wasn't even breathing. Wow!
We saw a bunch of deer on the way. Another couple said they saw a black bear.
On the way out of the valley, the full moon was rising and we stopped for some more pictures. Then back home, tired and happy. What a day!

I'm speechless!

I'm a day behind, I know - and I have LOTS of photos. We've been in Yosemite Park. We stayed Friday night at the Tuolumne Meadows campground and there were too many trees to get the satellite for Internet. A day offline sounded kinda nice anyway, so we didn't try too hard. I read a book, we went for walks and we even attended the Ranger's Fireside talk. She started by reciting the poem "The Cremation of Sam McGee". That's always been a favorite of mine, I even have the book. Maybe I'll memorize it?!


And the view looking back down. This road takes you from around 6,000 feet elevation down by Mono Lake to 9965 at the top in 12 miles. It was suggested that we may want to unhook the Honda and drive separately, but we didn't. We had been over 9,000 foot passes a couple times in Wyoming and did fine. But, this one is a bit longer! We made it fine, but we spent an inordinate amount of time in first gear.



Almost to the top. See the snow?



And, here we are!



It wasn't very far then to the Tuolumne meadows campground, which is probably the only campground along the Tioga road that could accomodate us. You don't see any big rigs up here.



I remember, when I used to go backpacking in these parts, we had to put all our food into one stuff sack, tie a rope on it and throw it over a branch so it hung high enough that a bear couldn't get at it. Well, according to the ranger talk, that's not good enough anymore. The bears have learned how to climb above that branch and then jump down on it to get the bag. In camprounds, you are required to put all your food in these bear proof lockers. If you're backpacking you need to rent a bear proof cannister to take with you. We didn't see any bear, even tho we were told they are at their hungriest right now, getting ready for winter hibernation.



Just across from the campground is Lembert dome - one of the many examples of how glaciers carved the granite into smooth domes.







Then we walked along the Tuolumne river thru the meadows. Nice reflections.






Our destination was the Soda Springs. Water comes out of the ground carbonated!

Saturday morning we got up to 36 degree weather. Brrrrrr. We were at about 8500 feet. The campground was getting ready to close for the winter - we happened to be there on their last weekend. I'm so glad we made it - it was gorgeous. We hoped to stay at a campsite in Yosemite valley, but you need reservations and they were all booked up. So, we decided to drive west outside the park and leave the motorhome there while we take the car back up into the valley for Sunday.

Here's some photos along the way:

Tenaya Lake on a sparklingly beautiful day:



Amazing how they cut this road from the smooth rock face.




Coming back down from that 8500 level to our current 3000 feet is hard on brakes. We could smell them getting hot as we're driving. But, when we had to stop at the park entrance, they made some really wierd noises and then, when Jim pressed on the pedal it went all the way to the floor with no effect! Uh Oh. Not a good feeling ... one of my recurrent nightmares actually. He pumped them a few times and they came back, but we stopped at the first wide spot in the road and sat there for 2 hours while the brakes cooled. They seem fine now, but we will certainly get them checked out at our next stop in civilization.

Here is a map of our last 4 days:

This must be one of the most spectacular drives in the world. The road is mostly in a valley, but the Sierra Nevada mountains rise straight up on our right side.




Except for all the noise of the motorcycles making their way to Reno for the 'Street Vibrations' weekend, this was a delightful lunch stop.



I noticed 'Bodie' on the map and told Jim we had to take this little side trip to an honest-to-goodness ghost town. In it's heyday around 1875 it had over 10,000 inhabitants. The gold mine is what drew people to this 8500 feet desolated place.





We had to unhook the car to make the final few miles on dirt road. What a spectacular view!




After visiting Bodie, we continued south on 395 to Mono Lake.






We spent the night in Lee Vining, California and are getting ready to head up Tioga Pass Road to Yosemite today! Wheeeeee!

Melinda has a horse! The Washoe Valley, just south of Reno is desert/ranch/horse country. Her sister lives there and has a horse. When Melinda heard about the Parelli method of horse training, she decided this was a perfect fit for her passion about learning in general. It also provides an activity away from work and away from the house. She loves her horse. Meet Dudley:



Instead of yanking on a horse with a bit in his mouth, or kicking him with spurs, the Parelli method shows you how to 'bond' with the horse and get him to do things with simple gestures. She clapped a short clap, raised her hand pointing to the right and Dudley started to trot in the direction she pointed.



Our cowgirl, Melinda:



She told me that one thing she learned is if she gets lower than Dudley he trusts her more.



A girl and her horse.



After visiting Dudley, we went out to dinner at the Peppermill casino. They have a great seafood restaurant. Talk about a contrast! From desert and dust to glamour and glitz. I actually liked the decor - neon everywhere. They made it feel like you were underwater with all the fish (one of my favorite places) and the sun was shining on the waves above you. The food was good too. But the best, of course, was conversation with a dear old friend. We've known each other for 25 years. We've lived together, traveled together, shared heartbreaks and joys and, lots of meals!

The words just flew. "Where is so-and-so now?" and "So, you're into digital photography too!" and "You have a daughter?!?" "and she's 15!?!?"

It's been a long time since I've seen these guys. I visited Steve a couple times on my other visits to Tahoe over the years.



But I haven't seen David since I left Tahoe in 1981. Sure wish I could be here when he does his next performance of Woody Guthrie. I'm sure that's wonderful.



They both came by our motorhome at Boomtown and we chatted over some wine. Luckily Steve grabbed my camera and snapped the following, so I didn't miss this spectacular sunset while I was so busy talking.



Steve takes a lot of photos of flowers and plants in the Tahoe area.

Do you think I had fun?

I really try to avoid doctors. Just as I believe we are a society quick to hire a lawyer rather than solve our own problems, I also believe we are too quick to go to doctors rather than rely on natural healing.

But

what do I know?

It was getting pretty clear to me that Odie's cut wasn't going to heal right unless there was something like stitches holding it together. So, we found a vet that would take us without an appointment and did the deed. He's still pretty pathetic, but I'm confident he'll heal well now.

OH MY GOD it's really snowing! Time to head south, or at least to lower elevation. We actually see snowflakes in the air. By the time it hits the ground, it's wet. Look just a little ways up on the surrounding hills however, and there's no doubt. It's snowing. Our neighbor in the RV next door says this is typical Reno weather

....

FOR JANUARY!!


Our heater works real good. We're nice and comfy cozy inside here.

We stayed the night at Melinda and Laird's house Friday night. The first time we haven't slept in our motorhome since selling the house last November! They live at 7700 ft. elevation - my heart was beating like I was doing jumping jacks while I was lying in bed! The weather reports actually said it might snow. It didn't snow, but the wind blew with at least 60mph gusts. Yep, this is living in the mountains. They see bear often.

This is not a bear next to Odie ... this is Elwood, their German Shepard dog. 120 pounds of playful, friendly, dog. He and Odie got along just fine, he was even gracious enough to share some of his food.


But, when they got into a little tussle outside, Odie ended up on the bottom. We were able to grab Odie and Jim held him up high on his shoulder for a few minutes. Odie was a little dusty and shaken, but we thought he was fine until we saw the blood on Jim's shirt. Then we saw the small gash in his side.

So, what should we do? Would rushing him to a vet (at least 15 miles away) be overkill? Well, let's just watch and see. We cleaned him up and he seemed to be OK, he didn't even hold a grudge with Elwood. We used hydrogen pyroxide to clean it and my favorite, Lavender oil, to disinfect and help the healing process. But, by evening he had gotten stiff and sore to the point that he couldn't walk. hmmm, if I was bruised and sore, I'd take some aspirin. I wonder if that's ok for dogs? I googled the Internet for dogs and aspirin and up pops my answer. As long as you don't give more than 5mg per pound of dog - it's a great thing to do. I also googled for vets in the area and found an emergency one that would be open on Sunday if he was any worse in the morning. How DID we ever live without the Internet?

So, now it's Sunday. I don't think he had a very restful night and he's not his normal, bouncy self, but he ate his food, his nose is cold and wet, he went for a short walk and the wound looks like it's closing and healing already. We'll just have to start calling him 'scrappy'.

I've been looking forward to this ever since we left Fort Lauderdale. Lake Tahoe is a special place and was a special time in my life. I lived here in 1980. I had just finished law school and taken the California Bar exam. It takes 3-6 months before you get the results, so I decided to use that time to have fun!! I moved to Tahoe and lived with my friend Melinda in Incline Village. I found a job as a cook and waitress in a local cafe (The Stereoscope Cafe). And, when I wasn't working, I was playing, partying, hiking, reading, meeting new people, just having all sorts of fun. Come to think of it, I was doing that when I was at work too. It was a great cafe where people came to eat and talk. I made a mean juevos rancheros!

Melinda still lives here. So, here we are with the spectacular Lake Tahoe as our backdrop.



And, here she is with her husband, Laird. Laird is a professor at the local Sierra Nevada College.



We went to visit his office in the newly completed library building.



Makes ya wanna go back to school doesn't it? It does me anyway, especially when I know he teaches classes like: the King Arthur Myth; Universal Themes in Literature, The Unconscious, the Ego, and the Search for Soul.

Then we went on to a presentation by a favorite artist of ours, James Christensen, who was visiting Tahoe. I've always loved his fantasy paintings (we had one in the house called 'fantasies of the sea" with little mermaids riding seahorses etc.), but it was so interesting to learn about his symbolism. For example, this guy's layers and layers of heavy clothes represents the encumbrances we collect as we grow older, the 'baggage' that accumulates and weighs us down. The name of this one is "Even as he stopped wobbling, Wendell Realized he had a Dilemma":



His artwork tends to ease your worries and make you smile.

Here we are at Boomtown RV, you can see the casino up the hill behind us.



We went for a nice walk down by the Truckee river this morning.



Then, this afternoon we gave a little Wi-Fi seminar ... in the laundry! As I said, they don't have a clubhouse. Actually, it worked out great cuz it's the laundry where the one telephone jack/modem connection is. So, several people came in to connect to the Internet ... and we showed them a better way!

Ooops, I almost forgot. Five months ago today we hit the road. Here's our route



And, here's the stats:
Total Days: 153
Total Miles: 7588 (average = 50/day)
Total gas cost: $1,822 (.24/mile)
Total campsite rent: $1074 (average 7.00/day - includes lots of free places)
Total RV maintenance costs: $1,013

We are here at Boomtown RV Park.

They have the Coach Connect Wi-Fi system and we are here to be Wi-Fi evangelists. An interesting place. A very nice RV park with no clubhouse ... hmmm ... could that be because there is a VERY BIG clubhouse on the same property? It's called a casino!

As you can see, it is gorgeous weather. This is high season in Reno. Last weekend there was a Ribfest, this weekend is the Air Races and next weekend is a major motorcycle rally. Jim says the Air Races are very famous and he's excited that we happen to be here on the right weekend. We should be able to see them practicing right overhead.

We found a PetSmart not too far and made Odie an appointment for grooming. Whaddaya think of his new haircut? I think they did a great job.

We left Lassen Pines yesterday. We really liked it there - the peacefulness was tangible. Leaving was like having to get out of your cozy, quilt-covered bed on a cold morning. I loved the morning light thru the trees.



Here's Barbara and Dennis' house and campground office. It was a run-down dome structure that they completely redid. It is gorgeous.



Then we got to hit the open road on our way to Reno, Nevada. What spectacular vistas in this high desert area. Here's Shasta:



And, here's Lassen - far in the distance on the left:



Hey Glenn! Just a couple days ago you emailed us saying you knew this area because you spent a lot of time around Eagle Lake. So, we had to go by Eagle Lake. Here she be ... see the eagle? :-)



But, what in the world are Pelicans doing way up here?



I think this is my favorite part of life on the road. The road itself. Driving (or riding, in my case. Jim does 95% of the driving) thru ever-changing countryside, and especially the wide open spaces. I'm just filled with awe over the landscapes we see. The hum of the wheels and the rhythm of the road is hypnotic. I won't mention the rattling dishes and the thump of forgotten things falling, Ok?



And then, we're someplace new!

Here we are at Lassen Pines RV Park.


It is soo indescribably peaceful here. I even did my half hour yoga routine this morning for the first time in months. I gotta think it has something to do with the atmosphere. The park is owned by Dennis and Barbara who we met in Florida last winter thanx to Ginny from my Women's Executive Club.



They probably can't appreciate the peacefullness right now. Yesterday, Barbara was working a fundraiser event that she's been involved with for months. Today, Dennis catches a flight to San Diego for a board meeting. I think this is that reality, fantasy thing again. I'm happy to be on the fantasy side this time! We explored the property following the signs that Dennis pointed out to the edge of a bluff with a great view.


It's such a great spot that I took my journal and spent some time writing. Yes, I still feel the need occasionally to take an old fashioned pen to paper.



Even Jim had some contemplation time. The Thinker?


While we watched the sun set over Mt. Shasta.

We had such a nice time visiting with Don and Joy. Here they are at home in their garden with their dog, Holly.

But, here's where Don is really at home. He may be in our home, but he's in front of a computer - and that's where he belongs!


And, what beautiful roses they grow.


Here's their other home:


When we left Eureka, we headed east on highway 299. We knew it was going to be steep and windy ... Jim drove and he said it was 'fun'!


There were 4 summits on this highway, from 2 to 4,000 feet. The steepest grade was 8%. That's the steepest we've seen so far and the curves were the tightest - but it sure was pretty.


And, this is gold-mining country:


We spent the night at a rest stop ... had the place to ourselves ... worked out great.


We stopped for breakfast at Macarthur/Burney falls state park. Really beautiful.

We are currently visiting Lassen Pines RV Park. We met the owners thru friends in Fort Lauderdale last winter. It's near Macarthur, California which is in a valley where you can look north and see Mt. Shasta - look south and see Mt. Lassen. Here's Shasta.

It's always so satisfying to add a new state to our map! Gee, I wonder what people do once you've filled 'em all in? Start over again?

Right back where I started from :-) ... 21 years ago I left California. Now, here we are. We crossed the stateline driving highway 101 - the coast road. Lots of fog.



Then we went thru the Redwoods. Geeez, they are sooo magnificent!







And, here we are. Camped out in Eureka at Don's driveway. Don is the webmaster and guru for DatastormUsers.com. We are paying homage! If you are a follower of George and Tioga ... yes, this is the same place George was last week. The Datastorm 2-way Satellite dish is what makes both George's and our weblog possible. And Don IS the ultimate guru of all things Datastorm. We were planning to attend the Datastorm users rally in Texas at the beginning of October but, it doesn't look like we're going to make it. So, it is so nice to get to visit with the master a while!

I have to warn you. I'm sitting here alone in our wonderful, cozy motorhome, drinking wine and listening to Carole King's 'Tapestry' on our surround-sound stereo system. I'm feeling introspective, reflective, and maybe a little sappy.

We should be in California tomorrow. I lived in California from '74 to '83, age 22 - 31. What a time! Here's a photo circa 1975. I did a lot of backpacking back then. This is me on Lassen looking at Shasta (I think).



Oh how I loved backpacking. To be in the wilderness and have everything you need on your back. There is just something SO satisfying about that kind of self-sufficiency. Even in the snow!



I feel like our current adventure of living in our motorhome is taking that concept to the nth degree. Wherever we are ... we're home. On the Oregon coast with the wind whipping the cold air against our faces walking on the black sand beach with pelicans flying against a fiery sunset ... we're at home. In Wyoming looking up at the extraterrestrial Devil's Tower ... we're at home. On Long Beach Island, Jim's childhood home, with so many family and wonderful friends ... we're at home. It's a fantastic life. Truly realizing my fantasy of complete freedom without losing the comforts of home.

But, what happens when fantasies come true? Reality hits. I've discovered the downside of 'always being at home'.

You never get to leave.

Wherever we are ... we're home. Looking up at that other-worldly Devil's Tower - I feel like I *should* be at the computer sending emails and finding web-development work. Being here in Gold Beach, Oregon where there is a one-of-a-kind jet boat ride up a wild and scenic river. We don't partake because ... 'We're not on vacation, y'know. We have work to do and we don't have money to spend on frivolous boat rides'.

hmmmm

Y'know how when you go on vacation and you get to completely relax because you're in foreign surroundings and you don't have your normal tools. You read that book ... because there's nothing else to do! No guilt feelings.

That's not what we're doing. Our normal surroundings are always with us. I had to really force myself to read that book yesterday. I had to tell myself, it's *OK* to take the time to read a book.

DON'T get me wrong. This IS my fantasy. Life IS good. It's just that reality is starting to sink in. We have about one more month of financial reserves. And, I find myself wanting to recapture the past. When we get to Reno we will be among my old Tahoe friends. I find myself fantasizing (that's seems to be a common theme with me doesn't it? There's an artist named Ashleigh Brilliant, who makes a postcard I have mounted with the caption "I have Abandoned my Search for Truth, and am now Seeking a Good Fantasy.") about settling in Reno/Tahoe for a while and getting a job/going to school/being among friends.

Jim takes it all in stride. I call him my 'natural Taoist'. Taoism - a philosopy to which we both subscribe - is all about 'going with the flow'. Give up trying to plan your life, and you'll be able to accept the life that's in store for you.

We'll see what tomorrow brings.

Jim decided to make a couple tweaks to the Wi-Fi system and one thing leads to another. Then, we can't leave until we see that everything is stable. So, we're still here. I'm starting to feel like I'm in 'Groundhog Day'. Geeeeezz .... it's only been 7 days Chris! Think of when you lived in a house - you woke up to the same view every day for years.

With his new computer Jim is spending almost as much time at the computer as me! Now he actually has enough space to use some of this software. Under his left hand is a CD case with over 50 CDs of almost everything that Microsoft makes. Oh Boy!!



Here's Tom. He came over for Jim to check out a couple things on his computer before he left the park. Nice guy. Retired Graphic Design professor from University of Washington at Pullman. He was happy to run into us - he hadn't used Wi-Fi yet - but during the conversation we learned that he plans to 'winter' in Palm Creek RV Resort in Arizona. We told him that park has the Coach Connect Wi-Fi too - so he took the plunge - signing up for 6 months! He's looking for something to do in his retirement. I told him that web design would be the logical choice if he could just get a good web connection!



I'm sooooo glad that Odie takes us out for a walk a couple times a day. Otherwise all we would see is our computer screens! And, look at these views.



I've actually taken some time to read a book! A book that we've carried with us in the motorhome so you know it's special - we gave hundreds of them to Goodwill when we sold the house. I've had it for years and never read it ... you know how that goes ... someday ... Well, someday arrived. It was written by a friend of mine, David Fenimore, who I worked for when I lived in Incline Village at Lake Tahoe. He owned a restaurant - the Stereoscope Cafe - and I was a cook! Apparently he was an avid bicycler - I didn't know that at the time. The book is "Bicycling Across America", a journal of the 2 1/2 months that he and his wife Nanci spent on their bicycles peddling from Oceanside, California to Bar Harbor, Maine. 4,658 miles. I recognized some of the places. They passed thru Hutchinson, Kansas where we spent a week at the Great North American RV Rally. They also spent a day in Hannibal, Missouri enjoying the Mark Twain memorabilia, as did we. David writes so well - I wonder if he's written anything else.

I remember David and Nanci's wedding in the woods by Lake Tahoe in 1981. I think I heard they are split up now. I hope I get to see one or both of them when we're there.

People in Tahoe are generally in better physical condition than the rest of the world. Just living there, at 6,000 feet, is an aerobic exercise. But, bicycling across America! It made me tired just reading it! Actually it made me feel slothfull for sitting in my cozy camper, with a beer, reading a book instead of being outside walking, surfing, biking or hiking in the mountains.

Maybe when we get to Tahoe we'll get some exercise.

Boy that was a really good beer though. If you ever see Alaskan Summer Ale - get it!



p.s. I decided google for David Fenimore (what took me so long?) and the first entry is 'David Fenimore's Home Page'. I'd heard he was teaching at University of Nevada at Reno - so I'm sure this is him.

Cool

I also googled Nanci and found a reference to Vail Colorado, a VP and Controller for a Ski Resort. When I knew her she was controller at a Tahoe ski resort, so that's probably her.

Is the Internet amazing or what?!?!

Still Here

We thought we were going to hit the road yesterday - but, Jim wanted to buy a UPS (uninterruptible power supply) for the system here, and the closest place to get such a thing is 30 miles away. This is an item available at most any office supply store ... but, Gold Beach doesn't have one! Did I tell you that we're in an out-of-the-way area? Pretty cool actually.

Unless you need a UPS.

Or a cell phone service!

While Jim was at Radio Shack he found a Wilson Cellular Trucker Antenna.
CAN YOU HEAR ME NOW?



He's going to mount this on the outside of the coach today. We did this once before with a smaller antenna (and it did help) - but we lost it the first time we drove under some low tree branches. So, he also bought a heavy duty mount with springs for this one. Hopefully it will help because cell phone is very important if you want to conduct any business - and the nature of our business means we're in out-of-the-way areas. We'll keep you posted.

Another thing that's scarce in this town is cafes where we can go to breakfast. We went all the way to the other end of town and were giving up and turning around when we saw a cafe down at the docks. It was delightful! And, they had cell phone signal!



This was the view from our window. Look closely and you can see Sea Lions on the docks. The fisherman don't particularly care for these seals. When they catch a fish a Sea Lion is apt to come up and take a bite out of it before the fisherman can reel it in.



This harbor is at the mouth of the Rogue River. Jet boats (no propellers, jet propulsion) take tourists up this wild and scenic river. Looks like a pretty exciting trip.



BTW, here's where we are.

Greetings from Chilly Oregon

It's 8am and it's 49 degrees! I've just turned on our heater. I may grab an extra blanket and go back to bed. It looks like another gorgeous day, but Odie's going to have to wait for his walk! The ocean is beautiful here, but we miss the warm welcoming waters of south Florida. hmmmm ... actually they're not so welcoming at the moment are they? Ok, I guess we are better off here right now, but we do look forward to visiting south Florida (probably next summer) and paddling our kayaks into the ocean and go scuba diving again. See the weblog archives from April for kayak diving photos - April 10.



What they do here is surfing. We haven't seen any yet, but we met Tom in the park here who said he was grabbing his wetsuit and board and going out yesterday.

We didn't have any takers for our Computer Maintenance or Digital photos seminars (we need to get better at promotions) but Jim helped several people get connected to the Wi-Fi and I taught the park owners how to edit their website using Contribute. Gee .. that is a *cool* program! Once it's all set up right, it allows a user to simply browse to their website and click the Edit button to make changes. When they're done, they click the 'Publish' button and the live website is updated.


We're going to hit the road again today. Headed south.

Down the Rabbit Hole

One of the reasons we sold our house and moved into a motorhome was to have more time to do exactly what we want to do - rather than taking care of a house. Well, there is just NEVER enough time! Not when computers are involved. I decided to redesign an old website yesterday and it's like I disappeared into a black hole. I'm coming up for air for a moment here to post to this blog. The bad part is, you can never tell by looking at it how much time it takes. Here's the old and the new side-by-side.

As soon as I finish this post, I'm going back to it.

ooops, not yet ...

Jim says I really MUST take a shower!

Hurricane update:
Thankfully, Frances lost a lot of power before it hit Florida - so, it wasn't as life-threatening as it originally appeared. But, it's still huge with lots of wind and rain. Most people we know have been without power for several hours now. My Mom had a tree fall over and take out half her deck - luckily it fell away from the house.

I find it interesting to note how RVs can be good in a storm ... our friends who live in their motorhome packed up and left Melbourne on Thursday and just kept driving. So they, and their home, were well out of harm's way when the storm hit the RV park full force. My Dad, who lives in northern Florida escaped the last storm in his camper-van but decided to stick this one out. He will use the camper's generator to keep refrigerators and fans working when they lose electricity.

Then there's us ... we, and our home, are 3,000 miles away from Florida. :-)
Nice day huh?

Turtle Rock

That's the name of the RV Park we're in at the moment, but it's named after a real rock that looks like a Turtle. Whaddaya think?




We went for a walk on the beach this morning



Then we gave a seminar



Then I went to get a haircut while Jim did some more troubleshooting and helping folks in the park get connected. Getting haircuts on the road is a problem. It's a girl thing. Jim always looks the same whenever he gets a haircut ... wherever he gets a haircut. I don't think he's ever had the same person cut his hair more than once. I look completely different every time I get a haircut. Sometimes the way I look makes me feel good, sometimes I want to go crawl under the covers and not come out. Even when you go to the same person and they learn to understand your hair and they learn to understand what you want each haircut can be different.

So, I am always reluctant to get a haircut. When we're on the road and you have no idea where to go, I'm doubly reluctant. So, I have now waited until that point where I just scream, "cut it all off, I don't care what it looks like, I just CAN'T STAND IT ANYMORE!" All I really care about is that I have a pleasant experience. And today I did. Jim got the name of a hair salon from Dee while he was helping her install a new Wi-Fi adapter ... is that a nice husband or what? always thinking of me!

So, I followed the directions to KJs Hair House and entered a small room full of laughter. I was instantly at ease. A man about 65 named Jim cut my hair while his wife was giving a perm to someone else and at least a dozen people stopped by to say hi during the half hour I was there. This was the quintessential small town chatterbox type of hair salon and I learned a lot about Gold Beach, Oregon. Apparently this had been a boomtown during the days of logging. Jim worked in the lumber industry. When he got laid off for the 2d time he decided to find another line of work. His wife was a hairdresser, so he went to beauty school to learn about the business and join his wife. From Lumberjack to Hairdresser! There's gotta be a movie in there somewhere!?! I also learned that they plan to move to South Carolina because it's getting too expensive to live around here. People retiring from San Franciso Bay area are selling their homes for 750,000 and thinking that 200,000 for a cottage here is a bargain. Well, that $200,000 home was considered a $50,000 home by those who have lived here a while and they're getting priced right out of the area.

Oh Yeah ... and I got my hair cut! It's a lot shorter than I'm used to but I think he did a good job. Hey! What do I care?!? It's out of my way and I don't have to do it again for a while!




Next task is to find a dog groomer. Odie and I usually get haircuts about the same time!

Weather

We're on the Oregon coast and its a little windy. We're keeping our awnings in. But, this is nothing compared to what is going to hit Florida in another day. Hurricane Frances is HUGE! We lived in Florida for over 20 year and I know we never saw anything like this ... not even Andrew in '92. Check out weather.com for the latest.

I'm so glad we're not there and don't own a house there now. And, I'm so worried about all our family and friends who are there. Many of them have been thinking about evacuating - but - where do you go? Unless this turns north real soon now, it's going to cover the whole state.

I loved the story from Lynne during the last hurricane - they took refuge in a bar that declared itself a 'hurricane shelter'. And, had a special on hurricane drinks! Here's the bar we took refuge in last night:



Today we gave our Wi-Fi seminar to the staff here at Turtle Rock (I didn't take any photos .. oh no!) It was very well received. We were told that the amount of information was 'just right'. we try to give solid information about how all this works without overwhelming them with technical details. We'll do some more tomorrow.

We're thinking about all of you in Florida! We love you!

Greetings from Gold Beach Oregon

God! I love this. We started today with a walk by the Coquille Lighthouse in Bullards Beach.


then we drive a while down the spectacular Oregon coast ...



We're getting close when we cross the Rogue River.



And, here we are at Turtle Rock RV park - a member of the Coach Connect Wi-Fi system.



Within a half-hour someone walks up saying that she is interested in using her laptop on the Internet and the staff at the office told her to come talk to us! Jim trots off with her and installs a Wi-Fi adapter in her computer. She's off and running and the RVer next to us now wants to know how we did that! This is such cool stuff!

On a sour note ... we paid 2.149/gallon for gas today! A cool $100 bill to fill our tank! Well, you might say, I'm sure you have a big tank ... that will get you far. Well, we do have a big tank ... but at 8 mpg it still won't get us very far. We'll get a little over 400 miles on that.

Movin' On

We said our goodbyes and headed back down the coast. Now here's a sign you don't see in Idaho!



We stopped at an overlook of the Oregon Dunes. What a gorgeous day!





We crossed lots of bridges - here's the one at North Bend.



We decided to stay at a State Park tonight ... Bullards Beach. State Parks are usually very nice with lots of trees ... uh oh .. lots of trees - we might not be able to get Internet. Oh well, we can live without it for one night .. y'never know it might even be fun. Whaddaya know, the Datastorm dish found the satellite right thru the trees!



We still decided to partake of the evening's educational presentation. It was about the history of the area and it was held in a Yurt! These round tent-like structures descended from Mongolia are apparently quite popular in campgrounds these days.




Inside the Yurt:



Hey Lynne! Did you know that the original name of the town of Bandon was Averill?!? Anyone you know?

G'night. We're off to Gold Beach and Turtle Rock RV Resort tomorrow for some more Wi-Fi stuff.