Thursday, December 15, 2011
Christmas at the Coast
This has been a surprising December here at the Coast. It has actually been more sunny than rainy! Shocking I know, but I have had a bit of time to go out and look for whales and check out the beaches even though it has been wicked cold. I still try to get out and find the sun on the sunny days and take a moment to see the beauty around me.
This is at Pacific City just about 45 minutes north of us. They have a great pub right on the beach. It kinda reminds me of Morro Bay because of the rock out there. 
This is Siletz Bay from one angle. The water is in right now. It has many moods and I seem to be fascinated by all of them at all times of the day. 
Every play of light, every wave, every moment it seems that there is something new to see. High tide, low tide, something spurs me to watch.
until it gets too cold and I have to go in and get warmed up! Hope you all have a warm and happy holiday season this year! I will be thinking of all of you.
Sunday, November 6, 2011
First Impression of New York
I am back from New York and have to say that I had a great week. Each day was a new and exciting experience for me there. My friend Jane who you will see in pictures in later blogs was a perfect person to see the City with. She let me see the highlights and yet we didn't overdo any of it. I flew into Long Island and it was certainly easier than the larger airports by a long shot.
There were a few glitches, as in a Noreaster came through on Saturday so we had snrain as they call it. It rained and snowed, so it became slush in the part of Long Island I was in. Some other parts got up to 10 inches. And because the trees had not lost most of the leaves yet, there were a lot of limbs that came down with the weight of the snow on them. Lots of power outages in Conneticut and places north of us. We didn't have any problems. The next day it was sunny and there was a little snow on the ground at Jane's building. She bought her apartment in a beautiful old brick building across the street from the Freeport Police Station, so it is very there. She is three blocks from the train and has her car in the underground parking in her building which is very lucky in the winter.
I didn't know that Long Island was shaped like a fish, did you? The head, is Nassau County and closest to New York City. It is also very flat there. That is where my friend Jane lives. The Hamptons is on the West end of the tail of the fish in Suffolk County, and the Long Island Wineries are on the East side of the tail. it is more hilly and "countrified" as Jane calls it. It takes about two hours to get out there as I found out. It has many beautiful areas and lots wonderful old homes that were summer homes for the rich to go and see. We went to see a couple of them while we were there.
We went into Manhattan twice to see the sights and I will go into detail about those jouneys later. But I was fascinated that I got on the Long Island train and rode about 45 minutes into Manhattan, passing through Brooklyn to get there. While there we walked, rode the subway, took a cab twice and a double decker bus. On the last night there I drove the streets of Long Island, so you could say I did it all.
I had heard so many stories about New Yorkers and how rude they were, how unfriendly and uncooperative they could be. I didn't find that to be true anywhere, well except at two wineries, but again that will be for another time. Most were more than helpful, kind and funny with the accent of the area. I loved them. I did hear more honking of horns, and they don't worry about any speed limits anywhere. I found that 15 to 20 miles over the speed limit seems to be the norm. Even if a cop is right there. But they signal when they change lanes and they let you into traffic if you do, so there is a trade off. I guess. It was a bit intimidating even for a person with a lead foot like me.
I have to say there is so much more that I want to see of New York when I go back but this was a good start. And when I watch TV now showing anything in New York I can smile because I recognize the scene myself as being there. That is the memory I hold onto.
That and the fact that I spent a week with my friend Jane getting to know her all over again. It was so much fun talking about anything and everything all the time. I am sure she was ready for a little quiet when I left. I was happy to be home, but sad to leave such a good friend so far away. As always, I miss all of my friends and wish I had you all closer so I could visit and be a part of your daily lives. Ah well, such is life, I get a little here and a little there. But New York is worth seeing anytime of year.
There were a few glitches, as in a Noreaster came through on Saturday so we had snrain as they call it. It rained and snowed, so it became slush in the part of Long Island I was in. Some other parts got up to 10 inches. And because the trees had not lost most of the leaves yet, there were a lot of limbs that came down with the weight of the snow on them. Lots of power outages in Conneticut and places north of us. We didn't have any problems. The next day it was sunny and there was a little snow on the ground at Jane's building. She bought her apartment in a beautiful old brick building across the street from the Freeport Police Station, so it is very there. She is three blocks from the train and has her car in the underground parking in her building which is very lucky in the winter.
I didn't know that Long Island was shaped like a fish, did you? The head, is Nassau County and closest to New York City. It is also very flat there. That is where my friend Jane lives. The Hamptons is on the West end of the tail of the fish in Suffolk County, and the Long Island Wineries are on the East side of the tail. it is more hilly and "countrified" as Jane calls it. It takes about two hours to get out there as I found out. It has many beautiful areas and lots wonderful old homes that were summer homes for the rich to go and see. We went to see a couple of them while we were there.
We went into Manhattan twice to see the sights and I will go into detail about those jouneys later. But I was fascinated that I got on the Long Island train and rode about 45 minutes into Manhattan, passing through Brooklyn to get there. While there we walked, rode the subway, took a cab twice and a double decker bus. On the last night there I drove the streets of Long Island, so you could say I did it all.
I had heard so many stories about New Yorkers and how rude they were, how unfriendly and uncooperative they could be. I didn't find that to be true anywhere, well except at two wineries, but again that will be for another time. Most were more than helpful, kind and funny with the accent of the area. I loved them. I did hear more honking of horns, and they don't worry about any speed limits anywhere. I found that 15 to 20 miles over the speed limit seems to be the norm. Even if a cop is right there. But they signal when they change lanes and they let you into traffic if you do, so there is a trade off. I guess. It was a bit intimidating even for a person with a lead foot like me.
I have to say there is so much more that I want to see of New York when I go back but this was a good start. And when I watch TV now showing anything in New York I can smile because I recognize the scene myself as being there. That is the memory I hold onto.
That and the fact that I spent a week with my friend Jane getting to know her all over again. It was so much fun talking about anything and everything all the time. I am sure she was ready for a little quiet when I left. I was happy to be home, but sad to leave such a good friend so far away. As always, I miss all of my friends and wish I had you all closer so I could visit and be a part of your daily lives. Ah well, such is life, I get a little here and a little there. But New York is worth seeing anytime of year.
Sunday, October 16, 2011
Just 24 miles
I am taking a writing class in Newport. It is just 24 miles down the coast from me every Saturday. Doesn't sound like much driving and normally it isn't. But here on the coast where we get heavy rain and 70 mile an hour wind, it can be a bad drive. But I decided to take it because, well, as you all know, I love to write.
This was about how to write your memories for your family and to pass down to your kids so they have a living history of not only the births and deaths of family members and a few old photographs, but the stories that you remember your mother, father, uncles and aunts or grandparents telling you along with those stories you have stored that will be forgotten or lost when we are dust in the wind.
So, as I got into this class I was surprised at how many stories I came up with. How many things other people in the class sparked a memory for me that made me want to write about other subjects. It was very energizing.
It helped that Saturday was a beautiful day of blue skies and calm winds and cotton ball clouds. The people I met at the Senior Center were interesting and funny and spurred me to go have lunch on the bay and take some pictures. It was glorious!
On the way back I took my time and really saw the sights. I stopped at Moolak and Beverly Beaches and wondered how they got their names. I drove out to Yaquina Lighthouse and looked around again. It was getting to be close to sunset and the fog was in the distance as it usually is around here so I was not able to go out to the Devil's Punchbowl again and see the tiny winery that is there at the western most place of the continental US, nor did I drive out to Cape Foulweather which is aptly named during the winter. This is where most of the bad accidents happen when it gets really wet and icy then. But I did stop at Otter Rock for a moment to take a peak at the slash of orange that was trying to break through the cloud layer and make a sunset anyway it could. Then I went through the quaint town of Depoe Bay past the sea wall and the cement whale there. Over the bridge and the smallest harbor ever, past the whale watching building on the ocean side. Around past the resorts and then the view of the coast line that I never tire of.
A short drive through Lincoln Beach and Gleneden to the four small bridges that take you along the wetlands, over Drift Creek and the Siletz River and then brings you to Siletz Bay. I think at high tide its all of 6 to 8 feet deep at any one part, and at low tide you can walk out onto most of it as it is just wet sand. The Three remaining rocky pieces that stand in it catch my imagination with the one or two pine trees that grow there so forelorn. One morning while driving by I saw a regal bald Eagle sitting atop the biggest tree surveying the water.
Then you pass through the five burroughs of Lincoln City. There is Taft, Nelscott, D Beach (the shortest river ever)Wecoma, Land's End, and you see the small theatre the Bijou that should be saved. It is a single theatre that is old and only shows one film and I love it.
So on a short 24 mile drive I cross five bridges, the smallest harbor, the smallest river, the most western winery, drove along a beautiful coastline, through a short canopy of trees at Cape Foulweather, past a beautiful bay and end up at my house looking out at the ocean. Not to mention there are six art galleries that I pass on the way.
So, I think it's a fair trade. What do you see within 24 miles of your house? I may not have these sunny days as often as those of you south of me in California. And I do miss the sunshine and warmth, believe me I still do. But I find when I do get a clear sunny day no matter how cold it is I am ready to make my way outside and enjoy it.
Happy travels.
This was about how to write your memories for your family and to pass down to your kids so they have a living history of not only the births and deaths of family members and a few old photographs, but the stories that you remember your mother, father, uncles and aunts or grandparents telling you along with those stories you have stored that will be forgotten or lost when we are dust in the wind.
So, as I got into this class I was surprised at how many stories I came up with. How many things other people in the class sparked a memory for me that made me want to write about other subjects. It was very energizing.
It helped that Saturday was a beautiful day of blue skies and calm winds and cotton ball clouds. The people I met at the Senior Center were interesting and funny and spurred me to go have lunch on the bay and take some pictures. It was glorious!
On the way back I took my time and really saw the sights. I stopped at Moolak and Beverly Beaches and wondered how they got their names. I drove out to Yaquina Lighthouse and looked around again. It was getting to be close to sunset and the fog was in the distance as it usually is around here so I was not able to go out to the Devil's Punchbowl again and see the tiny winery that is there at the western most place of the continental US, nor did I drive out to Cape Foulweather which is aptly named during the winter. This is where most of the bad accidents happen when it gets really wet and icy then. But I did stop at Otter Rock for a moment to take a peak at the slash of orange that was trying to break through the cloud layer and make a sunset anyway it could. Then I went through the quaint town of Depoe Bay past the sea wall and the cement whale there. Over the bridge and the smallest harbor ever, past the whale watching building on the ocean side. Around past the resorts and then the view of the coast line that I never tire of.
A short drive through Lincoln Beach and Gleneden to the four small bridges that take you along the wetlands, over Drift Creek and the Siletz River and then brings you to Siletz Bay. I think at high tide its all of 6 to 8 feet deep at any one part, and at low tide you can walk out onto most of it as it is just wet sand. The Three remaining rocky pieces that stand in it catch my imagination with the one or two pine trees that grow there so forelorn. One morning while driving by I saw a regal bald Eagle sitting atop the biggest tree surveying the water.
Then you pass through the five burroughs of Lincoln City. There is Taft, Nelscott, D Beach (the shortest river ever)Wecoma, Land's End, and you see the small theatre the Bijou that should be saved. It is a single theatre that is old and only shows one film and I love it.
So on a short 24 mile drive I cross five bridges, the smallest harbor, the smallest river, the most western winery, drove along a beautiful coastline, through a short canopy of trees at Cape Foulweather, past a beautiful bay and end up at my house looking out at the ocean. Not to mention there are six art galleries that I pass on the way.
So, I think it's a fair trade. What do you see within 24 miles of your house? I may not have these sunny days as often as those of you south of me in California. And I do miss the sunshine and warmth, believe me I still do. But I find when I do get a clear sunny day no matter how cold it is I am ready to make my way outside and enjoy it.
Happy travels.
Friday, October 14, 2011
New York, New York...the talk of the town......
I have never been to New York City. It has always been the BIG CITY that was a little scary to me. Chicago or Dallas or even Washington DC didn't bother me. But New York, well that was a bit overwhelming. There is so much I want to see, and so much that I want to be aware of. So in 12 days from today I will be winging my way to visit my old friend Jane who lives in New York. She lives at the north end of Long Island. I am going to see her for her 65th birthday. I have not seen her since 1999 when we were in Yosemite together living in a tent for the summer.
I have written about that adventure and how much fun we had in that summer mostly due to Jane and her winning ways. It was a great summer and now I get to go and see her as I haven't seen her since. She and I have kept in touch but this seemed to be the right time to go. So I will spend a few days with her and she is going to show me her New York.
My only request is to see the Statue of Liberty. And to eat some good italian food while I am there. Maybe see a show if we can but mostly take in the city she loves.
Now, I have to tell all of you that it is the first time that I will fly across the country all day stopping in Chicago to change planes mind you. I don't like doing that much flying being restricted in a little seat, but I can sleep and I will take snacks to have on the way. On the way back I have a two hour layover in Vegas. Now won't THAT BE FUN! Oh well.
So, back to New York. I am not going to plan on all the things I would go to see if I were with Cal. I would plan to go to the museums and all the historical places. But I have found that when you have someone that lives there, they have all of that down. They will take you to all the places that are the best ones for you to see. Like when people used to go with me to San Francisco. I have a day tour that takes them to all the sites that will get them the best pictures and then if they have more time they know where they want to go back to. If I know Jane, she will already have our week mapped out. She knows me well enough to know we will be visiting a bead store (I happened to mention that to her.) and she and I love to window shop. So I have to pack some good walking shoes too. Walking in New York, Ya Think? That's good though as I know we will be eating a lot!!!!
I am trying not to get too excited about this trip yet as I have a bit of time yet to go. So, I will be thinking of 5th Avenue, Central Park, Times Square, Broadway, the Empire State Building, the Guginheim Museum, Radio City Music, Rockefeller Center....did I miss anything?
So on to the next adventure. I am so looking forward to sharing this trip with all of you and letting you know how I take a bite out of the Big Apple. Stay tuned!
I have written about that adventure and how much fun we had in that summer mostly due to Jane and her winning ways. It was a great summer and now I get to go and see her as I haven't seen her since. She and I have kept in touch but this seemed to be the right time to go. So I will spend a few days with her and she is going to show me her New York.
My only request is to see the Statue of Liberty. And to eat some good italian food while I am there. Maybe see a show if we can but mostly take in the city she loves.
Now, I have to tell all of you that it is the first time that I will fly across the country all day stopping in Chicago to change planes mind you. I don't like doing that much flying being restricted in a little seat, but I can sleep and I will take snacks to have on the way. On the way back I have a two hour layover in Vegas. Now won't THAT BE FUN! Oh well.
So, back to New York. I am not going to plan on all the things I would go to see if I were with Cal. I would plan to go to the museums and all the historical places. But I have found that when you have someone that lives there, they have all of that down. They will take you to all the places that are the best ones for you to see. Like when people used to go with me to San Francisco. I have a day tour that takes them to all the sites that will get them the best pictures and then if they have more time they know where they want to go back to. If I know Jane, she will already have our week mapped out. She knows me well enough to know we will be visiting a bead store (I happened to mention that to her.) and she and I love to window shop. So I have to pack some good walking shoes too. Walking in New York, Ya Think? That's good though as I know we will be eating a lot!!!!
I am trying not to get too excited about this trip yet as I have a bit of time yet to go. So, I will be thinking of 5th Avenue, Central Park, Times Square, Broadway, the Empire State Building, the Guginheim Museum, Radio City Music, Rockefeller Center....did I miss anything?
So on to the next adventure. I am so looking forward to sharing this trip with all of you and letting you know how I take a bite out of the Big Apple. Stay tuned!
Tuesday, September 13, 2011
Age is just another trip
I had another milestone this year. I have been part of the AARP set for a while but there have been those milestone birthdays that you always seem to impress upon you certain stages of your life. When I was 18 and free of home, when I was 35 and now felt like an adult with a career instead of just a job, and 60 when I realized that I still feel 35. Oh I don't mean physically, I mean mentally as in I think I am still able to do what a 35 year old can do. Now, do I want to be that age again? Never! Do I want to go through the trials and tribulations of a single Mom working two jobs to support us? No! Do I want to deal with roommates and moving and dating and raising a child alone? Hell No! But I still think that I have the same zest for life, with more experience. I still have the same enthusiasum and verve that I had then, maybe more because I have the time to do those things that I didn't have before. Then, I was happy to get a full nights sleep.
So, the journey that started at birth, has taken me through many twists and turns. Meeting many amazing people who have shown me mountains of lessons many I am sure I have forgotten over the years, but some have stayed with me.
1. Like never try to shower when you are too drunk to stand up.
2. Never go to the California Rodeo without your own car to come home in. (Or drink Gin!)
3. Always listen to your instincts when it comes to dates.
4. Keep a twenty dollar bill in your wallet at all times.
5. Follow your heart in both work and love.
6. Keep your secrets to yourself, the moment you tell anyone, it is no longer a secret. Even if they tell noone.
7. Find that core of friends that you can trust with your life and keep in touch with them all of your life. (Usually you can count them on one hand)
8. Find something you absolutely love doing, and don't give it up. Not for anyone.
9. Find yourself first, be happy with yourself, and then find someone to love. It works better that way.
10. Adopt a pet of your choice at least once in your life. It will change you in so many ways.
11. Show your children that they are the most important thing in your life every day they are with you, because they will leave sooner than you think. (It feels like a blink of an eye)
12. Don't ever put a job before your children.
13. Make sure that you are taking care of yourself everyday and you will be a better parent and spouse/friend/person/worker. if you don't you won't be good for anyone.
14. Work out old wounds and put them in the past. Not letting go just makes more negativity for the future. The physics rule, for every action there is an equal and oposite reaction is very true. So the more good energy the better you get back.
15. Growing up and growing old is not the same. We can be adults but still be young enough to enjoy all that life has to offer at any age.
16. Find the wonder and beauty in every day.
17. If you can't get away from home take a mental vacation by reading a book or watching your favorite movie.
18. Find the positive in everything. (I know, this is the hard one for me to do all the time, but I try!)
19. Forgive yourself and others.
20. Have faith that things will work out. (Why not? It can't hurt.)
So that's the first 20 I thought of. I have to say they were not in any order. It is the journey not the destination and I keep coming back to that. I am on this road that I have set for myself and I keep moving, I just know I have many more lessons to learn and many more sights to see. If any of you have things to add to this list I would love to hear about them. Let meknow.
Travel on! Coy
So, the journey that started at birth, has taken me through many twists and turns. Meeting many amazing people who have shown me mountains of lessons many I am sure I have forgotten over the years, but some have stayed with me.
1. Like never try to shower when you are too drunk to stand up.
2. Never go to the California Rodeo without your own car to come home in. (Or drink Gin!)
3. Always listen to your instincts when it comes to dates.
4. Keep a twenty dollar bill in your wallet at all times.
5. Follow your heart in both work and love.
6. Keep your secrets to yourself, the moment you tell anyone, it is no longer a secret. Even if they tell noone.
7. Find that core of friends that you can trust with your life and keep in touch with them all of your life. (Usually you can count them on one hand)
8. Find something you absolutely love doing, and don't give it up. Not for anyone.
9. Find yourself first, be happy with yourself, and then find someone to love. It works better that way.
10. Adopt a pet of your choice at least once in your life. It will change you in so many ways.
11. Show your children that they are the most important thing in your life every day they are with you, because they will leave sooner than you think. (It feels like a blink of an eye)
12. Don't ever put a job before your children.
13. Make sure that you are taking care of yourself everyday and you will be a better parent and spouse/friend/person/worker. if you don't you won't be good for anyone.
14. Work out old wounds and put them in the past. Not letting go just makes more negativity for the future. The physics rule, for every action there is an equal and oposite reaction is very true. So the more good energy the better you get back.
15. Growing up and growing old is not the same. We can be adults but still be young enough to enjoy all that life has to offer at any age.
16. Find the wonder and beauty in every day.
17. If you can't get away from home take a mental vacation by reading a book or watching your favorite movie.
18. Find the positive in everything. (I know, this is the hard one for me to do all the time, but I try!)
19. Forgive yourself and others.
20. Have faith that things will work out. (Why not? It can't hurt.)
So that's the first 20 I thought of. I have to say they were not in any order. It is the journey not the destination and I keep coming back to that. I am on this road that I have set for myself and I keep moving, I just know I have many more lessons to learn and many more sights to see. If any of you have things to add to this list I would love to hear about them. Let meknow.
Travel on! Coy
Friday, September 2, 2011
Just a moment in time....
Tonight I walked outside to call the dogs in from my second story deck and although the banked fog way out there had taken away what could have been a spectacular sunset, I found that subtle change of color that always fascinates me at the end and beginning of day. The inky blue-black of night was falling fast but there was a few bands of lighter blue turning to pink and then orange and then the incredible red that painters have trouble capturing. The fog that banked out at the horizon then turned it into a murky tomato red that then dropped into an undulating steel gray sea with pearlized waves.
When I looked back up at the trees that I grouse about that block my view of the ocean on two thirds of my deck I noticed that the bands of light were shining through the boughs of the trees and making a puzzle of color that was priceless, then as I scanned the rest of the clear sky (something that we cherish here in the Northwest!) I saw that the crescent moon was just over the tops of those trees, making it a picture perfect moment in time as I stood there listening to the dogs in the neighbor hood talk about how the cats were bothering them again or how the weekend vacation dogs needed to mellow out for the Labor Day weekend. But at just a moment in time, all was right in the world.
I try to capture that moment every time I take a picture at the beach of the sunset or try to keep a picture that I didn't take in my head for a time to be able to write about it. So instead of inserting one of the many, many, many times I have tried to capture the sunset, I will let you picture it for yourself. Close your eyes and picture the perfect sunset without the sun in it.
Then see how relaxed you are. I sure am.
Have a great Labor Day weekend and stay safe.
When I looked back up at the trees that I grouse about that block my view of the ocean on two thirds of my deck I noticed that the bands of light were shining through the boughs of the trees and making a puzzle of color that was priceless, then as I scanned the rest of the clear sky (something that we cherish here in the Northwest!) I saw that the crescent moon was just over the tops of those trees, making it a picture perfect moment in time as I stood there listening to the dogs in the neighbor hood talk about how the cats were bothering them again or how the weekend vacation dogs needed to mellow out for the Labor Day weekend. But at just a moment in time, all was right in the world.
I try to capture that moment every time I take a picture at the beach of the sunset or try to keep a picture that I didn't take in my head for a time to be able to write about it. So instead of inserting one of the many, many, many times I have tried to capture the sunset, I will let you picture it for yourself. Close your eyes and picture the perfect sunset without the sun in it.
Then see how relaxed you are. I sure am.
Have a great Labor Day weekend and stay safe.
Thursday, September 1, 2011
Coming and going
When I lived in the Bay Area with all the bridges everywhere I learned to drive going through the Caldecott tunnel being rewarded with a usually beautiful view of the San Francisco Bay when you come out of it. Lake Temesacal is off to the left where I spent many afternoons my senior year cutting my last two classes and with my friends Sue, Karen, Christine or a few others we would feel so adult like being on our own. But we would drive around the Berkeley hills getting lost and then finding our way home again in time not to get caught.
I used to try to find back ways to places that I would go so that I would know where other streets went so I wouldn't have to come back the same way I came. I always loved the different scenery of an alternate route if I had time. Of course there is never time you say on your way to work. Or in my case right now, when everything is on Highway 101.
But a couple of days ago I had to go to Corvallis. It is about a hour and a half to two hour drive from me. There are two ways to go to get there. And the first time I went, I took the same route both ways as I was pushed for time. This time, well now that I am unemployed, I have all my days open, so, I decided to take the other way home.
It was another wooded beautiful drive as are most of them here in Oregon. There are all these beautiful green pines and steams and deep green wooded areas that invite you to stop and make you want to take a walk in them. They are dotted with rustic houses and yards filled with flowers as if they just can't help themselves from growing bigger than life. The Rhodedendrons are blooming everywhere so there are huge bushes of color around every turn.
It had started out cloudy but had turned into a beautiful sunny day and I had the sunroof open as I was cruising down the highway with Little Big Town playing full force, singing away. As I came upon some road work, there was a construction worker standining with his stop/slow sign. He was a round man probably in his late fifties, with a huge full salt and pepper beard and mustache and his hard hat. I was first to be stopped while they allowed the other side to come through. The tune Little White Church came on and to my surprise, he started singing the song and stomping his foot to the beat. It lasted for the whole song while the cars went by. Just as it ended he stopped, and turned the sign then did a very gentlemanly bow stretching out his hand in the direction for me to go. I saluted my partner in song laughing as I looked in the rear view mirror to see the person in the pickup behind me clapping for our host. It was a little three minute interlude on a highway I normally wouldn't have taken. But it will stick in my mind as a great ending to the day.
He could have stood there as so many do, and done nothing. It would have been another part of the day to the rest of us. But he had a good time, from an otherwise annoying situation to most people who had to stop. He made at least two of us enjoy the stop and have a good memory of that road and that trip.
Some people just have a knack for doing that.
I know as a woman it is scary to be out there and reach out to people we don't know. There are so many bad things that can happen, but I have always found that if you trust your instincts, you know that reaching out in small ways and talking to people and showing small gestures when you are out traveling that it is so much more satisfying than not to you in the long run. It is no telling who you might meet and what you might learn.
My friend Nancy used to say Hi to everyone we would pass when we were hiking in Yosemite or Tahoe, or on the Beach. She taught me that it is a good thing to do and I drive Cal crazy by doing it when we go on trips. I ask locals questions without thought of what they might think of me. Call me crazy but who else would know about the area I am visiting than the locals? And they tell you some extraordinary things at times!
So next time you get the chance, take a different way home and see what you find. Who knows you may meet my singing construction guy? You may find that perfect photo, but it is always good to stretch those wings and see something new.
Travel on.
I used to try to find back ways to places that I would go so that I would know where other streets went so I wouldn't have to come back the same way I came. I always loved the different scenery of an alternate route if I had time. Of course there is never time you say on your way to work. Or in my case right now, when everything is on Highway 101.
But a couple of days ago I had to go to Corvallis. It is about a hour and a half to two hour drive from me. There are two ways to go to get there. And the first time I went, I took the same route both ways as I was pushed for time. This time, well now that I am unemployed, I have all my days open, so, I decided to take the other way home.
It was another wooded beautiful drive as are most of them here in Oregon. There are all these beautiful green pines and steams and deep green wooded areas that invite you to stop and make you want to take a walk in them. They are dotted with rustic houses and yards filled with flowers as if they just can't help themselves from growing bigger than life. The Rhodedendrons are blooming everywhere so there are huge bushes of color around every turn.
It had started out cloudy but had turned into a beautiful sunny day and I had the sunroof open as I was cruising down the highway with Little Big Town playing full force, singing away. As I came upon some road work, there was a construction worker standining with his stop/slow sign. He was a round man probably in his late fifties, with a huge full salt and pepper beard and mustache and his hard hat. I was first to be stopped while they allowed the other side to come through. The tune Little White Church came on and to my surprise, he started singing the song and stomping his foot to the beat. It lasted for the whole song while the cars went by. Just as it ended he stopped, and turned the sign then did a very gentlemanly bow stretching out his hand in the direction for me to go. I saluted my partner in song laughing as I looked in the rear view mirror to see the person in the pickup behind me clapping for our host. It was a little three minute interlude on a highway I normally wouldn't have taken. But it will stick in my mind as a great ending to the day.
He could have stood there as so many do, and done nothing. It would have been another part of the day to the rest of us. But he had a good time, from an otherwise annoying situation to most people who had to stop. He made at least two of us enjoy the stop and have a good memory of that road and that trip.
Some people just have a knack for doing that.
I know as a woman it is scary to be out there and reach out to people we don't know. There are so many bad things that can happen, but I have always found that if you trust your instincts, you know that reaching out in small ways and talking to people and showing small gestures when you are out traveling that it is so much more satisfying than not to you in the long run. It is no telling who you might meet and what you might learn.
My friend Nancy used to say Hi to everyone we would pass when we were hiking in Yosemite or Tahoe, or on the Beach. She taught me that it is a good thing to do and I drive Cal crazy by doing it when we go on trips. I ask locals questions without thought of what they might think of me. Call me crazy but who else would know about the area I am visiting than the locals? And they tell you some extraordinary things at times!
So next time you get the chance, take a different way home and see what you find. Who knows you may meet my singing construction guy? You may find that perfect photo, but it is always good to stretch those wings and see something new.
Travel on.
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