The turning point (kind of)

Aug 23 – Good bye Cambria.

2 weeks in Cambria and not nearly enough. There is still so much to do, to visit, to accomplish.. We are thankful for the time we had. Girls are understandably upset and so are we. It is hard to say good bye. Sasha leaves off with taking Nana to task of obtaining the trailer just like ours and driving across the country for 11 days to see us on East Coast. Oh, and they have to do it by October!

The morning of the day we set sail we are packing up. We are slow as we are out of habit for the last two weeks but I make sure that fridge is packed with vegetables this time. Around noon we do say our good byes to Nana and Pappy and little Artimus the lizard Tamara befriended while we were in Cambria (he stayed for a visit on Toma’s finger and was reinstalled to his permanent home as we left).

We have about 6 hour drive to our next destination. The first stop of our northern route is near a town of Mendocino, Norther Cali. To get there we have to drive through the counties that are under the evacuation orders due to raging wild fires. We drive with an air purifier running full blast in the car and watch an orange glow over the hills lining highway 1 in the smokey haze.

We are slow moving and there are some windy roads as we approach the coast through coastal mountains region – Sol’s old stomping grounds. We stop by for dinner at a local airport near Santa Rosa and make salmon and Cesar salad on their parking lot. We are getting pretty good at this cooking wherever thing.

We pull into the camping site (Van Damme State Park) closer to 10 pm in pitch dark. We find Gordon already there sitting by the creek. We will spend the next couple of days at the park visiting with him. The night is dark and the campsite is ‘dry’ (no electric or water hookups). So, we say our hello’s and go to bed but not before the pup had gotten into little stifle with the local raccoon.

My work week starts at 6 am next morning.

Aug 24

I wake up at the Van Damme State Park to fund absolutely no cell reception anywhere around. I panic as I have a myriad of work meetings lined up for that day that I can not miss.
I put about 4 miles on my Crocs running around the park looking for any signal before it is 7am with a dog happily trotting along. Sol does the same. No luck.
Some decisions have to be made, so, we load kids still in their PJ’s in the Jeep and drive to a town of Mendocino 2 miles away. There is cell reception there.

Town greets us with a cold and foggy morning. Real Pacific Northwest kind of day. Looking at the street by the beach throws me back 15 years, last time we were through this town. Me and Sol were still dating then, no plans for the future as far as I knew (he was working on the ring). The town looks exactly how it did then. Only, all the cozy coffee shops around town are closed or are take out only. Sign of times.

I have Sol drop me off at the beach on the tall back bench made out of drift wood. I sat on this bench 15 years ago looking at the ocean below. Before I start with work I have to reflect. I still remember the thoughts I had sitting on this bench a million years ago. So much have changed yet so little. I grew up, but now more than ever I understand how much growing up I still need to do. It was 2 of us back then and it is 4 of us now – 5, if you count the 100 pounds of the dog – pulling a retro rig across the country. Feeling is transcendental.

I am working on the beach for the day and Sol and kids go back to the camp site to have breakfast and spend some time with Gordon i.e. catch all the frogs and salamanders in the stream near our site.
It is not warm but not bad. It is pretty deserted and I am happy as there are no distractions.

By noon my lap top is low on charge and I pack up to walk to town in search of juice, electric and otherwise (coffee).
Walking the streets in search of a cafe I amuse myself. I am dressed in the typical California attire: Merrels and wool socks, cargo pants and a meme T with a wind breaker. I could simultaneously pass for a chill millionaire or a homeless person. I am a homeless person with thousands of dollars of computer equipment in shoulder bag. If only my 15 years younger self knew..

I find a Garden Cafe with a few tables outside. I buy a coffee and they graciously allow me to plug in and perch myself on the bench right in front of their entrance as it is within the cord length.
I make the cafe my office for the rest of the day working at a corner table.
My family is out on the town and they walk by periodically between their beach adventures.

At some point Gordon tries to sit next to me and say ‘hi’ to, coincidentally, about 4 of my superiors but Sol sees panic in my eyes and swoops in as batman on the wings of night almost bringing Gordon to the ground in an
effort to save me. We all have a good laugh about it after dinner.

After work I join them at a local park. Kids are running around as me and Sol are catching up for a day. This trip has been great for the 4 of us as, by design, kids are getting our undivided attention (they do have to share us with work) but spousal communication is far and few between in close quarters rig situation. We steal our moments when we can.

We have dinner at camp and me and the girls take a little hike in a fern canyon. We climb up the mountain cliff side all the way to the top
The trees around us are so tall and dense that it is dark on the way up even though the sun has not yet set. On the way back we take a
long road serpentine around the mountain and girls are giddily spooked: ‘We are lost! It is an adventure!!!’. I ‘remember’ in mock horror that we have forgotten our bear sprays.
We make it back to the site after dark. We have the fire going an roast some marshmallows before we are ready for bed.

It is back to town for me the next morning.