Saturday, June 30, 2007

Yosemite, Buelton, Santa Barbara and Home again - June 26th - 28th


After our adventures of the previous days, it seemed like we should do something exciting on Tuesday, so after a fine breakfast of fruit and cereal, we hopped back on the road, and headed out to Yosemite. The first section of the drive was very "Big City" for a while, but later things thinned out, and we ended up on some nice two-laners (the kind of driving that I really enjoy) wandering around the hills. Pulled in to Yosemite early afternoon, and had a nice toe wetting in a river there, hiked up to Bridal Veil falls, and rode around on the buses there for a while, then headed southward with the original intent of "starting home" and taking pictures along the way.

Got as far as Fresno, and pulled in to a funny little RV place, where the office was also the residence, and their kids were still up watching TV when we pulled in at 9 ish (fortunately, our kids were all sleeping by that time). Another strange place that was mostly "full-timers", with a few spots for transients like us. By now, we've gotten a good rhythm to things, and we just let people assume that Kim and I are married, that the kids are all brothers and sisters - albeit a year apart each... Easier than explaining and you don't get the funny looks and questions that way.

Pulling out of Fresno in the AM, the decision started out "which way do we want to go home", with me leaning towards the faster inland route, and Kim leaning for the longer, but much more scenic coastal route. After some hemming and hawing, and some smooth talking and deal making by Kim (she found out the her husband wouldn't be back for another day), I was coerced (arm behind back) to take an extra day, and stay in the South Central coast. The RV Park description actually had "Santa Barbara" in the name, but ended up being in Buelton (you know, where the Anderson Split Pea Soup place is...). Nice place with a great pool, jacuzzi and play lot. Long day contributed to some somewhat grumpy kids all around so after an Anderson's dinner, they got an early bedtime, and Kim and I chatted into the wee hours about how to solve some of the worlds more vexing problems - like how to make Republicans and Democrats get along :)

Last day of what I would call "Phase II" of the trip included a jaunt down to Santa Barbara to see the mission there, and then a lunch at a favorite beach front cafe there, while the kids played in the sand. We were mostly blessed with light traffic (due partly to our early departure - out of Santa Barbara before 1), save a few annoying "California Driver" moments, a good return trip. Managed to get Kim and Kids home in time for her to rescue her wayfaring cat, and meet up with Barbara at a friends for dinner with D before finally heading home to decompress.

Friday, June 29, 2007

Santa Cruz, San Rafael and San Francisco - June 24th and 25th



On Sunday we broke camp, and decided to head in to Santa Cruz, to wander the Boardwalk. Ended up having a great time there - managed to do a bunch of kiddy rides, a fun "cave train" for all of us, and the requisite corn dogs all around. Managed to also get some "Gilroy Fry's" which had garlic on them which was tasty but a bit pungent towards the end - still a must have regional treat. We did manage to avoid the Garlic Ice Cream this time - done it before, and decided it's a "once in a lifetime" thing, in the "interesting..." kinda way.
D and I wandered back to the RV, as she was starting to melt, and Kim went on one last ride with her kids, then joined us for a "kid nap session", as we drove north towards San Rafael to meet up with my friend Gregg and his wife Kelly and their two daughters.
Drove through San Francisco and over the Golden Gate Bridge by the time the kids were up again, and weren't even too plagued by traffic along the way. Got up to Gregg's just as he was coming home with the last of the groceries for a fine BBQ dinner with all the trimmings at their place. Unfortunately, all the trimmings later include yellow-jackets, so towards the end we moved it inside, and all the kids played in their "Princess Play Room" to great delight.
Managed to pull a power cable inconspicuously over the sidewalk and into a plug in their side yard, and slept in the RV on the street, after giving a tour of the RV to their kids, and Delilah being at the end of her rope.

Monday morning, we said our "good byes" to the Dupree family, and drove down to Larkspur and hopped on the ferry over to The City. Nice ride, got to see Alcatraz, Treasure Island and of course a nice view of the downtown area. Then bought an all day metro network pass, and took a cable car up to China Town. Always so much to see there - Kim had an unfortunate incident with her Digital camera, and was able to pick up another one at one of the many Camera shops there. Another store, off the beaten path, had live sea food, including a crate of frogs, and a bucket of turtles - both of which delighted the kids. I stuck with their explanation "it's like an aquarium..." Did lunch at a sushi place that had the floating boats which was fun, but Kim didn't tell me until AFTER lunch that she had never had Dim Sum - which was right next door. From there, hopped on to another cable car after a bit of a wait, and then a walk along Pier 39 area, and a snack and drink in Rainforest Cafe there. Finally got on a trolley that took us back to the Ferry terminal for the ride back to Larkspur.
From there we drove to the East Bay on the chance that we might meet up with another friend, but it was destined not to happen. Instead, stayed at one of those RV parks that has close ties to a trailer park off in one of those "residential to light industrial" transition areas. At least it was cheap, and the office was still open when we pulled in at 7ish.

Saturday, June 23, 2007

The pickup and Central Coast - June 21st to 23rd



As readers of this blog know, I've been attempting to recruit someone to join Delilah and I for part of this second phase of the trip. Through a fortuitous series of events, a couple that we are friends with had the husband Mike leaving on business (I heard something about him smoking cigars with Fidel...) and thereby leaving Kim and her two kids (the older, Brianna and the younger Andrew) ripe for the trip picking.

We stopped by their place in Thursday morning, loaded up and were off. LA Traffic was bad as it always seems to be, and found our selves pulling in to San Luis Obispo about two hours later than expected, but still had a little time for the Farmers Market there. Then met up with Kim's sister Krista, and she took us back to their place. There was room in Krista and Jame's house for Kim and kids to sleep, and they were kind enough to provide a power cord and hose for D and I in the RV - which is all that it really takes to make it feel like home any more :).

On Friday, Kim and kids and Krista loaded into the RV, and we motored off to Morro Bay. Had a nice time there feeding the critters (sorry about your sweater Kim...) and then went to dunk our feet in the water, and to my shock Delilah decided that the 60 something degree water was just fine for swimming and proceeded to plunge in. It is sure nice to have a shower, towels and change of clothes in the RV handy for such events... Back to Krista's for dinner, where we can up with a lovely repast of Pizza, and a deluxe salad with custom dressing and all. Very yummy!

Saturday the 23rd we were on the road again, headed up to Santa Cruz for a stay at the most expensive KOA in history - $98 with my member discount! Good news is they have tons of stuff to do. Once D formally wakes up, we'll explore and see what we can get out of it. Kim's kids couldn't nap in the new RV experience, and so are off swimming already. We'll see what else they find. There is a cute little "train" that runs around the park that we will hopefully be able to pull off.

Plan to meet up with a friend of mine, Gregg, tomorrow afternoon, but will see what his schedule ended up looking like. Might try to do "Roaring Camp Railroad" sometime tomorrow morning on the way up, or, well, we will just see. We are definitely running in the "whatever works" mode, and having a good time.

Amuse-a-ramma - June 17 through 19th


Having bought the Disney Pass, and knowing that B only goes to see Delilah and I have a good time, I took D back to Disneyland on the 17th. Lines were still huge for the new "Finding Nemo" Sub Ride, and we were planning on meeting B back at the campground for a Fathers Day get together by 3, so just did a few rides, including the requisite "Tiki-Room", "Carousel" and "Pooh's Adventure", along with a few others for good order. Got back to the RV for a nap/recharge for D in time for B to come up, then went out to a Moroccan place ostensibly for the Papa Dinner, but all parties had a nice time there.

On Monday, we went to the Long Beach "Aquarium of the Pacific" which has definitely grown up some - added new displays, lots of interactive stations, and a "smart fun for kids" embossing machine to emboss animal shapes at various stations. Then B headed home, and D and I went back to the RV - nap for her, and some quality "World of Warcraft" time for me, prior to her waking, and playing some fun animal impersonations with her. Ever heard my frog? I'm told it's pretty good...

Tuesday, D and I did a quick jaunt into Disneyland just for Nemo, which was amusing and fun, but I won't wait 2 hours for it again. B actually did remarkably well in the line, and only complained at one point about the wait, but when I explained we were almost halfway there, and we would just need to leave she toughed it out. Then we went to California Adventure and did a few more rides there, and thoroughly sated my hunger for Amusement parks for a while. After the park we headed home to San Diego for the night, and to reconfigure for picking up some friends for another little jaunt (though still part of what I was calling Phase II). Home Wednesday for restocking, and then off on Thursday AM again.

Saturday, June 16, 2007

Back on the road - June14th through 16th


Delilah and I hopped back in the RV on Thursday, and headed up to Big Bear. Unfortunately the eternal construction on the 215 through us for a loop. There was a detour on the 215N that shot us off on surface streets, which was ok for a while, until they forgot to say which way to go for the 215N again... After a while, I ended up just getting on the 60E, and did my own detour around to the 10W, through the "charming" berg of Yucaipa, and finally made it up to Big Bear, only an hour later than I had expected.
We hung out with Titanya and Jeffry at their place for a while, then went and fed some ducks by the lake, went out to dinner, and returned to their place to watch a video - Balto, which Delilah found enthralling (of course, she finds everything enthralling). Jeffry found a short extension cord that combined with the main cord, and the extension that I had was just enough to give us the much needed "feed" for the night. In the morning of the 15th, we went in and Titanya set us up with another movie - Brother Bear (which I suppose was at least fitting for Big Bear). Titanya is getting ready for a teaching trip that she is doing with her sister Dondi in New York, so didn't have much time to spare, so we headed out after the morning movie to explore on our own.
We went into the Village of Big Bear which I had somehow missed before - cute little place, which somehow ended up with two movie theaters, strolled the shops, ate at a cute little place called the "Teddy Bear Cafe", and then, in theme with the day, went to see Shrek III, which Delilah found enthralling...
From there, found a campground with a spot for the night, with all hookups (suffice it to say that the tanks were ripe...) and managed to get Delilah to nap late, and still to bed by 9 (ok, maybe a little after 9).
This morning, we headed back in to Big Bear City with several goals - a few more gallons of gas to safely get me off the mountain above the magic 1/4 mark that kills the generator, if I try to run the somewhat feckless A/D; a refill of the LP tank; a car wash big enough to fit the RV to remove at least a little of the last 3 months of goo; and some acetaminophen to take the edge off a nasty headache that I acquired apparently from having too much room in the comfy bed all by my self. Managed to kink my neck something fierce. Somehow a toaster on the cheap managed to get in there with the drugs, so at least we can make toast without a skillet.
So it turns out that washing an RV isn't as simple as washing a car. In starting, I foolishly started in the "serial" washing fashion - spray the whole thing, then use the brush (timer!) on the whole thing, and the foam is dry before I can rinse it (timer!) so I have to go back and wet a single wall at a time and (timer! - screw it!) then use a washcloth as I am rinsing to elbow grease the spots that had dried on, etc. So after $10 in quarters (the entire laundry piggy bank), it is about 70% cleaner than it was.
Stopped at the Big Bear Discovery center, which I couldn't quite figure out what it was trying to be - a community center, a mini ranger station or a mini museum, with an oversized cafe and gift shop. All said, a nice space particularly for the locals that are in the know about the programs that they offer there.
Then, down the hill, into LA, and to our home for the next three nights, a charmingly paved slab of asphalt called the Anaheim Harbor RV Resort. Ok, at least they have a pool, and they are only 5 miles from the land of Disney which will be our day time destination for at least 2 of those three days - Sunday and Tuesday. We did have a fun time in the pool, then at her request I got to emote the plastic boarder collie animal (think army men), as she played with the pig, which somehow evolved into me getting out the guitar and us singing a rousing round of "Old McDonald". A good evening with D.
Theoretically, Barbara may be driving up tomorrow evening to meet us for a Fathers Day thing, which will be fun - then staying Monday for a visit to the Aquarium of the Pacific in Long Beach.
Tuesday again to Disney for at least part of the day, then home that night, and probably to the Del Mar Fair on Wednesday, and then off on the next part of the adventure on Thursday. Delilah and I will pick up Kim and her two kids thursday noonish, and head up to San Luis Obispo, Monterey, SFO, Santa Clara (to see Gregg and Family), and then possibly meet up with Jennifer and her kid for a day of ??, and a whole lot of other ?? before returning on the 27th to get ready for the next stint!
We certainly keep busy, but I did find myself smiling a satisfied smile as I drove out of Big Bear today - the road was nice, the weather good, the temperature optimal, Delilah napped on the road, and I knew where I was going to sleep that night, and we were actually going to get into camp at a reasonable hour!

Tuesday, June 12, 2007

The Time In Between Trips

Ok, so the tally from loop one, in conjunction with some of the states that we saw on our trip of two years ago in the "first RV", is 42 states that we have seen - notably missing are 5 states of the deep south, North Dakota, Alaska and Hawaii. We will be going to Alaska in July, and Hawaii in September. We also have seen 4 provinces and will see two more (PEI isn't a province is it? If so that would be one more...) I'm thinking that the south will have to wait for another year! First loop we did over 11,000 miles...

Been home for a couple weeks now, and getting ready to head out to "Phase II" of trip with Delilah, leaving Barbara behind to do some of the work stuff that she needs time to make happen. Planning on taking off on Thursday the 14th, with D, wherever we go... It is looking like I will stay somewhat local for a few days - perhaps Big Bear, and maybe even meet up with some friends and the wife in Palm Springs on Sunday, before wandering off somewhere else for a few days. Then next Friday, the plan is that I will pick up the-ex-girl-next-door Kim and her two kids, and then make the central coast/SLO/Monterey/SFO/California Delta trip, returning on the 28th or so.

Has been an interesting few weeks, since we know that our "return to normalcy" is only a brief one, prior to our next departure. We have had time to do many of the things that we thought that we would, and not enough for others - funny how things like folding clothes always get pushed to the bottom of the chore stack...

Still managed to have some adventures along the way. One of the reasons for having come back when we did was to be at the wedding of Laura and Micheal, which was up in Fallbrook at a place called "The Grand Tradition" which was really a nice event and location. Then, we were able to visit with some friends to re-connect a bit, stop by my parents, and have a little fun time alone.

Over this last weekend, we went to the Corona Ren Faire on Sunday. Nice venue - it is the only Permanent Ren Faire in So Cal, so has some nicer buildings. Smaller place, friendly folks, and very walkable. They actually allow free "dry camping" (no hookups) there, which was a nice perk.

Then on Monday, B, D and I went to Disneyland, and plunked down the cash for the annual pass (mid grade version), so we'll be spending more time in the Magic Kingdom. Turns out that RV parking is only $13, and is right next to the tram to get in, which works really well for Delilah in terms of returning to the RV to nap mid day. I will probably sneak there during my upcomming stint with D.

I have had time to stop in at SeekTech and do about a week and a halfs work there, to get another piece of the digital video recording puzzle completed (another schematic and Printed Circuit Board or PCB). In particular, designing a PCB is somewhat meditative in a way - making the wires flow together, uninterrupted, fitting the parts together in a rational pattern like a puzzle. Since we couldn't get our child care folks to take her for the two weeks, Delilah has been at work with me on Tuesdays and Thursdays, and has gotten quite good at sleeping under my lab bench...

Then also had some time to fix a few things on the RV, replaced a cover for the refrigerator exhaust which had cracked with age and wear, got some replacement locks for the outside, and a spare key or two. The "Check Engine" light that came on briefly during the last day or so of the return trip has turned it self off again (some day when I'm near civilization and it's on, I'll have someone look into it).

I have also had some time to work on a book idea of my own, though no time to think on the Web Site as I had originally prognosticated would be my creative outlet.

The words, they come in fits and starts,
little pieces, little parts...

Stay tuned...