The 130-mile trip was without incident. The Soledad Canyon Thousand Trails preserve is one of our favorites. It’s kind of like an old pair of shoes---not particularly attractive, but comfortable. It's located right next to a railroad track that carries both freight and Metrolink trains. We got used to the noise very quickly (they toot---make that blast---their horns every time they pass the park) and, honestly, I like the sound of the trains passing. It's brings on a kind of nostalgia.
We had our Valentine’s Day Dinner at home; take-out Chinese food, and a nice bottle of wine (Cline Zinfandel). Very good.
We have learned that our granddaughter Meghan was accepted at George Washington University (in D.C.) as an early-action candidate. (She graduates from high school on June 2.) Good for her. Congratulations, Meghan. For whatever it's worth, the acceptance letter is quite impressive.
At dinner each night, we have a scented candle on the table---for atmosphere. Tuesday, I forgot to put out the flame before---sitting at the dining room table---using my notebook computer to catch up on the day‘s emails, etc. I was blithely tapping away when Becky screamed that I was burning up the computer. I thought she whimsically meant I was typing too fast. She actually meant that the flame had caught the cover of the notebook on fire. I quickly extinguished it, but the fire left a charred area, about the size of a silver dollar, including a hole about the size of a dime, in the notebook cover. Fortunately, the internal works of the computer were not affected, and, with a not-so-subtle piece of duct tape covering the burn area, the external damage is hardly noticeable.
We had some light rain Tuesday night, and more is expected through the weekend. But it’s not creating any flood conditions, so we are fine with it.
The last time here, we noted that the California rains this winter had washed out a road connecting two parts of the park. No work had been done to fix the problem in the meantime. At a general meeting Wednesday with the manager, he explained that the river running through the park is under the jurisdiction of the federal Fish & Game people because they think some unique fish lives in the sand under the river. They won’t let the park build a bridge over the chasm. At the same time, the County is pressing the park to close the emergency back gate that allows people in the isolated part of the park to come and go, because the County (and the neighbors) don’t like the extra traffic on their street, but the repair that would allow the closing of the back gate is not permitted by the feds. So there is an impasse. And the park residents suffer because the regulators have clashing egos. The manager allowed that the last time the County wanted a concession from the feds, it took seven years to resolve the issue. Save me from government meddlers, please.
Friday was a day of sightseeing at Vasquez Rocks County Park and shopping at Costco. Exhausting. Vasquez Rocks is a very popular filming spot for movies and commercials. Its signature formations are very recognizable.
Coincidentally, we arrived just as a film crew was wrapping up a shoot for what we were told was going to be a commercial for Wendy’s. If you see a Wendy's ad with a light-blue 70's Oldsmobile convertible with four passengers, that't the one. The dogs loved walking the trails among the rock formations. The Costco outing was pretty conventional. The Santa Clarita store is in a normal bedroom community (of 165,000 people, according to the sign at the entrance to the city) so Costco wasn’t featuring caskets to remind us of our advancing age.
We learned Friday afternoon that Becky’s father was in Huntington Memorial Hospital in Pasadena after suffering what was described as a very mild stroke. She talked to him by phone and he seemed fine. He insisted, though, that he was not taking visitors yet. We are going to see him this morning (Saturday). The whole family had planned an 85th birthday party for him to be held at the Il Fornaio restaurant in Pasadena on Sunday. Apparently, Bill’s doctor has said the centerpiece celebrant would not be able to attend. Nonetheless, there is a debate about whether to cancel the party. The Shelton clan likes to party.
We saw Bill on Saturday, as planned. They haven't finished the tests, yet, but he looks good and plans to leave the hospital in a day or so.
The party is still on for Sunday night, but it's been moved to Peter and Terry Shelton's home, with everyone meeting at the hospital first.
We woke up Sunday morning to a quarter-inch of snow on the ground, with more on the local mountains. (We are at 2,600 feet.) Brrrrrrr.
But it's better than rain, all things considered. We went to Pasadena, arriving at 5:00pm, to visit Bill in the hospital and to meet the whole family for a birthday picture. When we arrived, we were informed that he was in the process of checking out and was no longer in his room. The conclusion was that his stroke, if there was one, was extremely mild and left no permanent damage. Whew!!!) We immediately adjourned to Peter & Terry's home for the birthday party. Everyone was there, including Barbara Coad, who is an honorary family member. We celebrated with wine and pizza. Great.
Tuesday was Bill Shelton’s (and George Washington’s, of course) actual birthday, so Becky and I picked him up at home and we had lunch at what has become our favorite restaurant---Taylor’s Steak House in La Canada. Becky’s brothers, Peter and John, joined us.
After lunch, the two of us stopped at the home of Carlos and Denise Solis in Pasadena for some catch-up time. (We hadn’t seen them in a couple of years.) They are old friends---Becky met Carlos when she was active in the Los Angeles Junior Chamber of Commerce.
We spent last winter in Texas and Florida, in part to seek warmth. It didn’t work. This year, we are in southern California, in part for the same reason. It isn’t working here, either. This morning (Friday) we woke up to a temperature of 32 degrees (not for the first time), and tonight we are expecting snow. This afternoon, we went to the Exotic Feline Breeding Compound in Rosamond (near Edwards Air Force Base). There were cougars, lynxes, bobcats, jaguars, etc., all kinds of cats
(and a few peacocks, which are not felines, of course).
According to the docent, two peacocks showed up one day, and just started to multiply.
Even though a lot of the cats stayed hidden in their lairs (it was very cold there, as well), enough came out that it was very interesting.
It didn't snow Friday night, but Saturday afternoon it hailed, then snowed. Whoopee!
Sunday night we had dinner at McCormick & Schmicks in Burbank with Pam and Bob Schacter, old friends of Becky's from college days. (Old timers will remember Bob's father, Norm Schacter, the long-time NFL referee.)
There was a lot of conversation about people I've never heard of, but it was fun, anyway. I had a very tasty crusted salmon and Becky had Chilean sea bass. Yum.
Because we were out on Sunday night, we missed the live Oscar telecast, but I recorded it. The show was pretty awful. We only saw two movies last year, including The King's Speech, which we loved, so we were happy it won the big awards.
On Tuesday, we returned to Pasadena to have lunch with Becky's dad. We chose Il Fornaio since we didn't get to go there for his birthday celebration.
The rest of the week was a blur of inactivity until Saturday---when we boarded the dogs and headed to the Jonathan Club (in downtown Los Angeles) to stay for two days due to prearranged activities. Saturday night we went to the Manhattan Beach second home of Diane Chierichetti and Paul Basile for another “First Saturday” dinner party.
(I have previously reported that at the last one we attended, I had one of my esophagus “incidents” that landed me in the hospital briefly.) Under orders from Becky, I dutifully chewed everything multiple times, and survived intact. The party was a lot of fun; but, unfortunately, I ate (and drank) way too much. Maybe that’s why the party was so much fun. On the way back to the JC, I noted that the traffic on the Harbor Freeway was stop-and-go, bumper-to-bumper at 11:30pm. Awful. I’m glad we don’t still live there.
On Sunday, Becky hosted a lunch at the Jonathan Beach Club for a bunch of her former employees at Union Bank many years ago. I was not invited, of course, so Barbara Coad picked me up and we had lunch at El Coyote, a long-time favorite restaurant dating back to my Hancock Park days starting in 1975. The Mexican food is consistently so-so, but the margaritas are wonderful. We then met Becky at the home of old friends (from Becky’s LA Junior Chamber of Commerce days) Alan and Chris Buckelew in West LA.
We went there to view a slide show of photos of their recent trip to Asia on a Princess Cruise. (Alan is the CEO of Princess.) We are planning a similar trip this November. I almost feel I don’t need to go any more, since they had 2,000 pictures.
When we left Southern California eight years ago to begin our RV adventure, we believed (incorrectly, as it clearly turned out a year later when we adopted Daisy) that it would be very inconvenient to have any dogs, much less our two Dalmatians, Penny and Clancy, with us. We placed them with new homes. In the intervening years, we lost contact with the people who took Clancy, but stayed in touch with Robert and Debbie Schlesinger, who adopted Penny. Over the weekend, Debbie informed us by email that Penny had passed away earlier that week. Debbie allowed that, to the end, Penny was the adorable, trash-eating friend we had so fondly remembered. She included some wonderful recent pictures. Thank you, Debbie. And rest in peace, Penny.
We returned to Soledad Canyon on Monday to spend our last day there, preparing to return to Wilderness Lakes on Tuesday.
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