santa rosa, oasis, bottomless, more déjà vu,and five great lessons

Santa Rosa only had two other rigs here. Sites are close to the road but very little traffic in the winter. M/O out on one of our late afternoon walks. At some point on every walk, Meadow or Onyx will sit in ambush until the other one comes along, then pounce and roll around together. Sometimes if Onyx is crouched and waiting, Meadow will sprint past and they both go running up the trail with their tails straight up in the air. Meadow has no qualms about slamming into Onyx but she would just as soon not have the same happen to her. Very, very entertaining.


Had a few cold days with two single-digit nights. Meadow and Onyx bagged the walks. Had to stay an extra day because the roads were pretty icy and snow covered.


Meadow was watching something out the window one day. I looked out and saw this fox rooting around in the ground.


The morning I rolled out of Santa Rosa State Park, I stopped for breakfast at Joseph’s out on rt66. Had a tasty omelet and hit the road with, believe it or not, a TAILWIND. These seem to be few and far between for me. Always knew there were gods. Stayed at Oasis a couple days. Good loop for our walks and the water has been holding in the pond. Had a thin layer of ice on the water. Drove into Portales for web access and to pick up a few jars of the local peanut butter that Sunland makes from Valencia peanuts. Stayed an extra day because very heavy winds were forecasted (accurately). Coming out the next morning, I picked out eleven tumbleweeds wedges under the casita and Cherokee. Jeez, had it been blowin’.

I was listening to an 80’s show on the fm and the programmer was throwing out tidbits between the tunes. One was that an oft requested song at funerals is Queen’s ‘Another One Bites the Dust’. Now those are my kind of people—humor right to the end.



Got my favorite site at Bottomless. For us, the three best sites at Bottomless are out in the primitive area. This year there was not a single other camper in any of the primitive sites while we were here. Not bad. Only part way through winter and already I am having disperse-camping-site withdrawal, so this was good. Maybe I should look into becoming a monk.
There was a lidless trashcan not far from the camper and the first night there was some noise out there after dark. I shined a flashlight out the window and there was a large raccoon going through the trash. Not the least bit fazed that a light was shining on it. Like I did not have ENOUGH of raccoons up in South Willow Canyon this past summer!

I’ve been weeding through my MacBook lately and have been coming across stories that I’ve saved over the years. The following is one of them. I tried to find out on the web who wrote this one but it was always ‘Unknown Author’. Oldies but goodies.

‘FIVE GREAT LESSONS—The Important Things Life Teaches You...

Number One: The Most Important Question.
During my second month of nursing school, our professor gave us a pop quiz. I was a conscientious student and had breezed through the questions, until I read the last one: "What is the first name of the woman who cleans the school?" Surely this was some kind of joke. I had seen the cleaning woman several times. She was tall, dark-haired, and in her 50s, but how would I know her name? I handed in my paper, leaving the last question blank. Before class ended, one student asked if the last question would count toward our quiz grade. "Absolutely," said the professor. "In your careers you will meet many people. All are significant. They deserve your attention and care, even if all you do is smile and say 'hello.'" I've never forgotten that lesson. I also learned her name was Dorothy.

Number Two: Pickup in the Rain.
One night, at 11:30 PM, an older African American woman was standing on the side of an Alabama highway trying to endure a lashing rainstorm. Her car had broken down and she desperately needed a ride. Soaking wet, she decided to flag down the next car. A young white man stopped to help her— generally unheard of in those conflict-filled 1960s. The man took her to safety, helped her get assistance, and put her into a taxicab. She seemed to be in a big hurry! She wrote down his address, thanked him, and drove away. Seven days went by and a knock came on the man's door. To his surprise, a giant console color TV was delivered to his home. A special note was attached. It read: "Thank you so much for assisting me on the highway the other night. The rain had drenched not only my clothes, but my spirits. Then you came along. Because of you, I was able to make it to my dying husband's bedside just before he passed away. God bless you for helping me and unselfishly serving others. Sincerely, Mrs. Nat King Cole."

Number Three: Always Remember Those Who Serve.
In the days when an ice cream sundae cost much less, a 10 year old boy entered a hotel coffee shop and sat at a table. A waitress put a glass of water in front of him. "How much is an ice cream sundae?" "Fifty cents," replied the waitress. The little boy pulled his hand out of his pocket and studied a number of coins in it. "How much is a dish of plain ice cream?" he inquired. Some people were now waiting for a table and the waitress was a bit impatient. "Thirty-five cents," she said brusquely. The little boy again counted the coins. "I'll have the plain ice cream," he said. The waitress brought the ice cream, put the bill on the table, and walked away. The boy finished the ice cream, paid the cashier, and departed. When the waitress came back, she began wiping down the table and then swallowed hard at what she saw. There, placed neatly beside the empty dish, were two nickels and five pennies—her tip.

Number Four: The Obstacle in Our Path.
In ancient times, a king had a boulder placed on a roadway. Then he hid himself and watched to see if anyone would remove the huge rock. Some of the king's wealthiest merchants and courtiers came by and simply walked around it. Many loudly blamed the king for not keeping the roads clear, but none did anything about getting the big stone out of the way. Then a peasant came along carrying a load of vegetables. On approaching the boulder, the peasant laid down his burden and tried to move the stone to the side of the road. After much pushing and straining, he finally succeeded. As the peasant picked up his load of vegetables, he noticed a purse lying in the road where the boulder had been. The purse contained many gold coins and a note from the king indicating that the gold was for the person who removed the boulder from the roadway. The peasant learned what many others never understand. Every obstacle presents an opportunity to improve one's condition.

Number Five: Giving Blood.
Many years ago, when I worked as a volunteer at Stanford Hospital, I got to know a little girl named Liz who was suffering from a rare and serious disease. Her only chance of recovery appeared to be a blood transfusion from her 5-year old brother, who had miraculously survived the same disease, and had developed the antibodies needed to combat the illness. The doctor explained the situation to her little brother, and asked the boy if he would be willing to give his blood to his sister. I saw him hesitate for only a moment before taking a deep breath and saying, "Yes, I'll do it if it will save Liz." As the transfusion progressed, he lay in bed next to his sister and smiled, as we all did, seeing the color returning to her cheeks. Then his face grew pale and his smile faded. He looked up at the doctor and asked with a trembling voice, "Will I start to die right away?" Being young, the boy had misunderstood the doctor; he thought he was going to have to give his sister all of his blood. Attitude, after all, is everything.’

Now those—are sovereign.

RVwest article ‘Following a Free Spirit’
FOR INDEX OF POSTINGS GO TO JULY 2006