Ride

One of the things I wanted to do while Laurie and I were out here was give her a taste of California from the back of a Harley. You can ride along a stretch of road in a car, and no matter how beautiful the view out the window, it will always be more memorable on the back of a motorcycle. The main reason being all your senses are engaged. Not only do you see the avocado orchard gracing the mountainside, you feel the coolness of the shadows in the valley you're riding through below it and smell the scent of the cedars along the roadside. Talk about an imprint.

We rented a Road King for the day from Gary Bang Harley Davidson in Atascadero. After filling out all the necessary "understand-you're-screwed-if-you-wreck-it" paperwork they gave us a couple of helmets and the keys and waved goodbye. Since there was no limit on mileage we rode all day on just about every road I could remember riding in my, eh, younger days. Every road I could remember (and cover in a day) came out to exactly 239.9 miles worth. The temperature ranged from 58 on the coast to a blistering 90+ inland. Sometimes it felt like we were riding behind a giant hair dryer.

The picture with this post was taken on Santa Rosa Creek Road near the crest of the coastal range above Cambria, CA. The road winds its way down the slope in a series of hairpin switchbacks. The road itself is half as wide as my driveway in parts. But the relative danger and crummy road condition is well worth the effort as this picture will attest.

When we got back to the room, we freshened up a little and hit the San Luis Obispo farmers market. It's every Thursday and is three solid blocks of fresh produce, mouthwatering barbecue and an odd assortment of other vendors (i.e. snow cones, Libertarians and vegan societies). No trip down memory lane would be complete without it.

Tomorrow morning I take the motorcycle back and we spend our last day on the central coast. I'll probably spend most of it in downtown San Luis reading, loafing and, maybe, indulging in a cigar. Saturday we head back down to L.A. and come home Monday. It'll be tough to leave this lifestyle behind, but we're ready. See you Tuesday.

Central Coast High

We've arrived. Aside from battling rush hour on a Friday in L.A., the trip out here was a piece of cake. For those who don't know, Laurie and I are spending a week on the central coast of California. I wanted Laurie to see the California I remember, because it bears no resemblance whatsoever to the sprawl of southern California which, unfortunately, is the only California she's ever seen.

On the way up to our accommodations in Los Osos, we stopped for a bite at Pea Soup Anderson's in Buellton. All the split pea soup we could eat, plus a bottomless bread basket, for $9. Incidentally, Buellton, and the area around it, served as the backdrop for the movie Sideways. In fact, The Coach House where Miles (Paul Giamati) and Jack (Thomas Hayden Church) shared many a meal is right up the road from Anderson's.

And what would a trip to California with my girl be without a little text message ribbing from the guys back home. Somewhere around Santa Barbara McKee texts me that they're at a demolition derby. I reply that that's great, I'm looking at the Pacific. And without going into a whole lot of detail it devolved into text taunting. Only, I was driving, so I had to dictate all my retorts to Laurie who keyed them in and sent them. It was all very surreal.

For those interested in what our digs look like, go to www.baywoodinn.com and take the tour. Our room is the Appalachin. It's got a kind of Jed-Clampett-meets-80's California-chic thing going for it. Also, I'm sure Laurie will be posting pics eventually. She snapped quite a few on the drive up.

More later. Right now I'm going to take a stroll along the bay before bed. Just taking it easy for all you sinners out there.

Four to Go

In four days Laurie and I will be heading out to California for 10 days. I want to show her around the old stomping grounds. We'll be staying at a bed and breakfast in Los Osos which is situated on the central coast, near San Luis Obispo, about 120 miles north of Santa Barbara.

The goal is to just relax and see the sights, but already I'm starting to feel the pressure of doing things while we're out there. Accepting the fact we're not going to have time to will be essential to enjoying this trip. One of the things I'm most definitely going to do is rent a motorcycle and cruise up Highway 1. Dad and I used to ride 1 all the time when the family was out there. I'm glad I got to do that as a young(er) man, but I just wish Laurie could've experienced it with me. Of course if she had, at six years my junior, she would've only been 14 or so. I guess now would be better.

But before we can begin this walk down memory lane, I have four days to work ahead on projects coming due in my absence. Can't say I look forward to it. But if I can get it done, it will make the subsequent respite that much sweeter.

Finally, congratulations to Katie and Mike on the birth of their daughter. I know they will make stellar parents. Haley is one blessed little girl. You can probably find pictures of her here.

Sod On

About 20 minutes ago two flatbed semis loaded with sod showed up on Dropseed. They are busily offloading it with forklifts right now. I hope the neighbors aren't too peeved as one of the trucks has pretty much blocked the street. One driver said the "installers" will be here in about 45 minutes.

Laurie's blog will have pictures of the whole operation later today.

LD in the House

We’ve actually been in the new digs since June 26. Laurie, who has this month off, has been going gangbusters getting everything unpacked and transforming this place from a storage unit into a home. I can’t thank her enough. It’s actually been kind of cool to come home from work and see another room take shape.

Today I came home to find a new desk in the office. I had to trash my old one because its particle board anatomy couldn’t survive my clumsy attempts to disassemble it when we were moving out of the condo. For the last couple of weeks I’ve been using the dining room table. Not an ideal situation for either Laurie or I. I’d been planning to go out desk shopping but lo and behold I came home today and this sleek, aluminum framed, glass-paneled number was sitting in my corner of the office. Thanks babe.

There’s probably more I could touch on, but I’m short on time. Company will be here any minute. Now that we’re back online, though, and I have a sweet new office, I’m guessing I’ll be more inclined to sit down and write. So, for all you readers (or maybe just you)—more later.