We’ve been visiting a university, taking the tours and walking the downtown area. Checking out the dorms on a personal tour with a family friend who is an R.A. Was a great bonus, gotta say, thanks Anna!
I am looking at this university through completely different eyes than my daughter- How safe are you in the library back in the stacks by yourself? Is there plenty of lighting along the pathways, and how much security is on campus? How dry are the dry dorms! In all honesty, come on…? Is the food glorified junk food or is there real nutrition available for my kid? AND MY GOSH, IS THERE DECENT COFFEE AVAILABLE?!!?
I drove my mom to see her mother on Friday. Gramma is fading fast. We stopped along the way to visit a viewpoint that I have meant to stop at each time I drive across the desert to see my grandparents. A very short drive off of Interstate 8, following In-Ko-Pah Park Road is the Desert View Tower. There are caves to explore there, too, but I was lucky to talk The Mom into climbing up the steps to the viewtower. If it resembles hiking or walking that requires any effort, she would rather sit in the car and read her paperback- she never leaves home without a paperback, no sir-ee!
Making whales!Really… I can’t make this stuff up.
We almost didn’t get out of the car, either- not because of desert heat, it was a beautiful 65 degrees with a light wind. We were just too engrossed with trying to send each other baby whale texts. We stink. We don’t make good teen-aged girls.
While in the viewtower shop I found an article written about the Old Plank Road that used to exist between Yuma and San Diego. My gramma told us how she had traveled on that plank road, and how it felt like it took forever with her brother annoying her along the route and their father changing a tire every ten to twenty miles of travel.
Article about the Old Plank Road…
Can you imagine? She says that over the years tourists took away most the planks after better roads were built, and eventually “the hippies and hobos” used up almost all of the rest to make campfires. Only a small portion remains as a protected landmark, that you can read about here at DesertUSA.com, or if you have good enough zoom capabilities on a desktop computer, click on this photo on the right.
Gramma is very tired, and only sleeping lately. I bet she is a tired as she was while traveling across that Old Plank Road, but at the end of this journey, her father, mother and brother are waiting for her. Safe and blessed travels to you, Betty Gene!
Three moms met at the High School, loaded a couple hundred costumes into their SUVs, then blew out of San Diego for the 100+ mile trek to Upland. A couple hours later, they were unloading, chatting as they worked quickly. Speeding through the costumes, maternal instincts motivated these women, for they all had either children participating in holy services at school or children home from college. Nothing gets done more quickly than tasks done by moms with the desire to see their kids, no matter how old these children are. Before completing the “dump and run” return, they learned that one of the owners has been “involved in theater for about 429 years and could make a set out of toothpaste.” Believe it! The Theatre Company was a great place to work with for organizations on a tight budget.
A regular and an owner? Details to be filled in soon…Phew! All done!
The Theatre Company in Upland, California was a long drive for the three of us, but it felt good to lend a hand and spread the workload between many helpers. At least one of the moms had made this trip a couple times already. Great programs need the participation of a lot of energetic families, and I am thankful to be part of a big, uplifting, caring drama family. The two women I helped today are two of several that I wish I had taken the time to get to know better. They are worth their weight in gold and are two of many reason why I love this high school.
Palm Sunday services attended… check.
Help cleaning up the theatre after the spring musical… check.
Assist one mom transporting another friend’s daughter to E.R. while we get their car to them… check.
(update on her condition- nothing broken, whew!)
Got a lot done this weekend, and it wasn’t half as much as other people accomplished. Can’t say that I have ever participated in helping dear friends gather cars and child to the E.R. before, but we’d do anything for this wonderful family. So, we are going to end the day reflecting on how thankful we are that she will be fine, and how she is a beautiful example of how to be calm, forgiving and able to smile while still smarting quite a bit.
branching out... on a limb 