GOING THE DISTANCE.

In Oregon, on Thursday, my cabinets were delivered. They wait installation by another crew.

I’m certain the delivery guys have to be careful. There was a tear in one box. I took a picture. They denied they had torn it. I could feel around inside and could detect no scratches. Two bugs came out of the hole. One was a  roach. Nope, they said, that bug must have just crawled in. One big cabinet barely fit through the sliding glass door. It scratched the paint on the door. Nope, that scratch must have been there. It was almost comic, but the scratch was no big deal.

On Friday morning, Jim drove north and I drove south. I arrived in Davis, about 330 miles later, to meet Cedric and Virginia. Cedric had just arrived after a five hour drive from Mendocino. We loaded into their Prius, the five of us, within about 15 minutes and hit the road for Reno to attend my oldest grandson’s graduation. Actually, not to attend it, but to be there for dinner and recognition.

This is Momma Laurie who stated that her oldest son, Stewart,  is the first in her family to obtain a college degree. In my family and my husband’s family, my two daughters were the first to obtain college degrees. Seated next to Laurie is Cedric, his sons, Theo and Owen and Poppa Ken.

On the other side of the table, Virginia and my two oldest grandsons, Mason and Stewart. Of course conversation all around table was much about what will you do with your life, from the youngest, Theo, who thinks he’ll probably be a vet, to our graduate, Stewart who wants to go to Japan and teach English as a second language, and, in the process learn to speak Japanese.

After dinner, we spent some time in Ken and Laurie’s room, chatting. We drank a bit of wine and enjoyed our short time together after the long drives.

On Saturday morning, while Stewart and family got ready to attend graduation, at his suggestion, we went to a local breakfast joint all the locals adore. It is Peg’s Glorified Eggs and Ham. The menu choices were wonderful and varied. The food delicious and the service excellent. Thanks, Stew.

The boys had some variation of pancakes/waffle which came with has hash-browns and fruit or meat.

I had a vegetarian eggs Benedict, that was delicious with spinach, onions, mushrooms, tomato, avocado and cheese. Yum.

After breakfast we drove to the University of California Field Station for Virginia’s meeting on invasive plants.

It was partly gravel road to get there. No fancy quarters, people pitch their tents.

She reported to the office to join her peers.

She noticed a nest of baby birds and took a picture for me. I love seeing baby birds and especially watching them fledge. She will get a ride home from a colleague.

Cedric drove us  back to Davis,  and for me, another two-hour drive back to Murphys. I guess  I can safely say, we went the distance. Laurie promised to take gobs of pictures of the graduation ceremony.  I hope to see all of my grandsons graduate college. Five more to go.

GOALS

Goals come and go or  they change with the passing years. When I was a kid, I wanted hair as long as this woman.  Now I’m quite happy with short hair. At one time it was my goal to parachute from an airplane and try hang gliding. My husband convinced me it was unfair to risk leaving my children without a mother if something went wrong. I never regretted rearranging my goals over the years because life was so full of wondrous things.

I first considered walking  the Appalachian Trail about  25 years ago, but it wasn’t a fire-breathing dragon goal, just a simmer at the back of the brain.  The length of the trail, which stretches from Maine to Georgia, is about 2,150 miles. Pretty daunting when you realize you have to carry everything with you, cooking utensils, tent, emergency medical kit, food, water. Adventurists who have done it term it a  life changing experience.

That goal re-emerged when I met a friend of Jim’s who is walking the Appalachian Trail in pieces.  Hilda is in her late 70’s, a former marine and in good health. She walks with two other women bit, by bit, mile by mile, each year. There are others who tackle the entire length, which takes around 5 months.  Jim and I have entered small areas of the trail while traveling the East Coast. Once in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park in North Carolina, and again at Harpers Ferry, West Virginia, and several places on the Blue Ridge Parkway. The urge began to stir anew. Good health is key to a 2,000 mile hike no matter how you do it.

Last night, we went to a seminar on hip, knee and shoulder replacements. I’m a candidate for hip replacement. I know I can’t walk the trail without doing something about an arthritic hip. I was amazed at what I learned about hip replacement, including an opinion from one participating surgeon that surgically replacing hips will be a thing of the past in possibly 20 years. I can’t wait that long for new technology. Now, is the time.

Pain is a motivator. For me, a greater motivator to consider hip replacement  surgery, is the current book I’m reading, Bill Bryson’s, A Walk In The Woods. Bryson walked the  Appalachian Trail in a five month stretch. I’m hoping that someone out there has walked the trail and will message me about their experience.  And, I will post some of Bryson’s  observations as I read. I’m also looking for a walking companion because this is not on Jim’s agenda.