Country livin'

I was inspired to write this silly thing... : )

People ask me: “ain’t ya scared livin’ up in the country all by your lonesome?” True, ain’t no street lights or paved roads. I tell ‘em that I ain’t scared and ain’t nuthin’ to be scared about anyway. Sure, there the occasional rattler but they stay away coz I think they scared I bite ‘em first.



Ain’t no streetlights but at night I see more stars than there are people on earth. The roads ain’t paved but I see cows coming and going at rush hour headed to the creek for a drink. It’s a well organized procession, all lined up one behind the other except for the calves jumping around out of line but never too far from their mommy. They’ll learn their place I guess.



They be like clockwork. Around six they come round for a drink. Around seven they be back on their way to the pasture. I don’t need a watch. I know exactly what time it is and when I should water my trees. One cow is assigned to call out the stragglers. Some people are always late I guess.



Not much to do up here in the country but work. Work on this, work on that, always sumthin’ to do or fix. The educated folks call it dealing with entropy. I call it “shit to do.” Whatever it’s called, keeps me busy. I could let it go to pits but I like takin’ care of things. I give the hummingbirds sugar water, breadcrumbs to the blue jays and woodpeckers, and carrots to the rabbits. The one guy I don’t like is Mister Gopher. He dig holes by my cypress trees and then my water go down his hole. ‘Em trees be starvin’ for water if I don’t look out.



I respect ants greatly coz they such great builders but they come round stealing my hummingbirds sugar water and then them lil’ birds don’t come no more coz the water taste like shit. That makes me mad so as much as I like and respect ants, they gotta be shown the limits of hospitality. So now I whack ‘em systematically. I feel bad about it but ‘em birds got rights to happy times too.



Not always rosy up here though, nature can be tough. Found a cat paw out back yonder while weed-whacking yesterday. We’s got big properties over here so it takes time to get everywhere. Felt bad for the kitty kat. The other day I was sitting on my porch, enjoying a libation as the sun come down over Breckenridge, and I see a snake fly by. I thought what the heck! I don’t do no drugs! Double take, I was so fixated on the snake that I almost missed the hawk carrying it home for dinner.



I like to write so I submitted some stuff to the local paper (distribution 4,000) but they said no coz it ain’t interesting enuff and I need spell check. I don’t want no spell put on me so I dropped it. I think these people be Indians or sumthin’. They knows and if they say no then so be it. Still, I’d like to write articals for the Fence post.



This was Indian land before Whites came. The Indians called it “Yitpe” and the Whites named it “The Park”, I guess Yitpe was too hard to pronounce. They kept Tehachapi though so no logic there… Yitpe is a 12 square mile basin surrounded by mountains with an elavation of about 7,500 to 8,500 feet. We get snow in the winter so we gotta chop wood for the stove. Hard work but fun cause there’s always a friend helping out. Sumthin’ else to keeps us busy and outta trouble. By the creek you’ll find flat rocks with holes in ‘em where Indian women used to grind acorn and bleach ‘em with water from the creek to make bread. When there’s a cluster it’s called a “Gossip Rock’ and it’s easy to understand why. 'Em ladies be talking 'bout their husband. Nothing new under the sun.



Lotsa oak trees over here, the Blue kind. They pretty. They loose their leaves in winter so the sun come in. During summer they provide shade to keep me cool. They don’t even need water. They about 500 to 800 years old, probably older coz they grow so slowly. They look scraggly but I like them. There are two at my place that must be ‘bout a thousand years old. I call ‘em “The Sisters” but they could be husband and wife. Must be, one one of ‘em looks pregnant.



Speaking of dat and back to the “ain’t you lonesome?” thing, the Sheriff has a daughter but they tell me she’s spoken for. I don’t go for taken women. Single women here are widows and I think they bad luck. True, some of 'em are gay too. So I prefer to stay single and carefree. This way I reckon I live a few more years and keep my hummingbirds, blue jays, woodpeckers and bunnies happy.



Density is sparse but people wave hello on the road while driving and they always willin’ to help out if you gotta a problem. Need a ¾ PVC junction for ya sprinklers? No problem. Andy, Ernie, George or Bill’s got it. And next time they need sumthin’, you got it too.



So we be hillbillies up here in Yitpe, eat your heart out. Enuff said, ain’t too interesting anyway. Nuttin’ like Johnny Depp, Vince Taylor or George Straight. Speaking o’ dat, who cares who’s straight and who not?

Still sucking air

I haven't posted in a while... 2011 was a year of change for me so I had to prioritize and unfortunately neglect my little blog. It's a new year now, The Year of the Dragon, major symbol of good fortune. About time...

I'm still having fun and enjoying the Sierras and the people I've met there. Unfortunately some have left already, never to be replaced. That's life (and death) and we must all accept it and be grateful for each day.

I'll post more regularly from now on. Meanwhile, here's something fun.

The Santa Ynez Valley in a mountain setting

I recently spent a weekend with a friend in the Santa Ynez Valley and had a great time. We toured around, went wine tasting, had dinner at the Hitching Post, drinks at Root 246, and met nice people. I love the place and recommend it to anybody who lives in Southern California.

Here's a vid of that trip should you be interested:



I remember reading a listing about a property for sale in Walker Basin describing it as "the Santa Ynez Valley in a mountain setting" and "Champagne land at beer prices." Sure, the areas have some similarities such as landscape, oak trees, weather (somewhat-they rarely get snow) but I don't think you can compare the two. For one, most of the Santa Ynez Valley is at 200 ft above sea level; the basin is above 3000. The valley is agricultural with much viniculture, the basin is not. The valley gets a lot of water runoff from the Sierras, it just roars by us on its way down. They have hospitals, wineries, restaurants and churches, we have the Trading Post and TOGS. We do have a church in Twin Oaks though.

Walker Basin is also described in the listing as the Old West. That I would agree with. It's the living Old West whereas the Santa Ynez Valley is by now only an image of that time. We still have unpaved road, too much rain or snow makes access difficult, electricity goes out once in a while, some of us are off the grid, we have wells for our water, we keep wood for the stove in winter, we walk over to our neighbors and friends, we help each other. It's the California Steinbeck describes so often in his books.

Oh, I forgot another similarity, we have ostriches in Walker Basin too...



We don't have large ostrich farms but a neighbor in the basin has about ten... The picture above was taken near Buellton by the way.

Walker Basin/Twin Oaks/Piute Meadows/Thompson Canyon is not for everybody. The place is stuck in time. Never mind that the Joe Walker Mine was the highest producing gold mine in California in 1870. One would think, looking at Coloma and Northern Cal's gold country off the 49, that it would have been enough to start communities. In 1870 there also was a tremendous earthquake that flooded the mine and that was that. The Pony Express used to go through the basin. Thing of the past. Havilah had the Kern County courthouse, thing of the past. The basin was called Yitpe by Native Americans, thing of the past.

I don't really want to live in the past, sounds way too rough for me, but I really like getting a sense of what it was like for pioneers and living it to some degree. So far I've noticed that I have a greater appreciation and respect for Nature. I won't elaborate about the rest because it is something personal each of us needs to experience to understand but I can at least say that I feel that it has made my soul richer. For one, it has taught me not to take anything for granted. Heck, a warm shower really is a wonderful thing.

'Til next time.

Holidays in Walker Basin

It's been raining in Southern California so the hills and mountains in the Sierra foothills are already green, something I haven't seen yet at this time of the year. That makes for very happy cows and terrible road conditions. Caliente Creek Road, the alternative to the Lions Trail has collapsed here and there, is flooded in many places and therefore closed to traffic. To show you what I mean, following is a little video. It all starts out when I picked up my friend Ernie to go check out Thompson Creek. We could hear it growling from his porch so I was curious. What was supposed to take fifteen minutes turned into a two hour challenge...



The drive back was interesting as you can see. But rain is one thing, snow and ice another.

Last weekend was New Year's. My neighbors and friends Pam and Andy had a few of us over for dinner and that was fun. The next evening dinner and poker was at Bill's across the street. I'm not much of card player, even less of a poker player so I lost my five bucks very quickly. That was fine as I enjoyed Ernie's guitar playing and Scott's conversation.

On Sunday I left at 3:30 p.m. after checking the road conditions but there was no notice of road closures. Getting from Caliente-Bodfish Road to the 58 to Mojave was busy going west but I thought there was an accident. Going down to Arvin there was a lot of traffic in the opposite direction but heck, it was the end of a special weekend so I didn't think too much. Here's a photo of Arvin for those of you who have never been there.



I got on the 5, and it was crawling. Probably another accident I thought. Eventually got to the very bottom of the Grapevine where those airheads from Caltrans had a sign that said "tune your radio to so and so so for news" while the CHP was having everybody go back to Bakersfield. A bit late for a darned notice! Grrrrr...

I went back to Arvin, had a quick burger, and decided to go through the 58 to the 14. The freeway was crawling so when I got to Tehachapi, I decided to turn and go back to the cabin. It was snowing and the Lions Trail was real slippery. I slid a couple times so I drove really slowly (10 mph) so I wouldn't become one of those crosses on the side of the road. It wasn't fun but I made it back at the cabin at 9:45 p.m.

I emailed Ernie who had left at noon. He called me in the morning and said he did the same as I, i.e. go the 5 way, had to turn back at the bottom of the Grapevine, drove to the 58, and on to the 14. It took him 11 hours to get home. On the other hand, Pam and Andy's son left at the same time as Ernie but he went straight to the 58 to the 14 and got home in 2.5 hours. Luck of the draw. Still, Caltrans could put signs up. What the heck!?!?! No brains anywhere, no wonder the state is bankrupt. I can't forgive them because it ain't the first time it snows on the 5!!!

I woke up the next morning at 7:30 because Jorgy was barking. I walked out and it was a beautiful winter wonderland (a winterland?) all white with a few clouds that completely disappeared a couple hours later for a bright blue sky. Here's a pic of the cabin in the morning. Sure is lovely.



I had left the gate open and to my surprise I was greeted by a big old black bull in my yard. Weird part is that I yelled at him "out!" and he got it. He went back out the gate. Smart bovines in Walker Basin.



The next day I waited until 3:30 so the sun would melt the snow and ice and drove via the 58 (it was closed in the morning too but open in the afternoon,) got on the 14 and the rest was smooth sailing. Tehachapi was beautiful under the snow and so was the desert.

So there, a nice weekend in spite of horrible road conditions. I was OK though, I always pack up plenty of food and libations so I could have stayed all week. All week... Hum, that sounds mighty fine.

Happy new year everybody!

Live! From Walker Basin!

This is a first. I'm writing this post from the cabin! True, I'm using a modem connection (remember those?) so everything is very... slooooow... That also means there won't be any pictures because they would take too long to upload. So there it is, just words, no pix, no flix.

Today driving up I was struck by the beauty of the golden hills. Seen from a distance, It's almost like a blanket of snow in winter but instead, it is a cover of golden grasses, spotted with oak trees. Get close and you'll see the tall golden grasses shimmering, almost dancing in the wind, basking in the sun. All that under a pure blue sky.

On the way up, I stopped at Abel's fruit and vegetable stand at the four corners, the intersection of Wheeler Ridge and the road to Arvin. It's always nice to see him. I bought my usual load of seasonal fruits and veggies at the usual very good price. Tonight, for dessert, I had a mango I bought from him. Get the smaller ones, they taste much better; they're not stringy like the larger ones. Abel taught me that. Abel also taught me other things like tuna (prickly pear) is good to eat.

I just came back from sitting on the porch and sipping on a glass of wine. I love the buzz of the crickets at night. It reminds me of Dalmatia. Things are still, the air cools down and soon the stars will come out and sprinkle the sky with a gazillion diamonds. You can see the Milky Way very clearly. A star-studded sky reminds me of somebody...

When I got here, it took a bit to unload, set the outdoor furniture up and gets things tidy. After that I went to check on my trees. I planted eight Leyland Cypresses on my closest neighbor's side and they are growing nicely. This year too, for the first time, the fruit trees are responding to TLC. I had some plums a few weeks ago but the birds got the rest of them so I bought some nets to put around the peach trees. So far so good so I'm looking forward to Walker Basin peaches. My friend Ernie's harvest of plums and peaches is plentiful and I look forward to catching up with him.

Well... I got sidetracked and didn't finish posting while at the cabin. You know, there's always something to do!

I was just writing about Ernie's peaches. A certain amount of TLC has paid off. I had plums and peaches for the first time this year and they were yummy. Not a biased opinion but everybody who got to taste them said so.

I'm cutting this short because I like to start something and finish it but this wasn't the case so I don't know where I'm at! Meanwhile, I leave you with this. Let it load, x the ads, choose 480 instead of 360 and enjoy. Yi-ha!

A sunburn in April

I finally got it done... When we bought the cabin, it had been vacant for several months. Some of those months were in the Summer and without water, a bunch of trees died. In front of the house four trees survived but one didn't make it. Two pine trees on the property died, they had to be cut down. In the side yard, out of eight, three fruit trees remain. True, they were babies but what a heartache anyway. Between my neighbor and I were eight cypresses. They all died. As they say, "not drought resistant..."

So, finally this weekend I went and bought eight Leyland cypresses and planted them. The dead ones had been removed and derooted, and what was left was a series of mounds and crevices and broken sprinklers. I did my best to smooth it all out using a shovel but good thing, my neighbor saw me sweating it out and offered to help with his tractor. His is a smaller one, a Kubota, and these things are great because they can get places bigger tractors can't.

The next day I dug holes with my shovel and planted all of them. Then I had to go over the sprinkler system because it wasn't working right. One station kept getting watered and not the others. I eventually figured that the common was put in the wrong connection. I installed a new timer, had to fine tune the sprinkler heads but now, with a little patience, everything works nicely. I have to say that all the different sizes in PVC pipes and heads drives me nuts. : 1/2", 3/4" and I even have one that 1.25". That means I have to buy and keep all sizes just in case. Ain't no store nearby and the Trading Post has some but not everything.

It was hot working in the full sun so I took off my T-shirt for about an hour, and just kept my hat on. The breeze made it nice that way. Without a shirt and my cowboy hat on, imagine Robert Duvall in Apocalypse Now. I don't really care for the smell of napalm in the morning but you get the visuals. It's only later while taking a shower I realized I had a nice sunburn on my shoulders...

I must say. It's such a nice feeling to sit on the porch as the sun goes down, glass of wine in hand, and look out to see the results of a full day's work. Like most people, my work is mostly in digital format, nothing really tangible, so to use my hands, my arms, to plan a project, work at it myself, and see the results is very gratifying. That and it's good exercise!

Physical work is a good thing and most people up there spend their weekends doing just that, working. Always something to do or fix. Here's a film I did to show you what I mean.



I have been going up every weekends for the past month. Believe me, it's not a chore. It's really pretty up there right now with all the wild flowers in bloom and green everywhere. There's even still some snow up on Breckenridge, Bear mountain and the higher peaks all around.

I like to work but I also like fun times. When Ernie is up there for example, we get together in the evening. He plays the guitar and sings, and I try to follow (poorly) on my baritone ukulele. I'm not sure I've introduced you to Ernie so here he is (and Kubota on the left.)



Anyway, here are some fun things to do around Walker Basin.



This past weekend I noticed that the grass between the two big, centenarian oak trees was getting high again. I had mowed it a couple weeks ago but with the rain we've been getting, it was time to mow again. I intended to mow just right there, so to keep all the flowers around. It looked like being on a prairie gazing from my porch. I took out my little tractor-mover and started going at it. I had barely begun and holy shiznit! A snake! About 6' long. I knew it wasn't a rattler as they are easily recognizable. Must have been a gopher snake. The weird part is that the snake looked at me sideways, the way my dog does, and seemed to say "what will it be?"

I backed up, gave him a few minutes to scamp and decided it was time to mow the whole place down. So I did. Mind you, gopher snakes are harmless, they eat mice and squirrels so they're pretty good. I mowed but left some flowers here and there; I didn't have the heart to mow them all.

For those of you living in LA, I encourage you to at least take a drive up the 14 or the 5. Poppies (our beautiful state flower) are out all over the place. You'll see orange, purple, blue, white patches all over the place. Get out, go see it. It's a free gift to all of us.

'Till next time, folks.

p.s. I just found out that the National Weather Service (based on Google maps) calls Walker Basin out my way Joe Walker Town and I like it. From now on, I'll be using that name.

: )

Green Southern California

Southern California is a beautiful state with deserts, beaches, mountains, forests, rivers, beautiful vistas and you name it, it's here. When I think of this state I live in, I see golden hills, ancient oak trees, sunshine and I smell chaparral. There is a time when everything turns green but it doesn't last long; at least in Southern California. Up at the bottom of the Sierra Nevada however, we do get four seasons. This time of year and the next couple months are a feast for the eyes: green grass and wildflowers of all colors everywhere. Here's a little video of my drive from LA to the cabin. It's better to see this in person but I post this for people who can't be here and enjoy this time of year.



Last weekend I went up with my truck's bed full of wood I had found in my neighborhood and other places. I got to play lumberjack and use my chainsaw to cut everything down to size for the potbelly stove. I must say it was nice to look at the neatly arranged wood pile once I was done. Should be enough wood for next winter and nothing like sweaty, honest manual labor to make a man feel good.

There was a homeowners meeting that weekend. Well, from the beginning participants called into question the validity of the meeting since a majority was not present. It was then declared that this was a "non-meeting" and so after much debate we moved on to the issues at hand, that is road maintenance mostly. In essence, people don't want rules and fees: no architectural review board, no can't do this, no directors or executives, no mandatory fees, no this, and no that. True independents they are. It's true that to go into the Old West and get the same as we do in town is not very appealing.

Look at this. Ain't it pretty?



The grass around the oak trees at the cabin was knee high so I got to take out my tractor and mow. I then did a little yard trimming with my weed-whacker but not too much in order to let the wildflowers come out. I contemplated getting my ladder and saw to cut off the mistletoe on some of the oak trees but that will be for another time. Instead, I sat on the porch and enjoyed the beautiful skies and clean air while sipping on a gin and tonic. Good work deserves a little treat after all.

In the evening I had nothing planned so I watched Terms of Endearment. I had never seen that Academy Award-winning film but I enjoyed it for the characters, the story and the way it was shot. True, I fell asleep midway but I watched the rest the day after. It's funny how the pace slows down up there. One gets right into Nature's cycle very quickly: I get up and go to bed earlier. On Saturday night I went to my neighbors and friends Pam and Andy and we were falling asleep while talking so the evening ended at 9 p.m.. A nice cozy fire and fine glass of wine will do that to most people.

Speaking of neighbors and neighborliness... Walker Basin still has that. Here's an example. I had gone by Andy's one time and happened to see his burn pile. He had cut down a dead oak tree for another neighbor, gotten the logs he needed and had a bunch of smaller ones he was going to burn. Perfect size for my stove. I asked him if I could take them and he said of course, let me a couple chainsaws and let's get her done. I couldn't as this was Sunday and I had to shut everything dow so I said next time I'm up.

Pretty as well, right?



I missed a weekend going up so next time I was up, I called Andy and asked him if he still had the wood. He said no worries, I'll be over. He came with a wagon full of oak he had cut and saved for me.

Another example. After the incident, and after I had fixed most everything, I still needed to replace a few floor boards on the porch. I had told my neighbor George about where I was with the project and he said just leave the wood out on the porch, and that he and Jeremy (his son-in-law) would take care of it. I didn't because I didn't want to abuse his kindness. My son came up next instead of me. I called to check on him and he said George and Jeremy had asked about the wood, he had told them where it was (the garage,) they got it out and got it all done. I must say I'm not used to that anymore but it feels really good to see that still in some parts of the country, people are nice, helpful and care about others. Redemption for the rest of 'em.

'Til next time,

HIllbilly Wally

Counting my blessings

It's been a while since I posted... Lots has happened. My nephew passed away, I had to go to France, we had different visitors from Europe, my brother had a baby boy, my son got a girlfriend, my daughter kinda has one, and I've been busy staying alive in America. Everybody's story. My one anchor throughout (OK, I'm exaggerating, my wife is an anchor too) has been Walker Basin. Anchor is actually not a good word. Sounds heavy and restricting. More like centering, equalizing, pacifying. Nothing beats sitting on the porch of the cabin and looking at the mountains all around.

I forget an important event that occurred at the cabin. I had a fire. The short story is that it was around Christmas. I went one evening to hang out with Ernie. We watched a movie, talked, played guitars and had a good time. It was past midnight when I walked home. I was feeling pretty good and I liked seeing all the Christmas lights all around. It was pretty, in the spirit of the time. As I got closer to the cabin I noticed a pretty glow coming from that direction. Must be the Christmas lights or the porch lights I had left on. As I got closer, yikes!!! What the!?!?! Holy S__t! The cabin is burning! I ran as fast as I could, quickly (under 2 seconds) evaluated the fire, ran into the house and grabbed the fire extinguisher.

Fire extinguishers are a a great invention. Just know that a medium sized one will only last 15 seconds. True, only the outside of a 4' x 8' section was burning but it did the job. I called Ernie, he came and we hosed everything down just to make sure. Strangely, when I walked into to the house to grab the extinguisher, I couldn't see anything because it was full of white smoke but none of the smoke detectors went off. Anyway, with Ernie's good advice, and a lot of grease elbow, I fixed it all and you couldn't tell the difference. Here are some pix in chronological order.




So depressing...


Working at it...


Gettin there slowly


Not bad, huh?

It was my fault. I can't tell you what started the fire precisely but know that it involved a cigarette, and a bag full of what I assumed were inert ashes on the porch close to the outside wall. Beware of ashes, friends. They make look dead but they're not.

I wrote more about this than I cared to. Here's the part that makes Walker Basin special in another way. I had bought some floor boards to replace the damaged ones; primed and painted them (Amy did actually,) all set to go for the next time I would be up. It turns out my son goes up with his GF before I do and he tells me over the phone that my neighbor George and Jeremy had fixed the floor. I came up the next weekend and sure enough, it was done. That's what you'll find in Walker Basin. Something that disappeared long ago in most places.

The same weekend, I called my other neighbor Andy. I hadn't been up because of this, that and the other and last time I saw him, he had some smaller oak pieces in his burn pile for me to take. Me: Riiiing. Andy? I'm calling about the wood. Andy: Hold it. I've got it in a little wagon, I'll bring it by. No amount of money buys that.

I didn't tell you about the time when I was supposed to go shoot guns with Andy... We had discussed going up to his 20 acres and shooting guns. I missed a weekend and went the one after. I called Andy and the first thing he asked me was about shooting. I told him I had missed a weekend and wasn't sure if still was up to it, that I hadn't bought any cartridges nor brought my Winchester Wingmaster. Andy said to come over. I went over, we talked and after a while he said: hold it. He went somewhere in his house and came back with a box of cartridges with my name on it.

It's been a while i've posted and have plenty to say so take a break and see the place in january after a light snow storm.



Pretty, ain't it? And only 2.5 hour away from LA. Spring time is coming and the place will be so green and covered with wildflowers, it will put Ireland to shame. At 3500', Walker Basin has four seasons. Nothing like a toasty fire in the wood stove during winter. Nothing like watching the rain fall from under the porch in the Spring. Nothing like lazying in the shade with the cool breeze coming down from the Sierra Nevada in the summer. Nothing like a glorious, cool, Fall day. So close to LA but it feels like it could be Telluride, Ketchum or Jackson Hole (not my words but my Redondo Beach urbanite brother's.)

I've been trying to let people know about Walker Basin, a 12 square miles undiscovered gem full of history, beautiful sights, good people and much more. I do wonder though if I shouldn't keep it private. I don't want it to get spoiled...

I'll post again soon.

Fishing clouds out of water

This post covers two different weekends I was up at the SSP. One weekend I went up with Jorgy and his girlfriend Riley. She's a cute taco-terrier who just loves to kiss everybody and insists on sitting on your lap. Anyway, on the way up we stopped in Arvin as I always do to buy some fruits and vegetables from Abel. He's a very nice man, always smiling, and he always gives me extra items after I pay him. Last time he gave me nopales which Ernie and I grilled. They tasted mighty good. You can't beat his prices either. Here's Abel.



I had read there's a church in Arvin with a landmark commemorating Father Garces' stay in the area at the end of April of 1776. He was the first white man to come around these parts. Here's a small statue that was erected in the courtyard of the Saint Thomas the Apostle Church on April 30, 1944.



Once we got up to the cabin, I decided the doggies needed a good walk so we went to the property by the creek on our way to the pond. Snows are still melting from Piute Mountain so the creek was flowing. I was happy to see a family enjoying the cool running water. Children just know how to have fun with anything. It inspired me to take off my boots and socks and dip my feet in the water. Yes, it was very cold but I got used to it and it was fun feeling the sand between my toes. It reminded me of Steinbeck in "Travels with Charley" when he stopped to dip his feet in a creek to help him think better. And of course, Thomas Jefferson said that one should soak one's feet in cold water for half an hour every day to stay in health.



Here we are on a drier part of the creek. I tried and tried to have the doggies look at the camera and smile...



We walked around the pond which was starting to look a bit more alive. Local residents have been working hard to bring water from the creek to the pond. A bunch of sand came down with last summer's flash floods and plugged the natural course of the creek so sand and boulders had to be moved, sandbags added here and there, culverts cleaned out. A huge job but as you will see later in this post, it paid off.



We had a quiet evening. I watched a film and Jorgy and Riley just snuggled.



The following photos are from a later weekend I went up in mid March. It rained enough this year to give a good bloom of wild flowers. It's not enough rain to get us out of a drought but at least, we got lots of flowers! This is going up the road on the side of Bear Mountain, just out of Arvin. Lovely isns't it?



Getting off the 58 at the Caliente offramp, here's the view looking down the tiny. beautiful valley. To think I'm still in Southern California...



Once we got to the cabin, I was curious to see how full the pond (aka Lena Lake) was. Surprise! The pond was full to the max, so much so that water overflowed into the secondary pond. I knew it wasn't a miracle because I had seen the guys working hard at it but boy, what a beauty. Last summer it almost looked like a puddle after the fire department used it to put out the fire on Piute. Locals had gotten together for a fund raiser to buy an industrial water pump to keep the pond alive but pumps are expensive and times are tough. The lack of money didn't stop them though. Hats off.



I came across a family (neighbors of mine) fishing and I'm pretty sure this little boy was trying to catch a cloud out of the water. As matter of fact he did and he gave it me. I'm keeping it in my heart where it twirls and twirls and tickles. This summer we'll be able to go fishing and swimming locally.



Here's the secondary pond which had been completely dry for 2-3 years.



I had come up with the mission to scrape and paint the decks. The sandpaper and metal brush I had wouldn't do it. I needed a scraper but didn't have one so I had no choice but to do nothing and simply relax. I sat on the porch and just admired the mountains and the different varieties of birds. Tough life... Later on, Ernie and I got together for dinner and barbecued some mighty filet mignon steaks and Abel's nopales. He brought out his guitar, played a few songs and then it was bed time. Walking back home, the sky was glowing with millions of stars.

I'm glad I didn't paint because the next day, well, it snowed!



It started with rain in the middle of the night, then hail early in the morning and finally puffy white snow. What a treat! I can't remember the last time I saw snow fall. And again, this right here in Southern California.



It stopped by mid afternoon and of course the mountains all around were beautifully clothed in white.







By late afternoon, the sky was mostly clear with big, odd-shaped puffy clouds. The clouds come down close in the basin, like if they wanted to kiss the earth. I saw one playing around by my neighbor's house, a few feet above the ground. It was twirling and twirling slowly but not going anywhere.



I decided to stay the night and leave early the next day to be on time for work. On the way out, I saw more lazy, playful clouds close to the ground just having fun changing shape slowly and twirling on itself. Yes, this place is magical. I am blessed to have been invited into its heart.



It's a heart that gives, always. All one needs is to open eyes and heart, breathe and let it all in.

Among the leafless oaks

I was thinking of posting without photos this time. I have been pondering if indeed a picture is worth a thousand words. Books seem to make my imagination fly better than photographs; some paintings do that too. I have been thinking about this because on my last stay at the cabin, sitting on the porch at dusk, it was clear to me that no picture could describe such a moment. The delicious gradation of colors in the sky from dark blue to purple and pink; the gnarly silhouette of the leafless oaks; the hoarse barking of a dog in the distance; the crispness of the Sierra Nevada's fresh air; the stars beginning to twinkle in the darkening sky; the sweet smell of the wood fire burning in the stove inside; the insects flying madly about the lights. Try and capture that with a photograph.

I feel incredibly lucky sitting on that porch. Such beauty and peace, all just for me. I've told friends about the place (tried hard not to brag,) invited them but surprisingly, very few have come up. I guess nobody's got time for peace and beauty anymore. It's OK though, I've made good friends up there already. People who show up with a wood splitter and cut down your logs to size for your stove, without you asking. People who help you replace your water heater. Help is the wrong word, they do it all. People who help with your first time dealing with a water pump or a swamp cooler. People who take time to sit down with you and chat about big and small things. Real people.

Sitting on the porch and selfishly enjoying the moment, I couldn't help but think about these hard times. Me-me-me and nobody else probably has a lot to do with it. A bigger car, bigger house, bigger TV, bigger lips. The Olympics of me, myself and I. Me and screw everybody else to an unsustainable level. Money, money, money, or at least, the appearance of it. That needed a correction. Problem is, some folks were just going along working hard and honest, not spending foolishly, and they pay the price too. I'm from the Old World which means I'm not a flag-waving, this is God's country American and yes, some people here remind me of the Taliban but good thing, I've found that a lot of people don't buy that poison. My neutral observation is that this is a country built by hard work, and resourceful, clever, rational people who don't take no for an answer but find new ways. It's true, this is the country of Can Do. This is the closest thing to the Promised Land even though milk and honey don't flow freely.

Yes, we're in this for a while, and there are more bad times a-coming but everything is cyclical, for every action there's a reaction and tomorrow the sun will rise, people will get married, babies will be born and we'll get together with friends. Older folks know that, they've already lived it a few times. Alright, enough talk. Here's my visual record of my weekend up the Sierra Foothills.

I drove up with Jorgy, pictured at the bottom of this post. Jorgy loves space, peace and quiet, and his friends Badger, Trigger and Heidi. He also likes the occasional wandering canine. I guess they always smell interesting to him. Anyway, winter is a time when the Tule fog covers California's Central Valley. Problem is, the more it goes, the more it looks like smog. Arvin, a little town I drive though on my way up has the worst air in the nation. Click on the picture below for what I saw approaching the Grapevine.



I drove the Lion's Trail and because of the higher elevation, the air is cleaner. Dieu merci.



Some of the bad air made its way almost to the basin, trying to get up the mountains but the sky was blue as it always is.



We arrived at the cabin and got settled which means first starting a fire, then turning the water on, lighting the water heater , putting some music on, setting out chairs, hanging the welcome doodad on the door, the wind chime on the rafters, straightening things up, preparing our dinners and watching night fall. I know you're thinking rough schedule. Of course, all this time Jorgy was busy going around spraying every bush on the property, leaving a message to everybody that he's in town so come and vist. The photo below shows one of the sisters in winter. I noticed some mistletoe in its branches and I will cut it off. I don't care what the experts say, it will kill an oak tree. I have pictures.





The next day, I had some work to do: varnish the last wall of logs with a water repellent. Before I did that though, I decided to go walk around the pond. On my way, I saw some neighbors going about their chores, a true picture of the joy of home ownership.



I noticed on my way that the creek at the SSP was flowing nicely. Good. That meant the pond is getting water and yes, the pond looked beautiful, like a woman with fleshy lips, fuller and with a twinkle in the eye. In this case, photos do a pretty good job.







Hi Jorgy! He hates water but he loves the pond.







I'll finish with a photo of my faithful companion, Jorgy. We stayed Sunday night and left very early Monday morning so I could get to work on time. As always, he tried to stay so I had to be stern with him and almost grab him by the collar but he resigned himself with a few heavy sighs and got in the car. Don't worry Jorgy, we'll be back soon.

Come, Jorgy! I know, it would be fun to stay but we can't. We'll be back soon, I promise.

A Winter Wonderland

Winter has arrived in Southern California. A big snow storm hit the Western US and it even snowed in Malibu. It also covered the SSP area with white powder. Local residents were out of electricity for three days... It's a hard thing when one's water pump, radiators and freezers run on electricity. The roads to and fro were closed, even via Mojave where my friend Ted had to spend a night in his car coming back from a ski day in Mammoth. I had to wait for the weekend to go up and by then, all was back to normal with some snow left.


The Grapevine near Gorman


The Lion's Trail


Cows and horses by the Rankin Ranch

Evan and Jorgy came up with me. It was Jorgy's first encounter with snow but it didn't seem to bother him. He walked cautiously at first but then after he realized the snow wasn't wet, he ran and slid quite happily.



We got to the cabin and were happy to find there was still snow around. A local friend had emailed me photos that showed everything covered in white but since we came a few days later, quite a bit of snow had melted. Still, I found it very pretty.



The next day we took off for a walk. The little creek has started flowing a little, slowly recreating its course.



Oaks in the snow, such a lovely sight.



We walked around the pond...





... And came across footprints. Can you guess what kind of animal left those? : )



It was cold at night but our trusted potbelly stove and some blankets kept everybody cozy.



We are all coming up for New Year's for a few days and I look forward to it. Meanwhile, Happy Holidays and Happy New Year! My best wishes for health, love, prosperity, safety, peace in 2009 (and beyond!) to all.