July 15, 2001
OK, OK, OK. So when we're in a hurry we still occasionally stop to smell the..... uh, well, whatever there is to smell. And in my not-so-humble opinion, the Great Salt Lake stinks. Physically that is. It has an odor that I didn't find appealing. Sure was fun to look at, and wonder about, and dream about being able someday to wander that 7 miles between where I'm standing and the actual place where the land speed records are made. And since it looks like snow, Barby of course had to make a salt-ball. Fortunately, we were able to take advantage of this rest stop's foot and hand washers because the salt clings quite well.
When we're "pushing" to get someplace we rarely stay in campgrounds, but we made an exception this time. Seems the refer wasn't working on gas, and at over 100 degrees outside, we wanted to use somebody else's electricity to give it all we could during the night rather than run the generator for just the refer. On the left is the little spot we found in Wells (there were no wells to be seen, however) NV. And since it was a Coast to Coast park, it was well worth the $6 card plus $1 for "utilities" to spend the night. The following day we got the refer fixed in Elko, NV, when the thermocouple was replaced. That night we spent in the parking lot of the casino at Boomtown, NV (just west of Reno). The first night of our run from Hart Ranch to see my mom in CA we spent at a Wal-Mart in Rock Springs, WY--joined by 8 other RV's, not counting the trucks. The very first time we ever spent the night at a Wal-Mart was in Rock Springs. That was last year about the same time, and at that time we were told that Wal-Mart was building a Superstore up on the hill, and sure enough, that's where we were this time.
So now we're "home" for a two-week stay at the Thousand Trails park in Nicolaus, CA. About a 45-minute drive to visit mom south on Hwy 99. Nice enough place, called Lake Minden. In the picture of Barb by the boats, you can see RV's on the other side of the lake (the lake is in the center of the resort and RV parking, camping, a petting barn, etc. surround the lake). Each morning we walk the 1 1/2 mile road around the lake and usually talk to the fishermen who proudly show us their catch. One morning a fellow had a catfish that was at least 15" maybe 18" long. Made my mouth water. Not so much for the flavor of good catfish as for the fun of bringing it in on light line.
And then it was off to visit Mom. That's Garfield on the couch with Barby, and friend Susie in the chair. And there's Mom in her "magic" chair that will bring her to a full standing position and my niece's son Andrew who's sitting in the rocking chair built by son Doug. Andrew was staying with his Aunt and Uncle from Sebastopol, CA.
And sister-in-law Pat has replaced Garfield on the couch, and her son Jim and wife Chris with a bag of goodies for Mom. Not many pictures on the wall at this point, as Mom has only lived here at this point for a little over a week.
The living room of Fountain Wood as the place is called, with the reception desk. To the left of the reception desk is the aviary with some beautiful finches, and to the left of that is the library. On the right, Jim and Andrew are enjoying a bite to eat in the covered entry way to the place with one of the many fountains behind them. I suppose I could have moved Andrew's walker away from in front of them. This was the first we'd seen of Andrew in many years. We'd watched him as a little tyke competing in the Special Olympics in WA, and enjoyed his sunny disposition even back then. He is a joy to be around. He attended college for two years someplace in TX, but has decided to continue college nearer home at Penn State.
Barby is waving at me from Mom's room on the left, and there's Noreen lunching with Mom and another resident/friend Geny.
The rest of the dining room with my skill as a photographer being overexposed. And on the right one of the several courtyards. Every resident here has an outside view. Some, like Mom, to the "outside" and some look into one of these landscaped courtyards with a fountain. They're all beautiful.
On the left, another courtyard with its fountain, and on the right one of many little sitting rooms throughout the facility.
On the left is the full service beauty shop, and the resident ducks in one of the courtyards on the right. Most the ducks are pretty nice, but one took exception to us walking in its territory, and took after Barb, pecking at her legs. It was pretty cute, her running around Mom's wheelchair with the duck in hot pursuit.
Gee, another fountain in another courtyard. And then the family dining room. Here is where a resident can have the whole family to dinner (or lunch or whatever) and there's room and privacy.
On the left, the rest of the family dining room, and on the right the craft room. Big screen TV at one end with a nice comfortable seating arrangement.
And the resident rabbits, which the staff is always trying to give away, and the chickens on the right. The chickens are some kind of Chinese breed with feathers on their feet. The chicks look pretty funny with their feathered feet. There is a dog that lives here too, but he's at the other end from where Mom lives. Which is just as well, as Garfield the cat seems pretty happy at her end.
The main hall where entertainment and classes are held is larger than we'd expected, and the hutch or buffet on the right is the kind of thing you'd expect to find in a private home. The whole place feels like a big home. Much more personal than we'd expected. The staff seem to have found that middle ground between being professional and casual.
On the left, the library, and on the right the electronic grand piano in the living room/reception area. Barb and I are very comfortable with the elegance and casual atmosphere of the place, and jokingly talk about putting our names on the waiting list.
See the table to the left in the foreground in the picture on the left? Well, the same table is in the background on the right in the picture to the right. And on the left I'm looking down the hall to Mom's room, which is the next to last door on the left, and in the picture on the right I'm looking back down the hall from her room. Pretty pleasant surroundings, eh?
Since we only have 2 weeks to stay where we are before we have to leave the Thousand Trail system for 7 days, we went looking at campgrounds in the area. And spotted this tree that isn't a tree. It caught my eye because it seemed out of place, and then Barby said that it wasn't a tree at all. Sure enough, it's a cell tower or some other kind of radio antenna.
Remember the wild turkeys from FL? Well, it seems that they're making a comeback in CA as well. We went about 45 miles northeast of where we are to another Thousand Trails park, and, as we were driving around, here are these two hens with a total of about 15 little ones. What fun to see that RV parks are also sanctuaries for different kinds of wildlife. And this park is called Lake of the Springs, and is a huge 1,000-acre park with a wonderful lake in the foothills of the Sierra-Nevada Mountains, and we're thinking about staying a bit after we've gotten Mom settled. Assuming we get that taken care of before it's time to head to AZ for the winter!