As you all know I am the mother of a Gay daughter; a daughter who as a police officer has at times and who will in the future put her life on the line for her community. A daughter who I love and of whom I am very proud. I said I would not use my blog for political reasons, but here in California we have a State Constitutional right for Gays to marry. It is of course being challenged in our next election and I fear that this right of equality and fairness may be taken away.

Today, I walked out to my car and was shocked to see a Yes on 8 sign in my neighbor and friend’s yard. Yes would mean the loss of this right for Gays and Lesbians. It hurts that a close friend would be so hateful and so bigoted, or if I am kind, so thoughtless of my family. I feel that sign is a slap in the face.

Am I expecting too much that a friend would be someone with enough loyalty or insight to realize how upset I would be? Yes, I feel betrayed and angry. This is a friend that I often have Sunday breakfast with and who I truly care about. This is a friend with whom I share my joy and love of my Lesbian daughter and her children. So how do I handle this? I need reader’s advice because right now I am thinking, “I will never break bread with this person again.” and yet I hate to see a friendship end. So back and forth I go in my thinking.

I have always had friends on both sides of issues. I walk a fine line and try to understand and be tolerant of views that are not necessarily mine. However, this one affects my family and it is a civil rights issue and one about which I feel strongly. A part of me says, “Everyone has the right to their opinion and part of me says,” It is time to stand tall for what I believe to be right and just.” My daughter’s marriage would not hurt any heterosexual couple, but would offer her and her partner equal rights under the law.

It is not so much how this neighbor votes. Her vote should reflect what she believes is best. Just as mine will. What bothers me is the sign and that she must know how upsetting it is to me and to my family.

So back to the question - How do I handle my feelings and is this friendship worth it?

Wow, we have the Pulse in our driveway and it looks absolutely beautiful.

Yesterday, Bob and I cleared out the Mirada and cleaned it so that we could drive it today to Bakersfield. This morning we were up and on our way before 8:00. It was an easy ride and I almost felt sorry to say good by to our 34 foot Class A motor home. On the drive, I thought of the many fun times we had in our second home. I remembered camping trips, parking at the Elks for week-ends with Kristi and the twins, caravaning with the Coachman group and the special times with our little dogs, Annie and Sammi. Annie spent the last night before she passed away in the motor home.

But before long, we were at Stiers and just in time to park and meet Ed who would do the walk through the Pulse and give us all the information needed to introduce us to the ways of this motor home. All of this took two hours and then we met Stephanie to process all the paperwork which took another hour.

Finally, we were on our way home and also very hungry so we stopped in Mojave at the Carl’s Jr. I went in and bought chicken sandwiches and coffee. We had our meal at the table of the little dinette. It was the first of, I hope, many happy lunches in the new motor home.

The trip from Mojave to Ridgecrest was a windy one, but the Pulse handled the high wind gusts easily. Soon we turned into the driveway and parked.

Tomorrow I leave for a trip up to Northern California with Theresa, Kristi, and the twins. I return on Monday and Bob and I leave for Tahoe early Wednesday morning. I feel like I am running some kind of a marathon. The truth is, I would like to be here playing house with the RV. . . putting all the dishes and pots and pans away in the little kitchen, buying new towels for the bathroom, and putting the bed linen in the closet storage area.

All of this will have to wait. Meanwhile here are a couple of photos of the Pulse before I head off to bed.

I brought my laptop on our trip to Bakersfield this morning. Here is my journaling of this crazy day!

Early Morning Journaling

It is early Tuesday morning and we are on our way to Bakersfield to look at a new RV. Perhaps a crazy idea in today’s economy, but the 34 foot Mirada that is parked behind our little shop has become too big ,and in my mind, too expensive to take out often and Bob and I both miss our days of RV exploring. We are onour way to look at the Pulse. It is a 25 foot Fleetwood class C Motor Home with a diesal engine made by Mercedes Benz that gets 15 to 17 miles a gallon.

The puppies are settled in their crates in the back of the Cruiser. The laptop is balanced on my knees and Bob is in charge of the driving. The trip to Bakersfield takes us past my beloved Red Rock Canyon and through the Tehachapi mountains before dropping down to the big city.

We have told Lucky it is his turn to pick out the new motor home and this seemed to please the little Maltese that would like to be in charge of the world.

In Bakersfield at Steir’s RV

After a brief walk and potty break for Lucky and Luann we carried them into the large display room at Steirs. I think it was a little overwhelming for them. It is truly a big building housing many large Rv’s with all those new engulfing smells. tThey soon relaxed as we were introduced to the Salesperson named Rick. He knew from our phone call that we were interested in a Pulse and we headed out the back door to the outside display area where a brown, gold, and white Pulse gleamed in the morning sun.

Still carrying puppies, we stepped up into the Pulse and immediately fell in love with the versatility, the curved cupboards, and the drivable size of the vehicle. i could tell that Lucky was about to veto the entire buying project when I set him down on the floor and his little claws clicked loudly on the non carpeted and easy to clean flooring. It panicked him, and we consoled Lucky by reminding him that if he could get used to the slippery floor of Petsmart ( The nemisis of his early training). he could conquer this one too.

This is how fast the sale was made. I took the dogs out for a quick break, walked them for about five minutes, came back inside and Bob was writing a check for a five hundred dollar deposit to hold the Pulse for 24 hours which would give us time to cooly think the deal over…. as if the time was needed. I know he was sold as soon as he stepped into the rig.

On the way Home

Most of our conversation heading back to Ridgecrest has been logistical such as figuring out how we can empty and clean the Mirada before Thursday. Thursday is the designated day to exchange RV’s and bring home the Pulse. Under most circumstances, this would not be a problem. However I am leaving on Friday to travel to Northern California with Kristi, Theresa, and the twins. So my mind is filled with thoughts of packing, cancellation of Wednesday and Thursday plans with friends, and other time challenges. As i write this on the ride home, I am telling myself that I like challenges and this one is far from insurmountable. As I glance over at Bob, I see the biggest smile of anticipation on his face and I know he is thinking about new RV adventures and well, that makes it all worthwhile.

Late Afternoon

Bob and I worked until dinner time and have most of the inside of the Mirada packed and ready to go into the garage. Tomorrow, I will clean the interior and Bob will clear out the outside compartments and store those things along with the other boxes from the Mirada in the garage. The hotub awaits our tired bodies and there is a welcomed glass of wine poured so it is time to bring this writing to a close.

I still want to write about our trip to Springfield, but it is going to have to wait for awhile. So be patient. I promise photos.

You know that old adage about “if it can go wrong it will”? Well while writing this post all has gone wrong. For example, I lost most of my writings about the return trip through a faulty transfer process from my laptop to the desktop. Then, what I had written on returning home was lost when I forgot to save my first draft. So if what you read is disjointed and sketchy blame it on the Computer gods.

The trip back began with a two hour drive from Springfield to Galesburg. We left early in the morning and took back roads so that we could see more of the farmlands of Illinois.

Our early departure was also planned to avail us of extra time to tour Carl Sandburg’s home. However, the home was not opened on Tuesday so we had to do with peeks into windows and a walk around the outside. Since it was really quite small, Bob pointed out that even an indoor tour couldn’t have lasted very long.

With about four hours to wait for our train to arrive we had lunch, wandered through gift shops and antique shops, and photographed a beautiful Congregational Church.

Click on Memory Book page to enlarge it for viewing

We boarded the Southwestern Chief and before we knew it, dinner was announced and we found ourselves in the dining car for a rather good steak dinner.

Returning to our rooms, our beds were ready for us and after a few more pages of my book, I fell sound asleep and awoke early morning somewhere in Kansas.

Our second day coming back was much like the second day out, but this time I wasn’t taking much time to write about the trip, but instead I used my time to concentrate on editing and compiling my photos for later use.

Shortly after dinner we finished packing, closed the computers and retired for the night Our arrival in Barstow was supposed to be around 3: 0-dark in the morning. Our Sleeping Car Assistant promised to wake us a half hour before arrival. Did we sleep soundly? Of course not, we were awake every hour waiting for our call and wide awake by 3:30. The train was still about two hours out from Barstow and when we finally arrived the sun was coming up. This pleased me immensely because I was not looking forward to returning to our car in that empty desolate area.

Our little PT Cruiser was still the only car in the parking lot, but it had all four tires and was none the worse for wear. It started right up and we headed home.

When we retuned home I jotted a few notes about planes vs trains. Trains won out in almost all ways.

I like being able to get off and stretch at various times. It is pleasant to step off and chat with our room assistant or with other passengers.

Flying means never seeing anything but the plane and the inside of the terminal. I love watching the different areas and scenery as it changes.

Time changes are easier to handle because it is hours in between which help one adjust easier that on the plane.

The meals are adequate and certainly would be considered gourmet by what is now served or not served on the airplanes.

Amtrak has coffee available all day as well as orange and apple juice. This is of course for the sleeper cars only, but we certainly found it wonderful.

Our roomette had ample electrical outlets for our computers and lots of room for our laptops on small desks by the windows.

Old habits die hard and in spite of our late bed hour, I woke at my usual 6:15 this morning. Bright, bushy tailed, and ready for that first cup of coffee. We dressed quickly and headed to the dining car where we were shared a table with two very nice gentlemen. The food was mediocre. Our order was taken after a long wait, the food arrived late, and when I asked for a refill of coffee ( a not unreasonable request in my opinion) I was given a terse dressing down by the waiter about how busy he was. That he had to work both sides of the dining car and everyone had a special requests. I took my rebuke silently and never did get that second cup of coffee.

I like our room better now that it is morning. We have what is called a family room. According to our sleeping car attendant it can actually sleep a family of five by using all the fold down bunks and chairs. Somehow I can’t imagine being in this 4ft by 10 ft compartment with five people. They would have to be very, very, compatible, very quiet, and absolutely no screaming children or surly teen-agers

However, it is a wonderful amount of space for the two of us. It is as the front of the sleeping car and extends across the entire car. This gives us a view from both sides of the track. When the bed is made up, there is a long couch and also two chairs with a folding table between. Bob and I thought it also had a private bath, but we were wrong. There are however, three bathrooms just down the hall from us, as well as, a rather large (for a train) shower.

We returned from breakfast and our attendant came to make the bed and stayed awhile to talk. He made us feel so welcomed and at ease. In fact, he pretty much made up for Mr. Stressed-out in the Dining Car.

The morning passed quickly with both of us on our laptops or just looking out the window at the beautiful New Mexico scenery. The train made a rather long stop at Albuquerque and we had time to get off the train and walk around for an hour. Stretching one’s legs is a good thing. I noticed that many people get off for a quick stretch each time the train makes a short stop. By stretch, I mean exactly that. They stand on the platform and do a few exercises and the kind of stretches that joggers do to warm up.

There is another member of the Midshipmen’s group, Joe Burroughs traveling on the train. . .actually he has a sleeper in the same car as us. We met him for lunch in the dining car. Lunch was better than breakfast. Probably because the same waiter who was so surly in the morning, was in a better mood. We ate a leisurely meal before exploring the observation car and the lounge with its little café in it.

The afternoon was spent again watching the beautiful Southwest rolls past our windows. It was also a good time for a little napping and adding to our writings.

Sometime along the way all toilets in our car stopped working. Not a good thing, but really not much anyone could do about it. Thank goodness for all those summer camping adventures of my youth because visiting the bathrooms on our train was akin to using the outhouse.

Our dinner reservations were for 6:30 and with all the time changes, I was beginning to think that all we did was eat. Among the reasons I like traveling by train is the ease of changing time zone. So much easier on the body than the abrupt change when flying.

Again, the food although nothing to write home about, was reasonably appealing. Our friend Joe joined us and also a woman named Beverly. Beverly proved to us once again how small our world really is. She was from the same California town that Bob had lived in for thirty years and lived in a Retirement Village where our friend Joyce resides. Of course she knew Joyce well and this gave us much to talk and reminisce about.

Back to our room and time for a little reading before heading to bed. Our Sleeping car attendant quickly made up our beds and it wasn’t long before the click-clack rhythm of the train had me drowsy enough to turn in for a good night sleep.

Please click on thumbnail to enlarge photo