i would drive 4,000 miles for U

After a couple of days of rest at Krista’s folk’s house and the opportunity to unload the “few” items we’d hauled across the country from Crookston that reduced limited rear window visibility to zero, we were ready to hit to road again for the last leg of the cross-country road trip.

Mt. Diablo - We hit the 3,500-mile mark headed to the East Bay Area home of Gary and Leda and their cockatiel Babú, who live several miles up the narrow, switchback road through Mt. Diablo State Park. As we climbed above 1,000 feet, we could see little due to the thick blanket of smoke that hung in the air from the many wildfires burning across California. Not that we had time to look as each blind curve revealed the drop-off at the edge of the road and another group of bicyclists huffing along, despite the near-100 degree temperature. We were incredibly impressed with the amazing work Gary and Leda have done in renovating the park employee residence they call home by virtue of Gary’s job managing the park’s water system. The “before” photos amplified the beauty of the polished hardwood floors, updated bathroom and kitchen - the kitchen where Leda lived up to her promise to remedy our dire need for real Mexican food. We had a great time hiking around the park and seeing the turkeys, coyote, raccoons and vultures. The park closed because of EXTREME fire danger on the day we headed out.

Santa Rosa - We got no break in the heat as we headed north to visit Jana (Krista’s best friend) and her husband, Jim, and cat, Riley, in their Santa Rosa home. In route, we crossed the Richmond Bridge (for $4) and backtracked down Hwy. 101 to walk across the Golden Gate Bridge (after paying the $5 toll when we accidentally chose to drive across it) and marveled at the smoke that encased the City skyline and the nearly unheard of 80 degree temps. We borrowed bikes from J and J to check out the farmer’s market. We had to continually remind ourselves that we are homeless and could not possibly eat all the incredible fruits and veggies we wanted to buy. But we managed to buy enough to make incredible salads. Krista and Jana did aerobics in the pool at the local gym and then we went to see the redwoods at Armstrong State Park and swim in the Russian River, one of our favorite activities in that area. Though somewhat disheveled from the hiking and swimming, we headed into Sebastopol where we were treated to the best sushi place in town - yum. Jim assured us that we fit in perfectly with the Sebastopolian way of life.

Monterey - After meandering the East Bay and Silicon Valley highway maze and making a quick stop in Watsonville to visit our favorite thrift store and taco joint, we headed south on Hwy. 1 to Monterey. A few miles outside of the city we ran into a delicious bank of coastal fog and temperatures in the 50s. Ahh … As usual, Kim and Todd Muck and their sons, Dalton and Nathan, very graciously welcomed us back into the family life for the duration of our visit. We hadn’t seen the boys for almost three years and were astonished to meet a 5 and 8 year old who had grown and matured considerably. Dalton introduced us to the family’s new hens while Nate quizzed us about how we knew him and the neighbors. We enjoyed catching up and being treated to dinner at the Yacht Club - a familiar favorite - before the Muck’s headed out for a much-anticipated family vacation. We found ourselves once again house sitting on Monterey Bay - did we say the views from their from porch are spectacular? Conveniently, good friends Bob and Iva Ruis live right next door - so we were able to visit with them and they treated us to lunch in Pacific Grove. Krista took the opportunity to say “hey” to many of her former colleagues at the city. We both had a great time chatting and being treated to lunch on the Wharf with Kay Russo and Cindy Vierra at Café Fina; eating Thai food with Tish Salmon at Siamese Bay; and visiting with the Ewings as well as the Bohrman family - Chris, Loré, Rachel and Daniel (can’t wait to see the colors they pick for the house painting project). The Huelgas - Al, Laurie, Monica and Brandon, and dog, Ginger - had us over for bbq (chicken sausage, frittata and BROWNIES) and a friendly ping-pong tournament on a beautiful Saturday afternoon. We also had the opportunity to attend church at First Baptist Monterey, where we chatted with many old friends after being reminded of the power of a Pastor Nate sermon.

Praise the Lord - we are happy, healthy and terrific some 4, 000 miles later and a few pounds heavier. Now back to work. Twenty days to China …