On November 24 I wrote that we were staying in a rented house in Goleta, California the previous Saturday. I had initially wanted to make breakfast but the coffee machine was a K-Cup. So, we decided to go to a new coffee shop in Santa Barbara. The breakfast was great and everyone was talking a lot. My friend and I had decided around then we would switch to a hotel room in Santa Barbara when our rental ended.
A couple of us stayed behind to finish our coffee when most of the party went to the farmers market. We took the dog for a walk and found that the local park had been closed because of vagrancy. My friend and I decided we would instead visit the Big Park and the others went to the house. The wooden playground there was really fun - a bit of Winchester mystery House.
On the way back to the rental we picked up some wood. I rode around the driveway on my foldable bicycle and quietly threw the balls on the back lawn until we headed out the the State Beach where our hosts were just setting up the “Friendsgiving” party.
I quietly got some equipment and my bike and tried to take it up the bike path but only halfway got it right. I had more luck at the beach fortunately - I hiked up my past and walked out as loudly as possible. The ocean was scary in a noisy way but I was resolute and not being afraid. I had my shoes off for the climb down the Breakwater in my shorts.
The party was it already started and some people had begun to arrive. I got to see a bunch of old college classmates - some for the first time in ages. I also got to know a bunch of new people. There was a ton of candy, vegan food and turkey. There were a variety of drinks. It was nice to introduce my friend to everyone over the course of the meal and remember the old days.
One of my old classmates was loudly torn away only a short while later but then and I asked him a lot of questions. An acquaintance took a lot of settled quiet photos on the beach. I was happy with what he sent me. When it became clear that people were leaving I got us packed up and my friend drove us to the rental. I knew we only had a short while so I tried to prepare the house for everyone‘s arrival.
Our Friendsgiving hosts showed up with extra beer from the picnic and we all sat in the dining area yelling at each other. This happened until nearly midnight and I ended up putting things away for an hour past midnight.
When the last people showed up they fell asleep immediately. By this time there were either people that wanted to crash or people that wanted to be loud. I got a mattress out for some people since some were slowly nodding off. Things were nice great as we started to wind down.
That night I noted that my friend had woken up a few times. The night was pretty tough. However, I learned that one of our party had gone to the coffee shop. Others in our party had turned my eggs and tortillas into a delicious meal with the avocados from the backyard.
When the meal was done we got our stuff together, checked out and went to the coffee shop before my friend and I got a room. She settled in for a nap and I quietly walked down to the harbor to take a bunch of photos of our host’s boat. It was interesting to see the bed in the hold and the galley. When I headed back to the hotel, they set sail on a short trip around the harbor.
A few hours later the party called to say the excursion had ended and we met up again at a great takeout taco place. We later returned drove to the Harbour for ice cream and visited the wharf. Later my friend went to the hotel but I returned to the boat to have a drink and say bye. We had some interesting discussions on housing.
On November 19 we quickly packed, grabbed coffee and left town by around 8:30. On the way we saw the remains of the recent wildfires in Montecito and on our way through Santa Paula learned learned about the Topotopo range. After a brief slingshot through Santa Clarita, we stopped for a coffee and a bit of shopping in Victorville and in Baker and I bought beer.
We passed Death Valley pretty quickly and zigzagged through the streets of Pahrump. The dogs were crazy at my friend’s mom’s home as I rang the bell. We knew that they would be hosting us for the night but we were in town for them. She had been at the doctors with the family patriarch - grandpa - so we said hi to him as he passed through on his way to the outer building in the yard. I met a bunch of cousins then. We had some down time then getting to know each other for a while. The uncles made a meal but I didn’t eat a lot before going to bed.
On Tuesday, November 20 we had coffee and chatted with the family. I went for a walk in the park. Our desert neighborhood was really quiet. My friend headed to the post office and when she returned we checked into the rental her sister had gotten us. It was on a golf course. We unloaded. I used the entertainment room while she went shopping. Then we had pizza, watched TV and eventually jumped in the hot tub.
On Wednesday we took our time getting up. I was in charge of coffee and getting ready for the day. My friend’s sister and her family coming win from Death Valley. We watched a movie and I quietly drove to the park while my friend napped. The skate park was great for taking pictures.
When my friend’s sister had nearly arrived. I got some time to myself in the rental and I did some writing. When we were all together we drove back to the mom’s house to see the other cousins and eat pizza. After dinner we all returned to the rental. I wound down while the ladies hung out in the hot tub. The four of us sat in the kitchen at the end of the day.
On Thursday we had pancakes and I was the last one up. I learned that our visit was being extended to Friday afternoon so we had to come up with a new plan. My friend’s brother-in-law, the engineer, hung out at the rental while the ladies went to Bingo, in commemoration of their grandmother who had recently passed. He made roast veggies and I was trying to be entertaining with the TV until we were interrupted because the ladies had returned to throw their bingo cards all over.
That was about when we packed up and went to Thanksgiving at the mom’s house. The cousins built a city in the dining room with boxes. The meal was good and there were nearly thirty people there sitting on couches and makeshift tables. Later we stood in the kitchen for pie. When we returned to the rental and the engineer and I played pool above the garage while the ladies wound down. We talked the rest of the night.
On Friday our normally easy rhythm was cut short when the others cleared out of the house to allow my friend and I to pack for the long ride home. The whole exercise turned out to be pretty easy and my friend headed out to hang out with her sister on their walk while I loaded the car. When they all returned we finished off our coffee and grilled sandwiches and headed back to the mom’s for a final memorial to their grandma.
The mood when we arrived was good. The majority of the people there were my age. I got to know some of the cousins a bit better and spoke to folks from the Bingo hall while we ate quiche and creampuffs. I discovered that the grandfather and his brother, the great-uncle, were watching TV in his little house so we stopped in.
When the great-uncle started getting ready to go everyone lined up for photos and I made myself some hot chocolate. As we made to leave, my friend received a package from her mother with old stuff in it. A number of people followed us out as we said bye and waved at us from the road as we drove away.
I had estimated we would arrive in Baker buy 430. The sun was in my eyes and we never caught any good view of Telescope the whole evening. The I-15 was easy after we got gas but the 58 super hard going past Highway 14 and Highway 395. It got really windy as we approach the Tehachapi mountains and getting into Tehachapi city was kind of difficult. I had a hard time figuring out what the red lights blinking on the mountain were but later I discovered that they were windmills. We stayed at a hotel there and I got some sandwiches.
The next day, on which I wrote this entry, we started the day having a meal in the lobby and got on the road. I pointed out a train on the way down from the summit and a bit ate at a nice coffee shop in Bakersfield. After that we headed back to the bay via Kettleman city where we found a entertainment center at which to break for coffee and other fun stuff. From there it was easy to drive into the city through Oakland.
This is an occasional series chronicling my life. This Notebook Analysis series is meant to be contemporaneous piece developed as an agglomeration of my notebook pages. In each of these posts I used my notes to develop my recent thoughts.
