September 17, 2002
How goes life in San Clemente?
Good Morning!
Well, things have been a little more hectic than we planned. R & MJ sold the house in Tustin and needed odds and ends done per the inspection so Larry has been working on that and then the house and yard were not completely empty of stuff ......it still isn't but almost. Larry made a load from there yesterday to this new house. There is a bed and weights that must be donated. Guess we will call Good Will. The bunk bed must be torn down and Larry says it will be no easy task. They left it in Adams room hoping the new owners would want it because it is so hard to move. R & MJ departed on their honeymoon yesterday at 7AM and will be gone until October 16. Larry made the long drive to LAX alone because I would not fit in the Lexus. I don't think we own enough clothes to have filled all the luggage they took but then they are going to be gone for a month to an all inclusive resort. I think on the beach.... they won't need too many clothes LOL? We are in charge of Tustin while they are away since escrow will close before they get back. We do the walk through on October 3.
There is still lots going on at the new house since they have thirty days to report everything that is wrong here. There have been tile men, painters, plumbers, they have torn out the hearth so the new 58" TV will fit along the side, appliance people etc. etc. Workmen show up and then leave before they are done or don't show up at all. Really! So that is how it has gone with us since we arrived.
And then there is Adam .......he is easy to be with. He is such a tender soul with a ready smile. He seems to really like his new school and teachers. They have a homework hotline at this school so we can call each week and listen to a recording of his homework assignments. He also has an "agenda" that must be checked each night. He and Larry are working on a weight lifting program. They bought a weight machine with 4 stations so 4 people can do the weight thing at once. Yes, it is very large. We are giving Adam cooking lessons at least once a week. He and Larry did chili beans last night. The 3 Aunts From France left last Friday so up until then it was dinner for 10 around here. That worked out pretty good since everyone shared the preparation, well sort of, R cooked one night and took everyone out one night. The aunts also cooked one night. It was just a lot of food to fix. The aunts were a riot. They cannot speak English and we all now know a little french.
Yesterday there was furniture delivered and lots of repairmen. Today there will be another furniture delivery and more repairmen, we hope. We actually have a calendar where all of the appointments are written. We must go off and buy toilet tissue today. That seems to be the forgotten item around here. Paper towels yes, toilet tissue, no. With 5 people in the house TP is pretty high on my priority list for personal hygiene. LOL
We are trying to get into our own routine around these activities. I hope after this week things will slow down. We have found a loop that we can walk around Talega. It is more like a hike since there is lots of elevation changes. It is challenging. Well, that is pretty much all I know. Pretty boring, huh?
October 25, 2002
Greetings from LA LA Land!
We miss the trees and mountains and quiet.....the blessed quiet of Nevada County. We are definitely NOT southern California people but it does look like we may be here for awhile. We are so close to Pendleton that we can hear the bombs going off or whatever they do to practice war. I pretend it is thunder. The machine guns are a little more challenging but mostly it is the traffic. They are building 4500 homes in the area. Can you imagine all of the construction? Everyone on our street is having yards put in, cement poured, driveways torn out, etc. and up the street they are building. We have a 3 mile loop we hike each morning to maintain our sanity.
We are challenged by making a space for ourselves in this world down here. A place where we can feel whole, healthy and productive. Today we are working at the library once again. I am finding that it is a blessing to come here. Another blessing is that we are only 2 miles from the ocean. Even though they have set up a work area for us in the new office and we should be online soon at our desk it can be chaos.....They have a very busy office with phones ringing, people talking, etc.
R & MJ returned from their honeymoon on the 16th. There are people going in every direction.... did you know that R's mom and brother live here, too. I now know that I was not meant to be part of the Waltons.... more like Thoreau. I need the peace and quiet and slowness of the woods and nature. Tomorrow is my birthday. I have been on this adventure for 52 years.....well, as of tomorrow. My gift to myself is that we are going off for a day alone. It will be quite wonderful. I have a spot picked out to park and stare out into space. It is by the ocean.
I love coming to the library. I love the energy here. We have to be focused on what we must do since we each only have an hour each on the Internet. Today we are going to the Senior Center across the way for lunch. They have a live Jamaican steel band and they are serving "island food". We decided we needed to get out and meet some other adults.
December 7, 2002
San Clemente, CA
Hello All,
Things started happening pretty fast this last week. It looks like my sister has found a good tutor, it is the son of a friend and R's mother is going to pitch in with Language arts. That was the first development. His mom is very smart when it comes to words. She is from France and takes great pride in being very fluent in English. I believe that will help her and Adam to bond.
The very exciting news is that we think we have found our rental in Gibsons, BC. It is a block from the little village and just above the marina. We will not have a view because we are on the upper side but it is a stepping stone to getting where we want to be. It is a one bedroom apartment and is $327 US and includes utilities. It belongs to a lovely couple that live in White Rock, BC. We have spoken on the phone and several times via email. They have several properties in Gibsons and own a lovely B&B in White Rock. It is called Beachside Sausalito. We are falling in love with White Rock, which is only 5 minutes from the US. That is another possibility for our future.
We have not taken care of passports yet and will do that first thing on Monday. We just didn't except to be moving this fast. Yes, we are very excited. It is like our new van, I am afraid to believe. I keep having to remind myself to breath. I couldn't sleep last night.
December 9, 2002
San Clemente, CA
Actually the news got better! They had a top floor flat become available. It is smaller but has a very nice view. It looks down on the marina and I believe off to the mountains in the distance. The owner told us it was a very cute apartment. The view is extremely important to our spirit and energy. There is no washer and dryer but what the heck. This is a month to month rental so will be our stepping stone to be where we want to be. It is also less money and still includes utilities and a fridge and stove. We are happy! We didn't make any progress with passports except photos. We have never needed passports when crossing the border but we were told that we should have them now. We must start thinking about what we will take north with us.
How goes life in San Clemente?
Good Morning!
Well, things have been a little more hectic than we planned. R & MJ sold the house in Tustin and needed odds and ends done per the inspection so Larry has been working on that and then the house and yard were not completely empty of stuff ......it still isn't but almost. Larry made a load from there yesterday to this new house. There is a bed and weights that must be donated. Guess we will call Good Will. The bunk bed must be torn down and Larry says it will be no easy task. They left it in Adams room hoping the new owners would want it because it is so hard to move. R & MJ departed on their honeymoon yesterday at 7AM and will be gone until October 16. Larry made the long drive to LAX alone because I would not fit in the Lexus. I don't think we own enough clothes to have filled all the luggage they took but then they are going to be gone for a month to an all inclusive resort. I think on the beach.... they won't need too many clothes LOL? We are in charge of Tustin while they are away since escrow will close before they get back. We do the walk through on October 3.
There is still lots going on at the new house since they have thirty days to report everything that is wrong here. There have been tile men, painters, plumbers, they have torn out the hearth so the new 58" TV will fit along the side, appliance people etc. etc. Workmen show up and then leave before they are done or don't show up at all. Really! So that is how it has gone with us since we arrived.
And then there is Adam .......he is easy to be with. He is such a tender soul with a ready smile. He seems to really like his new school and teachers. They have a homework hotline at this school so we can call each week and listen to a recording of his homework assignments. He also has an "agenda" that must be checked each night. He and Larry are working on a weight lifting program. They bought a weight machine with 4 stations so 4 people can do the weight thing at once. Yes, it is very large. We are giving Adam cooking lessons at least once a week. He and Larry did chili beans last night. The 3 Aunts From France left last Friday so up until then it was dinner for 10 around here. That worked out pretty good since everyone shared the preparation, well sort of, R cooked one night and took everyone out one night. The aunts also cooked one night. It was just a lot of food to fix. The aunts were a riot. They cannot speak English and we all now know a little french.
Yesterday there was furniture delivered and lots of repairmen. Today there will be another furniture delivery and more repairmen, we hope. We actually have a calendar where all of the appointments are written. We must go off and buy toilet tissue today. That seems to be the forgotten item around here. Paper towels yes, toilet tissue, no. With 5 people in the house TP is pretty high on my priority list for personal hygiene. LOL
We are trying to get into our own routine around these activities. I hope after this week things will slow down. We have found a loop that we can walk around Talega. It is more like a hike since there is lots of elevation changes. It is challenging. Well, that is pretty much all I know. Pretty boring, huh?
October 25, 2002
Greetings from LA LA Land!
We miss the trees and mountains and quiet.....the blessed quiet of Nevada County. We are definitely NOT southern California people but it does look like we may be here for awhile. We are so close to Pendleton that we can hear the bombs going off or whatever they do to practice war. I pretend it is thunder. The machine guns are a little more challenging but mostly it is the traffic. They are building 4500 homes in the area. Can you imagine all of the construction? Everyone on our street is having yards put in, cement poured, driveways torn out, etc. and up the street they are building. We have a 3 mile loop we hike each morning to maintain our sanity.
We are challenged by making a space for ourselves in this world down here. A place where we can feel whole, healthy and productive. Today we are working at the library once again. I am finding that it is a blessing to come here. Another blessing is that we are only 2 miles from the ocean. Even though they have set up a work area for us in the new office and we should be online soon at our desk it can be chaos.....They have a very busy office with phones ringing, people talking, etc.
R & MJ returned from their honeymoon on the 16th. There are people going in every direction.... did you know that R's mom and brother live here, too. I now know that I was not meant to be part of the Waltons.... more like Thoreau. I need the peace and quiet and slowness of the woods and nature. Tomorrow is my birthday. I have been on this adventure for 52 years.....well, as of tomorrow. My gift to myself is that we are going off for a day alone. It will be quite wonderful. I have a spot picked out to park and stare out into space. It is by the ocean.
I love coming to the library. I love the energy here. We have to be focused on what we must do since we each only have an hour each on the Internet. Today we are going to the Senior Center across the way for lunch. They have a live Jamaican steel band and they are serving "island food". We decided we needed to get out and meet some other adults.
December 7, 2002
San Clemente, CA
Hello All,
Things started happening pretty fast this last week. It looks like my sister has found a good tutor, it is the son of a friend and R's mother is going to pitch in with Language arts. That was the first development. His mom is very smart when it comes to words. She is from France and takes great pride in being very fluent in English. I believe that will help her and Adam to bond.
The very exciting news is that we think we have found our rental in Gibsons, BC. It is a block from the little village and just above the marina. We will not have a view because we are on the upper side but it is a stepping stone to getting where we want to be. It is a one bedroom apartment and is $327 US and includes utilities. It belongs to a lovely couple that live in White Rock, BC. We have spoken on the phone and several times via email. They have several properties in Gibsons and own a lovely B&B in White Rock. It is called Beachside Sausalito. We are falling in love with White Rock, which is only 5 minutes from the US. That is another possibility for our future.
We have not taken care of passports yet and will do that first thing on Monday. We just didn't except to be moving this fast. Yes, we are very excited. It is like our new van, I am afraid to believe. I keep having to remind myself to breath. I couldn't sleep last night.
December 9, 2002
San Clemente, CA
Actually the news got better! They had a top floor flat become available. It is smaller but has a very nice view. It looks down on the marina and I believe off to the mountains in the distance. The owner told us it was a very cute apartment. The view is extremely important to our spirit and energy. There is no washer and dryer but what the heck. This is a month to month rental so will be our stepping stone to be where we want to be. It is also less money and still includes utilities and a fridge and stove. We are happy! We didn't make any progress with passports except photos. We have never needed passports when crossing the border but we were told that we should have them now. We must start thinking about what we will take north with us.
