The Adventure Continues #3

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Geo: 35.0986, -120.612

Greetings from the The Other Side,



WOW!!!!! What a roller coaster and learning experience! There's absolutely no way to even come close to telling you everything. Each day is so filled with discovery. There's been breath taking scenery, crazy wonderful people, stupid moves (me of course), bone tired muscles and more laughter. Look for us on Funniest Home Videos. An Asian tourist shot a video of me falling all over myself trying to get off the bike (I had to go) when we stopped at the Golden Gate Bridge. The coastal highway is not for beginners or those with weak constitutions. When I heard Dave get pissed at the road, I knew this wasn't easy. The northern coast til you get passed Big Sur is wicked and full of hairpin turns and 10%!g(MISSING)rades up and down, up and down, up and down...you get the picture. We had the illusion when we left Lori's last Wednesday we could make it more than 150 miles a day.....joke was on us. Tom, Lori's husband told us of a short cut with a better connecting road to the coast from the 101. If that was the easy one, they should shut down our first choice cuz it took over 2 hours and 3 pee breaks in the bushes to go about 40 miles. The views were awesome but not sure they were worth the time it took or the wear and tear on the bike. Lesson learned: Don't listen to relatives who say they know a short cut. Sometimes the road less traveled is less traveled for a good reason.



We finally hit the coast and the ocean was the bomb. Sitting and listening to the waves just seemed to fade the morning away. We started scanning ahead for a campground. I really got tired of the sign CAMPGROUND FULL. Duh - Father's Day Weekend. HAPPY BELATED FATHER'S DAY TO ALL YOU DADS!!!! California coast highway has some amazing campgrounds but come to find out.....Reservations Required for the majority of them unless you only want to stay 1 night (they can't tell you if you can stay until the next day's reservations are received). Understand the concept but really sucks for those of us who are just flying by the seat of our pants. Halfway thru the day, Dave notices we aren't on the coast highway anymore. I think the Redwood Trees gave it away but it could have been the big sign saying WELCOME TO THE REDWOOD FOREST. We stopped at a small store and rest area to figure out what we should do now. After buying a 6 pack of beer so we could use their restrooms (everyone has a sign saying for customers only), they only had porta potties out front and they were revolting, still used them, but really revolting. Turns out we missed a crucial turn and ended up in Cloverdale and getting a room the first night (not before scoping out a nearby bar of course). The motel room wasn't anything special but the guy in the next room was quite friendly. After chatting for a couple of minutes, he sparks up a doobie and asks if I smoke. Let's see.......Hell Yea. Lessons learned: 1 - Flying by the seat of your pants doesn't always work. You can feel like a homeless refugee in search of a bed. 2 -There are no wrong turns and no turning back. Enjoy the adventures on the road your on. We would have missed the rest area with the carvings and meeting a new friend traveling from Pennsylvania. 3 - When your going to wet your pants, you can pee anywhere no matter how disgusting.



Thursday is a new day and we are on the hunt. There's a campground with our name on it. Finally we found one we could stay for the one night. I could have stayed for the rest of the summer. New Brighton State Park sits right on the cliffs and you can hear the ocean all night. It was amazing. Great showers (private and hot water) even if they were a quarter for two minutes. Dave wrestled with a fold out chair and lost the fight but came up smiling. Now mind you, the chair is about ten years old and Dave was a bit slimmer back then. I had no problem sitting in it but maybe it just liked me. The battle with the chair did my guy in and he went to bed. I on the other hand had a tailgate party with a couple birds and a chipmunk or two. Reviews from the guests are pending but a good time seemed to be had by all. Lessons learned: 1 - Sit gently if you haven't sat in the chair for a few years. Falling on your ass can be hazardous to your health. 2 - It's official. I'm a party girl. If there isn't one, I'll make one.



Friday was more hellacious roads. By now, Dave is more than a little beat up. I know he's dreaming of straight flat roads that go for miles. Kansas here we come. There was a wonderful art gallery where we purchased something for our favorite (ok only) attorney. The minute we saw it, we knew you would appreciate it John. It should arrive this week or next. Still no campgrounds with a vacancy so we pulled up to the bomb of a hotel on the cliffs just passed Big Sur. Pricey but worth it until the next morning. It had a nature trail with a sign that said "At Your Own Risk". It really needed repelling equipment if you ask me but I'm sure young drunk stupid people have tried it. It's meditation garden was something I wanted to put in my pocket and take down the road which would have really helped on Saturday. I woke up to figure out I had lost my wallet with over a thousand dollars in it. Earlier on Friday day, I cleaned out my checking account for the ready cash. Only I could be that blonde. Talk about a horrible morning. Beat up and feeling like a refugee, I lost everything I had; license, military id, debit card.........talk about a meltdown. Poor Dave. I couldn't quit crying and wrapping myself in the thought "I have nothing", it was pathetic........ I'm sitting here laughing at myself. I lose sight of the big picture sometimes. It's only money. Yea, we could have used it but I'm sure who ever found it will put it to good use. Ok, that's what I choose to believe anyway. Just means a living on a shorter shoestring. Like Dave says, we ain't poor until we can't buy beer. How true. Lessons learned: 1 - Don't let the blonde carry money. Let Dave carry the cash. He's more reliable (well yea, he doesn't smoke the doobies). 2 - If no ones dead, everything is fixable.



We arrived at an Oceano County Campground early afternoon on Saturday with me still bawling and carrying on like an insane woman. Dave pulls up to this campground he knows about from a past love in his life (now that's going to make me better) that's basically a long narrow stretch of land sitting between railroad tracks and a busy county road. Campsites are so close to each other, you can smell the fart from the next tent and the campground is bursting at the seams (annual Father's Day Car Show which is frikken huge)but they just happen to have one space for us....What a lucky girl I am.....lmao. I can be quite the Sarah Bernhardt when my life is in the toilet as I see it. Again, let me reinterate....POOR DAVE. How such a good man could deal with the twelve people living in my head is beyond me, but he actually finds it an adventure (who's the insane one?). Well it took about an hour, two beers and a doobie after setting up to see it was actually not a bad place to camp. On Sunday, more than 50%!o(MISSING)f the people left. Damn, it's really nice now. We changed camp sites and paid for a week. It was hysterical listening to Dave set up the new site......"If we put the tent here, we will have this much backyard". I laughed so hard at that. Wonder if he's planning on gardening before we leave? Trains go by a few times a day and I've only heard them once at night. It's a sound that used to give me a lonely empty feeling and now it's comforting. On Monday, all but 2 other campers left our area and Dave's first remark "2 more and I can go naked". He's having naked withdrawals and losing the tan on his ass. Poor guy. Unfortunately, 3 moved in late in the day but it's still 90%!e(MISSING)mpty so I'm still liking it. Lessons learned: 1 - Don't judge a campground by first glance. If it's full today, it may be empty tomorrow. 2 - a $30 scissor jack is well worth the investment. To think we were using our back labor (old and worn out) up to now. 3 - If you know seafood gives you the runs (which I did), don't eat it. Verified by me this moring at 3 am as I was puking in a community toilet crying I want a hotel. 4 - Pismo Beach/Oceano is frikken cold at this time of year. Hot tea taste better than a cold beer when your teeth are chattering. 5 - The trike radio will run down the battery in just three short hours. Verified by Dave Sunday morning while he was walking in his "backyard".



Photobucket banned me for the naked boobs from the run so we're giving smugmug a shot. It seems easier to manipulate for the computer challenged such as myself.



http://oscarswildadventure.smugmug.com/gallery/8662067_Ln7az/1/571971826_s7Mno



Our future TENTATIVE plans (heads up Rick for the time line on repairs) are to arrive in Riverside Thursday, July 2. Leave Riverside on the 5th or 6th and arrive in San Diego on the 10th. Leave for Vegas on 12th or 13th. Rick, I'll have Dave call you for the amount of time needed for repairs. That will let us know how fast we need to get back to Vegas or if we can take our time. Of course, she has to be beautiful for your grand opening.



I can only wish for all our friends and family that they have as much laughter as we've had since we left and one day get to experience the freedom this life provides. It really is a healing for your heart.



Much love to all,



Debbie & Dave

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