Lassen Volcanic National Park

Sorry folks, but it's Gary at the keyboard today.  Over the last two days, Judy and I have been roaming through Lassen Volcanic National Park.  It was not only beautiful, but also a great way to escape the crazy hot temperatures at lower altitudes, which ranged from the high 90s on day one to 107 on day two.  Driving from Red Bluff to the south entrance of the park takes a little over an hour, so naturally we drove north to Redding and went in the north entrance, which took closer to two hours.

 

  The first place we came to, and one of the highlights of our two day adventure, was Manzanita Lake.  It's a beautiful lake, and we arrived just as three deer and a bunch of geese were putting on a show.  Obviously they weren't bothered much by our presence, and hung around for several minutes. 

 

 

 Further down the road we could see the back side of Lassen Peak.  The front side was more barren, with less snow.  Our favorite views of Lassen Peak were coming down from the north.

 

On the way to the summit, which is about 8500 feet, is a lake aptly named Summit Lake.  Judy took a very nicely framed picture (below) as we all, the dogs included, fought off a swarm of dragonflies.  

 

 

Not long after we stopped for lunch at nearby King's Creek Picnic Area, not realizing that we were the lunch. The picnic area was on the edge of a meadow (below) inhabited by nasty, hungry, biting flies with a bad attitude, and we're still nursing the wounds from that battle.  Shortly after we finished lunch and fled from King's Creek, the battery in Judy's camera died and we drove back to Red Bluff.

  

 

Returning for day two with a freshly-charged camera battery, we drove up from the south entrance.  Another highlight of our Lassen tour was the incredibly beautiful Emerald Lake.  In the picture below you can see the amazing green color, caused by algae on the shallow bottom, and crystal clear water.   

 

 Another really spectacular lake is Lake Helen.  The color is a brilliant blue, and the setting is an alpine forest and snow.

 

 We were blessed to find a great picnic spot right on the edge of Lake Helen, without all the carnivorous flies of the previous day.  Our spot was very private, so Sherwood and Sadie were able to run around off leash and play in the large patches of snow. 

 Finally, here is the video of Manzanita Lake! Enjoy the amazing scenery.



 





 Here are the three big lessons we learned on this trip: 

1. Always travel with bug repellant in your bag. (You're not in the South Bay anymore, Judy!) There are a lot of bugs in the alpine meadows because there's lots of water.
 
2. Make sure you check the camera battery before you take off and have it fully loaded. It died on Day 1 before we left the park. 
 
3. Always start your travels with a full tank of gas. We did make it without running out of gas, but the little gas light was lit before we got to the gas station.

WOW, WE DON’T HAVE A HOME ANYMORE!

Finally, we got on the road from Gardnerville after a spending a week with my sister and her husband.  A huge THANK YOU to them for their usual hospitality.  We always feel at home when we are with them. 

Unfortunately, we started our trip with a 2-3 day rather unusual rain storm in progress.  Our route to Red Bluff (back into California L) was on Route 20 and then Highway 70 with a couple of questionable roads in between.  We told the Magellan to limit the amount of freeway and, boy, did it ever!  While part of the drive through Tahoe National Forest, following the Truckee River, was beautiful, there were parts of that route that were, well, questionable.  Let’s just say we saw lots and lots of walnut trees!

While Gary was getting ready to feed the dogs (who aren’t sure what to think about where their home is anymore) I came to the FULL realization, “I don’t have a home anymore!”  This 32’ RV is our home for the next 6 to 12 months, or however long we decide to stay on the road.  Boy, is that a different thought.  I’m not sure how long it will take before it really settles in, but in the meantime, we’re going to have some fun exploring the beauty of this nation.

Here we are at the Durango RV Resort in Red Bluff (first picture) located just a couple hundred yards from the Sacramento River .  Everything a long-term RVer needs … pull-through site, full hook-ups, laundry facilities, pool, recreation activites and more!

 

 

Once that rain, rain goes away, we’ll start exploring this beautiful area that includes Lassen Volcanic National Park and the Shasta-Trinity National Recreation Area.  We are about 30 minutes from Redding so our plans also include at least one trip to Bethel Church.  May the Truth be with you!

Minden Madness!

Goodness gracious!  We have arrived at small-town America and we are lovin' it!  LA is just a figment of our imagination which we are doing our best to erase from our memory banks ... sorry friends and family who are still stuck there!

Tonight we went to the Minden Concert in the Park that featured a tribute to Journey.  The park was packed as you will see and we had a wonderful time just people-watching as the band played their hearts out on stage.  This video is a 360 view of the Minden Park filled with people--including tons of kids--waiting for the band to start.

Gary and I are now "true" Nevadans.  We got Nevada drivers licenses and changed the registration on both vehicles to Nevada plates! 

Here we are at the Minden Park concert with our Nevada gear prominently displayed in patriotic fashion.

 

The picture below includes my sister, Jeanne, and her husband, John, who have lived in this area for many years.  We are proud of the fact that we are Nevadans and our sweatshirts show it! My sister is the real estate agent who I will be assisting while on the road.



Comida muy sabrosa!

Ha!ha!ha!  Can you read what my title is?  According to my husband, Gary (who gave me the words to use), it means "very delicious food" ... and boy is that the truth for La Villa in "the hood" (longhand for "Gardena"!).

Gary and I have been eating at La Villa in "the hood" for over 20 years -- as long as we've lived at our home in Gardena.  We had our waitress take our picture at our "last supper" at La Villa.  We went one last time on Sunday after we worked ourselves to the bone packing for the movers to move us out and then cleaning for the buyers to move themselves in.

I had the #1 (cheese enchilada, rice and beans) and Gary had the #2 (cheese enchilada, ground beef taco, rice and beans).  Gary washed his down with a icy cold Pacifico.  I was just too tired to drink anything but water.  My goodness that last supper tasted sumptuous. 

P.S.  when looking at the picture, you'll see how bedraggled we look after that rough day!

Gary and me at La Villa ... enjoying our "last supper"!

30 Years ... out with the old ... in with the new!

I spent 30 years of my adult life working at Toyota Motor Sales USA and now I'm ready to close that book and start a new and even better one--one that brings me into a more fulfilling time of my life ... retirement! 

You often ask the question, "Am I really ready to retire?"  It wasn't all that long ago (maybe one to two years) that I thought I would probably have to work until I was 70.  But some casual conversation with someone who was already planning her retirement spurred me to seriously consider the possibility of my retirement.  So, I started the research and found that it really wasn't as remote as I thought ... just not in California where the taxes and housing  prices are too prohibitive. 

Thankfully, Gary and I have always been planning to move to Gardnerville, NV where I have three sisters already, so the thought of leaving California (which some consider blasphemy) was not a traumatic thought ... instead it was a tantalizing dream on the verge of coming true.

It took over six months of thinking and considering if I was really ready to retire.  Truth is, I wasn't!  But with Gary seven years older than me, I knew that the time was right and I needed to do this so we could actually realize our dream of traveling the US in our RV.  So, I made the decision, turned a corner and then had the epiphany that I am so much more than what I do at Toyota.  That my job at Toyota does NOT define who I am as a person.  I a am so much more than that.  That was a defining moment--a great thought to grasp and take hold of.  It allowed me to let go of the false definition and take hold of my future with Gary on the road.

MY TOYOTA HISTORY

It was 1983, but it seems like just yesterday I was hired and started selling service equipment to dealers.  Can you imagine doing that with absolutely no automotive experience?  Me neither!  But that sure was a fun learning experience.  I took a lot of golf lessons, played at some amazing courses, stayed at some beautiful resorts, and all the time I was learning the service business ... and I fell in love with it!

I also had the golden opportunity to transfer into the Lexus division in 1988--one year before the first Lexus landed in the U.S.  What a ride!  That happened to be one of my most stressful times at Toyota, starting up the new division.  We worked LONG, HARD hours (before there was overtime, of course) and I watched Lexus go from question mark to benchmark.  It was truly an amazing experience and we had an amazing team in that division.  We had a vision, we had a leader, and we all were headed in the same direction ... and I was there to experience it firsthand. 

Twelve years later I was automatically grafted into the University of Toyota when it was first birthed.  I worked on developing curriculum for Lexus dealers and then Toyota dealers.  When it was time to develop a way in which we could determine what kind of impact our curriculum was having on dealer employees (did the learning actually transfer to their job), I was there to start a whole new department--Measurement & Evaluation.  I spent the next three years learning how to create surveys and evaluate the responses so that we could determine if the curriculum was helping people to make change.  My manager, Gusti Lowenberg, spurred me on by volunteering me and my team to conduct studies in different divisions in the company.  We even had one of our major studies published in an industry book on measuring the return on training investment!

With a change of management, it was time for me a make a change too.  I transferred back to my roots in Dealer Operations, and it was while I was there, working for Steve Reynolds, and with the unbelievable guidance and assistance of Jeff Harbaugh and Sharon Whitson, that we developed the very critical and much needed Toyota Express Maintenance program that is now in over 270 dealers across the country ... and very successful!  A special thank you to Jeff, who has been a mentor for me for a very long time.  And a special thank you to Sharon who has been an amazing friend--my best friend at work!

Can you hear that book of my life closing?  It should be making a very loud noise!  That's because it's now time for the most important work ever, with my husband, traveling around the western United States and looking for opportunities to touch people's lives, pray with them, and give them hope.

Thank you again to all my work friends.  You are the ones who helped me get through the tough times (and there were tough times) and to make it 30 wonderful years!

Left to right:  Mike Buffalin (my manager), me, and Joe Stempkowski (my national manager)

 

Gary, me and Joe Stempkowski

 

Farewell to Coast Christian Fellowship ... for now!

Coast Christian Fellowship hosted a farewell potluck for Gary and me.  It was decorated in a beach theme to celebrate Gary's roots in the surfing community!  Terry Nichols did an amazing job decorating and everyone was very generous with their food contributions (i.e., there was a lot of food to eat!).

A big thank you to all of our church family for the memories over the last 12-13 years that we have prayed, worshipped, and fellowshipped together. 

A special thank you to the Torrance House of Prayer for giving me the opportunity and platform to pray what's on God's heart in the wonderful Harp & Bowl model.

We are so ready for this next book of our life's journey.  Elliot's prophetic word for us that one Sunday morning spoke to our hearts and we have never again thought about our trip as just a time to travel around the western United States ... it's so much more than that!  Thank you Elliot.

We love all of you and are so encouraged as we are "on the road again" to be the "Traveling House of Prayer" (THOP!) while we enjoy God's amazing creative energy in the western U.S.  We'll keep you posted with the beauty that we are so fortunate to be able to see. 

Even when we are faithless ... still He is faithful!