April 9, '14

One question to clear up.  Katherine and Alan Murphy are long-time friends.  Alan worked with my John on a project years ago, and Katherine and I did our Master's degrees together.  Her favorite story is from an introduction to statistics course we took together.  I kept driving myself crazy trying to figure out what the math formulas said and why they worked.  She kept telling me to just memorize them.  During one study session I got so upset that I hit her over the head with our text book.  In self defense I have to point out that it was spiral-bound paperback, about 75 pages.  But that friendship has lasted through good times and bad, more than 25 years.

This evening we're in Sutherlin, Oregon at the Umqua RV Resort--about a half an hour north of Grants Pass (or Grass Pants, as we called it as kids).  The resort has a beautiful golf course (pictures below).  The RV park is up on the ridge looking down at the golf course in one direction and down the valley toward toward the coast in another direction.  I took a look around town before we settled in--a pretty and friendly town.

I had thought this might be a bad stopping place in the winter, but one of the RVers told me that it mostly rains, and only about 35 inches per year.  I bet the summer is pretty warm though!

I got Myrtle all hooked up to electricity and water, put out my awning, and went for an amble with Livy.  Because we do these walks at her speed, there is no speed.  She sniffs everything and chews the grass as we go.  We have been doing this daily, partly because I want her to be able to recognize Myrtle and know where the door is.

I should add that Livy had her best travel day yet.  She didn't even swear or complain--and those of you with cats know what I mean!

I just sat under my awning and soaked up the beautiful day.  As we came south down I-5 the land just kept getting greener and greener.  Even the Oak trees are leafing out down here.  I saw a field of sheep with a crop of brand new baby lambs.  Tracy and Gina (my son and daughter) would get so exited about the lambs when we came through here in the spring--they knew there would be lambs on their grandparents' ranch when we got to Marina on Monterey Bay.

The breeze started kicking up about 4 pm, so I reeled in the awning (I have to admit that it was 60 degrees and I really hadn't needed the shade.  I went for an actual walk on my own.  We're getting into the hills of southern Oregon here and the country is so beautiful!

Katherine gave me a Myrtle-warming gift this morning that is amazingly perfect--she knows how close I came to giving up on my dream of traveling.  This is a magnet with a Lewis Carroll quote:

"There is no use trying," said Alice; "one can't believe impossible things."  "I dare say you haven't had much practice," said the Queen.  "When I was your age, I always did it for half an hour a day.  Why, sometimes I've believed as many as six impossible things before breakfast."

April 10
I emailed yesterday's pictures from my phone to my computer last night, but they didn't come through until this morning!  So here they are . . .  Over the mountains and into California today!

Golf course, looking east

Golf course, looking west

Walking with Livy

View toward the coast