I drove from Placentia to San Juan Bautista yesterday - it was an easy drive and I enjoyed every mile. What is it with me and being on the "open road"? I came up to see Mary and Joe and their four-legged housemates and to go to the Monterey Peninsula QGuild Quilt Show which is this Saturday and Sunday in Seaside, CA.
I only took a few pictures on the way up. But these may be more 'pleasant' to look at than those of the past. I've used the "retouch" function in Picasa3 forever, but it has never occur to me to take the bug splatters off the windshield before posting pictures - duh! Now I will try to do that all the time. This is at the junction of I-10 and the 57 Fwy, right below the LAFairgrounds. Some months ago the hill slide down, burying the northbound ramp to the 57 - fortunately no cars were buried, but it has been a major construction project to repair the damage. Land does unexpected things in SCalifornia. I don't know how many years this hillside has stayed where it belonged - I'd guess at least thirty years - so why did it suddenly slide? There have been houses that were built in the early 1900s that have slipped away in years of heavy rain - guess that is the adobe soil that absorbs the water and turns into something like warm butter.
One BIG problem here is the high tension tower at the top of the slope. It was terribly close to the edge. I don't know what the white thing is going down the slope and I don't know if the ramp is even open, I didn't see any cars along there. I guess the moral of this story is that one shouldn't build a house at the top of a slope in this area, although there are probably thousands in those exact locations. Great views while they last!
North of the mountains and down into the Central Valley the sky was so blue it hurt my eyes! Just a few tiny clouds drifting slowly east, despite the ground level wind which was coming out of the NW. It was quite a headwind, causing me to stop early for gas. When I saw the sign saying it was 49 miles to my turnoff on Hwy 152 and looked at the screen to see that I had forty miles of gas left, I decided to stop at the next station! If I fill up on my way out of town I can almost always make it to Santa Nella near my turnoff - unless there is a headwind. One thing I love about the Lexus (and there aren't many things I love) is the "Information" screen that tells me the distance driven, the fuel consumed, how much further I can go before gassing up, the outside temp, etc.. I've never had that in a vehicle before. Very much "tomorrowland" to me!
Today we went to Gilroy for lunch at Mimi's and stopped in the actual village of SJBautista at a new shop that does machine quilt on long-arms. She also has some very nice handmade items - felted purses, quilts, aprons, scarves, etc.. The owner told us there will be a fabric shop in the same building in a few months. Probably worth a stop if you are travel up/down Hwy 101. I bought a lapel pin made from half of a zipper by Joan's Attic Treasures - cute. I'll take a picture tomorrow to show you.
1 comment:
Safe travels, Del. Sushi when you get home.
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