TravelStream™ news feed for member chimeranda on TravelPod's free travel blogs service http://www.travelpod.com/syndication/rss/chimeranda en-us Copyright ©2009 TravelPod.com Wed, 09 Sep 2009 10:29:31 -0400 http://www.travelpod.com http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/chimeranda/1/1252506421/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/chimeranda/1/1252506421/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/chimeranda/1/1252506421/tpod.html Wed, 09 Sep 2009 10:29:31 -0400 Family fun on the road. Flowers, fairies and magical adventures.

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Eugene, Oregon, United States

If you feel inspired, Isa loves mail. A card of support would mean so much to her. Our address is 35059 Seavey Loop Rd. Eugene, OR. 97405

hugs,
renee
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Eugene, Oregon, United States

It is with such heartache that I share with you our little Lola has been killed. Not having a yard I always feel guilty that she doesn't have the chance to run. We went to the dog park here in Eugene. She was brutally attacked by a Mastiff. She didn't even see it coming. It wasn't fast, or clean, he didn't go for the neck, instead her belly.

There is only one savings grace, Isa was half way across the park so she could hear but not see what happened. I've given her a sanitized, watered down version. It is the first time I've ever done that with her. We grief. Everyday. Her hurt directed at me.

 She wanted to get another puppy right away. There was a dog show and we found a little boy. Polo, Marco Polo. Our little explorer. She was right, he is healing our wounds.

At night I struggle with sleep, trying to keep the images from my mind. I often fail. I ask you to please not tell me how you don't like dog parks or your horrendous animal story, I've heard enough and I hurt too deeply. Instead hold us in your hearts, give a donation to your animal shelter and hug someone you love.

 With Love,
Renee
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Tacoma, Washington, United States

For the past several months we've had only intermittment internet access (good by ATT and hello Verizon). I thought about not having it, the cost is high but I decided the cost is even higher not having it. It is magical and wonderful connecting via the written word and when we can't do it in person, this is a wonderful alternative. 

Over the past couple of months our journey has been long and varied. Our beautiful little Airstream Chimeranda has morphed into a 35 ft fifth wheel. We still call her Chimeranda, it seems to be our traveling name. 

I learned that 35 ft over the internet is a lot smaller then 35 ft in real life. I didn't see the fifth wheel before I purchased it, I thought ten feet over the bed of my truck, okay it won't look much different. Imagine my surprise when I saw just exactly how big 35 ft is!  Before we had one double bed that wasn't even a full double bed. No problem when Isa was sleeping length wise on the bed. But now her idea of sleeping is to have either her feet in my face or sleep on top of me. I found myself in six inches of bed. Not knowing when an end to our travels was in sight I decided for self preservation to go bigger. Everyone kept telling me pulling it would be so much easier. Well not exactly, pulling the Airstream was like having a fly on my butt, pulling the fifth wheel is more like having a T-Rex attached. 
 
 The space is wonderful. I have a bedroom with a queen bed that the three of us sleep in. Isa has the coolest play room ever. You walk in and there is a loft with a double bed. It has a shelf so she can set her animals on to play. Downstairs she has her kitchen set up with a slide out that contains her art room. There is a little table, two chairs and drawers of art supplies. The kids have a blast. When we are at someplace that has nice weather I'll pull out her kitchen things, some art things and kids play from one area to the next. It's been a nice way for her to meet new friends.

We traveled straight through to Oregon to pick up our fifth wheel. We were in Corvallis back where our cohousing community is and our condo. It was a bittersweet experience. Nice seeing people, very aware that some people either chose to ignore me, (not us) or gave dirty looks. The experience of the sound problem between my unit and the unit above has left some large rifts in our connections. It saddens me. 

 We stayed at our good friend Sally's house, that was wonderful. Her backyard is huge and both Lola and Isa had so much fun. Everyday Isa would go out and check for chicken eggs. Her favorite chicken is Maya, the saintly golden zen hen. Throughout the day I look in the backyard to see Isa carrying Maya around talking to her. Maya patiently accepted her new role as confidant. We got to see many of our favorite South End friends. We were only there for a short while before we headed on the road again.

From there we went to Hood River to watch our friend Leah race. Poor Isa was so sick it turned into a seven day sick and recovery journey. After a brief stay in Eastern Washington we headed over the pass to the North West. Our goal was Gig Harbor which is across the bridge from Tacoma. From there we could easily see and visit all of our family, Aunts, Uncles,brothers, sisters, cousins and friends. We've been for the summer, it's been so nice reconnecting with everyone. It is nice having the familiarity of those who've known me for so long.

This summer I wanted Isa to have some children to play with so I enrolled her in the Waldorf summer camp. It has been a grand adventure for her and she's had so much fun. This past two weeks is Mer people so she has played Mermaid and dolphins which is a favorite for her. 

I am getting glimpses of restlessness in Isa, a longing to settle. As I watch those subtleties I've thought about where we could go and what I could do for work. I'm drawn back to the desert, it is so good for my body. As I've thought of work and the things I love I was reminded of how much I love the gentleness of Waldorf which led me to think about teaching again. There are Waldorf schools all over the US and Internationally, many looking for teachers. I've decided to go into the teaching program at Waldorf. I wanted to go to school in Oahu but can't because our puppy doesn't have all the vaccinations and would have to be quarantined for 120 days and you know that isn't happening. So Eugene it is. There is a great program there. We have friends in Eugene and I know that we will meet more. 

We are going to live in our fifth wheel, it is the least expensive option. And already our home. I greet the new journey with excitement and apprehension. Curious to see what it will how this will work. Excited for the learning and worried about Isa, it will be a tough transition for her being with other people while I'm in school. Hoping that it nourishes her soul.... 

 This part of the journey draws to a close, I miss it already. Thank you for following us on our way, because of you I knew we were never alone.

With love and gratitude,

Renee


 

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Silver City, New Mexico, United States

A small but precious moment.
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Silver City, New Mexico, United States

It has been too long since I've written, so much life has happened. We came to Silver City with our friends we met in Desert Hot Springs, Leah ( a professional bike racer) Rhonda and their daughter Malina. Leah was racing in the Tour of Gila race. Others have mentioned to me that we should check out Silver City... How right they were. It is a magical little town full of friendly, caring people. Set high in the desert it is surrounded by history and legends. Originally a silver mining town it is the birth place of Billy the Kid. National Geographic describes it as the town that is what Santa Fe used to be... Not certain what that means having never been to Santa Fe but I like the sound. 
It is also the town where we brought our new long awaited puppy Lola.. She is commonly referred as a stuffed teddy bear. She is so cute with a personality a mile long. She loves/adores everyone and everything. She isn't afraid of any dog, (except the great Dane dressed in a clown suit.) adores Isa and loves to go hiking/walking and biking with us.
There is much to see here, we went to the Gila Cliff Dwellings. It was amazing to imagine the generations of people who climbed those walls to hold their ceremonies.
We went to the Cat Walk where they constructed pathways to get to the mines. 
While Leah trained Rhonda and I loaded up the kids and took Chimeranda and went on a trip to Bisbee and to Tombstone Arizona. We stopped at the Karchner Caves and spent some time on Roper Lake. A beautiful oasis in the middle of the desert. 
Isabelle and I liked Roper Lake so much that when Rhonda and Malina needed to go home, we drove back to the lake and stayed another five days.
It was there that Ranger Sammy taught us how to fish.  We now travel with fishing poles although I realize I just can't use worms for bait... I like worms too much!
Weaving. Riding our bikes one day we passed by a woman sitting outside spinning so we decided to stop. Hosanna is a weaver, making tapestries of color and design. We made a date with her to teach the girls how to spin and weave. It was that day when someone from the newspaper came by and asked to take our picture. So there we were on the front page of the paper learning how to spin. Isa is a natural at it, she and Hosanna developed such a special bond. It was hard to say goodbye to her.
The Race. This isn't just any race, this is a big race. It is often considered the precursor to the race in Italy which leads up to the Tour De France.  It also turned out to be a big name race, on the men's side Lance (as in Armstrong) Landis, and the reigning rider Levi all showed up. On the women's side Kristen Armstrong (no relation to Lance) who won the Beijing Olympics showed up as well as a couple of other very strong women riders including Leah. 
But the rider I was most impressed with was Isa. She got to go in her first race. She had so much fun, the boy in front of her fell and she waited patiently for him to get up then off she went training wheels and all. She loved telling people she raced the Tour of Gila!  Her next words were, "mom,  can I race again? "
We leave today, we head to Truth or Consequences, then up thru to Santa Fe...across and over and on our way to Oregon and Washington.
We are seven months on the road. Seven. Amazing. I asked Isa if it was hard traveling from place to place. "No mom, I love it". 
Gypsy's of the Road. Renee, Isabelle and Lola
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Flagstaff, Arizona, United States

We are on the move. Yesterday we drove from Santa Fe almost all the way to Flagstaff Arizona. It was over five hours. I missed the turn off for the campground we were going to go to so instead of turning around I asked the co-pilot if she would mind if we kept on driving. She was fine with it so on we went. 
The road was long and straight, the speed limit 75 so we flew like a silver bird. Today is another five hour day so we can make it to the Barstow KOA where a swimming pool awaits us. 
There was so much we didn't see in New Mexico and in Arizona, so much I look forward to seeing. I really love New Mexico. The people I met who were raised in New Mexico are fiercely proud of their State. 
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Desert Hot Springs, California, United States

Spring in the desert. I didn't realize that spring would be so pronounced. Overnight the shades of browns that decorate the desert fields and mountains turn green. Look closely and you will see purples, yellows and pink  flowers, blazing oranges on the branches of tall spindly bushes. 
We spent March back in Desert Hot Springs, awaiting the return of our friends, Malina, Rhonda and Leah. They were in Canada for the month. We were also waiting for our little puppy to get old enough to come home. 
We got a little bug and for the first time this season felt under the weather. It is interesting how healthy we've been. Feeling crummy being in the desert, hanging in the sun, watching spring while the rest of the world is covered in snow was a-okay. 
I really missed San Diego, both of us did but sometimes getting up and moving seems harder then staying somewhere that we like just okay. Especially when we aren't feeling great. So we made it a good time, going on walks, finding new playgrounds almost everyday. Swimming all the time. Isa now swims the length of the pool, diving and cavorting like a dolphin.
A little spring in the snow... hearts and songs, renee
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San Diego, California, United States

Driving out of the desert back into the lush green coast I felt my body take a deep sigh. Ahh, yes, this is what I'm used to. But instead of huge conifers of the Northwest, palm trees tower in the sky and flowers punctuate the green, a sight so different from the winters up North. 
We arrived in San Diego three weeks ago. First two weeks were at the San Elijo State campgroundin Cardiff-By-The-Sea. It was a culture shock and at first I was ready to turn around and leave. People everywhere, trains blaring all day long, 101 in the back yard and the immense ocean in our front yard. It was both beautiful and chaotic. 
In the two weeks we were there we had several families of kids next to us. Parents I enjoyed and kids that Isa loved playing with. Across from us, from North Carolina were Daryl and John. They were here visiting their daughter and family. We made fast friends with John and Daryl. Isa would go over and knock on their door just for a visit. 

I wanted more time to visit with my niece Stefanie so I decided I wanted to give San Diego more of a chance. After reading the reviews we moved into Campland By the Bay. Campland has 24 hour security and staff who monitor the comings and goings of people. It is on Mission Bay about three blocks from a bike trail. It's a huge park, 600 sites. We are on a side that backs up to a small park overlooking the bay. Even with RV surrounding us it has the feeling of privacy. From the back window we see the bay and the downtown. Lucky for us we have some great neighbors on one side, Rocki, Jack and Blinkin. Rocki is great to talk with, Isa really likes and Blinkin.. he likes to wag and blink!
There are kids who live here full time. Some are home schooled and others enrolled in public schools. It is interesting, some people have made this their home. One family spends the school year here then goes back to Portland for the summer. I am understanding that the American dream isn't owning a home for everyone. One couple live on a sailboat with their two young children and have a motor home for when they aren't on a boat. She was saying she can't imagine owning a home, why would she own all that space??
There is much to do here, a pool, kayaking, a bike trail that goes all the way around to the ocean or the other direction it goes to Sea World. Our friends Rhonda and Melina came from the desert and we biked to the ocean and played in the sands. It feels good knowing we will be here for a while. Finally allowing me to catch my breath and take stock of life.
We will make our way back North sometime this spring.... 
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San Diego, California, United States


Mourning:
The last few days have been tough and I've had a hard time smiling. I've got two artificial hips and have been thru numerous surgeries. One side has gone thru tremendous trauma, and has a contraption in it unlike typical artificial hips. Recently I've realized I'm in more pain then I realized. Although physical pain has been with me for all of my adult life, there are times when it is almost none existent and many other times it is quite pronounced. Of course another surgery would probably fix it (this would be my ninth) but the thought of putting myself thru surgery with Isa somewhere without me is excruciating.

So I finally decided I would apply for disability again. (I pulled myself off of it before) it was an emotional decision. As I filled out the paper work I realized because I lived off my savings and was self employed I don't have enough work credits in the last ten years to apply for disability  (now able to smile as I write this). Oh the irony, all the emotional work I went thru to accept the idea of getting help only to realize help is unavailable. Looking back and knowing I could have applied for it before but at the time, wanting to stay as self sufficient as I could because I believed it was (and still believe) the right thing.

Because of my hip surgeries my insurance runs over $600. a month. (gulp).  I've now accepted this is how it is, worse case scenerio is it continue to rise.

Positive steps and strategies.
1. I will check other states to see if I can get insurance anywhere that isn't in the high risk pool.  
2. Move to another country.
3. Live on a very very conscious budget (excited about this, I've done it before) 
4. Stay positive. The knowledge I have excellent survival skills, did you know that Safeway/Vons grocery often has a separate garbage bin in the back for just their produce? I've shopped there before and its great.  Best of all...free!

My fear is with the economy as it is, my investments taking a hit there is little left to live on and my health insurance keeps spiraling upward. My sadness is my body is so fragile, I have to monitor what I do so carefully to keep my physical pain from spiraling out of control.

One More Mourning.
Okay I feel a little self conscious about all this mourning.... I mourn my loss of my home and community. We moved to Oregon to become part of a new Cohousing community. A community built around the importance of community and sustainability. I was so excited about this community particularly because it was created with NVC (non-violent communication) as one of it's guiding principals. 

Eight of the units are flats, with one unit below and another unit above it. The rest of the units are town houses. Because of my disability I chose a lower flat. It has been a total nightmare. Three of the upper units have bamboo floors. The result is as the people now living in my unit so aptly put, "it is like living in a bowling alley". The noise is awful.The couple who live there wanted to buy my home but I wouldn't sell it to them without them living in it. I honestly didn't know if the problem was me being overly sensitive or if it was an actual problem. They would love to buy it but there is no dollar amount they would pay in its present state.

  There is a sound team, countless hours spent researching solutions and causes but I am the one most apt to lose tens of thousands of dollars. The law allows for the builder and developer to screen themselves from being accountable. 

I worked so hard to have the money to buy this home, it was my safety net for raising Isa. It was my safety net should my body get worse.  It is my ever present sadness and grief.

My Gratitudes
I am finding my smile and my gratitude again today.

For my brother Christian who helped me laugh last night.

For the sound team at CoHo who understand community is about all the members in the community and have put in countless hours working on the sound issue.

My mom, when she divorced my abusive stepfather we went from middle class to very poor. I am so grateful for all the survival strategies she embodied. She had the gift of making them fun. My favorite was our Sunday night raids of Goodwill bins. At 4ft 10 inches and 95 lbs. I would lower her into the goodwill box, she would pull out clothes. We'd go thru and take what we needed and put the rest back.
Second favorite..going thru the garbage dumps and getting enough stuff to have a garage sale.

Really grateful for remembering that picking up the countless pieces of paper that Isa likes to cut is my need NOT her need. Grateful for Tiffany for that reminder. I feel so much freedom, I can once again enjoy my need for order instead of inflicting it on Isa. I love allowing her to come to it in her own space and time. Yea! 

So much gratitude for my Airstream and truck... Appreciating knowing that we always have a home.

Grateful that I am able to stay present and not get lost in an abyss of fear.

Gratitude for this sweet connection with all of you..
Thank you.Renee
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Morro Bay, California, United States

Morro Bay
We enjoyed that part of the country. There were festivals going on most every night. One night we drove to Atascadero for the winter fest. We're hanging out when this girl comes up to me and says Renee!!  It was Ginny and Randall's grand daughter who we had played in the pool with in Morgan Hill. She is such a special person and I was so delighted to run into her again.
Our trip was marred by the knowledge that a sexual predator was living (permanently) in the trailer park. That info wasn't shared by the office but by our soon to become friends and neighbors Gary and Joe. I was sad and disappointed the office didn't tell me before I got there, especially knowing I have a child. Then they told me  he wasn't around, that he was in jail. It turned out he was around, he just didn't have a car. We left.
I don't let Isa out of my site at any time regardless. In her short little life she's already had one incident of sexual inappropriateness and that was a huge wake up call for me.  I chose to have one of THE CONVERSATIONS. This was the conversation about staying with me, about keeping safe, about how not all people may think like us. I didn't want to make him into a bad person but it was really hard (he has been jailed for being a flasher). How do I tell her without vilifying this man? I welcome your thoughts. It is a tough one for me.
Gary and JoeIt was like having an older version of my brother Christian and his partner Paul (my brother in law) being next door. It wasn't just because they were gay, they just reminded me of Christian and Paul. They were guy guys, had a deep love and respect for one another and had been together for eleven years. They smoked, and Isa talked to them at great lengths about how her Uncle Paul smokes all the time and Uncle Christian hides when he smokes! It was news to me that she knew about Uncle Christian smoking. So they got her little lecture on the evils of smoking. New Years resolution any one????
They were really nice and fun to hang with, just heartfelt people on a journey.  Joe came over with cookies and presents before we left. We got to sit and talk for a while, it is sooo nice having adult conversation. Isa got the cutest travel kitty from him. She named her Malla....We are all planning on meeting up sometime this winter again.
I liked this area, I want to go back this spring but the weather front that many of you are sitting with right now? It was coming our way so I decided to head out.
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