First week’s thoughts

Us & friends at Donner Camp Park

Love those big smiles!

Our family out in the cold–Donner Camp

One week in an RV. Five people. One cat. One bathroom. 🙂 Tiny hot water heater. Good neighbors. One “bear”??? Good times. Our first week in the mountains of Truckee has been a learning experience and a lot of fun. Have already learned not to exceed five squares of tp in the rv commode. And what happens when you do! We’ve learned how to take rapid showers if you want a hot one. Five minutes or less, or it’s cold!

We’ve learned quite a bit about the history of this place that we’re living–about the tragic story of the Donner Party, who sacrificed, and lost so much in their search for a better land. The story has intrigued us, yet is so heart wrenching as we learn more about their difficulties and tragedies. These mountains hold beauty and sorrow, grandeur and disappointment.

Our first reaction to California was surprise–we have to remember to take our own shopping bags to the store or get charged for some. I could have brought some if I’d have known! Because we went to the store several times and didn’t get bags, we ran into some interesting times trying to pack away our trash. I forgot to buy trash bags, so we resorted to using potato sacks, and whatever else we could recycle. I think we would actually do well to think of how much we toss out without thinking about it. We can accumulate a bundle of plastic grocery bags in a hurry at our house. At home, I often end up throwing out more of them than I should, just because we don’t have space to store them, and I don’t always want to load them up to recycle. But, when you don’t get any, then you really do miss their convenience! I actually look forward to collecting a few today to use around the rv. But, I plan on continuing the new habit of toting some reusable bags along when I go shopping, because we really truly don’t need all of the throwaway bags that we typically use! So–it’s not a bad thing to learn to economize in our throwing away habits! It’s just not real commonplace in Tennessee!

Work is going well for Daddy. He is out to work at before dawn and back home mostly after dusk, but has great people to work with and for. I know that it’s hard physical work most days, along the railroad tracks, but they all really seem to enjoy the challenge. It sound like we will be here in these mountains for another couple of weeks, then will move down the road to a warmer area. So, enjoy the snow while you can, boys!

One interesting highlight from our week occurred yesterday. One of our family members decided to store our two loaves of (organic, whole grain, not cheap) bread out on the picnic table at our site, due to our lack of fridge space. The weather was cold and snowy, so we knew it would be like an extended cooler. We went next door on Sabbath to visit and hang out with our friends during the afternoon. Before retiring for bed, I asked about the bread. Mr. Daddy went out to bring in the bread, only to find it gone (can you find something that’s gone? I don’t know)! Well, we had heard rumors about a bear that roams the rv park, but I’ll have to admit that I suspect the two-footed type of bread bandit rather than a bear who would swipe two loaves of bread and leave no trace. Wouldn’t a bear leave crumbs and plastic wrap and a big mess? I don’t have experience with bears, but all of the wild animals I’ve ever been around have always had pretty bad clean-up skills. All I can say is that whoever that bear was, he has good taste in bread, and we hope he enjoys it. Well, sort of.

I thought I was done with this post, but we took a routine trip to Wal-mart, and it turned into quite a day’s excursion. To get to Wal-mart we have to go into Reno. True to its reputation, a casino sits on practically every corner! We’re not into those, but we did make some interesting stops. Our friend took us into a store called Scheels, which is kind of like a Cabelas outfitter store. I don’t think it’s be much to see there, but was quite surprised I see a full-sized Ferris wheel inside the store! That was different! Our friend offered to give the boys a ride, which they gleefully accepted! The clerk told me he’d throw in a ride for me too, if I’d go, which I unsuspectingly accepted, forgetting my fear of heights. As soon as Little A3 and I got strapped in, I remembered, and a feeling of dread car over me. Up, up, up, we climbed. I decided to close my eyes and grit it out. Surprisingly, once we got going, it wasn’t so bad, but we made sure not to rock our basket even a little bit. I even got to where I didn’t mind it so much, except when they stopped us right at the too top. I didn’t appreciate that too much! But I did make it out alive, and all the boys loved it.

So, while we miss our Tennessee mountains and our friends and family there, we are doing pretty well. We are thankful to get the chance to see this beautiful part of the country, and to enjoy the adventures that happen along the way!