Page 44 - Sonoma County Gazette - August 2017

Life on the Coast...Lately I have been reflecting back on the earliest days of my life on the coast as a young impressionable adult finding a ‘new life’ as I left the city. This reflection comes from looking at my old book collection that I have held on to for many a moon thinking one day I will get back to them and these ideas. Well – now is the time as retirement sets in.
Titles such as ‘Grateful Dead – The Story’, ‘Be Here Now’ by the Lama Foundation, ‘Earthstewards” by Danaan Perry, ‘Reflections of a Year’ by Brother Tolbert,
‘Living on the Earth’ by Alicia Bay Laurel, ‘Laurel’s Kitchen’, ‘Massage in the Woods’, ‘What is Worth While’ and many more. Oh Annapolis how I love you! It was a time when we lived truly simple. We had potlucks that we set up on the neighborhood dirt road called ‘the loop’. Most of the food was from what we grew in our well attended gardens. The rest came from our community coop order that one of us would pick up from Mountain People’s Warehouse in Santa Rosa, return to our community building owned by George Mandell, then hang out together while dividing up the good and healthy food. We were organic before it was a ‘thing’. We would all know that Saturdays and Sundays (and many other days during the heat of the day) were creek days were we swam with little or nothing on in Brushy Creek. We built our own houses or repaired what we lived in. Mine was a three story tree house and later a dome where my two oldest boys were born. We watched each other’s kids and took good care of each other in helping with big house projects, or little garden tasks. I love those times. I am not sure when things started to change for most of us but I think
it had to do with paying the bills and getting jobs ‘off the mountain’. These books are everything and a true treasure. What are your earliest memories living on the coast?
I have been blessed to have my granddaughter, Makyla, here for a few weeks this summer. We made a ‘charm’ quilt with many of my old hippie Guatemalan clothing and tye dyed clothes from those ‘old times’. We also have old doilies from her great great grandmother which we have added, as well as favorite pieces from all her family. Every piece tells a story. What we have in our life are treasured memories, as well as the ‘Be Here Now’ moments. I hope you all find treasures in the ‘then and now’ of our individual lives. Our community has a wonderful quilting group, Pacific Piecemakers Quilt Guild, if you ever want to learn more. This group of folks is very active offering comfort quilts
to the sick and those needing some home town comfort as well as classes and simple days of getting together. I was thrilled to join them a few weeks back. Everyone brings their own sewing machines, and projects. They share and offer ideas to each other. Thank you Joyce Gaudet for inviting me. For more info visit gualalaarts.org/interest-groups/pacific-piecemakers-quilt-guild- ppqg/
This month Gualala Arts celebrates the many arts in our community with the Arts in the Redwoods August 10-13. This is one of the most amazing art shows in Sonoma-Mendocino Counties. For full details and times visit their web at gualalaarts.org/2017/08/art-in-the-redwoods-2017/.
Music by the Estero...In lovely Jenner, Fish Stock 2017 is gearing up. This is a fun, family friendly celebration of the sea and community. Good food from the sea, good music, beer and wine and plenty of activities. The web is not fully updated but this event generally takes place Labor Day weekend on Sunday. Visit them at www.fishstock.org/
Of course there are many more events on our coast in August. If you want me to highlight your event or business or you have a story to share, I really love getting to know many of you. If you would like your event or business highlighted I would love too. Contact me at robinjoy@mcn.org.
The readership on the coast is growing. Lovin’ you and lovin’ the treasures this coast brings.
This column almost never happened. My computer, in its wisdom, erased the first draft saying the File is Corrupt and Can Not Be Opened. I had no idea what salacious data I had happened onto, but maybe I should have tried to sell it. Since all I typed were the Grange minutes of the last meeting, I was perplexed. Oh well, as always Jade Paterson is the one to call. I don’t know what we would do without her expertise. As usual, she has restored my column.Apparently there are evil doers out there who grab on to an e-mail and get into your computer and do their dirty work (demanding that you pay them to get your files back). Jade assures me that it is just the luck of the draw.. and not to take it personally (and NEVER send money to some brigand who demands it by corrupting your files). We are lucky to have Jade in Bodega Bay!
The big news here is that the dredging will occur. The channel has silted
up so significantly that some boats have a problem with entry/exit. This is really good news to the marine industry, which is so important to Bodega Bay. The Firefighters’ pancake breakfast was a big hit, as usual, but the fog pretty much obliterated the fireworks. Too bad we didn’t know, and postponed them. Two nights later the moon was absolutely splendid. As I mentioned in our neighbor column, the night that I will not soon forget was when the moon was not quite full, but it came up just as the sunset was fading. The juxtaposition
of the moon sitting on a red sunset, with the whole scene resting on the very blue color of the tide, all of which sat on a gray frame of the vestiges of the fog coming in was wonderful and would make anyone with artistic talent rush to memorialize this moment. There is nothing like an 108 degree temperature in Sacramento to swell the influx of tourists into our small town. The huge traffic lines were so great last week that some of our residents couldn’t even get out
of their own driveways. It is always amazing, when you make the mistake of going to the post office on a weekend, to see the bumper to bumper line of
cars on Highway One, none of which will stop long enough to let someone who wants to turn achieve that dangerous decision. One of my friends who lives along that road says he is constantly amazed that no tourist will stop
long enough to let someone who lives there get into the traffic flow. (Leaving the postoffice and trying to go north is almost as bad.) We are lucky to have such dedicated employees who care about the locals. Last week there was a water leak in the system and the PUD (Public Utility District) had gone to great lengths to notify all of us that the turnoff was coming. They gave us plenty
of time to fill up pans and tubs with the water we would need during the
day and proceeded to start work exactly as they told us they would. During the inconvenience they carefully posted signs and when it was only one lane they controlled traffic (on our very narrow little road,that was useful). We are lucky to have public agencies that care about those they serve. It is somewhat more difficult to live in Bodega Bay when you are aging. Without a bank or
a doctor or dentist you do a good bit of driving. If we could only get some
form of public conveyance (even a bus with a schedule that would be posted and useful) it would be perfect. We continue to try to establish some kind of Meals on Wheels, or a local food bank so that those without a car can get the food supplies they need. The local Grange members who are among those trying to establish a charitable corporation have recognized this. They have done extensive research and have concluded that this is the way to get food
to those unable to drive to Santa Rosa. Kudoes to them for working on this project. The aging populace is energetic and involved in everything from
our churches to our school to our community service. There are still some
gaps .The nearest Senior Center is in Sebastapol. Several of us have explored initating involvement with them, but all require driving (back to the need for public transportation.) At the next community meeting we hope to have this underlying problem addressed. It is interesting when your doctor stresses exercise as the remedy for nearly everything. Since we have no gym, many
of us elect to go to Yoga. It meets at the community center three days a week, and the leaders (even the substitute when Vickie is gone) are excellent. Yoga is great for those of us who have managed to edge into old age, and still don’t feel old. In fact, several of us in this class are over 80 – and still kicking. The only caveat is, don’t wear precious jewelry. Last Monday I forgot to take off my gold earrings until I was in the middle of my version of downward dog. I quickly removed them and put them aside. Alas! I forgot to hunt for them when I left.
44 - www.sonomacountygazette.com - 8/17
BODEGA BAY cont’d on page 45