Independence Day IX
For the last nine years or so, our routine has been to join the neighborhood Association’s 4th July picnic. But much has changed in the community, as well as nation, so it was a real mental struggle to decide if we’d celebrate American Independence Day this year or not. It felt more like a funeral than a festive occasion. Nonetheless, mainly because we’ve done so in the past, and we have children who enjoy the holiday, we kept our chin up and recalled the Day as best we could, inviting a few local friends who ultimately had other plans (in other words absent from us).
Read the rest of this entry »North Fork American River
Itching to start our camping season before early June, we took off for the Auburn Recreation Area, pitching tents near Colfax CA. Admittedly, the trip was spurred by the inquiry of an Anglican priest who had interest in the United Episcopal Church and our UEMethodists. However, the face to face conference fell through for some inexplicable reason. Yet, it’s been a good seven years or so since we’ve spent time in Auburn, so it turned into a pleasurable family trip.
Read the rest of this entry »Coyote Creek
A few weeks after Benjamin’s birth, we took the family on another expedition of Coyote Creek, ultimately seeking its source. Coyote Creek is one of two major rivers that pass through Santa Clara Valley and San Jose into the southern part of the San Francisco Bay. We began at the mouth, exploring the Creek at the slough near old Plummers’ Landing, where, like its twin sister (the Guadalupe R), it exits the valley fairly dirty, with a number of homeless camps. Of the two, Coyote is the longer river with its font several miles further south, starting near Gilroy, essentially flowing through the entire length of the Santa Clara Valley, being the measure line of such! However, there remains some agricultural lands (some of the richest in the country) even today about its ending part which gives a quaint picture of the past. The rest of our adventure was much further upstream where the waters are clear and delightful (and safer) for small kids.
Read the rest of this entry »
Bunny Trails 