Travel Journals: San Luis Obispo 2019

Random Musings from San Luis Obispo:

(A click on any photo enlarges it to screeen size.)

Calla lilies in our front yard

At Home in San Luis Obispo

California's drought is over, it seems. We had the coolest and wettest month in SLO since we began spending our Januarys here. It rained on several days, sending us to the movies, an outcome we didn't mind. We don't see as many movies here as at the Santa Barbara International Film Festival. We probably see as many here in a month as we do all year back home.

Our hiking was limited because of the weather; but we got in some good ones nevertheless, including our annual trek to the top of Bishop Peak. (A tough climb, but we are still up to it!) Sections of trails were often slippery with mud, but not really a problem.

Back on the Trails Again

View from Bishop Peak

Good music again this year! The best was the SLO Jazz Society performance by the Ben Rosenbloom Trio. The Ben Rosenbloom Trio hasn't quite made the big time yet (although as we listened to them it was clear that they're on their way). Walking home, we noticed a couple of well-traveled camper vans parked near the venue and concluded that we were looking at both their means of travel and their home away from home.

We also attended an annual piano recital at Cal Poly featuring the school's head of the music department - W. Terrance Stiller. And there was also the annual "Bach at the Mission" concert at Mission San Luis Obispo. We got interactive with the music at Bang the Drum, a brew pub a short walk from our house, where we attended a Sunday night Salsa lesson. We danced and laughed and quaffed some good local brew with a congenial group of people. I managed to always be a half dozen steps behind Carol and everyone else, but I disguised my shortcomings with some slick improvisational moves.

On a visit to the co-op one day, I struck up a conversation about movies with the cashier. I mentioned that we saw "On the Basis of Sex," the docu-drama on Ruth Bader Ginsberg's life that was currently playing in town. I mentioned that we have to hope that she outlives Donald Trump's presidency. The cashier replied, "She can have any of my body parts that she needs."

It was Restaurant Month in SLO. We made sure to take advantage of this, visiting all of our favorite spots and discovering a great new one - Oasis Mediterranean Restaurant. New to us, that is; it's been around for a while. It's now on our list of favorites. Our local friends, M and Paula, took us to Taste, a brief walk from our place, for dinner one night. We've passed by it dozens of times over the years and pretty much ignored it, but it was really good.

Carol took a fall on a Sunday morning walk to the Black Horse coffee shop, where we always read the Sunday NY Times. She landed on her right hand, spraining and bruising it. I drove her to the local Urgent Care, where they took good care of her. No broken bones, fortunately, but healing has been a slow process.

I searched online for bocce courts in SLO and found one at Emerson Park, a short bike ride from our house. The park website stated that there's open bocce on Thursdays at noon. I was excited! When I checked it out, I found two guys my age playing. I asked if it were a slow day, and they said that the group was thus far comprised of the two of them. We chatted, and I watched. They invited me back. That was the last sunny Thursday of our stay in SLO, so I never got to play with them.

Carol and I left some of Rowdie's ashes at our favorite places to walk with her - Laguna Lake Open Space, Meadow Park in our neighborhood, South Hills Open Space and, of course, our back yard where she roamed free.

Laguna Lake Open Space

Morning Hike

On Saturday, the 19th, a lovely day, we walked to Mitchell Park, where a large, enthusiastic gathered for the annual Women's March. We listened to some speeches and a spirited poem read by local poet Dian Sousa. (It is the voice of resistance. Try reading it aloud to yourself.) We marched through downtown SLO in bright sunshine, a big improvement over the first march in 2017, when we marched in a heavy downpour to protest, along with hundreds of thousands around the world, the inauguration of Donald Trump. In 2019, the focus of the SLO Women's March has evolved. Their mission statement says, in part, that they stand in solidarity to protect human rights, the safety and health of all people and our planet as we move toward a positive and just future. They proclaim, "We are actively nonviolent in words and action. We work to unify our nation's diverse communities. We recognize that there is no true peace, freedom or inclusion without equity for all."

I can buy into that.

Women's March

The men joined the women.

Toward the end of our stay, our good friends, Jan and Dave, paid us a visit. It's always good to see them, and we had a great time. Cooking together was a highlight. Jan cooks a great breakfast, and Dave is Best Dishwasher Ever. Carol and I felt like royalty. Dave had the misfortune of coming down with a mean cold the day they arrived. He gamely kept up with us on most of our adventures, but wasn't able to do much hiking. He was healthy enough to visit the bocce ball court with me, where we got in a few games.

Hiking Enthusiasts, Good Friends

Hiking Reservoir Canyon Trail - Play Break

Lunch with a View on Reservoir Canyon Trail

The Incident of the Iced Tea and the Computer: How do you have an "incident" with a glass of iced tea? Well, you let a full glass of the stuff get too close to a MacBook and then you go and get all clumsy. The Apple tech who opened up my laptop to look inside said, "There was a lot of iced tea in there." That was the end of my MacBook Air, and the principal cause of this year's delayed Travel Journal posts. I'm typing these words on my new (refurbished and insured) MacBook Air.

That's it from San Luis Obispo. I'll finish with some of my favorite photos from this year's stay.