ROAD TRIP to the Pacific Northwest...Day 22

Sunday November 10

When we got up, John was already in the kitchen preparing a final pot of Steel Cut oats. He wanted us to leave with a rib sticking breakfast, and we did.

It wasn't even 6am yet and we were fed, loaded and wheels rolling. As we drove down the road, the one that leads towards  highway 5 south, we had to proceed slowly; the fog was heavy and soupy think. Visibility was limited. The head lights weren't much help, nor was the predawn darkness.

 

Within 20 minutes we arrived at the Costco. It was just after 6:00am now and as we pulled in, we knew we were the first customers for the day. Now not only were our bellies full, our gas tank was as well. In less than 3 hours we were already in California, approaching the city of Redding. 

Do you remember in one of my earlier postings, when we were passing Redding on our way north? I mentioned that we thought about stopping to visit cousins Adrienne and Nick. Sadly we didn't have the time to stop and on the way home we were equally pressed for time. More about Nick and Adrienne in my Blog ROAD TRIP to the Pacific Northwest summary posting.

Instead of veering off onto the 99 South, and spending the night in Bakersfield, we decided to go along with the GPS and stay on highway 5, all the way up onto the Grapevine. As we crossed the summit, the GPS had us veer to the left onto highway 21o which, like on our way north, kept us away from the cities of Los Angeles and Riverside.

 

Kerry and I took turns this time behind the wheel, unlike our north bound journey where I did all of the driving. I liked the rest between shifts at the wheel. We were finally coming up onto Pasadena and as we approached the city limits, Kerry used the GPS to find a dog friendly motel. There weren't any. We decided to stop at a Super 8, one that the GPS suggested only a few miles up ahead. By now we were approaching our 10th hour and the tiresome hum of the tires beneath us was taking their toll.

 

As I checked in, the staff was extremely helpful and met all of my request without hesitation, especially my wanting to park near my room. They gave me a ground floor room at a discount. I noticed a sign that stated, "No Pets" which continued to warn that anyone who brings a dog or cat into a room will be charged an extra $200.00. I made sure they knew about Rosie and that I was planning on keeping her in the truck overnight (thus, my reason for wanting to park near my room). They were very compliant.

After we checked in, we took Rosie for a long walk. Along the way we came upon a Subway shop and as Kerry went in to order a to-go sandwich I stayed with Rosie outside.

 

Kerry and I, once back at the Super 8, tucked Rosie in (in the back of the truck) then went into our room, got comphy and ate our sandwich while watching a little CNN. We slept well (although I kept one ear open for Rosie, just in case she needed help). 

 

ROAD TRIP to the Pacific Northwest...Day 21

Saturday November 9

Another cool yet sunny day in Eagle Point. There was a heavy fog sitting upon the valley below. We watched it slowly morph while sipping our coffee's. It was all so peaceful.

 

The plan today was to have a brunch with cousin Steve in Ashland. His wife Helen was attending a cooking class so she wouldn't be joining us today. 

John and Steve ordered some sort of Salmon scramble while Kerry an June ordered a Tofu  (egg free) scramble.  I wanted a BLT but sadly, they didn't have that on the menu. "So, can I order a side of bacon?" I inquired. The waitress said sure. "Do you think you can find me a tomato back there?" I continued. She smiled. She knew where I was going with this. Then she added, "I think I could also find you some spinach to use instead of lettuce." I was getting excited now. Toasted Dry Rye (without mayo or butter) was the last piece of the puzzle. I enjoyed the most awesome BLT, ever. Yummy. Awesome food; awesome waitress; awesome memories.

 

Being a cooler morning in Ashland it was strange to see Steve arrive wearing shorts and sandals. He looked like he belonged in Tucson. When we were done eating we headed to Steve's house, to relax for an hour or so while waiting for Judith (our realtor). Steve's place was beautiful in regards to layout, landscaping and views.

Judith had lined up a few houses for us to view and we were to meet at the first home, in Ashland around noon. We arrived first, giving us time to explore the grounds. Not bad-not great either! Once Judith arrived we walked through the inside. My initial thought was that this house didn't have good bones.

 

Kerry and I noticed the house next door was also for sale. Since we were already there, Judith made a quick call and arranged for us to go inside immediately. We toured the house while the lady living there tried to stay out of our way. This was a nice place, but had too many levels and needed a lot of work, expensive work.

The next house we saw was an older building, dating back to the mid 1880's. This place had it all; low ceilings, tiny windows, uneven floors and narrow stairs that led up to a converted attic. The lot had an amazing view, but this house was in desperate need of expensive repair. Soon, we were on our way back to Jacksonville, to walk John through the house we saw the day before. We valued John's opinion and eagerly we took him from room to room, taking mental notes along the way. Jodi and Tiana were waiting there for us as we arrived. They were so excited.

 

Here is a little detail about this house, one that immediately attracted us. The kitchen was completely done over, with high end appliances, cabinetry, counters and flooring. The outside was ready to go with multiple decks (and views) as well as generous space for Kerry's garden. The bones were solid and the workmanship was top-of-the-line. All high-end stuff.

 

 

 

As we headed back to John's, John gave us his opinion...He confirmed what we thought. This was a great house and priced right. Kerry and I pondered this opportunity placed before us. What to do? What to do?

We had a dinner date at Erica's house. Bill was going to BBQ  a Tri Tip and Erica was going to create a bunch of other delights. Before we headed to Shady Cove where Erica and Bill live, we arranged for Judith to stop by at John's. We were going to place a lowball bid on the Jacksonville house, without expecting it to be actually considered, let alone accepted.

 

While at Erica's we enjoyed a great meal and shared some awesome family time together. Erica was doing great and looking amazing. Bill was looking pretty good too. They have a beautiful home on the edge of a hill, up high and deep in the woods. Very rustic and rural. When it was time to leave, Erica gave us a piece of cake to bring back for her dad. The cake almost didn't make it back...I was so tempted to pull over and consume.

 

Back at John's house, Kerry visited while I packed up the truck. Within 30 minutes I was fully prepared, bags packed, trucked loaded. Back in the house we enjoyed a bed time cup of tea while Kerry and I chatted with John and June about the offer we made on the house. All of the papers were signed and now it was a waiting game. It would be days before we expected to hear from Judith. No rush!

We both thought that this whole moving-to-Oregon thing was a God sanctioned event. My thought was that if our moving was meant to be, then God will align all of the puzzle pieces for us. The first piece of that puzzle was this house. If it happens, it happens. If it doesn't, we move on.

This would be our last night sleeping in the RV. Tomorrow would be a busy (long) day; heading home. The exact route we would end up taking back was yet to be determined.

ROAD TRIP to the Pacific Northwest...Day 20

Friday November 8

Now that the party was over it was time to have a Kerry and Ricky day. This would be a day when we got to do what we wanted. The only thing we had planned on doing was having dinner and Jodi's house. We were looking forward to that. Timo was doing his Mexican style BBQ and from what I remember, it was going to be amazing.

 

While slowly getting ready for the day, I started scanning the internet for homes in areas that were of interest to us. I found two, one in Ashland and one in a small town called Jacksonville. Kerry and I would do a drive by today, just to see what was out there as far as real estate inventory goes. Judith was setting up a few places we could go into on Saturday, beginning in Ashland at noon.

 

Kerry and I loaded Rosie into the car and headed for Ashland. We plugged the address we found online into the GPS and before long, we were pulling up in front of this beautiful home, on a steep hill, just above the University. We know that University neighborhoods hold their real estate value and are usually ahead of the curve as far as value growth goes. This was an impressive house, but slightly over priced for what we were willing to pay. As we peeked around, a neighbor across the street, doing some yard work, kept an eye on us the entire time. I waved to him as we drove off. He smiled and waved back.

 

John and June were trying to talk us out of Ashland because of the old hippy population that lives there. They also pointed out that this was a town full of Liberals. Hmmm, couldn't see a problem with that! There was an invasion of tourist in the summer time and that could  be an issue.

On the way back towards John's we GPS'd the address to the house in Jacksonville. What a quaint little town (population 2800). As we pulled up we saw an agent entering the house with a couple. We sat in the car and admired the curb appeal. We drove around Jacksonville to get a feel for this historical town

 

This house was just a couple of blocks from their down town business district. Calling the name on the realtor sign we ended up speaking with the husband of the husband and wife sales team. He said that his wife could meet us there in 30 minutes. We said that would be fine. We drove back to the house and were glad to see that the other couple had left, leaving us the freedom to peek around over fences and into windows.

Right on time the realtor showed up and the first thing she asked was if we had an agent.  We said we did and with a disappointed tone she still agreed to show us around inside. I will go more into what we saw in my Saturday blog. All I will say here is what we saw, we liked (very much).

As we left we told the agent that we wanted to come back with Kerry's brother, so we can see the place through a contractors eye. She agreed with the plan and suggested that we coordinate it with Judith (our agent in Medford). Done.

We gave a call to Judith and asked if she could add the Jacksonville house to our tour scheduled for Saturday. She agreed. Now it was time to head back home to get cleaned up for tonight's dinner with Jodi and her clan.

We arrived at Jodi's house at 5pm with our appetites. Timo served us a beautifully cooked Carne Asada with all the trimmings. We ate well. Jodi and her family made us feel right at home, like it had only been a day since we last saw each other. Wait a minute, it was only a day since we last saw them.

Jodi asked us if we were really considering moving there. We replied that we didn't know. We added that we were simply looking around to see what was available. We even suggested that if we found a cute place, one that we could lock up and leave for a long period of time we might consider spending our summers in Oregon, keeping a townhouse in Tucson for our winters. Jodi was excited by the possibility.

After getting back to John's, we had our regular bedtime cup of tea before heading to the RV for the night. Tomorrow was going to be a really busy day.

ROAD TRIP to the Pacific Northwest...Day 19

Thursday November 7

After waking to some of John's awesome Steel Cut oats, we had one more coffee before John gave us a private tour of Medford. We drove pass the old mill (previously owned by Junes folks) and then we stopped by at a building site where a friend of John's was building a house. I really liked the floor plan...only problem was that  it was on a regular city block with no views other than the houses across the street. This started me thinking about the possibility of simply buying a lot and building a custom house, one that Kerry and I could design...Kerry's dream house.

After John picked up some salmon, and other party supplies we headed back home to prep for the festivities. John was going to BBQ the salmon, a favorite dish enjoyed by many.

The party was fun. Cousins, nephews, nieces and friends joined in to celebrate June's 60th. I enjoyed the hugs from the younger family members as they shouted, "Hey, Uncle R Dude." For years that was their name for me. I like it. Watching John and Timo get whipped cream mustaches was hilarious. When I was asked if I wanted one too, I passed. I am not into having whipped cream up my nose.

As the party slowly came to an end, and the last guest made their way to their car, John, June, Kerry and me sat back to bask in the afterglow of a wonderful evening. We were surrounded by family the entire evening. The thought of what it would be like living here was lingering in the back of our minds. Instead of being a thought of "What if," the concept of moving from Tucson was becoming more of a "Why Not?"

We had so much to consider before making a decision one way or another. Most importantly, we decided to leave it up to God and see what he puts before us. Surely, if He wants this for us, there is a bigger purpose, one beyond what we could comprehend. Plus, if it was our destiny, then something would be put in our path, something we could not walk around, but instead, stop, study and ponder.

I wonder why I laughed as I fell asleep...