Left Beverly Beach today for Junction City to have RV maint done. Cannot do RoadTrek maint in Juneau, so go lower 48, Canada or interior AK. Sun!

Beverly Beach. An angry sea today with heavy rain and strong winds. Tops of the breakers blowing sideways. Wind to be gtr 60mph.

Beverly Beach. Awakened to frost, calmer seas, sunshine and cloudless skies. Chet eats better, walks to beach, gets pats from dog lovers.

Am at Beverly Beach campground near Newport, OR. Cozy in RV. Jan here too. Winter storm coming and big waves to watch.

Picked up Chet

I am back in Oregon to be with my elderly dog Chet. He was not eating well at the boarding facility, so I came back and now have him with me. His caretaker did a wonderful job caring for him and gave him special attention and food to try and keep him eating. Chet greeted me with a big smile and a wagging tail. We will head toward the beach near Newport, Oregon and camp there for awhile.

Instant coffees

Before coming to Baja I experimented with instant coffees to find something good and easy to make when I drive down in January. I tried Starbucks, Fred Meyer and Folgers singles, instant Espresso and Nescafe. The instant Espresso and Starbucks were my favorites. Tho expensive I especially like Starbucks Italian Roast. Second was Espresso in a jar. Third were the singles that you use like a tea bag. I said "bleahhhh!" with the Nescafe. Did not like it at all.

Well, the reason I am bothering to mention all this is because of the Nescafe. My little store on the corner sells a Nescafe Clasico (made in Mexico) that actually tastes like good coffee.

Fashion and art show

Last evening there was a local art opening and fashion show in the Plaza. There were 4 judges for the fashion show who choose the best outfit and also the best accessory. It was fun. My friends from Loreto Bay showed up and we all went to dinner after. Loreto Bay is 5 miles south of town.

The local artist E. Davis was showing his paintings of wildlife and local places. My favorite was a painting of two breaching humpback whales. Reminds me of home, but different background. I loved the water splashes in the painting.

Today was market day. The market is a 20 minute walk from my house and located in the dry riverbed. Maybe someday I will be here when there is water in the arroyo....don't know if that will be a good or bad thing to see. There has been no rain here for 2 years now.

I bought dates, asparagus, avocados, kiwis, apples, red onions, garlic. There are still vegetables from last week in my fridge. The asparagus was a surprise. Had not seen that before at the market. Aspargus was 15 pesos for a 3 inch diameter bunch. Dates were 40 pesos a kilo. Did not pay attention to other prices.

Yesterday, I cooked the remainder of fish with onions and garlic and for the first time I cooked tomatillos. The tomatillos were cut into chunks and cooked with onion, garlic, black pepper and mushrooms to make a chunky salsa verde. It tastes good and I will eat it with the remaining fish. Was surprised to see the tomatillos cook a bit slimy like okra, but the slimyness was gone by the time all was browned and moisture reduced. Tomatillos will become a part of my kitchen.

Dee was at the market. We visited and stood quietly for a bit watching the mountains. Lolita, a pointed triangular mountain, is my landmark to the west and lies in the Sierra de la Gigante. The morning light was showing the mountains as I had never seen them with all their valleys and wrinkles. It was beautiful! The changes seen as the light moves during the day amazes me and I hope never to lose the wonder of that as I hope never to lose the wonder of Alaska.

I am reading "Suzanne's Diary for Nicholas" by James Patterson.