At the Crossroads

(somewhere in the neighborhood. pulled this off a 4x4 site. The road is not quite that bad. Lots of places off the path for these guys. I searched my street name and photos and this is definitely where I live)
At the top of the steep hill which is all unpaved, bumping dirt road, I turn left to reach my place. There is a sign there at the corner and little area for other signs or what have you.

Today there were cars pulled over at that corner and a woman flagged me down. They were gathered to toast a man who died up here recently. He was a big force in the neighborhood fire council, and road maintenance. His illness came fairly quickly and he did not suffer for too long. The condition of the dirt road speaks loudly of how much his influence is missed. I have to reduce speed to about two miles per hour in spots, or else my fillings would be rattled out of my teeth. I don't have many fillings, but I need them.

I thought it was an interesting and touching thing that people stopped and the ones already there handed them ginger ale or a martini to toast Dave. This is a unique neighborhood.

A group of five people on horseback stopped by while I was there. They were just out for a late afternoon ride, in the cool before sundown. They live a little further up the road. There are several horses up here. East county is horse country.

I'm somewhat less social than just about everyone else, but they flagged me down by name. Then the lady said she'd been keeping up with my music exploits on facebook. Cliff's wife and others post video clips and pictures which include me or sometimes feature me. I don't put anything there. It was a nice thing to hear, in any case. I guess the people remember me from the party last year. And maybe from my short lived association with the cute cowgirl up the hill. That was a case in which backing up was the correct solution for me. But I have no regret.

I've never lived anywhere like this. If I moved and didn't have a mile of dirt road and lots of distance from other dwellings, I'd be disappointed. This place could spoil a guy. It has spoiled a guy. Some very nice people. We also have our crazies, but they cause few problems. What a find this place was.

****when you can't cover your corruption otherwise, and your lies are transparent, best thing to do is appeal to a vaguely religious nerve, even if it is nonsense.
Jerry Brown and Arnold recently came to Alpine to dedicate the sunrise power link fiasco, and I guess rub salt in the wound:
Gov. Brown: "Earth’s Future is More Important Than Preserving East County". ????Come again? You've created a fire hazard, destroyed land, etc. etc. Well, good news, Earthlings, the future of your planet is now secure. Dingbat Brown has pronounced it so!
east edge of Alpine (I love these official dedications by corrupt bureaucrats pretending they are doing a favor to the world instead of stealing and lying. Such phony creeps)
The point is: our ex republican governator and our present democratic governor, Moonbeam, are in on the same corruption. Do not believe that republicans are into big money and dems aren't. That is patently false.

Oh, the ex-Governator also had a great quote at this event: "Dis wil bwing Mega Bytes of ewectwicity to da people..." Can't wait for them mega bytes, Ahnold. Watt you say?