April 2017: Alone at home but not alone in Carlsbad

I've been at South Carlsbad State Beach (volunteering as a camp host in exchange for the privilege of living at the beach) since January 1 this year.  Mike and started coming here in 2014 during our 2nd year of our full time motor home living adventure.

I'll talk more about the camp host aspect of my time here in another post.  Right now I'd like to talk about my non-volunteer activities and the people who make this time interesting because.....

I have heard concerns from a number of my family and friends about whether it was a good idea for me to come down here all alone so soon.  Mike and I talked about it before he left and we both agreed it would be OK because the town, the work and the people are familiar.  Those who have been here to visit us understand.

First of all, it is beautiful ocean front living.  With ever changing neighbors. Here is a photo of unfavorable neighbors who sometimes block my view completely.  Not a biggie because I know they will be gone soon. There is a one week camping limit in this state park.

Here is a photo of better neighbors who park off to the right and let me see the view.  

And here is the joyous view from my front door when there are no neighbors at all -

 like the weeks of  January 16 - March 4, when the north end of the park was closed to campers 

for seasonal maintenance work.  

Six weeks with no neighbors during the winter storms.  Perfect!

I have seen whale spouts from my front window, and the sound of the surf is very relaxing.  

But don't worry, along with the 180 degree ocean view I can also see the  campground's 

check in booth out the driver's side windows only 100 yards away!

  

Next on the plus column is the short distance to community services.  Groceries are less than a mile away.  The library is four miles away.  I have been getting books on tape from there since I'm stationary long enough to listen and return.  The Carlsbad Senior Center is six miles away.  I've been going there on Monday mornings for Spanish class and occasionally on Tuesday mornings for knitting circle.  Both of these activities have been satisfying for me personally and I have added names to my new friend list as a result of my attendance at both activities.  Carlsbad Hospice is six miles away.  They offer grief yoga on Thursdays at noon.  What a wonderful experience that has been.  The instructor lost her husband when in her twenties.  She knows how to relate and invites us to fully experience our own grief as only we now how.

Finally, we are making new friends.  Here we are with Beth and Mike last year at the beach.  We met them last year through the Parkinson's Assoc. Support Group meetings, and have been in touch ever since.

Last year Beth introduced me to Robin who lives across the street and walks through the park regularly.  This week the three of us met for lunch, and afterwards,  Robin took me up to see the Carlsbad Flower Fields.  They are a 50 acre area overlooking the ocean and are in stunning full bloom right now.

I've had play dates and meal time with a fellow knitter friend, and meet ups with other Spanish learners where we only hable espanol.

And then there are the camp hosts.  Other like minded folks who come to the beach for three to four months at the same time each year.  Here is Pete and Nancy.  They have time hosting seniority and showed Mike and me the social ropes during our first year.  This year Pete just happened by in his golf cart one night at dusk when I was out walking and really needed a hug,  Thanks, Pete! Nancy is a fellow knitter and I'm working on her fingerless gloves pattern right now.  Thanks, Nancy!

Mike and Kathy have been my on-duty shift partners for two years during Jan and Feb.  Mike was my Elks Club sponsor last year and Kathy makes pleasant campfire company at night.

Here we are with Pete and Patty who we worked with during our first year here, and who we met by accident in the fall of 2015 when they just happened to be at Folsom Lake State Park the same days we were there visiting with Mike's sister, Chris.  Small world!

Randy and Lois follow me in to Site 127 after I leave at the end of April, 

and helped us celebrate my birthday last year when Mike and I had a week of R & R 

in the campground here after returning from Mexico.

There are other camp host friends from Carlsbad but no pictures to prove it... Richard and Eddie Mike and Elena, George and Pam, George and Barbara.

All these folks make me feel welcome and safe. I look forward to keeping in touch with their adventures as they travel through life and meeting up with them once a year at South Carlsbad State Beach.