The day after 80 was briefly closed [“spinouts”] I followed Linda down off the desert,
stopped briefly at Pyramid Lake and again
in Wadsworth for gas before
three and a half hours of freeway put us and the dogs back in Benicia
to gradually unload, finishing off with rellenos and chile verde enchiladas from Elviarita’s.
Then it was back to the endless errands of the maritime climate; tire repairs,
foot repairs, carwashings, grocery shopping, the pleasant if bittersweet arrival
of Rick Watson’s “Amazons”, researched and written in London in the early 1970s but only finally realized after his passing last St. Patrick’s Day by multitalented daughter Beatie Wolfe.
Later in the week we ventured down the street for a much enjoyed return to Gabby’s
at the Union as much the same weather, days in and
nights out [or in] continued. They were saying las bambas cyclones
would arrive on the Tuesday a week after we did, but first it was a second
trip to Kaiser for a look at the knees. From the look of all those birds on their Vallejo light post
something was coming…but who knew when.
Glad to know you’re Back in Benicia (I see a song title there). Just took another tour through the photos of your odyssey of return. Wonderful. Quite the journey. Thanks for the vicarious travel, and we hope to see you before too long.
Thank you for the introduction to Beatie Wolfe.
Great photos. I Particularly liked the the image of the thing plus light textures.
I didn’t know Watson passed away……..what’s his Amazons about
Indeed Beatie seems a phenomenon!
Rick was an extraordinary human, and he fathered some extraordinary children who will carry on. “Amazons” documents the collision of indigenous and European cultures at first contact with depth and empathy. It waited half a century to be realized, most beautifully and according to his specific guidance.
Seeing the first couple of pictures reminded me how much I miss the open spaces of the desert.
Well it’s not Japan, that’s for sure…