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Hemet’s Not So Bad
It’s about time I popped back on here to tell you that I’m getting over my funk. Hemet is not so bad. I grew up here and there are so many things that I do truly love. I think I just needed some time to adjust from all the fun I had in the Bay Area. It’s a bit of a culture shock at first. But now I’m back to loving the sunrises and sunsets, the beautiful wild flowers and cactus blooms, all the time I have to do fun projects with my parents… It’s good to be home.
My bedroom is full of sunlight. I’ve had time to sew a dress with very visible mending (something I’ve been fascinated by for a while.) I started a newsletter for the entire park and of course I’m up to my usual hunting for great things to photograph. Hemet is photogenic when you live way out in the sticks like we do.
I miss having a car. I miss going places. But I don’t think I’ll ever get bored here.
There is always something to look at here. I’m a desert child forever. I find so much beauty in the desert. It takes a lot of strength of character to live out here. The temperatures are extreme and I know summer heat waves are just around the corner. But like mid-westerners go inside all winter, we go inside all summer. Homes are built different. They have low roofs and long extended carports built in light colors. Inside we stay cool with just a simple swamp cooler. I know the word “swamp cooler” sounds gross but in a dry heat, running air over cooled water feels just like air conditioning. We don’t have humidity out here. It’s not swampy at all. And a swamp cooler is a lot cheaper than air conditioning. When I sit in the stiff breeze of a swamp cooler it reminds me of my childhood. I start thinking about popsicles and BMX bikes…
Another thing helping me stay happy and uplifted lately is, Marley, my neighbor’s dog who I’ve been dog-sitting all week. He is SO CUTE.
They don’t know it but I’ve been spoiling Marley rotten with all the walks, tummy rubs and treats. My secret agenda is to love him up so much that he comes back to live with me for good. Just kidding. I don’t want to steal my neighbors’ dog but I do want him to come running to me when we meet each other out on the streets for our morning and afternoon walks. I love all animals. I’ve loved not having to worry about who’s going to take care of Cody when I travel and never worrying about getting back to him to let him out to pee BUT I do miss him as a constant companion. There are an awful lot of serotonin hits to having a pet around loving you constantly. Someday I’ll get Momo and Cody back. Sigh…
So yeah, these are the skies I love. When the June gloom is gone I get to look at these skies and these mountains every day. They help a lot.
I’ve also added a new job title to my resume: Gardner. My dad needed help whacking down the weeds at my cousin’s house this week so I picked up a weed-eater and went to town. It was fun! Yes, it was brutal sweaty work but I love it when I can combine a work-out and making money at the same time. Physical labor has its perks.
Bug came to visit me this Friday and brought flowers. She knows me. Peonies are in season and she brought a bunch of them. I love them and her! I made her an apple pie per her request but my parent’s oven is not great so it was kind of not done all the way. Good thing we both love semi-cooked dough and soupy apples!
Anyway, that’s the latest update from Brenda in the Sticks!
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A Woman and her Dog
I am so sentimental. I took Cody on a “last walk” and made it a big deal. We took pictures, stopped and rested in all the shady places, and had petting fests. It was great.
He was happy, and I was getting through the grieving process that I had built into a bigger deal than it needed to be. This goodbye went exactly the way it needed to. I stayed for a week and watched Cody act like a puppy again with five other dogs to play with. He likes my brother, he LOVES my sister-in-law who gives him treats all the time. He is going to be a happy, healthy, well-cared-for dog. In fact, they’ve already taken him to the vet, and his tumors are benign! What a relief! He’s already better off because of his new home.
Me, well, I’m okay too. Of course, I will miss our walks and all the times he follows me around with his big sighs and adorable puppy eyes. I’ll miss cuddling with him when I’m cold and having silly conversations with him. But there are a lot of things I won’t miss. Like DOG HAIR EVERYWHERE! The slobbers, the constant having to hurry back in case he needs to go outside to pee when I’m gone—the worry!! I worried about him all the time. I’ve always been a helicopter mom, and I was no different as a dog mom.
We walked downtown, and I took some cool photos of old buildings. You know what I will miss the most besides his constant adorableness? The feeling of being safe with a big dog. I could walk in neighborhoods I didn’t know without fear. I could walk at night (not that I did, but I could if needed). I could walk by scary guys and know that Cody would growl and take a chomp out of them if they even dared to act aggressively toward me. I loved having a big dog. He was a kitten in spirit, but he could look scary when he needed to, and I always felt safe with him.
I hope we both live long enough to be reunited. I like to dream of all the lives we might someday have. But if this is the only one we got, it was pretty good!
