Weekend in Paso Robles, visiting family at brother’s new house. Hot and dry, surrounded by pastures and orchards. People have real acreage and elbow room, in exchange for lots of dust, foxtails in the socks, and eight miles to nearest store. Sushi feast with family at golden hour. None of them had seen Miles since he was three months old. Now he sits on dad’s motorcycle (not running) and smiles wide. Hooked up chintzy FM transmitter to iPod and listened to David Sedaris stories much of the trip. Coast highway home, it’s been a long time. Over the past 20 years I’ve negotiated this, the most beautiful highway in the nation, in a ’66 VW bus, ’82 Honda kook car, ’78 convertible bug, family station wagon, various motorcycles, our capable Camry. Stopped at Nepenthe for hummus and endless Pacific view in warm air of early summer. The last weekend out before big push of packing, moving in to new place, the start of the DIY projects cycle.
Paso Robles
Music: Godley & Creme :: Don’t Sqeeze Me Like Toothpaste
Whoa, a Camry! You guys really *are* suburbanites ;) BTW, don’t take my teasing too seriously. *I* belong in that group, too. We have a Honda Odyssey minivan already (love it, great at what it’s for) and I’ve been looking at the Camry as my next, new car :)
The drive sounds like fun. My favorite drives in Texas are through the Hill Country. Like Fredericksburg to Kerrville, or Vanderpool to Leakey (pronounced “Lake-y”).
Oh, the Camry’s nothing. I mean that in a good way. Nothing wrong with it, but nothing to recommend it either, beyond reliability. It just goes and goes. We don’t actually like it – it just works and works boringly. Boring drive, boring to look at, boring to be in. We’re not car people so it doesn’t bother us much, although it is annoying that virtually every car on the road can pass us going up the slightest hill.
And it feels mushy. Talk about West-coast suburban: We’re talking now about trading in for a Subaru Outback.
I’ve always liked Subarus. The horizontally opposed engine just seems like a more intelligent design (and yes, I used to own a VW – a ’66 Bug which I rebuilt myself using John Muir’s “How to Keep Your VW Alive” ;)
http://www.travelmatters.com/vw/stories.html
David, the Muir book changed my life too. I had a ’72 squareback I paid $400 for. It blew a cylinder wall just a few weeks later. I had no money to repair it. Someone recommended the Muir book. A week later I pulled the engine and rebuilt it, with no mechanical experience to speak of. It was totally empowering. I’d still love to have another air-cooled VW. Maybe a Ghia.
Scot,
You’re brother sounds like a really cool guy! His property sounds real nice, ill bet its a lot of work though!
I own a boxy lil Camry, too. I love to leave my little sporty car in the driveway so I can get passed up in my boatmobile.