Traveling is just a series of mishaps.

Or as Bilbo would say, "adventures."

For instance, every motel we hit, I know that there will be at least one thing wrong. We've been staying at the Comfort Inn chain on our trips, which are affordable but provide the right level of ease.

Anyway, our first day out, we get to Weed, Ca, and see the big new Comfort Inn and pull up.

"Oh," says the clerk. "Is it possible you're booked in the Quality Inn?"

I seem to remember that the Comfort Inn was full and we went with the second alternative.

Behind the Comfort Inn, as if hidden in shame, is a smaller beat up motel, which is in the process of being renovated. The room itself wasn't too bad, but it lacked lights, or curtains, or a proper lock and so on, but overall, I'd felt the clerk had done his best. But man, for the most expensive stay on our trip, it was by far the shabbiest.

In the end, we're just there to sleep before moving on, so we just live with it.


Next night, in Redding, the motel is nice and new, but we leave our shampoo behind. We were visiting Linda's relatives in Burney, Ca. By the map, Burney is about halfway between Redding and Weed, so we stayed at the motels and just came back to their house. Turns out, the map didn't really show how long and windy the road is, (or the terrible California drivers, who travel in frightened little caravans.) So Dan thought we were pretty nuts to get up an go and then get up and come back, but that's the price I extracted from Linda. I want a private place at the beginning and end of every day.

Truth is, I can be all social and all for, oh, an hour or two. Then, it's as if I shut down. No more chit chat. No more family (not my family) reminisces. They have a truly beautiful cabin in the woods, overlooking a creek. So I went walking in the 105 degree weather, drenched in sweat. Took their dog, Bear, down to the creek and threw his stick into the water, spent five minutes wrestling it away from him, threw it in the water, spent five minutes wrestling the stick away from him, threw it in the water...

Linda is very close to her two nieces, Norma and Ramona, and I'm really happy for her. I like them too. And Dan, and Linda's brother from La Pine, Dave, came down. Dan took me and Dave on a boony-stomping tour of the outback, which was really interesting -- not really the great basin, but more like southern Oregon, around Ashland.

Next day, went to Burney Falls State Park, which was very picturesque, and packed with people. Came in through the non-charging, backway path that residents seem to know about.

So far, I was getting my long walks in and sticking to my diet. Mostly, because we weren't near any restaurants. Had a one dollar burger at McDonalds, which my stomach -- after being a virgin for 6 weeks -- didn't much like.

So wouldn't you know it, this trip, I had decided I wouldn't take as many clothes. And of course, this trip I was walking in 100 to 108 degree weather and sweating like a pig. Three days left, and I'm down to my last change. Last two days, it will be just Linda and me, and I've warned her she'll have to put up with my stink.

Next night, we stayed at Red Bluff, before we made the big push down to her sister, Mary's, house outside of Fresno. Very nice motel, but...the T.V. was in Spanish and nothing we or the clerk could do would change that. Oh, well. Every motel has it's quirks.

By now, we're "Gold" members at Comfort Inn. "Oh, you're Gold member! Welcome!"

"What do we get for being a Gold Member?" I ask, hoping for a foot massage, or breakfast in bed or something.

"Just means you've been staying with us a lot," she says.

Uh, yeah.

Next day, we headed for Merced. Only a four hour trip from Red Bluff, so we stopped in Elk Grove and watched the Bourne movie. Got lost trying to find the theater. Linda and I have fundamentally different ways of getting places. She will follow whatever path the computer maps out for us, and I just want to study the map and find the most well-defined roads my own way.

Personally, I think my way works best and she thinks her way works best. Which would be all right, I mean we could agree to disagree, and take turns. But our basic mistake is not studying the map sufficiently before we start, and then agreeing totally, in full communication, about our route.

It's about the only time Linda and I can actually get heated over something. Fortunately, we seem to get over it quick. I used to joke that every couple should have to travel with each other before they get hitched. After yesterdays argument, I said, "I take it back. No couple should travel together before they get hitched!"

Got the Merced, and I went on a long walk along a pathway following Bear Creek. The shrubs grow big in these parts -- all the plants do. But there is development EVERYWHERE, no land use planning, and a series of small town (small, I say, but each would rank fairly high up in Oregon in population -- Elk Grove? 150K? What?)

I'm still feeling my way about the proper distances we should and can travel. Too long on some of our Oklahoma trip, too short on some of this trip.

Fresno, I believe, is the farthest south in California I've gone.