Small Town

 

Like many of my posts, I wrote this a while ago, but it sat in the 'to be edited’ folder for a long time. Well, if you are reading this, it is out.

We bought a home over a year ago, in the suburbs of San Diego. Most of my adult life I have spent in the suburbs of one place or another- San Diego, San Jose, Utah, etc. But I can’t help to wonder from time to time, what might it be like to live somewhere other than the suburbs. I sometimes think back to my time in Wyoming, or even the ranch we stayed at in San Jose (of all places [the other place in San Jose was an apartment]) and wonder what it would be like to live in a more rural area. Perhaps even at that cabin in the woods I always think about.

On the other extreme, I think about moving downtown, or to live in the downtown of a city. It could be fun to really experience a walkable living experience. I sometimes don’t love driving everywhere. In the suburbs it's the only option. If I lived in the city, I might experience something else. 

Or, what if I combined both of those? What if I stayed in the downtown of a very small town? I have passed through small towns over the years each with a downtown, or really, more like a main street. You know, the kind of place you would see older looking two story buildings with an aged storefront on the bottom floor. I have sometimes wondered what it would be like to stay in the apartment upstairs. 

Well, I’m finally living that experience right now (when I initially wrote this article that is). Now I know what it is like. Musty! Ok, maybe not every upstairs apartment in a small town’s main street smells musty, but the one I am in does. Which is a bit unfortunate, because otherwise the place is so quaint. You can open the windows to see a pretty quiet main street. I sometimes think things in the suburbs close early, but here things really do. Most of the shops are closed at 5 or 6, the restaurant below us at 8, the gas station at 10, and then I think that is everything. 

My one other complaint staying in Nauvoo, Illinois, by the Mississippi river, is the flies. There are a lot and they are annoying.  Otherwise, it is a lovely little town. The sites run by the LDS church are nice, lots of free stuff which is fun. 

Some other properties in the area aren’t run by the LDS church but rather the Community of Christ (well they were at the time, that has since changed!), which was once called the Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. I thought some of their recounting of history was interesting, maybe I will go into more detail on another blog of mine. I’ll add a link here if I ever get around to it. 

Ok now back to present day Ricky. The time in Nauvoo was very enjoyable. I should write about the experience overall, rather than just focusing on one aspect of the trip, the odd little apartment thing we stayed in. 

I guess there are really just a handful of things to do there, see historic sites related to the early Latter-day Saints and go to gift shops that cater to people that go to such sites. Still, both parts were enjoyable. I even bought something from one of the gift shops there and I was tempted to buy more, which isn’t very frugal of me. 

Anyways, it was a little funny how it all worked out. I had never gone to Illinois in my life, when suddenly I went twice in the space of a month. Once a personal trip, this trip to Nauvoo, and then again for a work trip, for a conference. And I haven’t been back since. Hopefully I will make another trip out that way at some point there. 

Bryce Canyon

 Brooke and I took a much needed vacation this week(well, quite a few weeks at this point) to Bryce Canyon. The last time we went on a vacation was August of last year. Although, at my current production schedule, this post will probably be out in August of next year!

 

I’ve been to quite a few national and state parks in Utah, but I don’t remember going to Bryce Canyon before. The main feature of Bryce is these interesting standing rock pillars called hoodoos, which are formed via water seeping into the ground and then freezing, causing gaps to expand between the rock. Eventually they form these stand alone pillars.

The park was fun, although, I will say, it is kind of just one thing. Like here are some hoodoos, travel a bit, now here at the same hoodoos from another view point. Then you hike through the hoodoos. This hoodoo looks like Queen Victoria. So the one experience is like a kind of one note. Granted there is a lot more variety than the St. Louis arch, which was truly one note (here is the arch, and that is it).

 

I thought the accommodations were kind of fun. We stayed at the “Ruby Inn”. For dinner, there was a buffet, the Cowboy Buffet and Steakroom. Which I thought was great. Granted, this wasn’t a fine dining establishment (think hometown buffet). But all the meat options were pretty good, there was meatloaf, smothered pork chops, ribs, pot roast, teriyaki chicken. There was also salmon, but I didn’t want to eat that at a buffet in Utah! The salad bar was good, something like you would have at a sizzler, or any other salad bar. I probably ate 4,000 calories.

 

I think the last time I went to a buffet was Hometown Buffet near Van Nuys after my grandfather’s funeral. It was fun to go to one again. I didn’t need to eat anything until breakfast the next day, and even then, I wasn’t starving. The breakfast buffet was also good, but it was mostly just the same fare any hotel breakfast place would offer, well, an upscale one at least. Eggs, potatoes, meat of the day, carb of the day (pancakes or french toast), yogurt, fruit, cereal, cottage cheese, oatmeat, toast, bagels, etc.  I guess one nice thing is the syrup and salsa were both in the hot food section and were warm, which was a nice touch.

All the Meat You Will Eat

 If case you haven't heard yet, I wrote a new book,  a children's picture book in fact! I had a little episode of my podcast Ricky Rambles where I talk about it.

Link to the book