This Must Be the Place

There is a song by the Talking heads, "This Must be the Place". I first heard it as a junior in Santa Barbara. It was a great year. I had met some great new people and was going on a lot of road trips. Anza Borego desert for the spring blooms (you could smell the flowers on a warm breeze). Havasu Falls, Hawaii, paddling around Ana Capa Island...Listening to this song, of course.

At one point I had an insight that not only is home a specific geographic spot (which to me is also very important as well) but home can be a feeling where you know you are with the right people in the right place for that moment.

It is only appropriate that I am reconnecting with this song again...I have been in Bend for almost 2 years now and have started to make some seriously good friends. It has been both a bumpy and a beautiful period for Troy and I (well, when has it not been??) but we continue to fall in love. And I am also falling in love with the Cascades in the summer, can you say canoe plus incredible lakes plus mountain views?.

But of course, at the same time I seriously miss California. So being down here prepping for my wedding, laughing at my parents, and seeing old friends - it all comes together and now "this must REALLY be the place" :p

Cali Moto Tour 2009 - A Note About Uncle Ron

One thing that was only briefly discussed before, and that I think deserves a little more time, is our encounter with “uncle” Ron, the gentleman in Truckee who took us in.

We ran into Ron in a bar in Truckee and he was excited to chat with us about the BMW Owners Anonymous listing and almost immediately offered us his spare room. Ron was pretty drunk and kept saying Meryl instead of Burl. He was also repeating himself a lot. He and his friend Rocky (who gave us his card and told us we could stay at his home in the bay area) had been fishing, eating and drinking all day. (EDIT: As I type this in, I realize it could come across as less than flattering. I want to be clear, Ron is a great guy, not some goofy drunk. We just happened to run into him at an endearingly intoxicated moment.)

So Ron was very chatty and told us all about his dancing skills, lady troubles and the woman in Prineville named Sheila who his niece wanted to set him up with, and whom was part of the motivation for his planned trip to Bend.

Ron gave us food, road advice, let us shower and dry our clothes and even washed the windshield on my motorcycle for me. He gave us some plastic bags to keep our gear dry and was hospitable in every way. It was great to run into such a person when we were wet and tired!

It will be fun to repay his generosity when he comes to stay in Bend.

(EDIT: Ron never did make it up to Bend that summer. Or at least we never heard about it if he did. We did make an attempt or two to get in touch with him and make sure he knew he was welcome. Maybe he’ll make it up this summer.)