8/22/10 Hello from sunny Sacramento. We are set up on the property of RV friends Ron & Carol Leonard in anticipation of starting work on our Woodland rental tomorrow. Our new tenant expects to move in Sept. 1 and we have some painting and fix-up to do before that happens. I suppose, since Elaine's hand is still heavily bandaged, most of the work will be done by ME! Luckily, my hand and foot have healed nicely, and I am probably able to do most of the needed chores. If not, we will merely hire somebody!
Speaking of Elaine's hand, she got her stitches out on Friday, which is what freed us up to leave Park Sierra and drive here. I took a picture of her hand after they took the cast and bandage off and before they removed the stitches, and here it is:

It looks pretty ugly but actually it is healing rapidly. You can see that this was a pretty extensive surgery and why it might take a while for Elaine to get back to 100%.
Last Sunday we had a delightful afternoon with our neighbors, Carol and Alan Rodely up in the mountains having an excursion on a former logging train. It is called the Yosemite Mountain Sugar Pine Railroad or "The Logger" for short. It is located about 10 miles north of Oakhurst on the way to Yosemite and is a beautiful ride right through the forest. There is a gift shop, bookstore, snack bar, museum, and gold panning area to occupy you while you wait for the train ride. One of the couples from Park Sierra, Rick and Laurie Phillips, work there, and also Al Brunsell, who runs the gold panning. Laurie works in the bookstore and Rick gives the spiel on the train. Here is a picture of Rick in his train gear:

There is a nice shady area near the bookstore where people can picnic and here are the friends enjoying the coolness:

This is the old steam engine pulling the front cars along the 4 mile route

After the ride, we had everyone over for dinner on our patio:

When Carol heard that we were leaving Friday, she arranged a Happy Hour and dinner under our neighborhood tree for Thursday. Our neighbors, Rich & Mary had returned from Idaho, and one of our new members who has become a good friend, Bev Mauck, also joined us.

There is another couple who just became members of Park Sierra yesterday, Glenda & Elleen, who have been joining us for social stuff every now and then and they came Thursday as well. They have been doing lots of bike riding in preparation for an upcoming trip to the Est Coast when they will be riding the Appalachian Trail. Here is their picture:

We were delighted when they called us yesterday to say that they had just become the newest members of our park!
Yesterday Elaine and I stayed at the Elks Club in Fremont so we could see her son, Darran and his fiancee, Marielle, who flew up from San Diego. We also spent some time with Elaine's daughter Tarra, her husband Alonzo, and their three girls, Ari, Alia, and Analy.
Here are "The Moms" with Tarra and Darran:

Here are the two happy young couples:

And of course, we need to put in a picture of the cute granddaughters:

Once we leave Woodland, we will be heading for the Oregon coast, looking for other RV friends, coolness, and crabbing. So if you are going to be in that area, contact us!!