Since my place was being fumigated for termites, I had to vacate the premises. So I decided to visit Grandma.( I think her formal title would be "adopted grandmother from church," but it is simpler to say "Grandma." ) To Grandma and her husband, the visit was an answer to their prayers. They had been asking me to visit them. While it was nice to visit with them, I was not too happy about the termites.
And believe me the termites were not an answer to my prayers.
The train to Dunsmuir was roughly 3 hours late. It was literally
over the river and through the woods to Grandma's place.
Grandma is swamped with work. One of her tasks is producing the church newsletter. She said she thinks she's busier now that's she's retired, than when she was working. In fact she just got the church
newsletter done the day before church. It was printed and collated and done by about 7:30 p.m., Saturday. Not exactly a cushy Monday thru Friday 9 to 5 job. And she doesn't even get paid for this job. It's a labor of love.
The food in Dunsmir is VERY tasty. It seems as if the food of the Bay Area has no taste compared to Dunsmuir area. The hamburger I ate at Grandma's place was made of local beef and had noticeable taste to it. At the Chinese restaurant, JADE GARDEN, Mt. Shasta, I could taste the flavor of the cabbage. Saturday, we ate at the HUNGRY MOOSE and the blue cheese dressing had a noticeable flavor to it. (Ironically, there are no moose in the area, only elk, so I didn't see
Bullwinkle or his pal Rocky.) I heard this place has the best water. The water does seem to have a certain flavor to it. I enjoyed the water at the Hungry Moose and also their Rasberry Lemonade. The Raspberry Lemonade was great. As far as I know there is nothing like it in the Bay Area. I told Grandma that if I ever moved up to Dunsmuir, it would be because of the Rasberry Lemonade, which I had originally mistaken for Hawaiian Punch. Sunday night we ate at PIEDMONT Italian Restaurant, Mt. Shasta. The minestrone soup combined with the cheese was VERY tasty. The cheese also enhanced the flaor of the ravioli. Grandma says that Piedmont has the best steaks. She's right. Piedmont had an excellent TASTY rib eye steak. The set up at Piedmont reminded me of Original Joes in San Jose. I wrote to a professor who teaches at Portland State University. She thinks the reason for the difference in the taste is because the food in Dunsmuir is locally produced. I think the Dunsmuir people would agree with her. At one time she thought the reason why food seemed to have no taste, was due to her getting older. Then she went to Japan and China and found her taste buds were just fine. Apparently those two countries have not adopted our "modern" agribusiness practices. So, this professor was not alone in her opinion. I guess much of the food in the Bay Area is imported from other parts of the country and mass produced. A friend in Canada said the food is preserved with nitrogen to prevent oxidation. While this preserves the food, no one knows if it has a harmful effect on the food. I wonder if nitrogen may be the reason why the food in the Bay Area is tasteless compared to Dunsmuir? Oddly enough, this friend in Canada said the food in England is better tasting than in Canada. I wonder if that means
the food in Canada is really terrible? After all, England is not really
noted for it's fine cuisine.
The train back home was late. I was supposed to leave at 12:30 am.
It did not arrive till 5:00 am. The sleeper car going to and coming
from Dunsmuir was essentially a nice cubby hole, where one could sleep.
It certainly was not cramped like the airplane trip I took to Hawaii last year. But if you want to travel on time, DO NOT TAKE THE TRAIN !
Grandma had told she is going to pray that I move up to Dunsmuir. I am so used to the Bay Area. I know the cost of living is cheaper and the food is tastier. And I suppose the people are nicer. But I would miss the bookstores and libraries. Yes, there is internet service in town at the computer store. It is cheaper than KINKO'S. The place in Dunsmuir charges 5 cents a minute, compared to KINKO'S which charges 25 cents a minute. Perhaps I am a bit of a snob, thinking of Dunsmuir as boony town and the Bay Area as "civilization." On the other hand distinguished scholars have visited Grandma in Dunsmuir. One academic in the field of comparative education, highly respected among the Mainland Chinese, came from the American East coast or Canada to visit. Another scholar in the field of automation, came from Mainland China to visit. So it's not as if Dunsmuir is Amish country. (No, I'm not picking on the Amish. Take this as a figure of speech.) I suppose
one other concern would be if the people would welcome an "immigrant" to their town. Or would they have the attitude comparable to many Oregonians: "Welcome to Dunsmuir, now go home." When Grandma said
she would pray that I would move up to Dunsmuir, I got a little spooked. I remember reading that Mary, Queen of Scots feared the
prayers of John Knox more than the enemy armies. I think I know how
she felt. It seems as if Grandma's prayers can move mountains. Hopefully no whale will swallow me up and spit me out at Dunsmuir.
# posted by GuyTak @ 11:04 PM
