Home in California

I guess after you've been out of the state for 12 years, it takes some time to get used to it again. I've been having little episodes of culture shock over the past few days. Namely seeing the price of groceries, or having gas be $4 a gallon (though that was when I was out in the middle of the dessert). But there's also bonus's. Like In-n-Out burgers being readily available on many street corners. I've already eaten there twice in the past two days.

I really am impressed my little Honda Civic made it all the way through Nevada and the Mojave dessert over mountain passes and a loaded car without overheating. I was having flashbacks to my years of driving between San Diego and Sacramento for school and going over the grapevine mountain pass right above Los Angeles.

I had barely passed the state line for half an hour when I ran into traffic (we're out in the middle of the dessert! Where did all these people come from?). It most likely took an extra hour to get home with traffic in San Bernadino and a supposed accident. And of course, being California, there was a checkpoint all the cars had to go through for the USDA.

Mom was in the back working in her garden when I arrived home. She didn't think I was coming till the next day (despite I had texted her the night before). The bumper crop this year is cucumbers. Mom has a ton!

I don't know what it is about Mom and Dad's place, but it really is a Garden of Eden of sorts. I pass by their orange trees that are LOADED with oranges. Mom's freezer is FULL of containers of lemon juice from the lemon tree outside. Do you know how bad it is? A friends daughter wanted to do some lemonade for her wedding reception and mom was able to supply all the lemon juice they needed. And tomatoes? We never buy them from the store. There's plenty to consume on our own.

Not to mention everywhere you turn on the property there's rosebush's full of colors and bloom. Mom said I think she's currently up to about 200 rosebushes. They grow so easily here.

My little sister Deborah is back at home with Mom and Dad also right now. In some ways I feel like I'm a kid again in that Deborah and I get in spats like sisters do ("Twerpetta! Why are you using my razor?")

 I am set up on my luxurious twin size air mattress in the study room right now making myself at home. I must say, it has been nice to live a simple life. I don't worry about paying bills, taxes, home maintenance, etc. We went grocery shopping the other day and mom said I could get anything I wanted (which was not the case when I was younger!). In some ways I am enjoying it, but I feel after five weeks I'll be ready to leave again.

It's kind of like when I went through the Missionary Training Center right before I went to Hungary. I wasn't too thrilled to go to Hungary at first, but after spending 13 weeks on a half acre plot of land and not going anywhere else, I was only too willing to go just about anywhere to get away from that place!

For me the strange part has been a subtle reality that I'm not going back to Indiana. I'm used to visits at home, but after awhile know I'll escape back to Indiana. To realize that is not happening now, is a little bit strange at times.

For right now though I've been busy unpacking and getting settled in. My language training classes begin tomorrow and I am not looking forward to fighting San Diego traffic. I am curious though to see what type of people will be in it. The classes only allow 12 students and I'll be curious to see what other types of people are there and where they are going. These and many other things I'll update you about later.