Paso Robles Pioneer Days

It's been a little over 5 weeks since our last post; it's because we haven't gone anywhere lately. All work, work, work and no play. But last weekend we had to attend the annual Pioneer Days in Paso Robles, and we were glad we did.

Pioneer Days is a Paso Robles tradition that dates back 80 years. It started as a way for the local businesses to say "thank you" to the local community. Employees are given the day off, there are no concessions, and lunch is provided for free. It's a pretty nice way to get to know the your neighbors.

The day started with a parade down Main Street (Spring Street, technically). Marching bands, fire trucks, antique tractors, Shriner's on mini bikes, and various other parade regulars were on hand. The street was lined for miles, and everyone was in good spirits waving at the passing participants. Our favorite was the contingent of World War I ambulances from the local military museum. The riders were dressed in old uniforms and looked like a Gary Cooper movie come to life.

After the parade ended everyone headed down to City Park, a huge historic park with a playground, BBQ pits, and a lot of beautiful large oak trees. A band played in the gazebo while the Lions Club served beans and bread to the entire city for free. Everyone was just so friendly. While standing in line for the Bean Feed, we met a nice lady, Toby, who invited us over to their picnic spot for some hot dogs and beer. Toby introduced us to her family and friends and we had a great time getting to know some Paso locals. Sophie played with some little boys on the blankets in the grass, should I be worried already?

We left a little later in the afternoon to give Sophie her afternoon nap. We said goodbye to our new friends and headed back home. The sun and excitement wore Sophie out. She actually fell asleep on the changing table. I know she will want to come back next year, and we definitely plan to.

Written by Chris Johns

Surrounded...

This week, we had a little drama at the house. Around 2pm on Wednesday, just after putting Sophie down for her afternoon nap we heard a very loud rapping on the door.

I answered the door and was face to face with Atascadero's finest. The guy had one hand on his gun holster and another hand on a piece of paper. I say hello, he looks at me for a second and says:

"Are you John Gomez?"

John Gomez was the previous resident of the house that we were now renting. I had seen letters addressed to him.

"No!" I said, "He used to live here but moved July 16th".

The cop looked at me for a long second, then with a bit of disappointment in his voice replied "Do you know where he is?"

"No. Do you want the property management's office number?"

"No thanks." He turned and headed back to his car.

At that point a neighbor's car slowly drove by on our small street, and that's when I noticed the three police prowlers strategically parked in front of my house. Two other officers were positioned somewhere around the back of my house. The cops had us surrounded. Nomally, a car goes by once every 6 hours in front of my house, but of course one of my neighbors just happens to drive by at the exact time that my house resembled the Waco standoff.

What a great way to introduce ourselves to the neighborhood.

Written by Chris Johns

Adventures in Polynesian Paradise: Tiki Oasis 2010

Tiki Oasis 2010, August 19-22.

Christmas, Halloween, and St. Patty's Day rolled together into three days of bacchanalia bliss in the San Diego sun.

The annual event around which the Johns family calendar rotates.

What is Tiki Oasis you might wonder?

Tiki Oasis is an annual event that draws together people from around the country to celebrate the tiki lifestyle. What is Tiki? Tiki refers to the Polynesian inspired theme popular in restaurants and clubs after World War II, and started by Don the Beachcomber's and Trader Vic's in the 1930's. Frank Sinatra was a regular at many tiki restaurants, especially Don the Beachcomber's in Palm Springs. Tiki peaked in the 1950's and declined into near oblivion during the 60's and 70's. Only a few original tiki restaurants still exist today, such as the Bali Hai and Kon Tiki.

Today, tiki has seen a revival among a new generation and is popular as ever. New bands like The Tikiyaki Orchestra and and The Martini Kings pick up where Martin Denny and Arthur Lyman left off. Tiki Oasis draws artists, musicians, pin-up models, and partiers together to enjoy a weekend where the only goal is to make friends and have fun. The vibe is similar to a cruise where everyone starts their vacation at the same time and attitudes are left in the parking lot.

This year we booked early and were lucky enough to get a room overlooking the stage so we had a great view of the shows and vendor booths.
Sophie stayed with us the first night and our friends Chad, Kate and Ruby babysat her the next night. It was great having a babysitter since room parties are half the fun of Tiki Oasis and we were able to stay out late. We met a lot of cool people, made a few friends, and left with a renewed appreciation for nice, friendly people. I wish everyone in the world had their own Tiki Oasis to get this kind of renewal.

There are just too many things to cover and since a picture is worth a thousand words, here is a sampling of images to give you an idea of the experience.

Mahalo.
Chris Johns
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

 
 
 
 

The Big Hike

This week was rather uneventful around the Johns household, except for the steepest hike I've ever done in my life on Tuesday. I found this trail called Cerro Alto Peak in a book of California hikes I own, and should have been wary when the first sentence in the trail description read "If you like climbing, this hike's for you."

This was an understatement.

The trail starts out easy enough, with a slow up and downs following a stream lined with ferns. It was very peaceful, and lulled you into a false sense of security that this wasn't going to be too tough. After a little while, the trail started rising along a hillside, and the stream starts falling away in the canyon below. About two miles in, the trail ends at a crossroad with a sign indicating that the summit is two miles away.

Two miles! Was it kidding??

At this point I considered quitting, thinking that I had done enough climbing for the day, but then I remembered that I had shelled out $5 to park at the trail head and I was going to get my MONEYS WORTH! So with aching legs, I trudged upward along the trail through thick foliage that formed a tunnel. The shade was nice, but little bugs leaped off the leaves as you pass through it causing a sound like running water as they launch off the leaves and into the air. It was very much like the scene in Indiana Jones with the arrows shooting off the wall; your only chance to avoid them is to go FAST.

Almost a mile up the trail, which by now was pretty steep, I encountered another fork with sign which read "Summit: 1.2 miles" this way. I had already done what most people would have considered a very hard hike.

But now it was going nearly vertical.

The views opened up at some point to where I could see the ocean, and very slowly I made my way up the mountain. Eventually I reached the top, and got a great 360 degree view of the entire coastline as well as inland to Atascadero. I took a few pictures then headed back down.

On Friday, our friends Krista and James came up from Orange County to spend the weekend with us. We drove out to some local favorite wineries: Tobin James, B & E, and a new one we tried called Booker Vineyard. We had a great time and enjoyed having them here. Krista's lost 160 pounds and looks like a different person now. Audrey painted a tiki on Krista's cast before they left. They're heading home today.

We're very lucky to have good friends.

Written by Chris Johns

Visitors at our darkened door

On Friday night, Audrey and I had just finished putting Sophie down for bed and were preparing for a Redbox evening, when we heard a knock at our door. We both froze since we don't know hardly anyone up here and it's very dark on our street at night, so we had no idea what to expect out there on the pitch black porch. I crept (in my boxers) up to the front door, found the light switch, flicked it on, and saw none other than our friends Corey and Jo Ann staring back through the glass at me! They had driven 6 hours to surprise us. I was shocked to say the least. I put on some pants, fixed some cocktails, and prepared for a totally different kind of weekend.

Corey and Jo Ann were the first people to really identify the Paso Robles area as a possible place to live, we just beat them to it by a few years thanks to our ability to be flexible right now. They see the beauty of the land, the diversity of things to do, and the friendliness of the locals, and have opened our eyes to the same. So as one big happy group, we went on a two-day tour of the land, drinking in all that was out there to enjoy (no pun intended).

Our first stop was a picnic lunch at the Hearthstone winery in the Adelaida area of Paso Robles. This valley shares the same geographic features as the Rhone Valley in the south of France and is renowned for their quality wines. This small family winery rests on top of a hill overlooking a walnut orchard and green vineyards as far as the eye can see. For the bargain cost of a shared bottle of wine, we ate lunch in one of the most beautiful spots imaginable. We were the only folks there for most of the lunch so it felt like we owned the place.

After lunch, we continued toward the sea on Highway 46. We stopped at a farm store on Santa Rosa Creek road called Linn's. This nice place has excellent apple and berry pies, and we bought a couple for the road before heading back to Atascadero. A peacock guarded the front door.

The next day we headed to Morro Bay for a stop at our only Tiki bar in the area, Harbor Hut. This (mostly) tiki establishment is a far cry from tiki temples like Don the Beachcomber's and the Kon Tiki, but they do have a great view of the bay and fantastic food. We all enjoyed watching the boats and kayaks coming and going out the bay, and even saw a few sea lions frolicking in the water just 20 feet from our table.

From Morro Bay, we came back through the Adeliada Valley to Lake Naciemento Road and stopped at Mondo Winery for a little wine tasting. Mondo is owned by two surfer brothers from Southern California, and has the relaxed atmosphere of what you'd expect from a surfer's winery. We sat in the outdoor veranda area while the tasting lady brought us different wines to sample. The views from this winery are superb and we all enjoyed the temporary decompression from daily life.

A group of wild turkeys were in the parking lot when we arrived.

Our friends eventually had to head back home Sunday night, so we're back on our own up here. It's business as usual...work, chores, and baby stuff. Sophie is doing great and is saying more words. I couldn't be more proud of her this weekend when we walked into the Harbor Hut and she pointed up on the wall to a Polynesian mask and said "TIK...I"! That's my little girl.

Written by Chris Johns

A Country A-Fair

This week, Audrey and I took Sophie to the Central Coast Fair in Paso Robles. Apparently, the fair is a BIG DEAL around here and just about every local radio station was doing a live broadcast from there, so it was hard to avoid the call.

The Central Coast Fair is about 1/2 the size of the OC fair, but the smaller scale only added to the ambiance that this was a real country fair. The buildings reminded me of Knotts Berry Farm's frontier village. Since we had a 1 year old with us, we didn't go on any rides, but my primary objective was to eat some good fair food; something you can't get anywhere else but the fair. A box of chocolate covered bacon and a 1 foot corn dog were located to satisfy my bizarre food appetite. I could have gone for some funnel cake or pit bbq brisket, but the corn dog monopolized all available stomach space. We got to hear Aerosmith's band warming up on the main stage behind us as we ate the deep fried slice of carny heaven.


The most interesting aspect of this fair was the agricultural areas. Around these parts, they have what is called "Ag Kids". These are children that live in an agricultural area and belong to organizations like 4H and Future Farmers of America (FFA). These Ag Kids all brought their prize livestock to be sold at auction. The proceeds often go to local charities like food banks or directly to needy families, and the massive barns were full of these beautiful animals. Sheep, pigs, cows, chickens, ducks, goats, and horses were everywhere. Sophie had a great time getting nuzzled by a few curious sheep.


The house is almost completely unpacked and feels like a home now. It really is a good house, we like the layout and the view from our back porch is amazing at sunset. Around 3 pm every day a cool breeze comes up the canyon from Morro Bay and cools down the area. This daily cooldown is what give this area its unique wine-growing ability. The grapes are heated during the day and cooled rapidly at night; this stresses the plant and leads to better quality grapes.

We're meeting new people up here; it's not very hard. People here actually ENJOY talking to other people as opposed to the big city where it's considered an invasion of their privacy. Sophie also makes it easy to meet people with her extroverted personality and shocking red hair. It's hard not to smile when a 1 year old is yelling a cute hello at you.

Last night we went to a free family sunset picnic at a winery called Mondo. Audrey packed a nice Herb de Provence chicken with seasoned vegetables dinner which went excellently with a bottle of their white wine. We met a nice couple our age at the table next to us who happen to live a few streets down from us. They've invited us to a birthday party in a couple weeks, we're looking forward to meeting more cool new friends.

Posted by Chris Johns

Reflections on our first week here

It's been a little over one week since we've arrived here in Atascadero. The move went fairly smoothly, our friends Corey and Jo Ann drove with us all the way up as well as helped pack and unpack us. They are two great friends that someone is lucky to find in a lifetime and we are going to miss being near them.

The cats made the trip relatively easily and enjoy having 3 floors of house to run up and down. There is a lot of strange wildlife for them to see from our new patio, and the kitties are definitely loving the view. Our back patio is a virtual squirrel superhighway. Large oak branches reach out over the entire patio creating a total canopy. Lily had a standoff with a fat Grey Squirrel the other day. I think the squirrel had about half a pound on her so I was glad when the squirrel eventually ran off.

It was over 100 degrees the first 3 days here, and our air conditioner was broken! While we waited for the repairman to eventually get here (our property management company is a little slow), we took some drives to Morro Bay where it was 58 degrees, a 40+ degree difference in only 25 minutes. Kinda nice to have the ability to escape the heat so easily.

The house is great except for the spiders. They are everywhere. We have two decks, and I found an infestation of spiders under both, so I gave them a good powerwashering and sprayed them with half a gallon of repellent. Fortunately, the spiders I saw were all of the daddy long legs variety, no black widows or brown recluse.

Every one we've met here so far has been eerily nice. I say eerily because one normally doesn't encounter this kind kindness and decency in general society except for church and Amway meetings. From the clerks at the grocery store, to the city council members at the local fundraiser, everyone has been so nice and welcoming. Kindness like this usually comes with some kind of catch, so we're waiting to find out what it is. Can people just be nice for no reason? Doesn't make sense.

More to come,
Written by Chris Johns