We Evacuated, But we're all ok

View Larger Map
Monday, Oct. 22
Our house is just above the green arrow on Bishorn. The fire got to Brentwood and almost Sandlewood. The large building and field is the Middle School were the Command Post was set. From our window at 6:05 in the morning, we could see flames and massive smoke as 20-30 mph winds came straight at us. Our power was out and it was still very dark so the orange glow was impressive. We were able to get all important papers and pictures into the Suburban as well as a few non-essentials. We got a call for mandatory evacuation from the Sheriff. Got the kids up for a fire drill, we called as many friends on the mounatain as we could remember numbers because with the power out many had not heard anything. We were some of the first ones down the hill and didn't wait in traffic at all. We re-grouped at Chick-fil-a in Redlands, had breakfast and made plans. We are now safely with family in Glendora. We know of at least two friends who have already lost their houses and fear for the worst for another. So far ours has been spared and it looks like the worst has passed us, but for others it's just beginning.

Mammoth Mountain!

That's Katie-11, Anna-5, Keegan-7, and Me. Guess which kid isn't a Coleman? Here we are in the Gondola up to the Summit of Mammoth Mountain. I will be biking down and the others will be taking the gondola halfway down and hiking the rest of the way.

At the summit (Dave's Run) with my bike that almost cost less money than the lift pass. It was an awesome ride down and only two times during the desent did I actually fear for my life. But I lived to blog another day.
Keegan and Katie wondering where I was going.

Our kids with three of the four Buecheler girls (the other Buecheler is a teenager and might have been off brooding) and the Buecheler Dad with his special pal. Randy never leaves home without Pookie.

Randy, me, and Nancy before a big ride. She did pretty well for a girl.

Next up our day trip to Devil's Postpile and Rainbow Falls.

It's Not My Fault

Actually, it's probably not any one's fault. Labeled "The Mammoth Earthquake Fault" most believe that it's actually a Fissure that resulted from a mammoth (pun intended) earthquake several years ago. It was still fun to explore.





















This is June Lake, and the Little Mermaid is Katie. I had no idea that the water would be so clear. The water was a little chilly, but that didn't stop the kids from swimming.




















That's Laura in her bright yellow Perception Antigua kayak




















This is where Laura and Katie dropped off me and my bike. They took the safe gondola halfway down the mountain as I plummeted the entire way down, and lived to blog.






















Here's Keegan's mountain top experience.

The Coleman Family Vacation 2007 - Day 1 - Randsburg

One of the reasons we bought this climate warming 8 passenger Family Truckster 1500 was that it would be a great vacation vehicle. The Suburban did not let us down. With three rows of seats and plenty of storage, each kid was able to rest comfortably in his/her own area code, each equipped with enough ubiquitous cupholders for morning and afternoon juice boxes, while the parents did not hear the three dreaded words of a family intrastate vacation..."He's touching me!"

The first stop of our week long journey was the often over looked town of Randsburg, CA. If I remember correctly, Randsburg was a mining town back in it's heyday, and the fact that 'heyday' is singular seems to fit here. I can't remember what they mined around here, but my educated guess would be rust. Our vacation buddies on this trip were the, equally as ubiquitous as the cupholders, Buechelers. While I'm not sure exactly how many there are of them, there are a lot, and they are mostly little screaming girls. One of them is our God Daughter, Emmy. Walking through the town that sidewalks forgot it's easy to imagine just how miserable it might have been to live there long ago, but...ah, it's a nice place to visit, and now I can check Randsburg off of my "Why in the world did I visit this place list."

Next, on to Mammoth!

Disney World 2009!

I know what you're thinking, "Why so long between blogs?" Well, it could be that I kindof forgot my password then put it off too long, or it could be that I've been busy planning our 2009 WDW vacation! (I prefer option B)

Yup, we are planning on returning to the World that Walt built during the Summer of 2009, which means we have just 18 months before we have to put in our dinner reservations!

We have recruited at least one other family to join us, and we're actively trying to enlist more. I have many ideas for our trip, but I'm hoping that Bear Grylls films his Man vs Wild show there so I can get more survival ideas... "Oh look at the size of that mouse! A mouse that size can snap a man's leg in two, I'd better steer clear of it but the only way out is across this monorail track, but the monorails that traverse these tracks are huge and can easily snap a man's leg in two. As I wait for a good opportunity to pass I notice some popcorn that has been discarded, it won't be as tasty, but I need the energy..."

We are planning on staying on site again, and while I like the Magical Express, I'd like to rent a car so I can explore just outside the World.

I missed the chocolate cake and large glass of milk that I had in 2002 in Celebration. Celebration is the Disney inspired town just outside of WDW. It's a real live town with schools, residents, mosquitoes and everything. Many snobbish writers negatively portray Celebration as a fake town. They seem to think that a town has to be built slowly over generations to be "real." They think that you give up way too much freedom when you live in a "town" with so many CCRs, but I think that we are in a time when I like having a choice to live in a town that will not permit an "Adult Bookstore" to open downtown. What price freedom? The new master designed housing divisions are designed to be more family friendly. Instead of having large yards that people turn into fortifications to stay away from the outside world, they build houses with small yards, but large common areas and parks. They are built with pedestrians in mind, not the automobile. Just think about how many more people you would meet if you walked more places. They actually build walking destinations. The more people who know you, the less anonymous you become. Anonymous people don't feel accountable for their actions. What made Mayberry idealic was the fact that everyone knew everyone's kids. If Opie was throwing rocks at a broken window across town, someone would see him, call his parent and make him acountable for his actions. If you don't know the kids in your neighborhood how will they be accountable for their actions?

Anyway, I like to check the progress of these neotraditional towns and neighborhoods to see the quality of life they breed, so, ah, that's why I need to rent a car. (If you'd like to read more, check out "Suburban Nation.")