Having a base in Temecula puts me in a whole new radius of fun. I am only 3½ hours from my friend, Leslie.

Steve had a weekend full of business chores so this was the perfect getaway, timing-wise.
This is a series of images captured during my time in Tehachapi.
It was just me and this hummingbird who were awake for the spectacular sunrise.

If I'm in town on a Saturday, the Sabbath for Leslie, I attend church with her. I found the choice of hymn so timely. It was 501 years ago that Martin Luther wrote The 95 Theses, a list of questions and propositions for debate about the Catholic Church. Popular legend has it that on October 31, 1517 he defiantly nailed a copy to the door of the Wittenberg Castle church (which we visited in 2000). Interesting timing.
Leslie's son, Ivan, came up from Bakersfield for lunch and an aggravating game of Aggravation. I've been in his life since he was one. It is always so meaningful when he takes the time to visit me. Leslie's mom, Barbara, joined in all the fun, too.


Loved this license plate.
Eager and joyful expressions were on the faces of more than a thousand Tehachapi residents, and their friend, who took tours Sunday afternoon of the soon-to-open, new Adventist Health Tehachapi Valley Hospital. Many people have waited years for the facility to become a reality. With us is Taylor Laurie, the chaplain for the hospital.



This new, beautiful hospital will replace the current downtown facility, which was built in 1954 (love this photo of that groundbreaking). The groundbreaking for the new hospital was in 2013, although planning and various bond measures have been passed to fund the hospital since 2003.
The 25-bed critical access hospital comes equipped with 13 emergency department rooms, operating rooms with state-of-the-art equipment, four intensive care unit beds costing $30,000 each, gastrointestinal lab rooms, radiology, imaging, X-ray, ultrasound, CT and mammography services, a lab and cafe. The hospital construction cost to date has come to more than $102 million. What a huge gift for this community. I was so happy to be a part of this historic day.
And how beautiful is this chapel? There is great hope for this community.

I'm looking forward to the onsite restaurant to open. The Mountain Café, with its vegetarian menu created by an executive chef, is going to be a food destination. Yum.

Long walks, dinner out, crafts, gaming, ambling conversations and much laughter... it is always great to connect with an old friend.