5/23/24
I'm writing this the next day as I was too tired last night. Yesterday was ok. We left our Airbnb in LA around 8:30 and headed for Palm Springs. We stopped a couple of times along the way; once for gas and once at a Target to grab water and stuff before we got into tourist ville.
Once in Palm Springs we stopped and saw their version of the Hollywood stars and the Marilyn Monroe statue. She is tall..... It was peaceful over in that area but I don't see the appeal of the town. You hear so much about it but it's really just a town with some shopping. Maybe I was jaded or my mood was just grumpy but it didn't really appeal to me.
We then ate at "Hayday" where we got burgers and wings. The food was good and you could tell the burgers were made from hamburger meat on site vs. shipped in. After lunch, we headed over to the tram that takes you up the side of the mountain to the peak of Mt. San Jacinto. The tram floor rotates as you go up so there is no bad spot - it's a beautiful 2.5-mile trek up and the views are amazing. However, I didn't think about altitude change and breathing. By the time we got to the top Mama seemed to be struggling.
We went out on a deck or two and looked around and then her O2 machine decided to overheat.... I have no words. We cut it off and sat it in the shade while she practiced her breathing exercises. After a few minutes in the shade, her machine began operating again. So we got her seated in the shade and went to walk around a bit. The air being thin was an issue even for me though; the slight inclines took so much more effort and after taking a few pictures I was ready to go. So we all headed back down again.
The altitude change made me and Mama extremely tired and we had the goat hike planned for 5:30 - I tried to push it but he wasn't available tomorrow so it was today or never. It took an hour or so to get to the AirBnb where we ultimately decided Jack and I would go for the hike and Mama would stay here. She was still not breathing well and we didn't think she could do it - she was more than happy to go to bed early.
So Jack and I rushed over to the goat hike, which was down miles of dirt road. I must admit I enjoyed driving to it like a mad thing; it was fun. The hike itself was great. The guy's name is Emmanual and he is from France. His property is 100% off the grid and he has all kinds of animals that he has rescued, 14 goats, a grown male turkey that danced for us, peacocks, chickens, a pig who would only poke his head out and grunt, a horse, a donkey, cats, and two dogs. They were all sweet and used to people.
The hike itself would have been amazing without the goats, but with them, it was just so much more. They would eat and then run to catch up like the world was on fire. The landscape was just so magical and I could have spent a year taking pictures. As we headed back the sun was in its golden hour and oh... so pretty. It was a good 3 miles and this guy walks it daily for his goats to get some exercise and him as well. After the walk we helped him feed them and then headed home. There was another couple with us, at $100 a person he is doing well haivn others pay to do something he is going to be doing anyway :) Not a bad gig. Seriously though it was so much fun and the goats would come and expect you to pet them, they would headbutt you if you didn't.
We stopped by Walmart on the way home and grabbed stuff for sandwiches, came back home to the AirBnb, ate with Mama and crashed. Overall a good day but at the same time rough. Getting old sucks and I'm not necessarily talking about Mama :)
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