My favorite part of going on vacation is the last two days. You seem to have this renewed energy to get back home and take on the world.
I have gone to Vegas, Lake Tahoe, and Lake Havasu. We always stay in a four star resort, with great accommodations.
This trip though, gave me a new found appreciation for home. Let me tell you how.
Anyone who knows me, knows I complain about living in California. They know I crave a place in the country next to a lake. I hate traffic, people bumping into me, and having to wait in long lines everywhere I go.
I am currently on vacation in Sedona, AZ. Our resort sits up against a golf course and the golf course sits against a huge mountainous area with red rocks. That's what is so beautiful about Sedona. We are surrounded by tons of red rock structures.
I have been asleep for about an hour. Thankful I got to sleep before my wife, so I didn't have to hear her snoring. I have our bedroom window curtains wide open and from my bed I can see more stars than I have ever seen in my entire life.
Then it happened. This blood curdling whining. At first I thought it was a dog from some of the houses up on the hillside. Then it got louder and more powerful and by the hundreds. You could hear the cries of this howling whining noise from outside the resort and in the distance you could hear the replies of more howls. They may be wolves or they may be hyenas. I don't know, but it
was almost like tortured babies crying.I look out the window into total darkness and yet I could feel them running in a pack by my bedroom window. I could feel that there was a presence outside that I could not see or really relate to.
Then my mind took off. My son is downstairs in his room and his room has a sliding glass door that is locked and goes directly to the outside. I can't even type the details of what I was thinking, but I said a prayer and that thought went away.
The darkenss outside is thick. When I went out to the balcolny all I could do was hear this communication between these animals. They didn't even take turns. Without the ability to see, my hearing became even stronger giving the impression that I was right up on these crying beasts. The fact that it is 18 degress outside doesn't help. Knowing that they are probably cold hungry carnivorous creatures in the dark. Ouch!
Now, anytime I have trouble sleeping and this seems to be one of those nights, I get out of bed and do things that make me happy. Watch a comedy, eat a snack, or just blog on my creepy experience.
I am realizing how much I may not want the country. Back home, I like going outside, walking the suburbs of "The OC" and getting myself a icee at the local 7-Eleven. I like looking outside and seeing tons of street lights and the Los Alamitos Race track lighting up the sky like the second coming. I like Taco Bells that are open all night, friends that are always up hanging out at Starbucks, and cars booming music all the way down my street.
These things are familiar to me. I have grown up with these sounds all around me. I am not used to total darkness as far as the eye can't see with howling in the near distance.
I need to rethink my dream home location. I need to ask myself if the country is what I truly want. Will it be more of a cultural shock that I can handle. I have plenty of time to think about it. I won't be heading back to bed for at least another hour.
Hey, I wonder if Sportcenter is on.
Which do you prefer? Living in the country or living in the city?
1 comment:
Hey, Jack,
I know this is an old post, but it is a subject that is near and dear to my heart.
First off, the critters you heard were most likely coyotes. They are a good deal less dangerous than the predators you get in cities.
For me, the best place I ever lived was in a house that was out in the middle of the woods. No lake, but surrounded completely by trees, with no visible signs of civilization. To get to it, you left suburbia, drove about a mile on a road with woods on either side, then turned onto a gravel road that was also lined by trees, went back about a block, and there you were. It was so secluded that I was shocked and a bit offended when one day, as I was out washing my car, I saw a couple of guys with ties, name tags and bicycles turn off the gravel road onto my driveway. Let's just say I didn't invite them in for coffee. :)
I have lived in the city, as well, and I really hated that. I suppose it's all in what you get used to. Many of the things you list as positives are definite negatives in my book. I liked to go home and forget about the rest of the human population, not hear it make noise outside my window. We don't have many coyotes around here, but I'd much rather listen to their music than to cars blasting what their owners seem to think of as such.
Kelly
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