Ever Wonder...

Since I last wrote, we have moved to a different park, but we are still in the Palm Springs area. Right now the wind is blowing so hard that the motorhome actually shakes once in awhile. A "cold front" came through and it will only get to 68 today so after a morning of shopping for me and a poker tournament for Mike, we are just relaxing inside. So, I decided to share some interesting tidbits with you.

Ever wonder who first thought of the white stripe down the middle of the highway? (I am sure most friends don't lay awake nights thinking about this... but you never know.) In the Coachella Museum in Indio, they have the answer. It was Dr. June.
It seems that Dr. June Hill, who served the area in the late 1800's as a country doctor, became tired of horses and buggys coming into her area of the road and decided it would be a good idea to paint lines down the middle of the road - that way, she could more easily get from one place to another. Yes, the first lines down the middle of the road were painted in the Palm Springs area, Coachella Valley (at least that is the story from the docent at the museum).


Ever wonder how hard working laborers stayed cool in this area in the summer when the temperatures would often hit 120 degrees and stay that way for weeks? Once again, the museum had the answer. First, build a simple one room structure using tin on the roof and sides.
Locate it under a small "personal" water tower. Make sure the tower has a couple of small leaks. Supposedly, as the water drips down on the tin and runs off, it cools the whole structure... Hey, I am just reporting what I heard. Now doesn't this look like a nice comfortable spot to rest after working 16 hours building a railroad...

Ever wonder how dates gr0w and were harvested? I am sure you know they grow on date palm trees and that they grow in clusters and are harvested by hand, used to be with a fellow sitting on a "swing" but now days, they use tractors and crane like thingies that a guy stands in. But, did you know that date trees need to be germinated "by hand" or they will not produce dates. Yep, a person actually takes a part of the male tree and inserts it into the female seed at the top of the palm tree. Oh yea, and after the fruit, dates, develop on the tree, a person wraps the fruit bunch with paper to protect if from the elements, the dust and the birds. After they are finally picked, they must be sorted and packaged, all by hand. Most dates are harvested in October so I haven't seen any of this first hand, but I saw the informational video... at the museum! So, if you wonder why dates are so expensive in the store, just think about the number of man hours that went into getting them ready for your table. Oh yea, the Coachella Valley is the biggest American producer of dates.

Ever wonder what "geocaching" is? Well, we found out all about it last week (no, not at the museum) when we attended an informational seminar in the park. If you haven't heard of it, you should find out more, because it really is very cool. All you need is a GPS and a computer and you are ready to play this new game. Actually, it is like a game of "hide and seek" or a treasure hunt.

It seems that people all over the world put "stuff" in containers and hide the containers on public land or in public places. They then post a description and clues, along with the GPS coordinates, on Geocaching.com and others go out and look for the stuff. That is a pretty simplified description, but that covers the basics. Anyway, since we have a GPS and a computer, we decided to develop one more hobby and become geocachers. So, I went to the website and registered- no cost for the simple version. I entered the zip code for this area and found that there were hundreds and hundreds of caches within short distances. People who live in the area place them and maintain them. I selected a couple, "Unexpected Graveyard" and "Pieces of Past". Mike programed the GPS with the coordinates and off we went.

Many of you know how Mike and I love to explore old cemetaries, so you can imagine our surprize when this was what we saw... a homeowner didn't take down the halloween decorations. Anyway, we walked the sixty feet, as told in the description and there it was...

Our first cache was in a tin under a bush. There was only a few trinkets inside, but who cares, we successfully found it. So we left a token, signed the book and went on to register find number two. "Pieces of Past" turned out to be an old building site. With snake season almost upon us, Mike really should have been more careful when digging out the hidden treasure... next time. Once again, we signed in and left a token.

So, the website, Geocaching.com, now has "alongthesideroads" registered with 2 finds. There are actually lots of people with thousands of finds. I don't know if we will get that serious about geocaching, but it is fun. Check it out!

Ever wonder what Bob Hope's home in Palm Springs looked like... well, you still have to wonder, but here is a picture of the roof line... Ever wonder who my friends are out here on the side roads... well, now you know! Actually, Sandy (a gal I met in the park) and I were out "junkin" (shopping thrift stores) when we spotted this sign and I knew I had to pose.

What a deal, there are now six things you need not wonder about again!