'Then Came Bronson' star Michael Parks pulls away for last time

   POINT RICHMOND, Calif. - I have television and film actor Michael Parks to thank for my moving to California in 1970.
     No, he didn't offer me a job, cash, or even talk me into to fleeing the Rust Belt Village of Lakewood, NY.
     What he did do was star in a television program called Then Came Bronson that probably launched thousands of guys like me on wandering trips around the country.
     I just happened to land in California.

     The opening episode actually begins in San Francisco - not that far from where I am writing this today.
     His character was emblematic of a generation of young men who were convinced that something out on the road was calling them. It certainly grabbed my attention from the first episode.
     But at the time the program was getting underway, so was my young family.
     Married with a three-month-old infant son, a motorcycle like the one driven by Michael Park's character was an unlikely vehicle for the three of us.

    So the compromise vehicle was another icon of the era - a beat up VW microbus, complete with a peace symbol painted on the front in place of the metal VW symbol. That peace symbol was painted over just before we left NY for points west.
    Watching the iconic film Easy Rider convinced me a slightly less 'in-your-face' vehicle might get me through some of places that sported signs in those days that said things like "NO HIPPIES ALLOWED" and "YOU WANT EAT HERE? GET A HAIRCUT."
     The details of that sojourn will take an entire book to tell.
   
     Michael Parks died earlier this week. He was 77 and had a fabulous film and television career acting in many great roles.
     But for me, he will always be Bronson on his motorcycle.
     In the video clip below (at about 1:12), a tired commuter driving a station wagon pulls alongside at a stoplight and asks Bronson where he's going.
     "Oh, I don't know," Bronson says. "Wherever I end up, I guess."
     The commuter responds, "Man, I wish I was you."
     "Really?" Bronson says. "Well, hang in there."
     Well, hang in there, Michael Parks, wherever your celestial motorcycle is taking you.
     I'll hang in here.
     Maybe someday we'll meet up going down that Long Lonesome Highway.

And it is off-we-go as Admiral Fox starts up her RoadTrip Zumba

WATKINS GLEN, New York, USA - Admiral Fox talks about her latest leap-off-the-precipice idea in her new blog, RoadTrip Zumba (LINK:Take a Zumba trip here...). She is far more able to explain at that website exactly what she is up to.

Rolf Potts with friends

But I know this: Whenever we take trips (or plan trips), there will likely be a Zumba factor involved. And chances are good that I will be traveling along, roadie-style, with my video and still cameras in hand.

The idea sprang in part from a columnist/traveler/writer/blogger I have been following for several years named Rolf Potts: (LINK: The Rolf Potts website). He came to my attention via a student who thought what Potts did was, well, cool.

The student was right.

Potts travels with a camera man a lot of the time, filming Pott's adventures, sort of a 21st Century Boswell. Some of that film gets translated in often hilarious videos. And Potts also writes about where he has been in addition.

Can you see where this is all going?

The sign makes it official

The Admiral decided that she would launch RoadTrip Zumba this spring and summer, continuing it on in the fall. The only place I know we are going this fall (before we head to Mexico) is Nova Scotia. Do you think there is Zumba there?

Yup. It's already been checked out.

And the beaches of Nuevo Vallarta will see some Zumba this fall and winter, too.

The first RoadTrip Zumba session Monday was at the Hector Wine Company (LINK: HWC website), just up the road - with lots of smiling faces for the group shot.

When the weather gets better (read: Warmer), there is talk of Zumba on the Hazlitt's Beach.

Zumba group at the Hector Wine Company

A trip to the Camp Connell - where cold is really cold

CAMP CONNELL, Calaveras County, Calif., USA - We zipped up the mountain from Sacramento last night, arriving an hour or so after dark, just ahead of some cold weather.

Rain greeted us in Angel's Camp (15 miles from here) and for a few minutes, I thought we would be running into snow and sleet. It rained hard enough that I think a new set of windshield wipers is in order. We'll go home tomorrow when it warms up - and no rain is forecast.


Temperature at 11 a.m.

It's always fun to visit Sanders and Pat here and it was a nice night of music, wine and great food. And this morning, the day dawned sunny and bright - at least as sunny and bright as it can be with this many huge trees surrounding the house.

So after the requisite three cups of tea (a la Greg Mortenson), the Admiral and I took a foray out around the countryside, ending up at the Camp Connell store where the locals were sipping coffee (and some sipping beer).

Admiral Fox - got her ears frosted up on the walk there and checked out a few of hats they had on sale.


No ear coverage


Ear coverage - great. Style - not so great

The Camp Connell store is a microcosm of the community - and the place to visit if you want to check out what's going on. Need a handyman to fix the gutters on the house? Check the store. Need to know about the snow in the pass? These people will know.

Later today, we will make a foray to a slightly lower elevation to visit amigos Randy and Karin, amigos from here as well as Mexico. Randy and Karin will be coming to Mexico for two months, living in a house near the church in La Manzanilla.

And, of course, we will likely make another walk down the hill to the Camp Connell store this afternoon, too, when it's time to join the locals for a cold beer.

Brrrrr....


Camp Connell store

Spanish in the morning means Mexico can't be that far off

SACRAMENTO, Calif., USA - In a dream last night, I was having a conversation with my amiga (and neighbor) Azucena in Arroyo Seco about where to plant some palm trees and whether her husband, my amigo Chon, could help.

And we were doing it all in Spanish - a sure sign that my mind is drifting east and south, muy rapido.


Chon and Chena

The weather in Sacramento is not helping me stay focused on Northern California zip codes, either.

In the last week, the temperatures have plummeted, forcing me to, gasp, wear long pants instead of shorts. Last fall, I wore shorts right through until we headed out of the driveway. This year, the 45-degree mornings convinced me that I should be wearing something warmer.

The other thing not helping is moving my Mexico photos from one computer to another. They are like old friends, and, of course, many of the photos are of friends.

Think about being cold and looking at the photo below.

How many days until the Admiral and I are in Mexico?


Beach at Boca de Iguana, north of La Manzanilla

Friends drop by and check out the new Flip Video

SACRAMENTO, Calif., USA - Our friends Dan & Lorraine Olsen dropped by this afternoon to say adios on their way south to hook back up with their sailboat, docked in Mazatlan, a pleasant place Sabbatical stayed several times - once for an entire summer.

We talked about travel plans - they are headed south on their boat, possibly as far as Ecuador this year.

We, of course, are headed not quite that far south - just La Manzanilla by Chrismas, where the Olsens say they might be if things work out.

In boating jargon, 'if things works out' really means, We Have No Freakin' Idea, But Would Like To.

But we showed them out latest video toy and insisted that they pick a up Flip video unit for their next travels.

And here they are: