A Living Magazine - Day 24 - Where the Spell Ends

I woke up to a small flock of really small birds jumping around in the tree above me. I tried to take a picture, but all that shows are the branches. I packed up quickly and took one last survey of the field I'd spent 9 nights in. Even though I'd wanted to leave, now I actually felt some affection for this place that had been my sanctuary...

Can you see the little birds?

My final walk down Cypress came as automatically to me as would a walk from the bedroom to the living room...

This is an interesting place. It has been taken over by street folk.

Often at night they can be seen on the roof. That is where they sleep.

Occasionally, people work the intersections.

I was pretty sure my boots wouldn't be at the post office, but I thought it was worth one last look. I turned and made my way down Churn Creek Road. Once there, I was delighted to see my go-to person, Ruth, at the service window. She gave the first two people in line excellent service. It took a little longer for me to get to the front of the line, but at least I knew she'd do everything possible to try and help me...

Greatest postal employee award goes to Ruth!

I like her union t-shirt too.

She immediately remembered me and my reason for being there. She gave one last valiant effort to locate the boots box. She also let me know that she'd seen the little package come in the day before, and made sure that I had received it alright--which I had. She still had her notes with my personal information and offered - in the unlikely even that the boots did show up eventually - to call and leave me a message.

She was so kind and diligent, so knowledgeable about the processes we were dealing with, that I wished I could have her at every post office I'd be at in the next few months. It was with a sentimental feeling for having worked together in trying to solve these problems, that we said goodbye. We shook hands and I gave her a card, and hopefully she will touch base here at the blog or at Facebook. I look forward to walking with another new friend beside me! 

When I turned to leave, the two women behind me were both smiling widely at the exchange I had with Ruth. It was nice to see some real positivity. And, even though I never got my boots, I felt that my interaction with Ruth was probably more important to this current journey at this particular time. She exemplified the ideals of service in that old school way we Yarmouth kids used to know when visiting the little town post office there--attention and respect for the customer. If you're ever in Redding, look for her at the post office there, and you'll know just what I mean.

Now, it was back to Cypress for that western walk to the library. With a few more interesting shots (or maybe I was just desperate to get more photos posted?)...

I like these posters from values.com. I thought they were maybe a religious organization,

but it appears that they are simply trying to spread positivity in world. Nothing wrong with that!

Wheelchair symbol--cast in straw wrapper.

I worked at the library until I'd made my post for the day. Then I left at around 8:00 pm when they closed. I still had 7 hours until my train departed. But, I wanted to at least head over there to the station, just to refresh my memory about where it was. When I had been there more than a week before, I had just woken up on the train and kind of stumbled out into the Redding night, without much thought to the surroundings.

Passing over the tracks I watched a train...

When I got there on this day, I looked for the lobby door. Even though this is an unmanned station, it should have a lobby with bathrooms, vending machines, maybe even Wi-Fi... However, characteristic of many public areas in Redding, it was inaccessible due to the same old tired reasons...

How to ruin a public service--courtesy of the unthinking street people of Redding.

I could see exactly why the picture above made sense, when rounding the corner and stepping up on to the railroad siding. Several homeless people were yelling at each other and drinking beers at the benches. No self control, no courtesy. There was no way I was going to sit around with these folks until 3:00 am the next morning. So, it was back out on to the street to kill six hours. I hadn't spent much time in this downtown part of Redding, thus, a couple more pictures were in order...

Looks like they have some good shows from time to time.

Redding night skyline looking west toward the mountains.

Unfortunately, most of the restaurants in the downtown area were closed. I had no idea why. It was only a Tuesday night. I wanted a snack, because I didn't know how long it would be until I ate again. Amtrak train food is ridiculously over-priced ($4.00 for a can of soda, for example). Therefore, the only way to get something cheap was to go back over the Cypress Bridge and hit one of the gas stations there, then head back...

Giant light cover on the Cypress Bridge.

On the way back into town, after scoring a small sandwich and a large water, I saw a dark spot down from the intersection at a closed building. It was a planter in the parking lot. I walked down and over to it, checking around carefully for other interested parties. Find none, I pulled out the tarp and unfolded it just enough to sit on, with my back against the pack. Knowing I was at risk of falling asleep (since it was around my normal bedtime), I set my watch alarm for midnight--just to give myself plenty of time to go over to the station. My train was to leave at 3:06 am. And, I did fall asleep.

Never hearing my alarm beep, I happened to open my eyes at 1:38 am, and flew into pack up mode. within 5 minutes I was rushing into town. Things always seem to take longer when I'm in a hurry. Still, I can't help myself from capturing a moment of interest...

Big time waste of water, right in front of City Hall. I had actually seen

the sprinkler head for this hose a few days ago, sitting in the grass beside its fixture.

 I got to the station at about 2:15 am--plenty of time to meet the train within the next hour, and to get some shots... 

Tired people waiting for two red eye trains.

One of the engines that I filmed crossing in front of me earlier (see the movie above).

I kept trying to focus on the fact that not only was I leaving Redding, but I was leaving California, the state I'd entered way back on January 2. Coming here had ended my last journey (please see the Manifest Destiny series). 

Whether by unconscious choosing or external forces of some kind, the Golden State imposed a spell on me. It gave me a kind of anesthetic pleasantry, mixed with lots of traps and enticements to get me to stay indefinitely. And the spell almost worked. Thankfully, I knew in my mind the whole time that I would not be able to live there--not yet, in my life. It's nice weather and surface-friendly people were not a good enough reason to set down roots. And, despite my two wonderful friends, Sheryl and David, my experience with Livermore-Steve soured any prospect of immediate residence for me.

It turned out that half the people waiting at the siding were going south toward LA, and their train had been delayed by 1.5 hours. It was supposed to have arrived an hour before my train (the "Coast Starlight" Train 14). That it was now past the arrival time for my train, and theirs had not arrived yet either, meant I was going to be there until at least 4:30 

The final picture in Redding was of my loyal and reliable backpack. It is a physical burden, but a psychological necessity...

The train arrived and I boarded. There would be 5 hours ahead for sleeping and charging the laptop...