In June we take a trip to Bodega Bay and Gualala, stopping on the way back to visit Connie and Bill in Fairfax. July 10-17 we drive back to Palmdale to visit and assess the building crisis.  Mike is interviewed on Geraldo Live! –I can’t tell if we did any traveling or just hung around the house.   shortly thereafter (7/29) we go to check out a Martin Bass Grif has found at the Fifth String where he spends Thursday nights.  We love it, Steve gives me $600 to cover half.  In August I take an acrylic painting class.  Grif and I are playing with Zenarchy, with Annalisa and Barry.  We rebuild the front door of the VW with all new gaskets, and in September drive to Island Mountain, where we can’t get any closer than a chain link fence.  I take a framing class, start my painting of Mt. Diablo.  In October, Fred comes to visit  .  .  . November 8, a Sunday trip to the beach, 11/27, hike to dump beach Finally, at the end of 1999, we wend our way down to Foxholm to the family estate for Christmas. There was a lot of chatter about the potential crash of computer systems worldwide, so, on a lark, we decided to go Analog, driving the 1957 VW van, taking a crank radio to the desert. After our traditional Last-Minute shopping trip for gifts, Steve and I took a drive out to Barrel Springs Road to get some fresh air where we blew a cylinder in the van and had to have it towed to a shop for a rebuild. Now carless, we rented a 2000 Chevy pickup truck for $500 and after Christmas dinner at Mar’s family home, took off for Death Valley while the VW was being rebuilt.

Sphinx Rock, Nevada