Introduction

Here I am on a cold June day (50 degrees). I'm more or less kept inside do to the dense fog and tree rain. Most people don't associate this kind of weather with Southern California. Who would have thought we would have a fire in the fireplace in June. Ironically, the forest service is battling a growing brush fire on the face of the mountain my family and I are trying to stay warm on top of.

I decided to start a blog in hopes that someone might find it interesting. This first entry is really nothing more than a trial run and more of an introduction to my self. My future blogs will be more of an opinionated and political nature.

I am going to answer one potential question right now. Cedarpines Park where we live, is the western most community on the mountain top in the San Bernardino mountains. If you start at the well know Big Bear and start following the mountain top around to the west you run through all sorts of cool mountain get away towns you may not have heard of.

Following the famous Rim Of The World Scenic Byway, you'd go through and see the names of places like Blue Jay, Twin Peaks, Lake Arrowhead and Running Springs. If you keep going and stay on the byway you would never know where we are and would miss out on the unique nature of our mountain community. Finally farther to the west, you are getting closer to us. If you divert off of the beaten path that the byway provides, there are more areas like Lake Gregory/Crestline where the county has paddle boats and fishing. Continue west and drive through Valley Of Enchantment and at the top of the hill you have arrived at Cedarpines Park.

We sit at about 5500 feet and the neighborhood streets curve all around and look off the mountain at various points to the south, north and west. Our house faces east which means out our back windows and from various locations around the property we get a nice sun set.

Why all of this useless information? Because I love my mountain and wanted to share it with you. My mentioning of the sunset was not any intention to gloating. We live in a small 900 square foot cabin built it 1934. To live here takes a serious commitment. Evey summer we are faced with the threat of wild fire and need to be ready to evacuate at any moment. In the winter we actually get one, unlike most of Southern California. But the truth is that by the time you get sick of the snow it melts. When it's not threatening to burn us down or freeze us, the mountain gives us thick fog that clings to the leaves on the trees and falls from there like rain.
It's not all bad though, probably 8 months of the year it is clear and blue. We are definitely above the smog line and the schools are certainly better for the boys. Unlike when we lived down in Colton the boys can play with the neighborhood kids and the neighborhood looks out for them. All of the parents here seem to take an active role.

Well that's enough for this week. The introduction is done. Hopefully I will get time to post something new once a week.