I see you

We have entered the age of 'fraidy cats'. We now have a Ring video doorbell installed. We will be notified, via our iPhones, whenever someone approaches the front porch. We will see live video and a live microphone will be working; "Hello. Can I help you?" when someone presses the Ring doorbell, the remote chime will sound. This bell plugs into a wall plug and can be moved to wherever you want it. My wife is unable to hear at all in her right ear and her hearing is hearing aid assisted in the other. This feature gives her the ability to hear the bell even when her phone is in another room.

My memories include my time growing up in Manhattan Beach and our doors were only locked when we were on vacation. When we married and lived in some apartments before buying our first home, we rarely locked the doors. Our first home, a brand new one,in Newbury Park, was on a cul-de sac with most homes occupied by young families like ours and once again the doors were rarely locked.

We moved to Brea and things changed. There were reports of daylight home break-ins and garage thefts. These became more frequent and we now locked all the doors. One night I forgot to lock my truck and in the morning my favorite jacket was gone. That, and other factors, convinced me to ask my wife to move. To move far away. I suggested that I would drive drive north of the Los Angeles basin on US 395. This is the highway that goes from Mexico to Canada but on the eastern side of the Sierra's. This had always been my favorite route and I loved the small towns that were targeted by this highway. Towns like Mojave, Lone Pine, Independence, Bishop, Bridgeport, Walker, Coleville, and then past Topaz Lake into Nevada. In Nevada there were more small towns; Minden, Gardnerville and then Reno. Reno wasn't a small town but it was a small city. I had never been past Reno on 395.

I packed my bag and a camera  and with the blessings of our family, I set out. Once I was past Ridgecrest, the traffic thinned out to almost zero. I already felt better about this project and I began to daydream about finding this perfect place to raise our family.

The miles and the towns went by without my being notified by some unknown 'inner sense'. It was a long day and then I was in Reno without a clue as to how far should I go. I found a motel and then, in the morning, I found 395 North again and began driving...shortening the story; I found a house in Janesville. I bought it and we moved. I bought it because I could let my children grow up as I did, without fear. The doors in the 'new' house were not locked and my truck keys were just where I could find them every morning...in the truck.

One by one the children grew, graduated and moved on with their lives. Sadly, we moved as well. To Roseville, a suburb of Sacramento and we knew immediately that we had to lock things up. Flash forward to 12 years ago and we moved to Orland, a rural community south of Redding by about an hour. It was rural but not enough to skip locking the doors. Five years ago we moved to Chico and since that time, the break-ins have increased. We live in a nice neighborhood but that's not a barrier to thieves. And we're in our 70's and aging typically increases the feelings of insecurity. I wish it wasn't so, but there it is...

We do feel a little safer now. And we can be out for dinner and still answer the door as if we were inside. No one knows. Being a nerd, I enjoy the geek factor that comes with owning such a thing.

On the pain side of things; the surgeon says there is nothing he can do. It was strange watching the fire in his eyes fade out as he looked at the x-ray and realized that he couldn't justify surgery. He dismissed us. We returned to the pain doc and I get to see her in about 5 1/2 weeks. For a consult. Who knows what will happen. In the meantime, I take what I need to put a dull edge on the pain.