Hello, Back in our little kid days, our dad brought home some unusual fruit called “Dates” given to him by a friend. We had never seen them before. My brother and I could not wait to finish the large box full of the dark colored oval shaped items. It was something we could not stop eating, until we got full and had stomach aches for a while. A couple of little piggies… But, one day, our dad took us out to his long time friend’s ranch who lived in a far reaching city called Indio. We had never heard of such a city, but it was a couple of hours away out in the Eastern desert area of So Cal. It was definitely different than our “near to the ocean” house and climate. We had hot days in the summer in Long Beach, but not as hot as where we were visiting. As much protest as I could give, our mom made me wear a hat while we were out in the hot wide spread ranch/farm in Indio. The sun was relentless, made everything dry and very hot. At least I got to ride on a tractor!!! Jnaki After our tour of the whole, huge farm area and the implements, we got a tour of the date farm growing areas. They had neat rows of troughs for watering each planted row, using automotive motors to provide the power to move the water up and down the rows. And the dates that were being processed were now in a covered barn where we were heading. We were given a couple of boxes of fresh dates and started eating them on the way home. By the time we got home, we were passed out from stuffing our selves with fresh dates and now had stomach aches. But, at least the long drive was short due to the nap we both took for at least an hour in the back seat of the large 49 black Buick Roadmaster sedan. Note: These days this “far out in the empty areas” of So Cal are now populated with businesses and homes. In recent times, a few miles away, is now a gathering spot for the young folks gathering every year for rock music and whatever is associated with the whole scene. The Cochella Music Festivals that lasts for several weekends of the gatherings with some "big names" in the music industry. The latest version of the Cochella Music Festival is coming up in weekend #2 and the names are oddball to those of us still in our own rock music world. “Blackpink?” Isn’t that a style of a 1956 Ford Crown Victoria sedan? Ha! Note2: The last time my wife and I were in the Palm Springs area for some music was the first drive-in theater opening of the Palm Springs Rock Concert. We had tickets in hand and by the time we got to the general area, it must have attracted the whole So Cal rock music young kids. We were twenty somethings and it was our first long distance drive to a rock concert not near the beach areas of So Cal. We could not even get close enough to park and walk. So, as we pulled over in the El Camino to figure out what to do next, a couple of young girls dressed to the 9’s in their colorful clothing asked if we had tickets. When we showed them the tickets, they offered to buy them at a profit for us. The sold tickets paid for a nice dinner at a local hot spot and tasty food, instead of several hours of rock music. It was going to be too difficult to get to the venue. The dinner was so tasty and atmospheric for the two of us. My wife and I have been there since those times, but only when the temperature is cooler and in the middle of the week. Some times, only for shopping at the outdoor mall area near the giant dinosaur location, up the freeway. Even though it is a tourist destination, it still is a nice place to visit for an updated desert community. It sure has grown since those little kid days. YRMV
The Jalopy Journal
