Attention: This is yet one more post that originally had but one photo and maybe 200 words that told of our day. Here in late 2022, this oversight is being repaired.

This corner of Placer Drive and Cathedral Oaks Avenue in Goleta will forever belong to my aunt and uncle Burns, who moved into the house as its first occupants.

On a similar note, this is Cajun Kitchen, but without my aunt and uncle, it is not the same place. Lots of fond memories of having breakfast with those two. Remember, I’m writing this in 2022.

Passing through Los Angeles on Highway 101 and only about 7 miles before we either merge onto the 10 Freeway or the 60 for our drive home to Arizona.

Today, though, we are detouring right from Downtown Los Angeles to make our way to Whittier Boulevard.

We went as far as we could on Whittier Boulevard until we turned to pick up Lambert Road.

That road becomes Carbon Canyon and takes us into Chino Hills right to the California Institution for Men in Chino. From there, we took Central North to merge onto the 60 Freeway that will bring us to Interstate 10.

Northwest of Palm Springs, about 120 miles from Blythe, this is U.S. Interstate 10 going east towards Arizona. Over the past 11 years, Caroline and I have plied this asphalt no less than 70 times, maybe as many as 100 times; we have lost count. From visiting family to shopping, going to concerts, movies, national parks, ethnic communities, or riding the subway and trying new food, this road to and from Los Angeles has delivered us to Disneyland, Hollywood, the Pacific Ocean, and back home again.

The question always comes up: why don’t you fly? For the 2 of us to fly to Los Angeles from Phoenix requires a 20-minute-drive to Sky Harbor International Airport, two days of parking at $20 per day, two plane tickets at $125 each, $45 for a small car in L.A., $21 for gasoline at a minimum upon rental return. The entire procedure takes 3.5 hours from home to sitting down in the rental car, so for $356 and still no hotel, we could go to L.A. 2 hours faster than driving. But, for the 70-odd times we have made this journey it would have cost us $24,920 versus the $3,570 we have spent for gasoline (that’s averaging $2.00 per gallon over the 11 years). With the money saved, we could have bought 362 entries into Disneyland, paid for 305 hotel nights, or flown non-stop roundtrip to Hawaii 22 times, or to Europe 9 times.

The homestretch, we are only 160 miles from our front door.