Monday, January 30, 2012

Could We Live Here?

So I spent all of this time last night finishing the blog and when I went to post it, I lost all of the writing. Grrr...so annoying. Anyway, Scott had an interview in the very remote, small town of Bishop. Since we might live there, we decided to make a family trip of it to check things out. It is over 5 hours away from Sacramento and you have to drive through two mountain passes to get there. Lucky for us, no chains were required on the way up and the girls were awesome. I can't say enough how much I love portable DVD players! What did our parents do without them??!! The above picture is in our hotel, getting ready for bed.
Ada got her very own bed. She realized that it wasn't a crib and that she COULD get out without our help. That new discovery made bed time next to impossible that first night. With the power going out, Ada falling out of the bed, and my imagination getting the best of me, it made for a really long night that first night.
Watching morning cartoons.
There are a lot of mules in Bishop. In fact, they have Mule Days once a year. I am not sure exactly what happens during Mule Days, but I am sure that it involves a lot of Mules!
After Scotts interview, we promised Ada an outing at the park. There are two things I do not like very much. The Cold and the wind. Bishop has both. Scott taught Ada how to put her hands in her pockets. It's really cute to watch her trying to walk fast with her hands stuffed in her pockets. When we decided to finally coax Ada to leave the park she told us that her hands were freezing!
At the park
Ivy wasn't quite sure what she thought of Bishop
Our little climber
As small a Bishop is, it really is a pretty little town. It definitely has a family feel to it. When we finally convinced Ada that we should go get some dinner we headed to a local restaurant known for their breakfast. We got dinner. It was okay. Luckily, there is a family owned movie theater in town. We had "Girl With the Dragon Tattoo," or "Chipmunks" to choose from. We chose Chipmunks. We had a fun time and after the movie was over Ada told us that she needed to go and dance. So Scott took her up to the front of the theater and she danced her little heart out during the credits.
Our little Ragamuffins.
We wanted to check the ward out while we were there and Scott told me to call them to make sure it wasn't Stake Conference. When we walked into a dark chapel with a big screen hanging down, we knew something was up. We were told it was stake conference and since the stake center is over 2 hours away they do a remote broadcast. We were going to stay for a bit but they were experiencing technical difficulties and since we had a long drive ahead of us and the weather was uncertain, we snuck out.
Lucky we left when we did. The drive was really pretty on the way back, but chains were required once we hit Tahoe. Those suckers are expensive to put on and take off. We were $50 poorer once we took them off.
Ada was really mad at us! After about 2 hrs of Yo Gabba Gabba, I told her we needed to take a break and for her to take a rest. That didn't fly over well. After about 20 minutes of her screaming, "I WANT DVD'S, STOP SINGING!" I put a movie back on. I usually don't give in so easily, but did this time for sanity reasons.                                                                     
Did I mention there are a lot of Mules in Bishop? We needed to get some footage of these interesting creatures.

So, could we live here? If I knew it would only be for a couple of years, I think I could do it. There are a lot of fun outdoorsy things to do and we could really be outdoorsy people. The few drawbacks are 1. It is far away from EVERYTHING. Bishop is pretty much the main town for about 2 hrs, 2. Cold, cold, cold. and 3. It is super expensive. I need to add a 4. After living so close to family for these past months, it would hard to move so far away again. The drive isn't that far, just not that easy to get to, especially during the winter.

Anyway, we had a fun weekend. I guess we will find out in about a month where Scott's stands with the position.

8 comments:

Emily said...

It's almost uncanny how much your experience was us last year with Gallup. We all went with Dave for his interview so we could see the town. It was good for me to know what we were getting into since I had been there recently. Gallup is also two hours to the nearest town; it's very small; there's not much to do unless you're outdoorsy people; cold and wind. It's liveable, but it's not super fun. But if it's a job, it's a job, so I'm grateful for that and hopeful for Scott! Good luck!

Lovell Family said...

Could you live there....you'll have to decide....could I live there....heck no!!! and I grew up with my own mules! If it means a job...well, that's a hard decision! Good luck!

Boquinha said...

Whoa. That is remote! Gallup, Vernal, Bishop. I never would've guessed. There were some jokes about us being small town when we moved to PA, but I don't feel isolated at all since we're 10 minutes from Hershey, basically a Harrisburg suburb, and 2-3 hours to Philly, DC, New York, Baltimore, the beach, etc. Gallup/Vernal/Bishop are all WAY more remote.

But yes, if it's a job and you're wanting to stay in CA, that might be your best bet, mules and all! Good luck!

Jennifer Lovell said...

Linds, it looks like you'd see more "country living" in Bishop than you've experienced before, right? We're doing that right now, and it's been quite a fun change. All except for the extra driving (to church, to work, etc.), which I can't stop whining about. Oh well. Everything else about the country, we love.

I was laughing out loud with the picture of the girls watching cartoons in the hotel (so cute), and imagining Ada dancing in the movie theater--great idea! And, I'm glad your DVD player was there to help you on the drive. Good luck in the job hunt--the right thing will work out!

Peg said...

hey, it's Emily's Aunt Peggy. My very good friend Corinne grew up in Bishop and her mom was mayor for years. I can hook you two up if you want to talk. I think Bishop is also known for great skiing

cameron said...

That sounds like the quite the ROAD TRIP... one I don't want. No fun with Britton these days. He hates the car. Bishop? that could be adventurous!!! good luck!!!

Gleason Family said...

I had to laugh when I read the part about "what did our parents do without portable dvd players?" I remember when we were younger and making the looong drive to Idaho with your family in the van and laying in the back watching videos on that tv/vcr thing you guys had in your van. And let me tell you, I thought that was just about the coolest thing EVER- to be able to watch movies in the car. We never had anything like it. ha haha!!! So funny to remember! Love the pictures. Excited for your new adventures.

J Fo said...

I seriously know EXACTLY how you feel! I can handle anything for a few years. Who knows, maybe you fall in love with the place?! A job is a job. A job is a job...that's what I keep saying. :)