Waking up in the desert is amazing.

I step out onto the porch and look out over the vast prairie that lies in front of me. All is silent.

I stretch and yawn and am amazed that it’s actually realtively cool here in the morning hours.

Maybe that’s why pretty desert flowers survive.

It also amazes me that there are power lines out here. Too bad there were no solar panels back when these were installed. It would surely have been easier.

One day, I want my own little house on the prairie. Off the grid.

After the dusty desert drive, we ended up at Pappy & Harriet’s Pioneertown Palace.

My vest matched the backdrop of the stage.

Where a country-western band was playing. Inside, the crowd consisted mostly of locals — with plenty of families and kids.

We had a plate of cheese fries, then ventured outside, to the outdoor concert space.

There was plenty of meats roasting over an open fire.

The crowd was very L.A. We even had a minor celebrity-sighting, Pixie from the reality show L.A. Ink. The evening’s acts were Alain Johannes, Sweethead and Earthlings?, pretty good.

Pioneertown was founded in 1946 by a group of Hollywood investors with dreams of creating a living movie set — an 1870s frontier town with facades for filming and interiors open to the public. It still has the feel…

Driving through the desert as the sun is coming down. The car in front is whipping up dust that starts to cover my lens. I suddenly realize the meaning of the expression “being left in the dust.”

Camera firmly in hand, I try to capture all the amazingness that surrounds.

Desert landscapes swish by. Apparently driving fast makes you feel the bumps in the roads less. People here drive really fast.

The sun is almost down and we have almost reached our destination. Where to? You shall soon find out.

I never got a chance to patronize this fine establishment. Even so, I found it worthy of a blog post.

Love the hand-painted signage and genius mix of weathered wood and semi-rusted corrugated metal.

Oh, and there is a pole outside where you can tie up your horse while enjoying libations inside. Forget what I said about the bike. Next time, I want to come here on a horse!

After saying goodbye to our friends at Sky Farm Red, we jumped in the rental car and headed straight for the desert.

The temperature gage showed 112 degrees (that’s 44.5 Celsius for you Euros). We had to stop to put the roof up on the car. It was that hot.

On the way, we passed the biggest wind farm I have ever seen. Pretty cool.

Once we hit 29 Palms Highway, the roof came back down.

My wind-blown hair will take like a week to brush after this.

GPS: “Your destination is on an unpaved road.” Yeah!

GPS: “You have reached your destination.” Where? You will soon find out…

In college I had a German philosophy teacher who always answered the question “How are you?” with “Today is a good day to die.” Sounds grim at first, but if you think about it, what better metaphor is there for enjoying life to the fullest each day and leaving nothing undone at the end of it? The purple glitter skeleton made me think of that. The hammock under the disco ball just rubbed it in.

Sometimes I think cats have it all figured out.

Keeping chickens equals an endless supply of fresh eggs.

Those eggs taste very nice fried up in butter and accompanied by a hot cup of freshly brewed coffee.

And a breakfast beer… why not?

And, finally, yummy pancakes with warm maple syrup to conclude one rocking breakfast. Thanks Ilse & Meeno. You are the best hosts ever.

We’re ready for a weekend in the desert.

Sunlight streaming through the curtains, I awake to the sounds of the amazing gardens outside. Despite the heatwave that hit L.A. this weekend, the morning air is still cool.

I walk outside the pink house that is my temporary home to smell the flowers, breathe some fresh mountain air and say good morning to the dogs.

Then, I turn back in for some reading, a great Swedish book about a 100-year-old man who escapes from the old folks home in search of adventure. It’s never too late.

The bustle of downtown Los Angeles is far below; tranquility reigns up here in the urban oasis on the hill. Next: Breakfast.

/// Dress, Thrift / Boots, Thrift / Cardigan, Marshall’s ///