Trains and a memorial garden

This morning we proceeded with our plan to be sightseers for a day. We had planned this as we were preparing to leave full-time RVing last October, but other things kept taking priority.
Up at Keene, CA. just before the community of Tehachapi, we took the exit pointing to the Tehachapi Loop and what an experience to drive three miles out into the country where in 1874 a civil engineer planned a way for the railroad to continue on to the west coast in an area where the elevation was too steep for an engine. He used a total circle to make it possible for a 4000 foot long train to be able to climb 77' in elevation. We watched two separate times seeing a train coming from the west--going into a tunnel to loop back west and then another tunnel to come east again and then making this total circle where we saw the engine right beside what would be the caboose (but was really two more engines aimed backwards also pushing the train) as it headed away to the east. The first train had 2 engines on front and 2 on back. The second had 3 on front and 2 on back. Several others were there watching with us and a local man told us that there are 2 freight line tracks, one for BNP and one for Santa Fe and yes, sometimes you see them both on this circle at once and on rare occasions you see a passenger train (actually some company's luxurious train car hiring one of the engines to take it wherever.) The sign says about 36 trains go thru this loop daily.
Then we had noticed the National Memorial Sign from Cesaer Chavez days and drove in. It turned out to be the site he moved to (an old TB sanitarium) following the beginning of the grape boycott and where much of the planning for organizing farmworkers began. The museum shows the bare situation in which he lived and has been built around his office. It brought back many memories of those years and even now there is a box for people to drop off donated food and items as the CA freeze has made thousands of farmworkers jobless and there will be no work until later this summer. ( With the freezes on both coasts, I suspect we will see large jumps in the prices of fruits and veggies. Ironically, our grapefruit tree survived so we give grapefruit to our drs, their other patients, church people, people in front of the post office, etc; I know how my dad felt when there were apples falling off the tree going to waste. At a stop at a nice produce farm, we discovered our grapefruit are selling for at least $1.00 each and think we have given away over 400.)
The memorial garden and fountain by Mr. Chavez's single tombstone is well-maintained and beautiful. They now use the old sanitarium for housing for camps or conferences that meet there. We took a break to enjoy dinner at the small-town Keene cafe which was well-patronized and then went back to watch a 45 minute video of the museum which included comments by grandchildren, his wife, and others who worked with him.
Meantime, we had a great Sunday visit with Ken in Fresno where we ate too much pot-luck and learned about his activities. Harry went to another computer class on Weds and it gave info on how to make letterheads, etc on Microsoft Word so since then he has succeeded with his dream to make personalized stationery and a new 6 month datebook. I have been to a younger women's study group in the evening and a general United Methodist Women meeting--both of which make me look at our wider world.
Now we look forward to staying with Brittany and Brooke Sunday thru Wednesday and have a birthday celebration for Renee when they come home Wednesday evening.--by Anita