West Again
- Elgon Williams
- Jun 5, 2019
- 3 min read
When I was a kid growing up on a farm in Ohio, Dad used to fantasize aloud about picking up stakes and heading out west. I guess it was because he loved reading pulp westerns when he was younger and he enjoyed watching TV Westerns like Gunsmoke and Rawhide. I liked those, too. (Yeah, I know, I’m showing my age.) Dad’s favorite pipe-dream destinations were Texas, Arizona, and, of course, California.
Eventually, when my parents retired, Mom and Dad moved to Texas, way down south, close to the Rio Grande. A couple of years later, they wound up in Florida. Mom discovered she was allergic to something in South Texas. She always believed it was the citrus gnats. But for some reason the gnats in Florida were no problem.
Later, Dad and Mom made it out to Arizona to visit my sister and brother-in-law, who were stationed in Tucson at the time. But my folks never made it to California.
In my travels, I've seen a lot of places and lived in some. While in the Air Force, I was in Monterey, CA for about a year attending the Defense Language Institute. I liked it there, even though that was probably the coldest summer I’ve ever endured. But for most of my life I lived in Florida. A few months back, my son and daughter-in-law invited Grandpa to Southern California to spend time with my grandson. I spent a few months there helping with things. Although I'd visited the area before I'd never been to Irvine. So being there was a mixture of new experiences and updating past impressions. I was just getting to know some people, connecting with friends I’d never met except online, when my son announced he was moving to Las Vegas.
I always knew So Cal was a short term location. My son had been looking for a better position - more pay and less hours (aren't we all). And it's expensive living in Orange County, largely because of transportation, housing and taxes. So, around a month ago, we packed up everything, crammed it into the back of a UHaul truck and relocated.
I’m somewhat familiar with the Vegas area. Around twenty years ago I worked for a company that is based here. Twice a year (in July and January) I flew out for meetings and training updates. So, I'm familiar with the extreme contrasts of the local weather. It was fun visiting, spending a couple of weeks a year at the MGM Grand, except I don’t gamble. There are other things to do while in Vegas, of course, like attending lavish shows and enjoying the first class dining, but gambling is certainly the main draw. Since I wasn’t spending my free time in the casinos, I did some sight seeing, checking out the real Vegas – the parts of town where people live, have jobs, and, for the most part, do what other people do in other parts of the country. And yes, I think most locals avoid The Strip. There are several mountain trails with incredible views for those who enjoy hiking. And, if you have the time and don't mind driving a bit, there’s the Hoover Dam, Lake Mead, and the Grand Canyon that are not all that far away. But Vegas is certainly part of the West. You have only to venture a few miles past the city limits to experience the ‘whole lotta nothing’ aspect that prevails in the western two thirds of the United States. I think people from the coasts and the congested pockets of the Midwest should come out here, stay a while and experience some of the raw, uncivilized stretches of our country, where you can drive for many miles before seeing another car, let alone another person. It changes one’s perspective and alters any preconceptions. This may be a small world, but it is still a lot bigger than any of us.
The view from my window is of other houses in the neighborhood, just beyond a dog park. Grass is a rare thing around here, so you get used to seeing gravel with some larger rocks arranged for decorative purposes. But behind the houses across the way is a backdrop of mountains that reminds me that I am truly in the west again.