While making this drive, I stopped in the town of Redford, which is a dot on the map between Presidio and Terlingua. There isn't even a gas station in Redford. Well, technically there's a building that looks like it once functioned as a gas station, but I don't think those tanks have seen petro in years.
ANYWAY, I stopped in Redford because I wanted to say hello to a new friend of mine whom I'd met in Terlingua a few weeks earlier. This thirtysomething artist, originally from California, had moved out to Marfa a few years back to "get away from it all" and then decided that even Marfa was too crowded for her taste. I can't imagine what she'll do if Redford becomes too much of "a scene" for her. A remote island in the South Pacific perhaps?
So, this wonderfully whimsical woman had told me how to get to her place in Redford, should I ever be "passing through." Her directions went something like this:
"Exactly one mile from the city limit sign, you'll see a squatty palm tree on your right -- although it's not very squatty anymore. It has grown some. You'll turn right at the palm tree before the fence line. Follow the fence down the dirt road. Well, it's not really a road, but the ground is level enough to get your car down it. You'll pass a trailer and then you'll see my house."
One day I'd like to live some place where I use vegetation as a directional marker. How cool is that?
So, I followed her directions as I remembered them, and -- lo and behold -- I found her place, exactly as she had described it! Bicycles in various states of repair were strewn about her yard. A symphony of wind chimes blew in the breeze. I knocked on the front door, ready to see her surprised face, but no one answered. I went around to the back of the house to see if maybe I'd have better luck. And that's when I discovered the note she had taped to the back door. It read:
J.D. --
Don't go in my house or feed my cat when I'm not home.
Who was this J.D. character? I certainly didn't want to stick around and find out. Who goes around breaking and entering and feeding felines?! My mind started to race. Was he nearby at the moment? Was he -- GASP! -- watching me right now???
I quickly retreated to the Swedish Land Rocket for a speedy getaway -- but not before leaving my own note. It read:
Dear R,
I was just passing through (no kidding!), so I thought I'd stop by. Sorry I missed you. Take good care!
-Katie
As I drove away, I kept an eye on her house, which got smaller and smaller in my rearview mirror. I guess I was expecting to see ol' J.D., but he never did show. Probably busy feeding someone else's cats down the road.
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