August 1, 2009
Welcome to August. It was a strange way to end July. We went to park in the Moorhead Center Mall parking lot. The mall is not doing well at all--more empty storefronts than full. It must’ve been doing well at one time because there’s a parking lot and then a multi story parking garage!
Anyway, we parked there and walked to the Red River veteran Memorial Bridge. There is a monument halfway across, benches, and little factoids about the river and geology of the region. Rain was threatening, so we went back to the truck and drove into Fargo where Bill parked and walked around to take photos. I stayed in the truck and read and crocheted, working on the shawl my friend asked for before I left. I just don’t have a good vibe about this place. I was thinking about why that is so. I liked Bismarck a lot and I just don’t like it here. Part of it is the campground. The owners just happen to be a company that sells RVs. They never seem to be here and they leave the operation in the hands of very young people who seem to be unable to do anything. As someone told Heather in the bathroom yesterday, “This is the worst KOA I’ve ever been in.” The bathroom is never quite clean. The other day a woman stormed into the office demanding to know whether the bathroom was going to get cleaned that day. “Yes,“ the girl chirped. “Good, “ the disgruntled woman replied, “because it hasn’t been cleaned in days.“ “I just cleaned it yesterday,“ the girl squeaked. I don’t think I’d admit that, given the situation. We dread taking a shower. So I have tried to look beyond the immediate surroundings and consider the towns themselves. I realized that it’s a bit too urban for my taste. I have never liked cities. I was happy living in Portland, but the reason we left was to go to a more rural area.
As I was looking at Fargo yesterday I was struck by how similar downtowns tend to be. The names of the shops are different, but the whole point is to get people to consume--usually stuff they don’t really need.
I am sure there are some interesting things in Fargo--Bill was struck by the historical markers on the corners. There are a couple of old churches. It’s not a bad town, but it just doesn’t appeal to me. I am curious to see how things go in Minneapolis.
Observing life in this particular campground has been interesting. There are a lot of people who are temporary or seasonal workers and they are living here for the time being. Whereas the other campgrounds had lots of newer, bus-like RVs, here there are lots of older ones that need to be towed. And the whole culture is different. A few of the guys (and they are guys) have their significant others with them. They are pretty quiet. The ones that are on their own, though, are a whole other story. The other night I was kept awake in part by male people drinking beer, being loud, and throwing their empty beer bottles around. They weren’t being obnoxious, just rude. I had to get up in the night to walk to the bathroom and I didn’t want to bother Bill, so I went by myself and I will admit to being nervous about getting there in the dark. All was well in the end and the worst thing that happened was that I was tired yesterday. Still, we are all looking forward to moving on in a couple of days.
