A day in the life of another, more friendly and vibrant town

You know I like to make my own bread, it’s way better than store bread and lots cheaper. My husband enjoys it too, so he bought us a new bread knife. Caution, sharp! I’ve cut myself with it about three times, most recently a nasty gash right across the edge of my index finger. It was a gusher, I had to use two bandages. And it keeps getting in the way – how to get around without using my hands, I haven’t figured that out yet. So it just kept getting ripped open again, getting all over the place. Like a lot of injuries, if you could just keep from using that part of the body, it would heel up in a day.

I needed a distraction. So we hit the road for Orland, a great day trip, neat little town,. We wanted to see if we could get any mandarins – too late! It’s been a tough winter for citrus farmers in Glenn County. Between that crazy fog, so wet, and then the dumping rain – mandarins are over. I was glad we’d run out to Bouldin Farms and got a few bags before the end.

But Orland still has a nice downtown, lots of restaurants and bakeries, and tons of those little “antique” stores. Yep, Orland has a penny sales tax – but like I always say, when you are paying reasonable prices, sales tax doesn’t make a blip on the radar.

Free parking! Fuck you Chico! Polite drivers – ever stepped out across Hwy 32 in Chico? You better be damn sure before you stick that foot out. In Orland they not only stop for pedestrians, they wave hello at you and you say “Thank you!”

Here’s the routine – we leash ourselves up and we hit the bakery for some dulces. We could get fat and diabetic in that town, walking out of a bakery with a full bag for less than $4. We got a huge jelly roll and a Danish, to eat while we walked around town. We already had lunch in mind for later.

I always have a list of household needs when I hit the shops. My husband and I live in a tiny space, and we always need things that help with organization. I always look for battery lights, as well as shelf racks and hangers. And I have a weakness for sweaters and other outerwear, cause it’s expensive new.

Everything at the various Downtown shops was marked down from Christmas – I found a ginchee hanging lamp for my battery candles at the first shop, marked down to $1. They had clothes, dishes, racks and cabinets, as well as other furniture, all used but in good condition, and reasonably priced. I’m not just filling my own wishes and needs – when you’re shopping at an “antique” store, you’re diverting perfectly good stuff from the landfill. One shop had an entire cart full of nice fleece blankets for $5 or less. I have to stop myself from buying things I don’t need, it’s good to have a list of what you’re looking for.

My husband always looks for tools, he’s found quite a few bargains. He has a good eye for tiny things, he found me a trivet for the oven in the woodstove, so we can heat leftovers and whatever in the woodstove. Which was also a thrift store score, one of our best.

And it was lunch time before we knew it. I don’t like Chico restaurants, but I get a craving for the Farwood Grill on occasion. They have a pickup window, super convenient. For $20 we got a huge hamburger to split between us, with a full order of really good fries. Dogs aren’t allowed in restaurants, so once we got the food in the car, we had to hold back until we made it to the city park – Orland’s version of The Plaza. No bums, no tents, no garbage, nicely maintained landscaping and big, clean tables with plenty of garbage cans, thank you!

Just as we were leaving, we saw the museum was open, and FREE!, but we had to get home. The sign says it’s open the first Friday of each month, but it was open when we were there, so I will check the website next time and I’ll keep you posted.

Call me a broken record, but I’ll say it again – Chico is in trouble, and here’s why – they have none of the above.