You Really SHOULD ________.

Fill in the blank. “You really should eat more kale“. “You really should get another job“.  “You really should change your hair“.

Speaking just for myself, when someone starts a sentence with, “You really should” I generally start to lose interest really fast. My attention zooms away from the subject at hand and off to something like, “I wonder how many blades of grass are on that lawn across the street”? I think it’s a common reaction.

What I just said above? It goes out the window when traveling solo in new places. I have found that some of the  most interesting places have come from referrals from fellow travelers. Listening and paying attention to their experiences can yield some gems.

1. “You really SHOULD eat at the diner right off 95 in Cottonwood, just past the grain elevator”.  Told to me by the proprietor of the Bark Park Bed & Breakfast in Grangeville Idaho. It was the Farm to Table Cafe, and I enjoyed an outstanding burger.
2. You really SHOULD take Route 199 from Crescent City to Grants Pass, it’s a beautiful drive”.  Told to me by a guy in a shop in Winchester Bay Oregon. I did and it was.
3. You really SHOULD try Tasty Kate’s bakery in Port Orford, Oregon. Told to me by a bookstore owner near Umpqua Lighthouse State Park. I did, and Kate herself got tears in her eyes when she heard that her old friend had made the referral and that I followed up on it.
4. You really SHOULD check out the Washed Ashore Project in town. It’s very interesting”. Told to me by my camper neighbors in Bullard’s Beach State Park near Bandon, Oregon. It was indeed interesting, and outlined below. You really SHOULD read about it. :-)

The headquarters for the Washed Ashore Project is located in the small coastal town of Bandon, Oregon. Their mission is to turn pollution, primarily plastic, from the ocean into art in order to raise awareness of this global issue.

When communities engage in beach cleanup efforts, the trash is collected by the Washed Ashore team of volunteers. It’s washed and sorted so that it can be used to create artistic works.

The works travel the nation to raise awareness of the problem and its impact. For instance, the Shedd Aquarium in Chicago is in the first month of a year-long exhibit and there is an ongoing exhibit at the Smithsonian.

There were several works on display in the Bandon headquarters, as well as an area where any volunteers could stop and spend some time volunteering to do prep work for in-process works.

For more info on the Washed Ashore Project, check it out here. http://washedashore.org

It was a fascinating place and I’m so glad I stopped in. Many thanks to my neighbors for the referral.

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