Unfinished Stories - California Highway One by James Morris

Unfinished Stories California Highway 1 By J. Henry

Table of Contents Introduction

Los Angeles

Santa Monica

Malibu

Santa Barbara

Lompoc

Oceano

Pismo Beach San Luis Obispo

45 51

San Simeon

Big Sur

Carmel by the Sea

Monterey

Santa Cruz

Halfmoon Bay

San Francisco

Stinson Beach

Point Reyes National Seashore

105

Mendocino

111

Fort Bragg

117

Introduction The idea for Unfinished Stories came to me while I was sitting at my computer staring at a blank screen. No matter how much I sat there looking, I could not come up with any good ideas to write about – I had writer’s block. I realized that I was probably only one of many other writers out there that suffered from this lack of creativity. So, I decided to come up with a theme-based book that is full of short stories. The unique thing about this book is none of the stories are complete. They all stop in the middle. I am leaving it up to the reader to finish the story. My first book, “Unfinished Stories,” was all based off my photographs that I had taken over the years. I simply looked at the photo and came up with a story. This time, I decided to use a popular state and road trip in that state to come up with stories. If you follow each story, it will take you from Los Angeles, California all the way to Fort Bragg, California along one of the most popular road trips, and one of the most beautiful, in the country, Highway One. Each chapter is titled after a town that can be found on Highway One. The stories are all individual, which means, you can read any chapter and any time – no two chapters are related to any other chapter. I hope you enjoy getting some creative motivation. And I hope you come up with some fantastic second parts to all the stories. Have fun. J. Henry

Los Angeles The big city. Everyone knows L.A. for being one of the largest cities in California. There are several parts of Los Angeles. Gina, a manager at a sound studio nearby, lives alone in a small house on May street in the Mar Vista area. Maybe that is why what happened there almost went without anyone noticing.

Gina has been working at the sound studio for the last ten years and just received her promotion to manager. She walks to the bus stop every morning to take the bus to work. With so much traffic in the Los Angeles area, taking the bus is about the only way to get around without going crazy. Or worse yet, someone going crazy on you. Today, Gina just finished working on some voice over scripts that needed to be done for an upcoming movie. Not difficult work, but long hours. This one fin-

ished at midnight to meet the deadline. Gina would be the first to admit that it is late night work sessions, like this, that makes her wish she drove her car rather than taking the bus. But she never knew what kind of day it was going to be until she got to work. So, there was no way to plan ahead. It was those demanding producers that would always come in at the last minute saying they needed something today.

Gina was happy she was finally able to go home. However, she was not looking forward to the ride on the bus at 1 AM. Waiting at the bus stop at this time of night was always unsettling in L.A. Gina was happy to see nobody else was around at the bus stop when she got there. Now she just had to make it a few minutes more before the bus arrived. There was a slight sigh of relief when the bus finally showed up. Another relief for Gina – nobody else was on the bus, which she was liking. This late at night, you never know if you are going to run into some creep. Gina reached her stop near her home and got off the bus. She started walking towards her home at a faster than usual pace since it was so late at night. It was only about a block and a half away. Gina was relieved to get home. Even though there has been little crime in her neighborhood, there was always an uneasy feeling she had. Especially after the divorce. She felt safe. It was time for a well-deserved hot shower, a glass of wine, and then straight to bed. The next morning, Gina’s phone started to ring. It was her mother wanting to get her weekly update and to make sure Gina was doing okay. Ever since the nasty breakup with her ex, Gina’s mother had been worried about her wellbeing. Mainly because her ex was, in her opinion, was a psycho. There was one time he and Gina were over for dinner and he accidentally let it slip out that he had done time in jail for assault. He tried to cover it up by switching it to his brother that did the time, but she knew it was him. The phone rang at Gina’s house. No answer. Gina’s mom did not want to panic, so she convinced herself that Gina was probably in the shower or something. She

will try to call again later. Which she did, about five minutes later. The phone rang again and still no answer. Now Ginaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s mom was starting to get a little worried. She knew that Gina should have been expecting this phone call. It happened every week. She decided to call again in about thirty minutes. Your turnâ&#x20AC;Ś finish the story: ________________________________________________________

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Santa Monica John has been living in Santa Monica all his life. His mom and dad moved there years before he was born to start a small business on the famous Santa Monica Pier. John had not planned on still being in Santa Monica when he turned thirty-five. But, nonetheless, he was still there. After he finished high school, he still had no idea what he wanted to do with his life. He knew he did not want to still be in Santa Monica, but sometimes life will feed you other challenges, or opportunities, that will keep you in a place you did not intend to be.

After Johnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s father died, he took over the store. Renting bicycles to visitors from all over the world turned out to be more fun than he had originally thought. It was easy work and good money. Besides, his mother now needed

him more than ever after being diagnosed with Alzheimer’s. Being the only child was now starting to catch up with him. And having no spouse was also taking a toll on his well-being. But John was way too busy with the shop and his mother to even try to have a relationship. The last thing on his mind was finding a girlfriend. But, as I said earlier, life can feed you unexpected opportunities that can change your life. It is what you do with that opportunity that defines what your future will be like. One day while at the store, John heard a voice that made him stop what he was doing. It was a woman’s voice: Soft, sweet, and smooth. John had heard thousands of voices, but this one was different. It felt calming and gave him goosebumps. He felt an overwhelming sense of serenity when he heard her voice. John approached her. “Hi, welcome to my store,” he said, realizing his voice just cracked like a nervous teenager. “Can I help you find something?” The young lady turned her head towards John. She gave him a smile that he would never forget. “Hi. Thank you, but not right now. We’re just looking.”

John had been so infatuated with the lady’s voice that he did not notice the man she had walked in with. “Okay. Well, my name is John. I’m the owner. If there is anything I can do, please let me know.” “Thank you, John,” she replied. John turned away and returned to his workbench. The lady asked her companion to wait outside for a moment and then walked over to the workbench John was working at. “John?” He looked up. He could not believe that she was more beautiful than the first time he saw her. “My brother and I are planning a bike tour of Santa Monica with a group of underprivileged children. We were just wondering if you had enough bicycles.” John felt relieved the man was only her brother. “Yes. What I have here is only part of my inventory. Just tell me how many bicycles you will need, and I can make sure they are here and ready for you.”

She gave John a big smile. “Oh, thank you, John. My name is Laci. Here’s my contact information. I’ll be in touch with you soon.” Laci turned and walked away. Your turn. Finish the story:

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Malibu Cliffside Drive in Malibu is full of wealthy people that live in luxury homes on the beach. They enjoy watching the sunsets, the whales swim by and the occasional all beach volleyball tournaments. One thing that most of the residents do not enjoy is a murder. Of course, you have a few people that do not mind a murder, as long as it did not happen to them. But the higher percentage would rather just not have it happen on their block. A Malibu Police patrol sergeant was the first on the scene. His initial description of the scene was that it appeared to be very well planned and thought out homicide. The scene was clean and left extraordinarily little evidence. The Sergeant knew that he would probably have to leave it up to the homicide detectives to do their thing to solve this case.

There were several things to this case that left the Sergeant scratching his head. First, the victim was a well-known banker that lived on the other side of Malibu on Paseo Serra â&#x20AC;&#x201C; a small cul-de-sac in the hills on the east side. Why he was on the kitchen floor of this home was, in itself, a mystery. The home had been on the market and had been listed for sale for over six months. Second, there was no sign of any forced entry. All the doors were still locked. No windows broken or forced opened. So, how did he even get inside the home. Also, the sergeant noticed that there was no smell of a dead body. If the body had been laying there for any amount of time, you would think there would be some odor lingering throughout. But there was not. The realtor who was showing the house to a perspective couple was the one to find the body. When they walked into the kitchen, they saw the body lying on the floor. They thought it was just some man sleeping on the floor. But only later, after they tried to wake him up, they found out that he was dead. That is what made this so unusual. No smell of a dead body; No sign of trauma; No blood; No mess. And worse yet, little, if any, evidence. Your turn. Finish the story:

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Santa Barbara The Arlington Theater is a historical landmark for Santa Barbara. Several events happen there every year. It was built in 1931 after the Arlington Hotel was destroyed in the 1925 earthquake. Thirteen people died in that earthquake. One of those, Julia Humbert, was a guest in the hotel when it was destroyed. She is now said to be one of the theaterâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s guests that has a life-time membership. Her spirt is welcome at any time. During any of the events that occur at the Arlington Theater, you never know which one, Julia may decide to attend. At one event, she was seen sitting in her favorite seat in the balcony â&#x20AC;&#x201C; MA-1. The doors to the theater had not opened yet and the usher had noticed her sitting down. The usher approached her to ask to see her ticket stub. Before the usher could get to her, Julia stood

up and started to walk away, only to fade away right before the usherâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s eyes. Even though the usher had been working at the theater for several years and knew about the stories of Julia, this was his first time actually seeing her. It also ended up being his last time as well. The usher quit that night. On the night of April 24, 2011, Jerry Seinfeld, a well-known comedian, was performing at the theater. Julia had decided she was not going to be a fan of Mr. Seinfeld and on that night, caused havoc. She haunted several people to the point that they left fearing for their lives. It was only days later that Jerry Seinfeld found out that it was not his act that caused them to leave. But the ghost of Julia Humbert. This is the story of what happened on that night. Your turn. Finish the story:

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Lompoc Peter was a twelve-year-old boy with a vivid imagination. He would often tell stories of his adventures during the day that sounded as if they were right out of some movie from Hollywood. His mother always thought he would grow up to be some kind of writer, or better yet, a movie director. But on this day, Peter’s story was not made up. Although, because of Peter’s reputation, his mother did not believe a word. In the small town of Lompoc, California, on the corner of South H Street and Locust Street, sits the Veteran’s Memorial Building. A place that Peter would visit on occasion. He would dream of being a soldier and fighting for his country one day. With that, he would make up stories of being in battle and going on secret missions to save the world.

Today, though, Peter would come home with a true story of bravery that was not made up. And it all started in the front courtyard of the Veteran’s Memorial Building. Peter was walking by when he noticed a soldier dressed in his formal uniform looking as if he had just come from a parade. The soldier was a young man in his late twenties and stood tall as if he were standing at attention. Peter, being the curious boy, approached the soldier. “Hi,” Peter said, expecting a reply. The soldier just stood there, paying no attention to Peter. “Are you a soldier?” Peter asked. The solder slowly looked down at Peter. “Yes. Seven years with five tours to Afghanistan.” “Wow,” Peter exclaimed, “That’s cool. When I get older, I want to be a soldier, too.” “Cool?” The soldier questioned. He glared at Peter with a confused look on his face. “There was nothing cool about it. I lost countless friends, I had to kill…” The soldier realizing Peter was only a young boy paused to choose a different word. “… shoot people that I didn’t even know. Let me tell you something, kid, there was nothing cool about the things I did or saw. Being a soldier… being THAT kind of soldier was not what I thought I would be doing.”

The soldier walked with Peter to a nearby bench and sat down. He looked at Peter, “Why do you want to be a soldier?” he asked. Peter thought for a few seconds. “Well,” Peter gathered his thoughts and started to question his reasons after hearing the soldier speak. “My mom would tell me stories about how my grandma and grandpa came to this country. They wanted an opportunity to make a better life for them and their family. My dad now owns a large farm that grows vegetables. He sells those vegetables to stores all over the country.” The soldier looked at Peter with a puzzled look. “What does that have to do

with being a soldier?” he asked. Peter continued, “If the soldiers did not fight for our freedom, my dad wouldn’t have this farm. My grandparents wouldn’t have moved here. All the people that eat the vegetables that my father grows wouldn’t have that food to eat.” Peter looked at the soldier and continued, “I just think being a soldier and fighting for the freedom of people you don’t know is a good thing.” Peter looked at the soldier, “Isn’t it? Or do you think fighting for our freedom is wrong?” The soldier was taken back by what Peter had said. “You’re right, kid. Sometimes it takes someone like you, someone you don’t hardly know, to put things in perspective.” The soldier stood up. “What’s your name?” “Peter,” he replied, standing up.

“Well, Peter,” the soldier continued. “You have helped me. I came here today to try and figure out why I decided to become a soldier. And God sent me you.” Your turn. Finish the story: _________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________

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Oceano The sun had just gone down. Michelle and Danny decided to take a break from sitting around the campfire at their campsite at Oceano Memorial Campground and take a walk around the nearby lagoon. The trail that goes around the lagoon is an easy one and they thought the fresh air would do them good. Michelle told her friend, Amy, that they were going and invited her along. Amy respectfully declined. “I’m tired,” Amy said, “and I just want to get some sleep.” Michelle and David said good-night and headed to the trail. Amy went to her tent to crash for the night. The Lagoon Trail was a popular walk for visitors and locals, alike, and usually had several people walking on it and enjoying the evening air. It would be unu-

sual to see no less than two or three people every minute. But this night was different. David noticed right away that there were no other people around. And it was eerily quiet. “Do you hear that?” David asked. “It’s dead quiet. Not to mention, there’s nobody here. That’s odd.” “Yeah, this is scary,” Michelle said, “Let’s not go.”

David grabs Michelle’s hand. “Oh, come on. It’s not scary.” They start to run into trailhead. “It’ll be fine.” Michelle tries to hold back but gives into the pressure from David and follows him on to the trail. About twenty yards in, they stop running and start to walk. Michelle stops. “Listen,” she whispers, “Did you hear that?” David listens. “I don’t hear anything. Come on.” David grabs Michelle’s hand again and they continue to walk down the trail. About fifty yards in, Michelle hears the noise again. This time, it was louder and closer. “Wait,” she says, “You had to of heard that.” David stops with Michelle. “Yeah, I did.” They both look around but see nothing. “Let’s keep going.” A few hundred feet more down the trail they come upon a gruesome site. Just off the trail laid, what David thought to be, several pieces of a human body. He could only make this deduction based on the half-eaten skull that laid next to a bare arm. “Oh my god.” David kneels to get a better look. Michelle now becomes frantic. “David, come on. We have to get out of here!” She lifts her head as she hears the sound that had been following them since the beginning of the trail. “David… I’m scared. Come on. We have to get out of here, NOW!” Your turn. Finish the story:

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Pismo Beach Jack is sitting down at the outside bar at Wooly’s with Cody, his five-year-old German Shepard mix. Wooly’s was the perfect restaurant. It is located right on the beach, making it easy to grab a bite and then head over to the sand to give Cody some exercise. Jack finished his burger and drank the rest of his IPA brew when he heard a female voice call his name. “JACK!” Jack turned to see who it was calling for him. “Crap,” he thought to himself. “It’s Tracy, the ex-girlfriend.” Here he thought it was going to be a good day. Jack grabbed Cody’s leash and tried to leave before she caught up to him, but she was too fast.

“Jack?” she said running up to him. “It looks like you’re trying to ignore me.” “Oh,” Jack replied, as if he were surprised to see her. “I didn’t see you. Hi.” Jack and Cody started to walk away, hoping that Tracy only wanted to say hi and that was it. But she started to follow them. “How are things going?” Tracy looked down to pet Cody, “And how’s the good boy?” Cody was about as happy to see Tracy as Jack was. Jack and Tracy broke up over a year ago. They had been dating for about two years and living together for about six months. Jack thought living together would be a good test to see how compatible they were. Turned out that he and Tracy were as meant for each other as oil and water. “Things are fine.” Jack replied, trying to keep the conversation as short as possible. “What’s up?” Jack was trying to speed things up so him and Cody could get out of this awkward situation. “I’m glad I found you here.” Tracy had a smile on her face. It appeared that she actually had something nice to say, “I have some news for you.”

“What’s that?” Jack responded. He hardly thought anything that Tracy could say was going to be good. Your turn. Finish the story: ________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________

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San Luis Obispo In the middle of the town of San Luis Obispo, California, is a small park called Mitchell Park. It is a friendly, grassy park with an old-fashioned gazebo right in the middle. The gazebo has played host to several events. From weddings to concerts, fairs to farmer’s markets. What some people attending these events may not be familiar with is the history of that old gazebo. How it got there? Why it is there? And where did the ‘Mitchell’ name come from? Directly across the street from the park is a small house built by Frank Campbell Mitchell. The person in which the park was named after. Frank Mitchell was the mayor of San Luis Obispo back in the late 1800’s. He built the home to live in. The park, however, came later. During Frank’s time as mayor, he became one of the most likable men in all

the town. Almost everyone liked him… almost. One man, by the name of Jonathan Moore, took a dislike to Frank on the very first day they met. It was in 1884 when Jonathan and Frank met on Chorro Street in front of the newly built Siinsheimer building. They both had taken a liking to an extremely attractive young lady by the name of Judith Evans, who, coincidentally, was walking right past the two men on the street. As Judith walked by, she was greeted with both men tipping their hats to say hello, just as a gentleman would do. But when she finished passing by, she was also greeted with a cat-call whistle. She immediately stopped, as she was insulted. She turned to Frank and Jonathan. “How dare you!” she exclaimed. “I am a lady. Not some hussy of a tramp! Please apologize!” Frank was the first one to speak, not giving Jonathan a chance. “Madam, I am not the one that made that very rude gesture towards you, but please accept my apology for my friend’s behavior.” Jonathan was appalled that Frank would point the blame at him, even though he was not the one to do it. “I never did such thing!” Jonathan yelled. He gave Frank a strong push on the arm. Frank did not like getting pushed and Franks reflexes took over as he whipped his walking cane around hitting Jonathan in the face.

Judith, seeing a fight about to start, turned, and quickly walked away. The fight continued for a few minutes until both men realized that Judith had left the area. They left, not saying anything more to one another. Your turn. Finish the story: ________________________________________________________

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San Simeon San Simeon is known for the famous Hearst Castle. But if you go on the other side of Highway 1, there is a small beach, a pier, and a winery named after William Randall Hearst. This small winery holds a story that is not well known. But it is a story that when you hear it, you will likely not forget it. It takes place in 1982. A young lady named Julia was the youngest daughter of the wineryâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s owner. She was well known by all the workers at the winery. Everyone loved to see her bright smile. One day, Julia wanted to play high in the rafters of the winery and watch the workers from above. She would look down, but she would not say a word. She knew that if she were caught in the rafters, she would be in trouble by her father. When Julia did not see any workers, she would take the time to change loca-

tions. That way, no one would hear her moving around. She reached a location just above a barrel of freshly finished Chardonnay wine. She knew her father would be there soon to do the taste test, so she decided to get right above to get a good view. When nobody was around, she made her move on the rafters. She made it to her location. And then, the unexpected happened. Julia lost her footing and fell on the rafter hitting her head. A small gash in her forehead dropped blood into the barrel of Chardonnay. Julia laid unconscious while the blood in the wine dispersed in the barrel giving it a rose color, rather than the pale yellow it was supposed to be. About ten minutes had passed since Julia fell. She remained unconscious and the bleeding had stopped. Her father and some other workers arrived to taste the wine. Unknown to Julia’s accident, her father poured a small taste for himself. The first thing he noticed was the blush color. “I thought this was a Chardonnay?” he asked his winemaker. He then took a sip. The winemaker had a confused look on his face. He turned to his assistant to ask him why a blush was brought in and not the Chardonnay when he heard the captain say, “This wine is delicious.” The winemaker smiled. “I’m glad you like it, Captain. We made it special for you.” He then turned to his assistant to make sure he did not give away the accident of not bringing the Chardonnay. Your turn. Finish the story:

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Big Sur If you have been lucky enough to drive on Highway One in California, you may have come across a small restaurant and inn called Ragged Point, located in Big Sur. It is small enough that if you blink, you will miss it. Big Sur is home to Black Swift Waterfall which is fed by Young Creek. In 2005, a young couple, Stan and Peggy, were staying at the Rugged Point Inn. On the morning of their first day there they decided to take a hike to follow Young Creek from the waterfall all the way up into the hills to find the creekâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s water source. It would turn out to be a hike that they would never want to experience ever again. The morning of their hike was cold and foggy. The owner of the inn advised them to wait until the fog cleared to go on their hike. But Stan and Peggy de-

cided they did not have that much time. They wanted to be back on the road in the afternoon to be in Santa Barbara that evening. So, they decided to ignore the ownerâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s advice and continue their hiking adventure. Stan and Peggy started their hike at the waterfall, located behind the inn. Even though Stan and Peggy were experienced hikers, they soon realized that the moisture in the air, mixed with the fog, was going to make this hike more challenging than they first thought. They started following the creek and quickly realized that they were going to get a little wet. There were several places where they had to walk in the water rather than on dry land because there was no room. The overgrown vegetation made it almost impossible to stay on the land. Luckily, the creek was not deep. About a hundred yards into the hike, up the hill, the fog got worse. The fog was so thick in some places, they could only see about three feet in front of them. And that is when things got bad. With Stan leading the way, he took a left trying to find a clearing. Peggy, not being able to see Stan, took a right. The two of them continued not realizing they have split up.

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Carmel By the Sea In the heart of Carmel Plaza there is a small cafĂŠ -- CafĂŠ Luna. This location is where Peter would always get his morning cup of black coffee and read the morning paper before heading to work. Peter worked at one of the art galleries in Carmel and had recently broken up with his girlfriend of nine months. She had thought having a boyfriend meant she could still see other people. Peter did not agree. Because of this last relationship, Peter was not in the market for a girlfriend. He had decided that he just wanted to concentrate on his painting career and get his work into one of the art galleries. But that dream seemed to be fading fast. Every gallery he submitted his work to was either not interested or did not have any openings. Even the gallery he worked at he was put on the waiting list to get a spot. He

was beginning to wonder if he should just give up on that dream entirely and just work at the current gallery doing sales. Peter was finishing up his cup of coffee at the café and getting ready to leave for work when he looked towards the other side of the plaza. For the first time in his life he was paralyzed by the beauty of a woman. He literally could not move. He stood their staring at her like a little kid seeing the best bike in the world. He knew he liked what he saw, but also knew there was no way he was going to get it. The woman was an incredibly attractive and slim. Peter guessed her to be in her 30’s. She had long, straight black hair. And as far as Peter was concerned, she looked just like an angel. Even though Peter had been going to Café Luna every morning for the past year, he had never seen her before. He was wondering if maybe she was one of the many tourists that visit Carmel. The one thing he did know was that she was walking in his direction, and he realized that he had been acting like a teenage boy struck by puppy-love and just looking at her with his mouth wide open. He thought he probably looked like an idiot. He started to gather his things so he could get to work. Peter turned towards the table he was sitting at and reached for his wallet to leave a tip for the waitress that was serving him. He put down a five-dollar bill, picked up his things and turned around. “Hi.” It was her. The angel from the other side of the plaza. Peter was caught by surprise. “Oh… a... hi. Ah…a… “Being caught by surprise and being out of practice talking to woman, he acted like a fool. “I was just, a… just leaving. You want the table?” He was clueless as to what to say. The woman laughed. “No,” she said, “I was coming over to talk to you. You were looking at me as if we knew each other and I was just going to say hi. I’m Carley.”

Peter started to feel like he had been caught red-handed with his hand in the cookie jar and could tell he was turning red with embarrassment. “Oh, no,

sorry. I don’t think we know each other,” he replied nervously. “I wish I knew you.” Peter got even more embarrassed.

“Well,” Carley replied. “You know my name now. Why don’t you tell me yours?” “P…P…Peter.” Stuttering only happened for Peter when he was so nervous that he could not keep his head straight. He knew he was looking, and acting, like a fool. “Well, Peter,” she said, “Why don’t you have a seat and let us get to know each other.” Your turn. Finish the story: _________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________

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Monterey Being homeless is a rough life. Being a homeless dog can be even rougher. Buddy is one of those dogs. He is a seven-year-old golden lab that happened to be in Monterey when his owner died. Nobody bothered to take care of the dog. So, he has been wondering the streets of the Cannery Row area in Monterey ever since.

Buddy has gotten used to the street life and begging for scraps from the local restaurants. Most of the workers are nice and will save some of the left-over scraps for Buddy after the customers leave. One thing Buddy does miss, though, is the human companionship. That is something being alone on the streets will never be able to replace. Buddy really missed the human companion on the cold rainy nights. The body heat was extremely comforting.

Over the past few months, living on the street has taught Buddy some lessons that he never thought he would have to use. But the streets are a different type of school where you do not necessarily learn how to be obedient, you only learn how to stay alive. And because of that, your enemy was the other dog. Fighting for the same thing that you wanted. But then again, that enemy could easily become the one you count on when you are outnumbered in a fight. Nevertheless, you learn which dogs to trust and which ones to just leave alone. Today, Buddy is hanging out at one of his favorite restaurants â&#x20AC;&#x201C; Bubba Gumpâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s. The staff there are always friendly, and Buddy loved their food. Since it was the middle of the day, Buddy had decided to hang out in the shade next to Doc Wenzel's Old Time Portraits. Buddy would get a lot of attention from the families that would come out with their photos. Especially if the family had kids. Buddy would sometimes think of what it would be like to be with one of those families. As Buddy was lying on the ground, soaking in the cool shade, he heard a voice that sounded familiar. That was peculiar since Buddy had not been around anyone he has known since his owner died. Buddy listened again to see if he recognized the voice. But this time he did not hear anything. He laid his head down on the cement again and closed his eyes. About five seconds later, he heard the voice again. This time, Buddy got up to see if he recognized anyone in the crowd. The voice came from a female person and sounded only about twenty yards away. Buddy had only known one female and that was the fiancĂŠ of his previous owner. If that were truly her, he knew he would have a chance to have that human companionship once again. Buddy left his spot in the shade and walked into the courtyard. He looked and looked but did not see anyone he recognized. Your turn. Finish the story:

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Santa Cruz Santa Cruz is well known for their famous beach boardwalk. With a carnival atmosphere and fun for the entire family, there was little chance that someone would not go home without having a good time. And to make sure of that, one little old man would sit on the bench near the Looff Carousel and look for that one person who appeared to need a dose of “happy.”

Henry Higgins was known only by the few people he had helped. He grew up in Santa Cruz and became independently wealthy from starting a restaurant back in the 1950’s. With the combination of the popularity of the boardwalk, and the great reviews of his restaurant, his business never saw a loss in its existence. Henry ended up selling the business back in 2000 so he could focus on caring for his sick wife. She ended up passing away later that same year. Ever

since, Henry has made it a point to just make people happy. He only asked one favor in return – do not tell anyone about his favors. In other words, Henry wanted to remain anonymous. There is one story of a family that was at the boardwalk for their son’s birthday. Henry overheard the father telling his wife that he had been laid off from the factory and this may be the only fun the family would have for a while. Henry gave them ten-thousand dollars right there on the spot. It turned out that the father would find another job rather quickly and did not need the money after all. He tried to return it to Henry who told him to keep it and pass it forward to someone else in need. The father did find another family that needed it. Now, without hardly trying, Henry had helped two families. Another story is of a child that had just purchased an ice cream cone. She turned from the stand and her ice cream fell off her cone onto the hot pavement. Henry saw what happened and bought her another cone. Whether the favor was big or a small, Henry was always willing to help. On this day, Henry was in his typical spot on the bench near the carousel people watching. He was looking for his next family that he could help. It did not take long for him to spot his next target. Henry’s reputation was widely known, even though he asked that he stayed anonymous. Somehow, people would always find out about his generosity. So, one rule he always had was never give money to people that ask for it. Henry wanted to find the families himself. Your turn. Finish the story: ________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________

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Half Moon Bay Laura had heard the stories of the shipwrecks. And she even had been scuba diving down to one of the wrecks herself. But the story of the lost treasure chest on one of the beaches at Half Moon Bay just did not seem likely. There have been so many people that have walked along the beaches, she just could not believe that a treasure chest could be hidden somewhere.

After a heavy storm, Laura was walking along Elmar Beach on the north end of Half Moon Bay. She had done this walk many times. This time, though, she noticed the storm had washed quite a bit of the sand away from the beach leaving, what appeared to be, a new rock in the sand. As she got closer, she realized it was not a rock. It was an old wooden chest. It was still buried in the sand to the point that Laura was unable to open it. So, she took a mental note

of its location and she was going to come back with a shovel to attempt to dig it out. She was hoping nobody else would come by and find it before she returned. About an hour had past when Laura finally returned with a shovel in hand. To her amazement, no one had found the three-quarter buried chest in the sand. Or, so she thought. Laura got her shovel and started to dig around the chest. She knew she was not going to be able to lift it on her own, so her goal was to just dig around it enough to try and open it up to see what treasure laid inside. As Laura was digging, a man approached her from behind. Since she was digging, she did not notice him. “Excuse me,” he said. “What are you doing?” Laura turned around and looked at this man. He was tall, burley looking man. That did not bother her, though. What Laura was concerned about was that this man was holding a shovel. “What does it look like I’m doing,” she replied. “I’m digging.” “I can see that,” he said with a slight tone in his voice. “But your digging up something that I had found.” Laura thought for a moment. “I actually found this when I was walking this morning. But I’ll tell you what. If you help me dig this out and carry it back to my place, I’ll split whatever is inside with you.” The man thought for a moment and agreed to the deal. They both started to dig. With the man’s help, it did not take long to dig out the chest. Just looking at it, it appeared to be something from the 1700’s. It was incredibly old and beat up. But the sand had kept it in good condition. Both Laura and the stranger were wondering if this was the lost treasure from the story that everyone in Half Moon Bay talked about. The hard part now is going to try and get it to Laura’s house without anyone else noticing. Laura and the man then each grabbed a side and lifted. It took some effort.

They could tell the chest was full of something because it was so heavy. They finally got it lose and it came free.

“Oh my,” Laura said. “It’s heavy.” “Are you going to be able to carry it?” asked the strange man. “Yeah. I’ll be fine.” Laura replied. “I live just over there on Pilarcitos Avenue.” They both grabbed a handle and lifted the chest and started to walk to Laura’s house. When they got to Laura’s home, they sat the chest down in the living room. Laura grabbed a crowbar from the garage and started trying to break the lock open. The lock, being old and corroded, did not resist, and broke off easily. Laura and the man were now moments away from seeing what treasure was inside. Laura trembling started to lift the lid. What they saw astonished both of them. Your turn. Finish the story: _________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________

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San Francisco One of the most beautiful spots of Highway One in California is the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco. Built in the 1930’s, the bridge has seen millions of travelers cross it’s span and millions more walkers travel the walkway. But the bridge has a dark history as well. It has been the location of almost sixteenhundred suicides since it opened. Giving it the reputation of being the second most “popular” place in the world to commit such a dreadful act. On this day, a young man by the name of Kevin wanted to become one of those statistics. Kevin had grown up in the city in the Tenderloin district. His father left him and his mother all alone when he was only six. That left his mom having to take a job as a waitress working sixty hours a week to try and make ends meet.

With his mom working so much, he was left alone most days. When Kevin would get home from school, he would cross his fingers hoping there was some food in the fridge. Most days, there was not. When Kevin got to high school, he struggled. He tried to fit in with different clicks, but never found one that he could fit in with. This made him resent going to school. Not only did he struggle to learn anything, he struggled to make, and keep, any friends. Kevin ended up dropping out of school his sophomore year. He never did tell his mom. The few times he saw her during the week, she was more concerned with chores getting done. And since Kevin would leave every morning, she just assumed he was going to school. It never dawned on her to ask for a report card to see how he was doing. Since Kevin never finished high school, he would struggle finding any kind of work. He would apply at fast food restaurants, but they did not want to hire him without a high school diploma. He would sometimes find odd jobs down by the docks that would pay cash. He made just enough that he could pay for a meal a two, but it was not enough to survive on.

Kevin would often think if life would be better if he were dead. Now that he has hit the age of twenty, he felt he was more of a burden to his mom than anything else. And the one thing he learned from his dad was how he could give up. That way he would not have to worry about responsibilities. Or having someone be responsible for him. Today, Kevin woke up and thought to himself. He thought about his mom and how he was a burden to her. He thought about his future and how awful it looked. He thought that there was nothing more. He had failed at life and there was no reason for him to continue living. It was just after 2 AM and he decided to take a walk to the Golden Gate Bridge. He had heard stories of the bridge and how popular it was as a place to take your life. But he never thought that he would be one of those looking to do so. But when he would evaluate his life and his future, this seemed to be the best

thing he could do. Not only for himself, but for his mom as well. Because of the popularity of people trying to jump off the bridge, the city had put up video cameras and posted signs of phone numbers to call for suicide prevention. Kevin ignored them. His mind was made up. “Today,” he said to himself, “I will die.”

As Kevin approached the center of the bridge, he noticed a tall man wearing a black trench coat and a black fedora hat. The man was looking directly at Kevin. As they got closer, Kevin drew more and more nervous. He did not know who this man was or even why he was on the bridge this early in the morning. Maybe he was going to try and mug Kevin. Maybe he was just going to jump. Maybe he was just out for a walk. Kevin had no idea. All Kevin wanted to do was walk on by the man so he could finish what he came for. As they crossed paths, the man looked at Kevin and said, “Kevin?” causing Kevin to stop in his tracks in astonishment. Your turn. Finish the story: _________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________

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Stinson Beach James is a photographer living in Stinson Beach, California. Living in such a beautiful part of California, he does not lack any subjects to shoot. He will take landscapes photos, pet portraits, or photo shoots down on the beach. He never knows what his subject is going to be from day to day. He just goes with the flow.

His photo studio is downtown on Belvedere Avenue, which just happens to be where his apartment is. He lucked out finding a place where he could have his studio downstairs with his living area upstairs. It works out perfectly. Today, James is headed to the beach to take some landscape and seascape photos. With the forecast calling for mostly clear skies and temperatures in the mid 70â&#x20AC;&#x2122;s, James thinks it will be perfect for the beach. And with it being a

weekday, the crowds should be moderate as well. James decided to head just north of Stinson Beach to Bolinas. There is a small park that has a great view of Mount Tamalpias along with the Bolinas Lagoon where there are usually plenty of birds to take photos of. James arrived just in time to see the morning fog lift from the lagoon to reveal the many active birds. He found some nice bushes to sit in to take his pics. Normally, this time of day is noticeably quiet. On occasion, James would see someone on a morning walk, but that did not happen often. After about fifteen minutes of sitting in the bushes, James heard a car pull into the parking lot of the park he was at. He could tell that whoever was driving was in a hurry. They came into the parking lot driving a bit too fast and ended up using the curb to help stop the vehicle. James thought it was a bit suspicious and unusual, so he decided to point the camera in that direction and take some photos. Two men got out of the car. Both were dressed as if they had a rough night. Nice blazers with a dress shirt with the top buttons undone on their shirts. They each had five oâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;clock shadows going on. The two men had exited the vehicle visibly upset. Even though they did not say a word, you could tell neither of them were happy.

Both men walked quickly to the rear of the vehicle and opened the trunk. One of the men started to look around to make sure nobody watching. At this point, James started to get nervous. Since the men acted like they did not want anyone around, James felt stuck and started to pray that the men did not see him sitting in the bushes. Especially since James had already taken several photos of them. When the trunk was open, both men reached in to grab one end of a large, black bag. It was heavy enough that both men had to work together to get it out of the trunk of the vehicle. James started taking more pictures. Once the bag was out of the car, the men carried it to the north end of the

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park. Out of sight for James. Now he could not get any more pictures. His curiosity was driving him mad. He really wanted to see where they dropped the bag and to get more pics. But James, fearing he would be caught, stayed in the bushes. A few minutes later, James saw both men walking quickly back to the car. This time, no bag in site. It was obvious that the two men dropped the bag somewhere on the north end of the park. And James wanted to find out where. Your turn. Finish the story: _________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________

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Point Reyes National Seashore There is an historical lighthouse that sits at the point of Point Reyes National Seashore. It attracts visitors from all over the world. However, the 800+ steps down to the lighthouse is not for the faint of heart. Going down is not necessarily the problem, it is coming back up. Few people know of the story about Joshua and Mary Ann, the couple that lived and managed the lighthouse during most of the 1940â&#x20AC;&#x2122;s. They were a newly married couple. They met in high school and instantly fell in love. Throughout their time at school, they were inseparable. If you saw one, the other was close by. People said the love they shared was so tightly bonded that

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nothing would ever tear them apart. One thing you learn in life is you never say never. In November of 1948, the coast of California saw one of the worst storms that has ever been recorded in recent history. The sea was showing swells of well over twenty feet and winds were gusting to well over 90 miles per hour. It was said that you could not measure the rain in inches, but rather in feet. And when the rain hit your face along with the wind, it felt as if you were being sand blasted. Joshua was quoted as saying, “If I live through this storm, I would have survived hell itself.” A quote that he would soon want to take back. Joshua and Mary Ann both knew, in storms like this, you stay inside. Walking outside is not only looking death in the face, it is death taking your life. But nonetheless, when the light on a lighthouse goes out, it is the responsibility of the lighthouse manager to fix it. Out at sea, there are ships that are relying on this light to show their proximity to the shore and their location at sea. Joshua knew this, and he knew what he was doing when he walked out of the house that night.

Mary Ann begged Joshua not to go outside. “Wait for the storm to die down. It’s way too dangerous.” But her pleads were ignored. As Joshua left the house, Mary Ann watched from the kitchen window. She saw Joshua fight the wind and the rain to get to the storage shed to get the spare light. When he made it to the shed, she breathed a sigh of relief. But that was short lived, knowing that he would have to exit into the storm again. Joshua retrieved the spare light from storage and headed back out into the storm. Mary Ann, once again, watching from the kitchen window, saw Joshua make it into the lighthouse. Once again, she was relieved. She watched for a few minutes. She knew if she saw the lighthouse light up, then Joshua had done his job. About ten minutes had passed and the light came on. She was relieved and she turned to return to her supper on the dinette table to await the return of Josh-

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ua. As she sat down, she could hear the wind starting to blow even harder. She noticed the rain was coming down harder and faster. The sound of the rain and wind were deafening as it hit the windows and roof of the house. Looking out towards the sea, waves were breaching the cliff side where the lighthouse stayed. Worried about her husband, once again, she returned to the kitchen window to watch for his return. She waited and waited. What seemed to be an eternity, she never saw Joshua come out from the lighthouse. She retrieved her jacket and headed outside to find him. Your turn. Finish the story:

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Mendocino Mendocino is known for its artisan community. It seems everywhere you turn, there is a studio or a gallery. During the summertime, it is also known for the number of tourists that come to visit. Debbie was one of those visitors. She was wanting to learn and perfect the craft of clay modelling and thought Mendocino would be a great place to meet someone that could possibly direct her to a mentor. Debbie started to walk around downtown going to the various galleries and admiring all the work these artists do. One that stood out were some sculptures by an artist named David Pohlheim. She almost felt a connection between his work and the work that she was trying to do. Debbie approached the owner of the gallery and asked about Davidâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s work and

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if he was local or maybe somewhere nearby. The gallery owner handed Debbie David’s business card which had all his contact information. “He is a bit of a character.” Debbie could not wait to get to her hotel room to try and contact him. And, hopefully, he will be willing to mentor her with the craft. Debbie left the gallery and saw a park bench. She decided to sit there and make the phone call on her cell phone to David to see if she could drop by. The phone rang several times. Debbie assumed it was going to go to voice mail, but then a man’s voice answered. “This better be good,” he said. Debbie was startled, “Hello, is this David Pohlheim, the sculpture?” “I guess that would depend on who you are,” the mad said. “Are you from the IRS, State or other local government?” “Ah, no,” Debbie responded. “My name is Debbie and I saw your work at one of the galleries in Mendocino. I was hoping you had a few minutes to talk.” “Oh, yes. I always have time for my admirers,” David said. His voice changing to a more pleasant-sounding man.

Debbie felt relieved that he was not as rude as he first sounded. “I absolutely love your work. I am a young artist that is trying to perfect the craft. I was hoping you had some time that we could meet to discuss the possibility of you being my mentor?” David agreed and gave Debbie his address to his studio. It was just on the other side of town and took only a few minutes for Debbie to arrive. When Debbie arrived at David’s studio, she noticed it was also his residence. She approached the door. Before she had the opportunity to knock or ring the bell, the door opened. Standing there in front of her was a tall, sophisticated looking man. He was probably in his young 50’s. Silver hair, blue eyes, great smile. Debbie instantly felt an attraction to him. “You must be Debbie,” David said. “Come on in before the nosey neighbors have a chance of seeing you.” Debbie walked in and David quickly looked up

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and down the neighborhood as if he were looking for spies and then followed Debbie into the house. “Can I get you something to drink?”

“No, thank you,” Debbie replied. “I’m fine. This is a lovely home.” “Thank you,” David said, “It belonged to my wife.” “Belonged?” “Yes,” David sat down at his desk. “She passed away a few years ago.” Debbie, feeling some relief that the ‘competition’ had died, said with a giddy voice, “Oh, I’m sorry.” “Thank you,” David said, “You actually remind me of her. I think it’s your eyes.” Debbie felt as if she was started to blush. “Oh really?”

David put on a smirk, “Yeah. She had two eyes also.” Debbie laughed. She thought that she may have over did the laughter just a bit at his stupid joke. But David responded with that smirk that she was falling in love with. Your turn. Finish the story:

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Fort Bragg John was a tree lover. He loved the forest and he loved the trees. He loved the smell, he loved the feel, and he loved what they stood for. In the early 1900â&#x20AC;&#x2122;s, logging was just starting up in Mendocino county and John did not want to be any part of it. The new railroad had just been completed in Fort Bragg allowing the logging production to speed up. It was now much easier to move the logs from city to city, or state to state. All this did was speed up the number of trees that would get cut down in the forest during the day. Fort Bragg, at the time, relied heavily on the logging industry for its economy. Whenever John would try to set up a protest about the logging, he would get pushed out and kicked out of town. John knew that he was going to fight a

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losing battle protesting in town. So, he thought of a protest out of town. He decided he would go into the forest where they are cutting the trees down and set up traps to prevent the loggers from doing their job. John put together a backpack full of supplies and traps. Not wanting to be spotted, he also wore dark green clothing. John headed out to the logging site, staying off the roads, but using them as a guide to get him to the right location. At first, the hike was easy. The forest floor was flat and had little growth down below. But the further he got away from town, the rougher the hike was getting. John found himself having to climb over dead trees, hike over deep creeks, and climb small, but steep, cliff sides. On one occasion, he found himself having to climb up next to a fifty-foot waterfall. He started to think, â&#x20AC;&#x153;If I die, nobody will know. Nobody will care.â&#x20AC;?

After two days of hiking, John finally arrived at the logging camp. He looked around and assessed the situation. He noticed the workers were all heading east away from camp to do their logging. This meant John would have to head south, then east, to avoid being caught. He knew if he were caught, it would likely be the end for him. Because in the middle of the forest, there is no justice. John decided to take the planned route and during nightfall he would set the traps. John saw the clearing where the loggers had cut already. He made a calculated guess of the next trees the loggers would be cutting down and headed in that direction. He laid down bear traps around the trees. He would cover them in foliage to make them harder to see. John then took his position in some bushes that would give him a clear look at the traps he just laid. Then he waited. Your turn. Finish the story: ________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________

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Unfinished Stories - California Highway One

Articles inside

Mendocino

Point Reyes National Seashore

Halfmoon Bay

San Francisco

Carmel by the Sea

Santa Cruz

Monterey

Big Sur

San Luis Obispo

Lompoc

Pismo Beach

Los Angeles

Santa Barbara

Santa Monica

Introduction

San Simeon