Location #19

19 on THE LIST: If you could live anywhere, where would it be and why?

Greece.
Because it's beautiful there. And warm. I speak from speculation, not ever having actually been to Greece myself, but that's what I imagine. Plus, I love the food, the culture, the climate, the way of life. I love the people I have met from Greece. I love the pride they have in their country. I could totally see myself fitting in there. Of course, I wouldn't want to go there until my kids are raised, and after that I wouldn't want to live there when I have grandkids. So I guess a life in Greece is out for me. Oh, well, a girl can dream, can't she?

But... since my answer to this topic is less than interesting, I decided to change the question, and instead of where do I want to go, it's more of where have I been. My #19 is Tell us a little more about where you grew up.

The Wilcox Ranch homestead

I grew up in the tiny town of La Sal Utah. It's about 30 minutes south of Moab, and 10 miles from the edge of the earth. It is a teeny tiny little place population about 300. ( I have a side track funny story here - when my uncle got married, he married a lady with three daughters. The two older daughters were in high school and stayed in Northern Utah with their dad, but the youngest was still in elementary school and moved to La Sal with her mom. One day she was over at our house and she was talking about why her sisters stayed with their dad. She gave us the reasons, and then as a final reason she said, "besides, Kristen says La Sal is the butt crack of the world anyway." It killed me. I thought it was hilarious. And as our family does, to show you we love you, we teased Kristen about it from that day on. She was mortified, which made it all the better. Kristen is no longer with it, but every time I think of her it's with a giggle. ) It started out as a ranching community, and still is somewhat, though most of the people there now, work out of town and commute everyday. My great, great grandpa, and great grandpa moved here and helped settle the area, and part of their homestead still belongs to my mom. The above picture is taken from the homestead.

 It sits at the foot of the La Sal mountains, and it's still about as close to the "wild west" as there is. There is a tiny store and a post office, but if you need to do any real shopping you have to go somewhere else for that. The nearest grocery store is 30 minutes away, and if you need more than just the basics, you have to travel 2 and a half hours. It takes real planning to live there, and the ones who do have real dedication. Still, there is something that grabs you, and ties you to La Sal  that is hard to explain. I guess it comes down to the feeling of home. Even if it isn't your actual home, if you spend much time there you just start to feel like it is. That's probably because of the people and the culture. You wouldn't survive in La Sal without friends, so you learn to love the people there right away. And it's easy to do. For the most part the people there love and accept you no matter what you look like, how much money you have, or what your story is.

Taken off the side of one of the many dirt roads in La Sal. And yes there is a redneck joke about "if directions to your house say, 'when you leave the pavement...' and yes, it's a little bit true... :)

4th of July parade- anything goes!

There are some funny little quirks about La Sal that make it unique and wonderful. First, we have some fantastic traditions. We have a 4th of July parade there where all the kids dress up in whatever they want and travel on anything from foot to 4 wheeler to horse to tractor down "main street" that would take about 3 minutes, so they always turn around and go back to where they came from to make it last a little longer. It cracks me up every time, I love it. We also have a potato patch that all the members of the community plant and take care of all summer and then in the fall we all get together and harvest them and give them to the families who need  them. It is one of my favorite things. The adults visit as they work and catch up on what is going on with everyone, and the kids play together and get filthy. They gather all the weeds into one huge pile and jump in them until their eyes are swollen shut, and at harvest time they run along behind the potato picker and gather all the potatoes as fast as they can. Then that night every one brings their favorite potato dish to the community center and an older couple gives out prizes for the kids who found the largest and smallest potato and sometimes for the strangest looking one, or anything resembling a person we might know:) We also celebrate Cinco de Mayo almost every year since I can remember. There is a 5k a volleyball tournament, kids games, a potluck, occasionally a dance, it's delightful. I'm not sure why we do it as we don't have a very large hispanic population in La Sal, but it's great anyway. And there's the school's halloween carnival which is by far the best I've ever been to. Everyone's a winner and the whole community joins in. Then there's a trunk or treat afterwards, and some of the families in town go all out decorating their trunks and making a spook alley for the kids and things like that. And then there's the dynamite shoot. One family started this, but now it's a much loved tradition. They fill cans with dynamite and shoot them with guns from long distances, blowing them up. Even if you aren't at the shoot you can hear explosions from all over  town. Doesn't get much more red neck fabulous than that. It's the best!

The original section of the little schoolhouse 

There is also this cute little school in La Sal. It holds grades K-3, there are two teachers (sometimes just 1 depending on the number of students) and anywhere between 15-25 students depending on the year. It is the same school that my parents went to when they were in Kindergarten, and where they met and fell in love because my dad was a momma's boy and cried, and my mom tried to help him feel better. It's where I went to school, and for a year my kids went to school, and I love the education each of us got there. I also love that kids learn to work in La Sal. It takes a lot of work to live there, and everyone pitches in. I like that there is that built in work ethic that will seriously benefit them as they grow up. And you can drive when you're like, 12, and no one stops you. You can ride your 4 wheeler down the road, and shoot prairie dogs out of your truck window. A handshake is a binding contract and a phone call is all it takes to get help when you need it. It's just a more laid back life, and it makes me so happy. I feel really blessed to have grown up here. If you're ever in the area stop by for a bit. You will love it! :)

 And possibly one of my very favorite things about La Sal is that it has the most spectacular sunsets. I have been to a lot of places in my life, but I have never seen more stunning sunsets than right in my own back yard - where this picture was snapped just last night...