Ramona

In Ramona, we saw a half-demolished house, an old abandoned store filled with junk, and some other decrepit buildings. But we also saw some pretty memorial benches, a few really nice homes, and a park with horseshoes and basketball. 

There was also a city hall, a post office, and an old school that had been transformed into someone's house, or possibly a garage or shop. 

Ramona was very welcoming. So much so, in fact, that it had two welcome signs! Magen had her picture taken near the nicer one, while I stood near the more timeworn one, which is pretty on-brand for us.

It's clearly a town that values its past; there are several history pages on the town's website, with lots of interesting details about its founding and the people who've lived here over the years. There's also been a strong sense of civic involvement within the past several decades, from the town's centennial in 1987 to the starting of the "Redneck Run" to the restoration of Rosebank Church.

We're finding that we can't trust the GPS around here. Twice now, it's tried to send us down muddy, unmaintained roads.

While driving through the countryside, we saw a couple of cemeteries: Lewis Cemetery, where you can get four burial plots for $50, and the one across from Rosebank Church, which is now purple.

We also saw a sign for the Cow Camp Feedyard. "Oh, that's fun! The cows get to go to camp!" Madelynne remarked. 

"Yep, until they're fat enough to slaughter," I said, whereupon we had a long and edifying conversation about the ethics of meat-eating.