Mar 26, 2019
Pam
Anders first experience with desert was after a drive from Oregon.
Pam's first husband suffered with asthma and his mother, who was
living in Twentynine Palms suggested they move down to improve his
health. Arriving in the dark, they were a bit off course. With no
signs or lights, they pulled to the side of the road and Pam got
out of the Volkswagen to take a look around. She looked up and
almost fell... the star-filled sky was like nothing she'd ever
experienced. And the silence was nothing like she'd ever
heard.
After
a few years they went back to Oregon. In this episode, Pam says the
pull of the desert was so strong, she had to return, this time on
her own, taking a number of jobs simultaneously to support herself.
She worked at the bank (now Edchada's Mexican restaurant), a
grocery store, a florist and Del's Shoes. She met and became
friends with many of the Twentynine 'old timers', one couple being
the J.B. Carrol's. When Pam told them she was looking for a house
to rent they said, "Why rent, when you can buy?" Thinking it
was not possible, the Carrol's sold Pam her first home - they even
held the note.
In
1976, Pam became San Bernardino County's first female Animal
Control Officer, selected as one to fill eight openings with 145
applicants - most of whom were men. Pam says she believes in
claiming your desires and the power of visualizing you already have
what you want. At the age of 26, she was trained, provided a
four-wheel drive truck, a shotgun and a come-a-long and was on-call
twenty-four hours a day. Pam shares some humorous and touching
stories from her time in that role.
These
days Pam doesn't live in Twentynine Palms, but maintains a cabin
there where she spends hours and days at a time creating art and
treating herself well. With her long-time interest in antiques, you
may find her at Pioneer Crossing in
Yucca Valley, tending to store displays and guiding out of town
visitors to sites in the area they should not miss.
Pam is
excited to share a book she is currently reading: "The White Heart of the
Mojave" by Edna Brush Perkins who, along with her friend
Charlotte Hannahs Jordan, hired a guide to take them from their
homes in Pasadena on an adventure through Death
Valley.
Pam's
Links: