“With a nearly desperate sense of isolation and a growing suspicion that I lived in an alien land, I took to the road in search of places where change did not mean ruin and where time and men and deeds connected.”

~ William Least Heat-Moon, “Blue Highways”

Sometimes when gas is too expensive and my ride not long-haul worthy, I take to the road by means of books and imagination. Recently, I discovered a copy of William Least Heat-Moon’s “Blue Highways” for a sum of 50 cents and brought it home to savor on spring-like afternoons outside, with orange-breasted robins hopping over early tufts of green, sun warm on my face.

A two-lane blue highway trip across America has long been on my ‘do-it-before-you-kick-the-bucket’ list. Meanwhile, I did a couple other things to shake life up while plotting out that long, long trip, all in the same week: I adopted a cat and colored my hair pink. (Sometimes you just have to shake your daily existence up and add some spice to the mix.) Don’t worry, the soft pink shade slowly fades after a few weeks. If nothing else, it has created a few smiles, including my own.

A couple Saturdays ago, I drove down to the Foothills Shelter (with pink hair in tow) to look at the cats. Just look. (Yeah, right!) I ended up toting Pikachu out to the truck in a cardboard carrier, stopping to pick up cat necessities on the way back up to Saluda. Pikachu meowed and yowled the whole way home, her pink nose poking insistently out. (River, have I got a surprise for you, I thought.)

By the end of the day, I had River Dog and Pikachu Cat on my bed in an uneasy truce, but a truce nonetheless. River was head-over-heels in love with his new friend; the cat, being a typical hard-to-get sort, watched River sharply while thumping her long tail, the biggest thing about her. Around here, everybody is expected to get along. Therefore, there shall be treats involved. So tell me this, if a small cat and a silly dog can work things out, why, oh, why, can’t we humans? Something to think about.

Saluda Welcome Table is every Tuesday at Saluda Methodist Church from 5:30-6:45. All welcome, donations appreciated.

Learn more about Saluda Community Land Trust (SCLT) by visiting saludaclt.org or calling 828-749-1560. Monthly meetings are the first Wednesday each month at 3 p.m. at Saluda Presbyterian Church. Mark your calendar for SCLT’s annual meeting on April 26, 6 p.m. at Saluda Center.

Calling all artists: The Saluda Business Association invites you to enter the juried Saluda Arts Festival on May 20, 2017. Entry deadline is March 17. Visit saluda.com to link to the arts festival page.

Donations to help support Saluda Historic Depot can be sent to P.O. Box 990, Saluda, NC 28773 or online at  HistoricSaluda.org. Saluda Train Tales returns March 17 with Bob Loehne. Visit saludahistoricdepot.com for more information.

Saluda Singles (40 and up) will meet at Saluda Center on March 9 for a potluck meal at 5 p.m.

SLIP (Saluda Living in Place) will have a program March 15, 10 a.m. at Saluda Center.

Happy March Birthday to: Faye Chandler, Genell Jespersen, Charlene Pace, Valerie Mintz, Sheldon Mintz, Curtis Pace, Anita Odgen Moore, Charles Weinhagen,  Kevin Kerr, Dorrie McKinley, Catherine Ross, Jane Fox, Beverly Pickard, Monica Pace, Ken Justus,  Elizabeth Justus,  Arlene Klippel, Rachel Bradley, Chris Bradley,  Martha Stoney Anderson, Dawn Delgado, Peggy Wolf, Dori Ray, Martin Anderson, Craig Bass, and Laura Bass.

Thank you, dear readers, for reading this column. I love hearing from you! Whether you live here, or just wish you were here, the goal is to make you feel welcome and right at home in our friendly little mountain town called Saluda. You can contact me at bbardos@gmail.com, or 749-1153, visit my website at bonniebardosart.com for more writing and art, or find me on Facebook.