Left San Francisco today. I had such a wonderful time there. I am so thankful to be lucky enough to do all the things I was able to do. On my way to Bakersfield to see my friend Jim, from Jacksonville, who recently moved out here to manage a casino. Miles and miles of almond tree orchards on the way. There must be millions of them in this area. There are also many grape vines and other fruits and veggies. To be so hot and dry in this area, everything is so lush and green on these farms. They have canals for irrigation. Its really impressive. Made it into Bakersfield and drove up to the casino where Jim is managing. I couldn't believe the neon sign out front. It said "Welcome Donnie Vann!" Its the first time I've ever seen my name in lights. They also had a big banner above the entrance to the casino that said "Welcome Donnie Vann!" It was really an overwhelming feeling to see that. Jim and his staff came out and took pictures of the van, trailer, myself, my Mother, my best friend Marie, and my two nurses, Kami and Nicole. We then went inside and they had a table set for us for dinner. The food was outstanding. Jim was so nice to treat us to dinner. A man named Richie played "I left my heart in San Francisco" on the sax while we were waiting for dinner. Jim really made me feel like a celebrity. I can't thank him enough for the welcome that he gave me, the dinner and the casino memorabilia. He is a wonderful man. He will definitely make the casino here more successful and a place people will enjoy playing. After dinner I played at the casino while my Mom, Kami and Marie took the van and trailer to the hotel to get it set up. That's when the night took a turn for the worse. The beds were not accommodating for me and most all the other hotels in Bakersfield were full because of a Jehovah Witness convention going on in town. We talked about just driving the four hours to Vegas to stay at the Rio and would have done so but the Rio was completely booked. Thank the Lord that Marie is with me. She got on the computer and hunted down another hotel after so many had told her they couldn't accommodate me or they were out of beds. We found a hotel that met our needs and its actually very nice. It works out perfect. My friend Marie is so wonderful. Back to Vegas tomorrow. I'm really looking forward to it. California has been everything and more than I expected. I've really enjoyed my time here.