About TV Westerns, Meek's Cutoff and a Luxury Short Sale Condo in Antelope

Growing up in the 1950s, I had a crush on Matt Dillon. John Wayne? Oh, puhlease, no, no, no, Matt Dillon. I never liked John Wayne. I once wrote a piece about how the fine folks in Orange County should take his statue out of the airport and stick in the entrance of Newport harbor so pigeons could poop on it. That endeared me to many. But Matt Dillon had character, integrity, ethics and well, who knows what went on between him and Miss Kitty. James Arness died last week at 88.

There are no Westerns on prime-time TV anymore. That's a shame. A crying shame. There is something about the grittiness, real world, simplicity and the development of community in a Western that draws me to them. Davy Crockett, Paladin, Have Gun Will Travel, Maverick, Wagon Train. There was right and wrong, not too many shades of gray. Somebody dies, somebody lives.

With that in mind, my husband and I went to the Crest Theatre in downtown Sacramento yesterday to see Meek's Cutoff. It's a film from a woman's perspective about a group of 3 families traveling west on the Oregon Trail in 1845. Based on a true story. I'm not going to spoil the story by telling you the ending. Except to say there is no ending. Unless there is. It made me think about how spoiled we are today. How few of us would make it in a covered wagon. We rely too heavily on our luxuries.

You want luxuries -- here is a luxury condo in Antelope. It offers every amenity you'd expect to find in a condo. Gleaming hardwood floors were installed by the owner's contractor in the living and dining room when she moved in. Open floor plan. Raised panel birch cabinets in the kitchen, plus granite counters, an island and ceramic floor. Stainless appliances, and the refrigerator stays, says the seller. However, if you want a personal appliance that is not a fixture, you must ask for it in the purchase contract.

You'll find a half bath and a room with a stacked washer and dryer on the first floor (which stays), in addition to an enclosed patio through the sliding doors past the dining room. Because this is a corner unit, the enclosed patio is somewhat private. The condo features more windows, too.

Upstairs are 2 master suites, each with a respective bath. One bath has a tub over the shower and is larger than the bath toward the back, which has only a shower. But that back master suite has a much bigger walk-in closet, so take your pick.

Nice square footage, around 1,270 per the assessor. There is a detached one-car garage. The unit was built by Sixells and it's the Shasta B model. The complex is Crest at Sierra in Antelope.

7910 Walerga Road, #503, Antelope, CA 95843, is offered exclusively by Lyon Real Estate as a short sale at $83,000. For more information, call your Sacramento short sale agent, Elizabeth Weintraub, at 916 233 6759. For a private showing, call Barbara Dow at 916 761 7398.

photos: Elizabeth Weintraub