the sweet escape

Greetings from Albuquerque, where we arrived at about 9pm local time (8am Arizona time, of course), after a day spent hauling north.

Today was awesome in many ways. Here are a few reasons why in bulleted form:

-We got the hell out of the Tucson area! :) The relief was palpable; we are confident that we made the correct decision.

-We realized the importance of not taking things for granted, and how so much of what was wrong with southern AZ had to do with taking things for granted without gratitude or reverence.

-We remembered what it is to eat! Thanks to D'Lish and, more broadly, Sedona at large. We were nourished, body and soul, with cleansed auras and vortexes abounding. It was amazing to eat vegetables again.

-J, this one's for you: it's known by the locals as "Snoopy Rock." (I smell a GarageBand project in the making...)


-We watched a lightning storm many miles away from us on the road as the sun set. Startling and beautiful.

-They are shooting a movie at the hotel we randomly decided to stay at. It's called St. John of Las Vegas and stars one of our favorite actors who we first really took notice of on the show Weeds. Steve Buschemi is in it, too, and Meg made me promise not to say "the Dude abides" to him. Also, the film is based upon a story by Dante (of Paradiso fame), who, my scholarship once revealed, was influenced by the Sufi mystic and neoplatonist al-Ghazali. Needless to say, I want to see this movie when it comes out in eight months!

-Natasha Benningfield's "Pocketful of Sunshine" has usurped Nelly Furtato's "Say It Right" as our road trip song. This is fitting in nicely with our "sunshine" theme, and suggests a progression from getting paid in it to possessing it. Perhaps next we will spread the sunshine around... :) The song came on the radio at least six times today as we strayed beyond signals in canyons.

-And how could we forget?? We stood on a corner in Winslow, Arizona (what a fine sight to see!). BD & Fred, please to notice what we're eating in the photo. ;-) Of course, a mention of BD wouldn't be complete without giving her a pat on the back for overcoming her "needs vs. wants" argument and getting a beautiful new car that we're very jealous about. ;-) Of course, Koala has been a wonderful ride to us all these thousands of miles, so we can't complain about too much. But we're drooling nonetheless.



-We drove through the Painted Desert, near the Petrified Wood National Park (where we didn't stop, but where Meg filled the car with childhood stories of "rock hunting"), and, MOST IMPORTANTLY, we saw a herd (gaggle?) of wild horses, walking in a row along a dirt trail on the side of the highway in the middle of Navajo Country. There were colts and big guys, all manes flowing in the breeze, just like you'd imagine a pack of ponies to look like (and they were all different colors, too!). It was way cool.

Now we sleep. Tomorrow, we'll get to Santa Fe, which we missed on the way West. We're hoping to reach ColoSpgs by the evening. We're hoping everyone is well. xoxo.

onward and upward

Yesterday we visited Summerhaven, an aptly named mountain community 8,000 feet above sea level. And 20-30 degrees cooler than temperatures where we have been.

It was very nice to be out of the hoi polloi and the heat, as well as refreshing being around vegetation and log cabins. We ate at a cookie cabin and pizza restaurant where Meg learned how to mug for the camera.




The ranger station/bookstore we stopped at had a bird feeder. (This one's for Karen...)


Returning to the greater Tuscon area was unpleasant relative to our brief respite in Summerhaven, and not just because of the heat. The reality of the situation had an opportunity to sink in, bolstered by the contrast with the mountain heights.

After many long days of deliberation, beginning long before we arrived in the desert, we've decided to reformulate our plans. We've learned new and exciting information about Ben's field since he applied to this program (namely, that there are a bunch of great schools with research opportunities in the field, many of which are quicker and better tailored to his interests), making it less necessary to tolerate the downsides of being so far away (and so hot!). We've recalibrated many of our priorities, something that might have taken much longer had we not experienced this exagerated month.

We've experienced an unforgettable month of August, traveling through the country along with the Olympics. In Southern Arizona, we've also learned about 1) ultra-long distance running (our VA Military Academy interim landlord, Steve, came here to prepare for "beyond marathon races" of 50 to 100 miles. 2) Green turn arrows that respond after the through-lights turn red. 3) Texas retirees are not exactly the same as your typical grandma image, neither warm and comforting, nor seemingly happy to be retired. 4) The "it's a dry heat" thing is way overblown! It's hot as Hades and just as uncomfortable. Where it is illegal in the Northeast to tint your windows, it is downright stupid not to here. As John said so eloquently, "your oven is a dry heat; want to stick your head in that?" 5) Arizona's staunch resistance to Day Light Savings time means that the sun sets around 7pm, which is great for the cooling the air (by a few degrees) but offputting for August.



So, today we're heading north, then east. We'll lay low in New Jersey for a little bit while we work through our options. Stay posted for further updates from such exciting places as Gallup, New Mexico. Over and out, good buddies.