Valley of the Sun

Wow. I can’t believe I have waited so long to write another entry. Sorry for being such a slacker. So let’s get right to it.

I took a trip at the end of last month to visit a friend in Phoenix. First, let me just say her house is beautiful!! I felt like a midget in the place since it has such high ceilings. I think I must have just wandered from room to room with my mouth hanging open while I received the grand tour. If that wasn’t enough of a kick in the butt to get started on my own home search, I don’t know what will.

But I am getting ahead of myself as usual. I took the trip because we had a concert to go to the night I arrived. And no, it wasn’t a Keane concert. (That’s this week!!!!) We went to go see Crowded House. When we were in college we went to see them perform and we had such a great time. So one day I get a message from her saying she has tickets and that I should come out and go with her. No problem. Plus, it has been years since I have been to Phoenix other than to change planes. And, I had yet to meet her son. What a sweetie face!

So, the first night was the concert. The next day we decided to just wander around the city and do some shopping. But first, I have to tell you about my near death experience. (Sorry Abril, but this story is too funny to keep to myself). I was staying in the basement, which was really nice and I had my own bathroom. The first morning I got up to take a shower and get ready when something really unexpected happened. The showerhead is one of those big “rain” showerheads which I thought was pretty cool. Well, I turned on the water and then I turned on the shower. No sooner do I do this than that big shower head goes flying off like a missile and crashing into the tub. Scared the crap out of me.

Luckily I wasn’t standing in the shower at the time. After I got over the shock of what just happened I did what you might expect: I laughed my ass off. So, I got dressed and went upstairs and let her know that her assassination attempt had failed. We went down to look at it and the bolt that holds the face plate to the rest of it had come off. This wasn’t a screw, but a bolt that had completely come apart. Now THAT’s some water pressure! So, I decided to make do and still use the shower without the face. The water was a bit rough, but I have never felt so clean.

That night we went to the movies and saw “Blades of Glory.” It was so funny. I realize it didn’t get the greatest reviews, but it’s not like I was expecting an intellectual plot here. It was good for a few laughs and I haven’t been to the movies in ages.

Saturday morning we got up and took the little guy to the zoo. It was fun, but so freakin hot already. I think we have some pictures, but I haven’t seen them yet. I’ll let you know if I get anything interesting. The other interesting thing that happened was the dust storm. Thank goodness we were home at the time. I have never seen one before. Apparently we get them here, but not very often. This was beyond weird. I happened to look outside and saw the wind blowing really hard and they sky was this funky orange color. We went out on the porch to take a look. Yeah, that didn’t last very long. Later that night as I was about to head back downstairs to my room I noticed something by the stairs. I thought it was a leaf or something that had blown in from the front door some time during the day. Ever the cautious sort, I stood over it and looked at it closer thinking it was shaped a bit like a scorpion. Yeah, it was a scorpion. Once again, I calmly let my hosts know about this latest attempt on my life.

Sunday, Abril had to leave for a business trip, so I hung out with the boys until it was time for me to leave. Ever play hide and seek with a 3 year old? It’s more fun than you might think. All in all, I had a great time. Her son even reminded me of a song I had all but forgotten over time. Chris asked him to sing the “bumble bee” song and once he did I realized that I knew it. It was from an old cartoon with a buzzard. Remember that one? This poor buzzard isn’t terribly bright and he is sent out to find food and tries to bring back a bumble bee. Anyway, he sings a song while he is flying home and that was what Cal was singing. Fun. He seemed suitably impressed that I knew the words too.