Rain .... The Good, The Bad, The Stupid

July in the desert we crave rain. It's like a whole region is dehydrated, head achy for lack of water ... cranky. The plants look starved. The desert vibrates with heat ..... until the rain. It was late this year, but the moisture is finally here. Last night, the skies opened up broadly across the desert and this morning .... well, things looked different.

First, the scary part of the monsoons. The rain comes so fast and heavy, the desert and roads and systems just can't handle it. So, while I did everything right to be ready to be out the door by 5:15 this morning for the Easy Peasy Ride .... A friend called at 10 pm because she was unable to get to her house nearby .... even though they were in an F350 pick-up -- the police wouldn't let them into the waters. Plus, she had her grandkids, so even if they would be allowed to try it -- is that the time? So, at 10 pm (well past my easy-peasy curfew) the phone rang and I told them to of course come over. The girls were put to bed and we chatted until about midnight (I knew the ride was toast). Of course, a ride always comes second to helping a friend .... No question.

But, I still wanted to climb for a few reasons .... One ... my cycling friend still thinks we are riding to the top and because I just had my bike refit and I wanted to see how it would do. But, because I had a late start, I headed up the mountain a bit to try a new part of the mountain.

The fit was perfect -- if your riding seems difficult ... get a professional to look at how you sit on the bike. In just a few minutes, my bike was transformed into a bike set up for how I ride (note, I had my bike professionally fitted when purchased, but the seat didn't stay in place and they were setting my up for triathlons, not long distance riding).

Here are some thoughts from today's ride....

1. Rain makes the desert dance. I swear I could hear the plants singing ... and the power of the water flowing off the mountain was inspiring.
2. Little things, like my new buff headware, do small things like keep the sweat out of the eyes are the difference between success and failure.
3. Who knew my right leg was shorter than my left......

The amazing part of the ride was not the views (which were fabulous); not the exercise (which was tough) ... But instead being able to witness the rebirth of the desert through the addition of water. Lots and lots of water.

It's amazing when you can smell the conversion of the forest trees as you pass. But, after a good rain, you can smell them and, if you are focused, you can hear them too. I swear one group of pines was playing Boccie ball in the pines just below General Hitchcock Campground.

Destination Vacation

I wonder if people 100 or 150 or 3000 year ago even thought about getting away -- taking a vacation. Relaxing beyond a good smoke on the back porch (not that I smoke). But either because we are "softer" today or because of the pace of life -- or just because we can -- vacations seem critical to the survival of the modern day soul.

It's not that the buzzes, beeps and zooms go away, but at least there is an ability to push ignore for a while and not be too concerned.

So. The San Diego Vacation. Human Rating: 8. Puppy Rating: 12! (please note: Scale 1 - 10 -- possible downside was fishhook in The Donut's front chest day two -- but quickly resolved)!

So, we drove though the desert and found, much to our surprise a rather nice dog park in Yuma for the pups to stretch their legs. It was filled with grass and allowed us to make the rest of the trip in the car (meaning, we didn't have to go pottie in the cazillion degree desert).

We arrived in Descansco and I was a little concerned. C is more particular about his surroundings than me. So, we pull up (thankfully the temp was only in the high '80s, which felt cool coming out of 110). But, we pulled up the dirt road, saw the little hobbit house, an abandon trailer, etc., and I thought .... "shit, I hope we can find somewhere with wi-fi so I can find somewhere else for us to stay for the week."

But, despite initial appearances, we walked up, met the owner and decided it looked ok. Actually..... I thought it looked SUPER AWESOME COOL! While we quickly turned off the new age music (replacing it with the melodies of the poetic commentary from the sultery Phil Liggett from the Tour) .... After unloading, we headed to a nearby lake to determine if the dogs had sealegs. With the exception of the Donut getting a three-pronged barbed fishhook lodged in her chest (which we didn't find until the next day) .... It was a fabulous afternoon. We spent the evening grilling, drinking good beer and watching the sunset .... 5-Star!

Because a discription is unfair from me, here is how C describes the Haylapa Hosue: "When I first saw the Haylapa House, I wondered where the next Hilton was at..... Then we walked in met the owner and the realization that Hoolia was not going to go anywhere else sunk in. After I realized we were set for the duration, it grew on me. I mean, we had great beer from the Green Flash Brewery and the sunset was fabulous."

More to follow, but that is day one.

Funny, I never listened to the lyrics ....

Tomorrow, we head out on a much needed vacation. We are headed west on an adventure staying at a funky little by-way place that will either be fabulous or a "great story".....

My intention on this blog was simply to post the lyrics from the Go-Gos (who have been my heros since the 80s) song Vacation. Then I read them .... Guess I didn't ever do that before. I just sang along. Funny, I guess that is how we get in trouble on lots of things. We think we know what something means, we think we know what someone is saying, and we just sing along. (And, in my case and with the Go-Gos ..... it's usually loud and always off tune).

Here are the lyrics I found....
VacationGo Gos(Kathy Valentine/Charlotte Caffey/Jane Wiedlin)Can't seem to get my mind off of youBack here at home there's nothin' to doNow that I'm awayI wish I'd stayedTomorrow's a day of mine that you won't be inWhen you looked at me I should've runBut I thought it was just for funI see I was wrongAnd I'm not so strongI should've known all along that time would tellA week without youThought I'd forgetTwo weeks without you and IStill haven't gotten over you yet CHORUS Vacation All I ever wanted VacationHad to get awayVacationMeant to be spent aloneA week without youThought I'd forgetTwo weeks without you and IStill haven't gotten over you yet

All these years, I think I just understood what the Chorus said. I didn't read the rest. Lesson: Understand the whole story before you shout it from the rooftops. With all of that, the chorus holds true. Will attempt to post from The Haylapa House .... And, obviously, you will find out if it ends up being a great vacation or a great story :).

Riding Up Mount Lemmon -- Whew!

I have driven up the mountain main times. I have riden my mountain bike down most of it once. I have riden up and down countless trails on the mountain -- INCLUDING the Butterfly Trail (don't do it, seriously. Not ever.) With all of that, I have never riden UP the road.

A few weeks ago, my riding buddy asked if I would want to do this multi-week training program called something like Easy Peasy Mountain Squeezie -- and I, being me, said of course. She said do you want to try to do the whole lemmon or half. And I, being me, said the full one. Of course.

Today, at 5 am, I left the house and got to the starting area. There were quite a few people there, many of whom had already riden five, 10 or so miles. I was fairly nervous because I haven't done it and because my previous evening preperation could have been a little more aligned towards strong performance and not the jovial drinking of adult beverages. Oh well, here we go.

I felt really strong the first three and a half miles. Legs felt strong, lungs felt good. Heart not exploding out of my head like it does on the steep climb up to Colossal Cave. Then, I started to feel funny. Light headed, a little more sweaty than was normal, and definately not strong. I stopped .... riders, runners, etc. were cruising past 'Are you ok?" "Are you ok?" Yes Yes. Fine.

I even told one passing rider to tell my friend I was turning around.

I sat there for a bit, then decided it was time to get back on the bike. Funny thing. Given that I was still a little lightheaded, I decide it would be safer to pass out going uphill than going downhill. So, the plan was ride uphill until I felt better then turn around. Funny thing. I made it to about 1/10th of a mile from where we were targeting. I saw my friend coming back down, so I joined her. But, I made it..... 5.7 (well 5.6 miles) up Mount Lemmon.

Tomorrow is a 5 mile run, next week, up Mount Lemmon again -- this time 9 miles up. Hopefully, I will feel a little better for the whole adventure next week. But still, I am kind of crowing quietly (ok, not so quietly) about my achievement today.

Strange Hospitality

It's blueberry season in Indiana. My favorite time. Not any blueberry farm, but the Alpine Blueberry Farm in Batesville, Indiana. The berries are wonderful, the setting is perfect and the owners, well -- they are the definition of Hoosier or any kind of hospitality. Of course, I am bias because the farmers are family.

Year's ago, my dietitian-blueberry farming sister gave me a cook book called something like "Around the Table" -- there were recipes from around the globe, but it was more about how people should be celebrated when they come to your home. I was young, but it resonated and if my door was open before, it was wide open after I read the book. I never prepared a single recipe from the book, but I tried to practice its premise: The door should always be open, new faces and old faces always welcome.

Recently, I discovered a few boys were road tripping from Arizona to Ohio. I said "you must stop at the blueberry farm .... Ask for my sister or her husband. They will take care of you for a while." So, I gave my sister a heads up, gave the boys her number and let fate play its hand. I haven't heard all the stories, but the boys did show up and now Charlie and my nephew Teddy are friends on Facebook. Connections, right?

My sister would say that is what the blueberry farm is all about (well, it's also about the healthiest most yummy fruit in the world) but more importantly -- it's about connecting with people year after year, some new faces, some recognized faces... But all there to walk about the fields, pick buckets of berries, chat with Ted, hopefully chase a few birds away. And, if you are lucky, you get to try a few goodies out of the private garden. Have you ever tried freshly picked romaine lettuce lightly grilled, with a touch of dressing and a little sprinkle of cheese? Nothing is better. And I want to go there now.

My sister reported that when the road weary boys arrived she asked what their main stops had been along the way. One of the boys said something like the Hot Springs and the Blueberry Farm. Good choice! Hoosier hospitality is one thing, but strange hospitality takes it to a whole different level.

Now: Full disclaimer so I do not get in trouble. All my sisters and my brothers practice some form of Strange Hospitality. And, ask my husband, if you visit, it never stops. It's a swirl of kindness and activity the likes top few will ever know.

Yes, Lucinda, I am alright .....

Lucinda Williams had a song that asks the listener "are you alright, I haven't seen you in a long long time.....i hope you come back someday" or something like that. Today was one of those days that my purple Nano IPod just seemed to pick the most appropriate soundtrack. Song after song, my moods and feelings were validated by the songs that shuffled to the top.

And, I took a risk today. I didn't tell it the playlist I wanted. I just hit shuffle. When Lucinda started crooning (I think that is the right word for what Lucinda does) for some reason I thought of this long neglected blog. And, yes, Lucinda, I am OK even though I took off without a word.

It's been busy. Good busy, bad busy, joyous busy, cry at the end of the day busy. Weeks passed without my recognition. This happens ..... But I try to not make it too frequent because I do not want to get to the end of my life and not know where it went.

You know, Lucinda. She is one of those performers that when you see her -- it's an emotional workout. The angst, passion and force that drives her poetry engulfs you. The way life should. You feel the good, the bad, the fun, the rowdy. It's funny... and this is a confession to Murray. I still have your Lucinda CD. I just couldn't let it go. Sorry. I guess it's outdated now (who listens to CDs), but I still pop it in at work occasionally.

Since my April assault on Liz, we had a brilliant conversation. I promised to call again soon. I still haven't. I participated in a triathalon, I took my little friend Aevri shopping for the perfect kindergarten promotion dress. I laughed a lot, cried a little. Oh, and I got a new puppy. Handsome little Porter who reminds me of Maizy. Again, this last few weeks, I laughed and played with good friends.

So, yeah, to be consistent with the musical theme .... I probably suffer from the "Happy Woman Blues" but I continue "Learning How to Live." Sometimes, if you just put the purple Nano on Shuffle, clarity comes along for the ride. As the summer goes on, I will strive to be more consistent with this blog. Not because I think you need it or are dying to read the next installment, but because Lucinda seems to get worried if I don't just in from time to time.