Otherwise, we mostly spent most of our time visiting with old friends and trying to take in some of the mountain splendor. We tried to hike into the Lava Tubes - a cave carved out by a river of molten lava (the peaks in the area are all volcanic) - but two of our light sources died as we were entering the cave. I also pretty much had a full on panic attack descending the craggy rocks into the cave. I don't think Ry has ever seen me as freaked out. I climbed out hyperventilating, did some deep breathing and then decided to try again. I was calmer when we went down the second time but the two light sources failed and we decided it wasn't safe to keep going on slick rock in total darkness. I guess safety issues bogged us down in our Flag physical endeavors twice!
We tooled around the NAU campus, which boasted many exciting new changes including a Union addition, a new conference center and a new residence hall. We visited with folks in the Office of Residence Life (ORL) and my favorite Student Affairs faculty member, Dr. Susan Longerbeam, housed in the College of Education.
The best part of our trip to Flag was visiting with old friends and co-workers. We dined with my old supervisor Matt (a multi-talented, super-witty Student Affairs professional, pilot and meteorologist) and a former co-worker Veronica, who actually interviewed me and offered me my grad position which helped me launch my illustrious career in Student Affairs! We visited with another old supervisor Gretchen in her office. She has been promoted to a new position, managed to open her own Jazzercise studio and is currently pregnant with her first child...exciting! She was one of my absolute favorites in Flag who provided me with much caring support. We visited a former grad colleague, Mellissa, her husband Trevor and their sweet two-year old daughter Violet in their home and got to catch up on most everything that'd happened in the last few years. Finally, we were able to visit my former co-worker and close friend, Scott when we made a side trip to Phoenix to visit Taliesin West (Frank Lloyd Wright's second home in Scottsdale, AZ).
After Flag we jetted down to Sedona where we stayed in the Baby Quail Inn. Apparently there are many quail in Sedona, but we didn't actually see any (especially not any babies) until we were on the Taliesin West grounds in Phx. For Ry's 36th birthday, we did a lovely, but easy hike on the Little Horse Trail that ended in an ascension of "Chicken Point" where we had great views of Bell Rock and The Courthouse red rock formations. We dined at Elote Cafe, a Mexican fusion place and celebrated quietly with delicious grapefruit margaritas.
We headed for home last Friday via I-40 with stops overnight stops in Amarillo and Springfield, MO. For our last real tourist attraction we visited the Cadillac Ranch and along the way home we listened to a book on CD called, The Women by T.C. Boyle about Frank Lloyd Wright's four significant wives and mistresses. I'd read the book before, but Ry hadn't and I thought it would be fitting with our visit to Taliesin West. I've actually read a couple of books about FLW and was geeking a bit about seeing Taliesin West (TW). TW was interesting, but I wasn't wowed per say. I also liked the book less than when I initially read it, which I think was thanks to the highly emotive male reader that insisted on doing an intense woman's Southern accent for one of the characters.
After we finished The Women, we started another TC Boyle book, Talk Talk for the remainder of the trip, but didn't make it through. This is a book about a deaf woman whose identity is stolen. Ironically enough, we returned to find out today that someone got a hold of our credit card number and attempted to use it at a tourist attraction in England of all places. Weird coincidence. I'm pretty in love with TC Boyle as an author (Ry turned me on to him after much insistence). I've read about five of his books, but if I had to recommend just one it would be Drop City. If you are looking for a smart, engaging novel with a highly evolved vocabulary that explores hippie commune life, this one's for you. Besides that, it was a National Book Award finalist in 2003.
Any who, enough about literature, though I have been thinking about incorporating book reviews into my writing here (keep your eyes peeled). We arrived home about 10pm this past Sunday and I was happy, happy, happy to sleep in my own bed. Ry and I have decided definitively that there is no hotel bed in the world as comfortable as our own. Everything was just where is should be. Thanks again to Kevan and Alicia for tending to our home while we were away. Except...the huge tree in front of our house was unexpectedly chopped down by the Milwaukee Forest Service. They cut off of the entire crown, so all that's left is a big trunk with nubs on it and it's slated for de-trunking later this summer. Big bummer. Big, big bummer. I guess it was pretty sick and new tree will be planted in its place, but it changes the whole feel of our abode.
In summary, this third annual road trip was awesome but different. It didn't have all the surprises of somewhere I'd never been before (like the Pacific Northwest) and we weren't able to camp at all due to extreme heat. But we were able to see dear friends, hike over 26 miles in mountain terrain and I was able to share a recent chapter of my life with Ry Ry. I struggled when I lived in Flag but that's only natural being far from home, working on a graduate degree and doing a tough, specific job I'd never even thought about doing before then. I've made peace with all of that. And I'm so thankful that I had the opportunity to live in such a majestic place and get to know quality folks.
I can see clearly how that path led me directly to my present endeavors. It's funny that when things seem to make the least sense they can suddenly come into focus and be clear as day. It was wonderful to experience Flag with new eyes, not to mention a nostalgic nose for all of that fresh Ponderosa Pine scent.
So, today as I bought groceries on a leisurely day behind a woman with only $50 in food stamps to feed her family, I had to count my blessings that I just took a two week road trip with my wonderful husband, that I'm enjoying my fourth week off of work and that I was returning home to our lovely new house. I'm pretty lucky and for that it's important to give thanks.
Finally, I'm thankful for garlic sauteed kale and lentil soup. There's nothing like home cooking after a long sojourn.
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