"Fatso"

The small carport to the left of the house is what we removed.

Acknowledging our recent weak home improvement efforts Jonathan and I stepped it up this weekend and were quite productive.  We started Saturday morning by tearing down the aluminum carport which stood to the left (when facing) of the original carport.  Jonathan has loathed this structure for quite some time and we needed to remove it to be able to finish painting the side of the house..

Demo required a little more problem solving than expected but after many a screw was removed we connected a tow belt from the structure to the truck and with a little acceleration most of the structure came down like a charm.  Two steel posts that appeared cemented beneath the dirt remained. We connected the tow belt to the first post and with a little tug, managed to bend it the point where Jonathan and I could twist and bend by hand to break it free. The final post was another story.  Same belt maneuver, but this time it fought back.  Keep in mind there is no top to this post so as the belt started to slip up, following in the direction of the truck, Jonathan attempted to hold the belt in place with his foot.  Truck torque vs. foot pressure.  Truck won.

I inched the truck along until I heard "STOP, oh sh**".  The belt flew loose of Jonathan's foot pressure and went sailing through the air like something catapulted toward the street ahead.  We both held our breath while it flew overhead and signed in relief when it hit the ground instead of the windshield.  Somehow on its journey the hitch managed to hit Jonathan's pinky causing quite the nasty injury.  Quite a bit of blood and a bit of pain, but no stitches required.  All of our efforts and Jonathan's injury were rewarded with an appreciated cash payment from the sketchy scrap metal yard's cashier.

The stones and brick surround were removed Sunday.

After a very tasty lunch at Sack's Sandwiches we returned home and tackled some much needed rock removal from the front yard.  Long story short the rock is rather unattractive and does not fit in with our eventual design. With flat head shovels in hand we loaded up the wheel barrel load after load and managed to clear about 1/3 of the rock from the "yard". We were both surprised at how much we were able to clear in a mere two hours.  We rewarded our days work with drinks and sushi with friends.

1/2 of the river has now been removed.

Sunday we were not quite as ambitious but still did quite well.  First we made a stop at a massive antique mall and bought another owl to add to our owl collection.  Quiet the buy for $2.75!  I picked up a new office plant at Lowes and we finished our shopping for the day at the Western Boot Outlet.  Embracing our wild west lifestyle we both bought two shirts complete with pearl snap buttons.  After we arrived home we divided to conquer our random tasks.  I primed the closet door frame in the living room while Jonathan re-grouted our main bath's shower.  After we finished our respective tasks we united to remove about 1/2 of what used to be a rather non-functional rock river that wound across our front yard doing nothing for drainage or appeal.  We should be able to clear the remainder of the river and red rock as well as paint the side of the house (and perhaps the back) in the next few weekends.  Hooray for revitalization of home improvement!

PS. Meet Fatso.  He is a piece of robot art created by a local Phoenix artist that we bought during an art show at Red Hot Robot.  Because of his art status we actually had to wait two weeks before we could officially bring him home.  Cute as a robot button.

Yip yip for bluegrass!

Jonathan picked me up from PHX Friday afternoon right around 5pm.  Making great time, thanks to a surprising lack of traffic, we made a brief stop at home to say howdy to the animals, then headed to Los Taquitos for a quick bite before making our way to the MIM.  The MIM is a privately funded Musical Instrument Museum located in Phoenix, yet very close to the Scottsdale boarder.  We did not tour the museum but instead were attending a concert by The Travelin' McCourys, who are an acclaimed bluegrass group consisting of banjo, mandolin, fiddle, guitar and bass.  The guitar is usually played by the father (Dell) of the McCoury brothers, who play the mandolin and the banjo, however in his absence we had the pleasure of listening to the talents of the award winning guitarist from Ricky Skaggs, Kentucky Thunder, Cody Kilby.  I have never witnessed a person's hands move so swiftly with so much musical perfection as Mr. Kilby.

I can't say I've ever sought out bluegrass, but Jonathan is quite the fan, and when he mentioned the concert and I saw the preview video, I knew we had to go.  They were terrific!!  These exceptionally talented musicians with terrific voices provided a very well rounded concert.  Not all performances had lyrics but that doesn't mean they were any less powerful. I found the rapid rhythms, soulful sounds, and heartfelt lyrics in classic Tennessee/Kentucky bluegrass style, simply a delight. I would definitely recommend seeing them to anyone, even if you've never heard of, or don't care too much for, bluegrass.  Just listening to their musical talent was indeed a treat. 

Rumor has it they'll be in Tucson in a few months, and if we're able we'll likely make the trip. Check them out, here is a link to their site: http://www.thetravelinmccourys.com/

70's in Kansas City... in February??

Thursday's 70 degree forecast was deserving of a dress.  Little did I know wearing a dress would illicit a change in behavior by two men I'd interacted with the previous day.  Apparently khakis and sweater = unapproachable, but a dress is a shot out for recognition.  Nothing offensive, just much different, perhaps more bold, than the day before.

The dress I wore is one of my favorite work dresses, which is very business appropriate, not revealing in any way, thanks to a camisole, and well fitting, not stuck to me like neoprene or baggy and sack-like.  At breakfast I was spoken to by a co-gym attendee who I ran into on multiple occasions the day before without one word exchanged between us; however, this morning, while departing the breakfast area, he decided to chat it up with me about this morning's gym experience, the weather, blah, blah, blah.  Then later in the day, I was tapped on my wedding ring by a guy who commented "now why did you go and do that?".  Again, a guy I'd seen the day before with very little banter exchanged.  Was it the dress, who knows, but I'm willing to bet another pair of khakis wouldn't have brought about so much notice. I wouldn't say I'm a sucker for attention, but a little recognition always gives a gal a little ego boost.    

As usual, be sure to check out some pictures to the right of my KC trip. Not necessarily applicable to Thursday's experience, and a little lacking due to dieing batteries, but they give a general feel for the trip. Another point and shoot with rechargeable batteries is certainly on my "to buy" list.

New Adventures (pictures to come soon)

This past Friday was my last day at my previous job.  I am thankful for the personal and professional opportunities it provided since Jonathan and I were able to move to Arizona with employment in place and, as time went on, buy a house.  But the time has come to try something new.  I am now employed with another firm, and am very excited for the challenges and opportunities it brings.

Sunday afternoon, I boarded a South West flight flying direct to Kansas City, MO.  South West officially gained my loyalty when about half way through the flight I was handed Plane Crackers (clever pun intended since they were indeed some mighty plain, plane shaped crackers) and, honey roasted peanuts!  Its been a good decade since I've been given honey roasted peanuts and you better believed each and every peanut was a delight.  As the flight neared Kansas City I looked out the window to view fields, rather barren, and sandy in appearance. Strange that they'd be sandy, but at the moment it seemed perfectly reasonable. Then the passenger next to me jolted me from my moment of stupidity when she commented on the melting snow. Duh, snow, not sand. 

Nearly every place that I've traveled, or lived, I've run into my fare share of New Jersians, each encounter sparking a renewed delight in my experience in the Garden State. Just to be extra clear, I do not and will NEVER claim to be a Jersey girl, but 6 years in the Garden State has undoubtedly made a major impact on my life and enables me to claim some Jersey status.  As I waited at the hotel bar for my pre-ordered salad I met my first Kansas City buddy.  My Rutgers hoodie sparked the conversation with the bar tender who was not only born and bred in Jersey, but swam competitively and had kids who are now competing in swimming in high school.  Honestly what are the odds.  We chatted for some time before he very generously provided me with his business card complete with his home phone and email,as well as resturant recommendations, and the comment, complete with New Jersey accent, that should I "need anything, anything at all, during my stay, to let him know".  His kindness and generosity maked me proud to have spent 6 years in New Jersey.

During the day my time is spent learning the ins-and-outs of the new firm.  Rather dry for everyone but me, so I'll spare you the details, except the fact that everyone I've met has been great.  Friendly, informative and best of all, great senses of humor.  I've spent the evenings touring the shops and restaurants in the "historic" Kansas City Plaza, and despite what movie or tv characters try to sell, dinning alone is not my favorite pass time.  Sure I'm comfortable enough, but I do so miss the company of my husband.

I never would have thought Kansas City would have fog issues, but this morning there it was, looming in front of my hotel room.  My morning started off a little rough with a later than desired wake up time, gym farters and a chaotic ordering of a bowl of cereal.  Honestly when a gym is a 6x10 room packed to the gills with equipment and 5 sweaty exercisers the casual passing of gas is not appreciated.

The fog burned off by the time I packed into a car with 6 Network guys and headed to Oklahoma Joe's renown KC BBQ.  Not only is the food at Oklahoma Joe's well known in the area but it is a restaurant that acclaimed chef/world food traveler Anthony Bourdain has listed on his 13-places-to-visit-before-you-die list.  I opted for the Carolina sandwich which consisted of pulled pork topped with cole-slaw and a side of seasoned fries larger than my head. The meat, flavored by a delicious dry rub had great texture and flavor.  The sauce that was provided on the side was equally good, but not needed since the meat was so juicy and well prepared.  The slaw was a little lack luster but made a good addition to the pork's flavor.  The fries, though I could not eat many, were equally delectable.  I honestly can't say how I continued to function for the remainder of the day after eating so much, but somehow I made it through.  After work I played tourist, wandering about the Plaza with my camera, and finished the day enjoying a frosty barley soda from a local brewery, the Boulevard Brewery.


3 days down, 1 and a half to go.

Arizona?

Last night we covered our recently planted Madagascar Palms in the hopes that they would not freeze and die.  This morning on my frigid drive to work at 8:15ish, I learned that it was 33 degrees.  No one should ever have to utter the words 33 degrees and live in Phoenix... WTF.

A fine weekend indeed

A 5 mile run followed by southern comfort food, now that's a good start to a weekend. For quite some time we've been waiting for a good excuse to try out Lo-Lo's Chicken and Waffles and the completion of our run plus a recent job shift served as good a justification as any to head down town.

While I'm aware of my food intake/calorie content, I believe whole heartily in enjoying my culinary experience uninhibited by a socially "acceptable" waist size. That being said, deliciously opaque red Kool-aid was my beverage choice to accompany my order of Sheedah's Special (a fried breast and leg with a waffle) and my side of "candied sweets". The only disappointment in my order were the "candied sweets". Just a bit too candied for my taste. Jonathan ordered the Lo-Lo's special (two waffles + 3 pieces of fried chicken) with a side of fried Okra. We both agreed the fried chicken was darn near perfect. Unadulterated by spices the fry batter was simply delicious. We both would have preferred a crispier waffle, but the thought of requesting a modification to the menu never crossed our minds. We will certainly be back, but for our arteries sake, not in the very near future.

 While in the downtown phx area we headed to a local art exhibit that I'd read a little bit about in the Roosevelt district. A little odd, and not in a provocative way, so we quickly moved about the gallery and headed outside to take in some street art. Much to my delight some new politically flavored Lalo Cota murals (which I absolutely love) were on display as well as a smattering of other street paintings/tags. Continuing to make our way home we stopped at the Heard Museum to check out a book/museum sale where Jonathan found a very helpful copy of the Sunset Western Garden Book for $3.00. Nice find indeed. Various errands later we arrived home with new, non-diet food for Mr. Jackson, a sassy new collar/tag for Sydney and some new plants for our future succulent garden.

 







Sunday Jonathan took to removing the remaining red brick pavers from the front of our house so that we could plant our previously potted Madagascar palms. With very thick gloves and a towel wrapped around the spiky trunks we managed to remove both palms and plant them in the ground. We would have continued our gardening efforts and planted the succulents in the front garden area but with upcoming freezing night temps (down to 29!!!) we opted to keep them in their pots so that we can bring them inside for warmth.

 

On a final note, while in the gallery on Saturday I found this sticker.  I liked it for its strangeness but was struck by Jonathan's comment. As you can see, its a mythical, suite donning jackalope with the text, phxculture.com. "Does that mean it doesn't exist"? Interesting, very interesting..

Back in the saddle

Thursday turned out to be quite a lovely second-to-last day of the week. Around 2 pm I got a call from the insurance company of the other driver involved in the car crash.  The very crash way back in October that totaled my British Racing Green Mini.  Turns out she lost the fight of her citation and they were finally claiming fault.  Hooray for not being at fault and for finally getting my deductible back!

Once I arrived home from work, Jonathan and I took the cruisers for a short ride.  This is the first time Big Blue and I have ridden since the accident on election day 2010.  I'll admit I was a little timid when it came to curbs and turns but with my new helmet strapped on and Big Blue as sturdy as ever, the ride was delightfully pleasant.

Friday evening Jonathan and I joined his aunt/uncle and cousins in a delightful french dinner celebrating Molly's upcoming birthday.  Don't know a lick of French, but it was tres bien.  And, despite no doggy cupcakes, we celebrated Jackson's 1 year anniversary with us. It sure has been a quick year, and we couldn't have asked for a better addition to our family then our energetic sweet Mr. Jackson.

All this leading up to a 3 day weekend... not bad at all.

New View

When we started working on our house we decided to keep the hideous window unit in its place for at least one summer to be sure we could survive without it. We survived. In fact, we managed to make it through what has been reported as the hottest summer ever in Phoenix without even giving that beast a second thought. Time to go.

With the help of an uncle and a neighbor, Jonathan managed to heave the beast out of its metal frame and remove the case from the window without any damage to the woodwork. A job well done.

 

Next Jonathan used his master glass installation skills to install new glass for the window. Taadaaaa, a new and much improved view! 

Next, painting over the red to match the front of the house.

Hupp Holidays

Starting our Christmas vacation off on the right foot we enjoyed a lovely dinner with family followed by a good two hours of searching for our escapee cat. After plenty of neighborhood circling we discovered our efforts were in vain because, as Jonathan figured out, Sydney had been stuck in our next door neighbor's vacant shed the entire time. She is a talented kitty indeed. With our frantic cat search finished it was time to catch a whopping 3.5 hours of sleep before our 6 AM departure to Mobile.  After arriving in Biloxi, Mississippi we made the scenic drive to Mobile where we enjoyed some fried/boiled seafood for lunch, hung out with the kitties and prepared for Christmas day.

For a little over a month I'd been careful to keep Jonathan's gift a secret and was pleased with his happiness when he unwrapped his new banjo on Christmas morning. When I had told Ryan (Jonathan's brother) of the gift his apt response was "poor cats". After presents we enjoyed a delightful Champagne toast, tested our camera timer/tripod skills for family photos and feasted on a terrific Christmas lunch. Post lunch vegetation we challenged our brains with a few rounds of SmartAss, (a Trivial Pursuit like game) and concluded our day with a visit to an independently owned movie theater located in downtown Mobile to watch True Grit. (Great movie!). Quite a lovely Christmas in Mobile.

40 degrees and windy, sounds like a perfect day for a trip the beach to check out Fort Morgan and perhaps enjoy an arctic ride on the ferry. Our first stop was at the Malbi Memorial Church for a few quick and mainly blurry pictures and a little snowfall. Yes that's right, snow in Alabama. Back on the road we stopped at good ole "Tacky Jack's" for a quick bite to eat before arriving at Fort Morgan. Lovely Fort, but at around 40+ degrees with crazy cold/wet wind we only scurried about for around 20 minutes before toe and finger numbness set in. Seeing as the ferry would require a 45 minute wait we opted to return home via paved road and took a bit of a detour in the hunt for a warm beverage. Lulu's, a spunky riverside restaurant, which is apparently owned and operated by the sister of Jimmy Buffett served as our stop. This massive, funky place was complete with outdoor volleyball and stage and all kinds of touristy photo opportunities.

In the days following we hit up "The Shed" for some obligatory Southern BBQ, wandered about a gigantic Mardi Gras store with every type of beaded necklace and silly accessory you could imagine and enjoyed an lovely game of Croquet. Monday night, our wild night on the town, Jonathan and I met up with some past CMSA teammates, enjoyed some surprisingly good Mexican food and a had few drinks. Two came very well dressed for the occasion and it turned out they had come from assisting dinner service at a debutant ball. After one finished describing their duties as past debutant's she finished with a "you know how it goes".   I smiled and nodded, which was surely my most appropriate response method.

On our last full day in Mobile we checked out the local art scene and toured a bit of downtown. We stopped in several galleries and of course found art we'd love to buy but restrained ourselves from further feeding the belly of the Amex beast. One of my favorite art pieces however, was not contained in a gallery and can be seen below.

 

On our trip home from Mobile both Jonathan and I opted out of the toxic backscatter x-ray and instead took part in a little TSA pat down. After Jonathan's pat down one of the agents joked "Now that wasn't that intrusive, was it?" And thanks to a little experience and refined social filters both Jonathan and I knew it wasn't quite the place for a soap box stand against Big Brother. "Not at all" Jonathan said as we gathered our stuff and sat for our delayed airplane. Around Midnight we landed in a cold, rainy Phoenix, yet despite poor weather its always nice to be home. Our kitties were happy to see us and we were all looking forward to Mr. Jackson being dropped off by family a little later in the morning.

Hasta la vista 2010.

Our first snow (in AZ)

Around 10 AM Saturday morning Jonathan, myself and Jackson loaded into the truck and headed North to the Mogollon Rim. Departing Phoenix the sky was partly cloudy and the temperature was in the 60s. An excellent day for a road trip. As we drove Jackson napped, the temperature dipped and the cloud coverage increased. No worries, it would still be a lovely trip. Turning off in Camp Verde we continued our climb in elevation and starting driving through thickening fog patches.   Not too long after we started noticing sparse patches of snow, our first snow sighting in AZ!

 

The closer we got to the Rim turn off, the thicker the fog coverage and the higher the snow level. Perhaps this wasn't going to turn out as we hopped. We had already traveled a good hour and a half, so there was no use turning back now. Upon reaching the foggy, snow covered, off-road turn off to the rim we decided enough was enough. As we got out of the car to touch the snow like first time tourists I noticed that it was starting to sleet. The combo of semi slushy snow, sleet, thickening fog, and a relatively light truck encouraged me to keep our stop relatively short.

Jackson didn't quite know what to make of the cold substance below his feet, but put up with our mandatory photos quite well. In one picture he is looking particularly pathetic, but you'll noticed he isn't as dramatic in the others.

What is this???

Look Ma, snow!

Back on the paved road we headed South and noticed that areas that hadn't been foggy on our drive North were now considerably so. After about an hour the temperature increased a good 20+ degrees and Phoenix greeted us with high 60s and plenty of sunshine. Home sweet home. We'll surely be back to the Mogollon Rim but perhaps we'll wait till the spring or late summer.


 



A little highway Chirstmas spirit.



Another wild weekend

This past weekend started off with a bang on Friday at 3:30 thanks to some complementary libations courtesy of work. Not having won any prizes and missing out on dessert, I scampered out of the work party as soon as the last prize raffle was finished.  Thanks for the free drinks and snacks employer, but maybe next year I'll simply take the early departure.

A dashing shot of Mr. Jackson post park.

Saturday morning, post insurance house inspection, we took Jackson for an exciting trip to the dog park then made our best effort to get in some holiday shopping.  Out of 6 intended purchases we made one, ok well I made one and one was a gift.  Time is ticking.

  



A Mini face off outside the REI parking lot.  Other Mini is clearly over the line!



The highlight of our weekend was certainly Saturday evening. Jonathan, myself and some friends made it to Lets Roll bowling alley for a rollicking good time. I fared far better than I expected rolling with my left arm, my highest score being 139, and Jonathan was sure to impress all with his ball spin maneuvers and multi lane bowling.  During the always necessary cosmic bowling our DJ was the one and only ex Suns player turned Suns announcer, Cedric Ceballos.  Being Phx/Suns newbies Jonathan and I hadn't a clue who he was but one of our bowling compadres was quite impressed and entertainingly chummy with the DJ.

 Sunday we returned to the dog park where Jackson met what appeared to be a "Jackson 1.5", the slightly
larger model. This other little dog, seen below, is Jackson but a little taller, a little longer and a little hairier.


Jackson 1.5 (real name unknown)

 

The real Jackson is on the right, but if you look close they are in the exact same stride. 

 

When we got home we decided to mix it up a little and rearrange the living room.  To be honest our previous arrangement was always very cold and, I felt, pretty unwelcoming.  First we moved Frank to another room.  Love our trusty little turtle but he just wasn't the living room decor I was hoping for. The TV/cabinet moved to a different wall which now creates a more distinct living room area instead of an expansive room with a TV at one end and a couch at the other. Since we are lacking a formal dinning room the table was moved to Frank's previous location, and thanks to its collapsability (new word) it looks just fine sitting in the corner. We still have plenty of work to do to finish the room (remove massive window air conditioning unit, replace glass, finish floor, and buy a rug and a new coffee table) but as with most of our projects I'm sure it will come together sooner or later. 

Oh, and did I mention the temperature was around 78 on both days, hate to rub it in, but sometimes I just love living in the desert.



So much for enjoying the great outdoors.

  

The kittys visit Tim.