When finding out we have just moved here, some people have said, "Oh, you'll like the winters here..." Honestly, the Tropical Tip has a more moderate winter climate than the Valley of the Sun. It was 53º when I got up this morning.
And then there is the brutal summer in the desert... "But, it's a dry heat." It is certainly less humid than south Texas, as you can tell by the snakeskin look at the skin on my legs. Yes, I am wearing shorts in November; I always wore shorts most of the time in Texas.
The "public face" we put on it is: We are here to be close to our daughter and son-in-law. And, that is a big plus; we love these "youngsters."
"The desert is beautiful!" If you like sand and gravel. There is a bit of green here and there, mostly when you drive by a golf course. The landscaper is supposed to start tomorrow (we are hopeful), and we have designed in a bit of "turf"... as in Astroturf, or whatever they call fake grass. Rufus has dealt with that in an RV park before: he is hopeful that he has grass to walk on and sniff, and when he does, he says, "This is bullshit - it isn't really grass!" But, it is green. There will be pavers... based on what I am seeing stacked up in front of our house, a lot of pavers. And, some gravel. Because it is the desert, and gravel is everywhere. Our front yard is gravel. As is everyone's in this development. Because it is the desert. Things are green and flowering year 'round in the Tropical Tip.
"There is so much to do." This is very true. In a city of over 4 million people, there is always something to do. And, those 4 million people all seem to get on the freeways between me and where I want to go. The traffic here can be frustrating. It is almost a joy to make our way to the west Valley where the RV park our coach is in currently is located. Or, an hour + of frustration when the roads are all clogged. People around here say things like: "It's 'Friday Lite'," which means there is less traffic on the road on Fridays... unless it is a holiday weekend... or, there is something going on, like NASCAR or the World Series or a major golf tournament or the Superbowl... 'cause there is always something to do here. Drive times matter: if you are fortunate, you are going "against the flow" of traffic. That means the lanes going in the opposite direction you are headed are crowded and your lanes are flowing nicely. More often, the lanes going both ways are crowded. And to add to the fun: gas is over $1 per gallon higher here.
But, here's the real reason we moved here:
Yep, Arizona does not do the Daylight Saving Time "spring forward, fall back" thing. We don't have to reset every clock and appliance in the house twice a year. Part of the year, the state aligns with the Mountain Time Zone and the rest of the year it is on Pacific Time. Imagine the "time savings" by not having to mess with "saving time." ;-)
Of course, I'm kidding. Considering all the time we've "lost" in dealing with this move, it will take about 700 years for me to come out ahead by not switching clocks and appliances.
Yesterday, Steph said to me, "Can I ask you a serious question?"
"Sure."
"Are you happy here?"
"We're getting there. We're happy to be around you. The "flow" in our side of the house isn't good right now, but we'll get that worked out. It's a lot of work getting settled in, and I don't like the unknown of dealing with workers, like the handyman we hired to hang the ceiling fans and the landscapers who will hopefully show up on Monday and get the job done to everyone's satisfaction. We were ready for a move and a change - and this is a major change from living in a sub-tropical climate. Don't worry about us - we'll work through it and get back to just living."
I know she wants everyone to be happy with all this. These things take time.
2 comments:
I'm with you on "daylight savings time" and wish it would go away. When we lived in Alaska it was truly laughable. As of today Anchorage is just barely over eight hours between sunrise and sunset, and losing six minutes per day. At solstice they will have five hours of "daylight" from 1030 to 1520. Further north it is even more dramatic.
For now you and I are on the same time zone - until next spring when WE change again. I keep my iPhone world clock set with several time zones so I don't surprise someone at a weird time. It helps, but I communicate regularly with Hawaii (who doesn't change), Alaska, and Michigan, spanning five time zones right now and usually six. My Alaskan clients and even some friends don't always realize that Boise is on the Mountain Time, thinking that we are one hour ahead on Pacific time. Trivia question: Can you travel from Florida to Oregon and only change one time zone? Yes. Florida's panhandle is on Central time, and there is one county in Oregon adjoining Idaho that is on Mountain. There is a good map at "time.gov", the Naval Observatory official time site.
It is frustrating building a whole new life in AZ, but you will get settled in again and eventually not have to make so many obligatory trips that include a traffic time add. Then there will be rides, music with Mark, and you can enjoy the winter. Plus visiting with Steph and Dan far more. After 16 years in this house I'm *almost* done saying, "I knew exactly where ______ was in the Anchorage house, but I cannot find it here".
Hi Earl - We are getting through each box that we packed. At our current rate, it should only take another year or so. Yes, I'm kidding - probably a year and a half. I expected that we'd pack stuff that we won't have room for, since determining storage has come down to: we'll see what fits.
I haven't had any issue with Daylight Saving Time since we left South Dakota... yes, dusk and darkness comes earlier, but it isn't as drastic when living in the Tropical Tip. Most folks think of Arizona as being way south, but the Tropical Tip of Texas is significantly further south. And being that far south moderates the daylight to darkness hours throughout the year.
Steph and Dan have started their moving in process, mostly getting things prepped around the house before they start moving stuff in. We were all busy today,t but Joan took the time to make breakfast and an early supper for the 4 of us. The kids really appreciated home cooked meals... "This isn't going to be an everyday thing."
The furniture store delivered an adjustable desk and bookshelf today - that went into the music room. The desk is going to be great: a comfortable place for recording and mixing, then raise it up for working on guitars - I won't have to use the kitchen counter for string changes. I'm agonizing on how I want to arrange things in there, but I did get the last two boxes labeled "music room" emptied today. I know which wall I want to use to hang guitars, just haven't come to a final decision... consider a bunch, measure twice, mount hangers once.
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