Tucson Highlights

Departure: Friday, February 17th 3:30pm. I knocked on Shalia's door and was introduced to my new friends and traveling companions: Nathaniel, Amanda, and Phil. After gathering some last-minute snacks and saying a prayer, we jumped on the I-15 headed towards Tucson, AZ.

In the car: we all seemed to enjoy quiet contemplation intermixed with jovial conversation and stories. Like always, I brought my journal with hopes to write but ended up reading instead. The sun was setting fast so I didn't have much time for daylight car activites anyway. For the first portion of the drive, I was entertained by Amanda's sketches of Nathaniel and Shalia. She is such a talented artist!

Moment of spontaneity: Along highway 89 we were all dazzled by the snow covered landscape. The sun was barely hovering over the mountains, making the snow glitter and the sky turn a soft, clear blue. The snow had fallen on fields of small dormant plants in a way that made them look like cotton bushes extending for miles. It was such an incredible sight! Since the view was so inviting, I impulsively shouted "let's pull over and play in the snow!"....silence...."come on guys, no one wants to jump in the snow with me?" Thankfully, Nathaniel was intrigued enough to convince the others to join us. Phil parked the car and out we went. The air was cool and fresh but the snow was bone-chilling. I was foolish enough to run out there in flip flops. Needless to say, I couldn't feel my feet after 30 seconds. We had a blast rolling around, throwing snowballs and snapping a few pictures.

Back in the car: Amanda was kind enough to lend me some socks to warm up my feet, thank you thank you thank you! Energized from our escapade, we chatted gleefully until we stopped in Panguitch for gas and Arby's. Phil's the man, he drove for 6 hours! But once we reached Page, I happily took over the driving for a 3 hour shift. Time flies by when you're the driver instead of a passenger, I love it. I think it was somewhere close to Prescott where we stopped to get ice cream at a Mcdonald's that was all out of ice cream....seriously? How convenient.

Bucket list check: For the first time ever, I sunk my teeth right into a green bell pepper and took out a hefty chunk; no ranch dip and no cooking involved. The taste was surprisingly delightful. "check"

Adrenaline rush: Saturday morning at 3:30am. Shalia turns onto La Cholla Rd, and we're about one minute away from my brother's house. Being the goofball that he is, Phil decides to fake-throw a pillow at Shalia's face and in response, Shalia decides to swerve the car one, two, three times. On the third swerve, we hear tires squeal and Shalia loses all control over the steering. Time stops as the car spins across La Cholla and all I can think is "please don't let anything bad happen to us." I squeeze Amanda's hand as metal crunches from impact and the car abruptly comes to a halt. The smell of rubber invades the air and dust covers our view from the outside. After checking on each other's physical and emotional states, we crawl out of the car to examine the damage. The rear bumper and trunk are forged into a Palo Verde tree, and all four tires are buried in soft desert sand. Phil and Nathaniel work on loosening branches from the back end of the car, while I gather rocks to place in front of the tires. Shalia continues to apologize profusely but we all assure her that we're perfectly fine. After several attempts, and expert maneuvering from Phil, he was able to propel the car back onto the road. Miraculously, the only damage done was cosmetic and we resumed our path to my brother's house.

Saturday: I crashed on the couch in the living room until about 6:30am when two adorable and very loud little boys came running out of their room to wake me up. I was so happy to see their bright, smiley faces!! I watched them play with all sorts of different toys while I slowly came out of my drowsiness. Every few minutes I could extract enough energy to shoot a basket or tickle them but for the most part I just sat and watched them show off. Once Christopher was awake, I got the boys dressed so we could go outside and play! Brendan had been begging to ride his bike without training wheels so his daddy decided to give it a try! I was so happy to be there for that experience. Brendan was really frustrated with himself because he couldn't get it, but I was so proud of him for trying. I think he liked riding Cason's tricycle instead because he could pedal a whole lot faster, and without any help.

Cason, Brendan, and I took turns chasing each other up and down the street. Brendan thought he was the coolest thing on the block when he discovered that he could pedal over the rocks as well as the sidewalk.

Brendan

Cason

Goodbye: Saying goodbye to my nieces and nephews is always the hardest part of visiting family. I'll never forget how Brendan and Cason looked and sounded as I knelt down to give them hugs and kisses. "bye Angeea, I'm going to miss you!" "bye Angeea, love you!" I waved to them from the car and smiled at their sad faces pressed against the window. As I choked back tears, Makena asked "are they always naked?" haha yes, yes they are :) 

Soaking up the desert: One of the things I look forward to the most when I go to Tucson is simply being in the beautiful Sonoran desert. The sunsets are breath-taking and the night sky is mesmerizing. I can not adequately describe how much I love this place. When I'm there, I feel at peace and every fiber of my being calmly tells me that I'm home. I can still recall exactly how it felt to cruise around Christopher's neighborhood on Amanda's bike. The sun was bright and radiant, the wind was warm and gentle against my skin, and the air was clearer than glass. Although it's technically winter, the vegetation still looks alive and thriving. What a stark contrast from gray, cold, and smoggy Provo!  

Nostalgia: I got to eat at Eegee's! I had been craving this deliciousness for months! I was so elated to finally be eating my favorite fast food! Makena and I caught up with each other as we stuffed 

ourselves with as much Eegee's as our stomachs could handle! It was splendid.

Night on 4th Ave: Makena and I met up with Delaney, Caitlin, and Trenton downtown. We had fun handing out sandwiches to "street people" and observing some interesting folk do all sorts of strange things. We wanted to host an impromptu dance party on a street corner but I can't remember why that never happened...maybe next time.

For some reason, Delaney and I love finding awkward positions for pictures; it's like our trademark or something. 

Sunday: I woke up early so I could spend the morning visiting with my mom. I drove over to her house, greeted my favorite dogs, and talked to her while she prepared food for the evening.
Delaney picked me up from Christopher's house and we went to church together. I got to see some familiar, loving faces that I've been missing for a while. It always feels good to visit my home ward.

me, Jamee, and Rusty

I was so happy to see these newlyweds! Jamee is one of my best friends from beauty school. Sadly, I wasn't able to make it to their wedding, so it was really nice to finally give my congratulations in person. They are such a sweet, happy couple!

Makena and me

Sunday evening: I really wish I would have taken more pictures! :'(

I spent time with Josh, Lindsey, Christopher, Amanda, Brendan, Cason, my mom, Richard, Jamee, Rusty, Makena, Amber, and Garrett. We enjoyed my mom's home-style cooking, and the little ones played in the hot tub like it was a giant bath. I really enjoyed watching Amber open her wedding shower gift and I had fun doing Amanda's hair. But of course, the greatest part was just being with people I love!

Monday: I woke up that morning and all I wanted to do was sit outside and read as the sun came up over the mountains...so that's exactly what I did. Oh my gooooodness, it was so wonderful! As cheesy as it sounds, the birds were singing and the air was calm and quiet. The temperature was that perfect combination of coolness from a night of darkness and heat from the rising sun. I wish I could have stayed on our lounge chair in the backyard ALL DAY but I had some packing to do, and I desperately needed a shower. darn. Before going to lunch with my mom, Makena and I squeezed in some time to hit up the mall.

Bucket List Half-check: I have always dreamed of sipping milk straight from a coconut on the beach in Hawaii. And while I didn't get to do that in Tucson, I came the closest I ever have to experiencing it. As I was waiting for Shalia and Phil to come get me, I spent some time browsing through Trader Joe's and I came across this:

100% pure coconut water. When I saw these on the shelf, it's as if I could hear angels singing...or maybe I was singing? I'm not sure. My excitement overshadowed the ridiculously high price and I immediately walked over to the cashier to purchase it. Outside the store, I parked my shopping cart by a bench and twisted open my "Zico" water. Anticipation and thrill raged through me as I took my first sip. To my dismay, those feelings were quickly replaced with disappointment and repugnance. I would have rather tasted dirt than that stuff. It was revolting. The best way I can describe this stuff is cloudy, bitter water that somehow dehydrates your mouth and leaves you craving anything remotely sweet or juicy. I almost puked. I still remain hope that fresh coconut milk on the beach will taste heavenly. "half-check"

One last rush of adrenaline: It was around 8:30pm and I had been driving for the last 4 hours. We were about 25 miles outside of Flagstaff, going through some winding mountainous roads. At this particular time, the vehicle was accelerating downhill so I checked behind me, then got in the left lane in order to pass an 18-wheeler. Keep in mind that the speed limit is 75, there are no street lights, and the roads are curving around hills and mountains. It's the perfect recipe for danger. All of a sudden, headlights were reflecting off the rear-view mirror and blinding my eyes. "woah" I thought, "where did this guy come from? I would get in the right lane so he can pass me, but I'll hit the semi truck if I do that." As I'm thinking this, those headlights drifted to the side of me and I realized that this idiot was trying to pass me! I took note that the distance between my car and the semi truck in the right lane was alarmingly close. My heart stopped and I moved my foot over to the breaks. My hands gripped tightly around the steering wheel and my eyes became glued to this truck that not only had a long-bed, but was also towing a trailer. How this jerk thought he could squeeze in front of me is incomprehensible. *bam* the car veered to the left. "holy s***!" Phil jolted up from his seat and looked at me "you know that guy just hit us, right?" "yeah, I know." I already had the pedal pushed down as far as it could go and was determined to get this guy's license plate number. Nathaniel called the Highway patrol, but it was useless. This guy had an engine twice the size as mine and he disappeared within seconds. I still tried to catch up with him for a couple more minutes but we all knew he was going way too fast. As soon as I could, I exited the 17 and pulled into a gas station so I could walk off my jitters and the boys could asses the blow. I know we had angels protecting us, because that car should have been more damaged than it was. There was a slight dent above the front right tire, and some paint was scraped off but that's it. I was shocked that nothing happened to the tire. Guardian angels are the only explanation.

Back in Provo: we arrived in town at 4:30am Tuesday morning. It was freezing and poor Phil only had thirty minutes to rest before going to work. We were already missing Arizona. Well, honestly, I always miss Arizona. I am grateful for our short, fun-filled weekend and I look forward to the next time I get to go back! I <3 you, Tucson AZ.