Not a Short Story

As much as I'd like to be

Posts tagged arizona

4 notes

No more solo Sundays My husband and I have been Phoenix residents for almost 2 months now. We’ve started a new tradition that I absolutely love: Sunday morning hikes.  I always had a Sunday morning ritual: a solo long run. I loved it because it was an opportunity to really test my body and clear my mind of any junk that the week’s mileage hadn’t taken care. I always left my husband behind (and he was generally a good sport about it). Dave is not a runner. He’s a hockey player. He does love hiking, but there’s not much of that to be had in Illinois. But now that we have mountains at our doorstep we can get out every Sunday and enjoy the outdoors together. He was in Chicago for a funeral last weekend, so I had to go solo. And that’s just not as fun. So we made up for it today, with a glorious 6-mile hike in Scottsdale. We may have been a little overambitious (apparently we were supposed to tack on an additional 4 miles in order to actually reach the summit, ha!). But it was a great workout, with beautiful scenery. And I got to enjoy a good three hours with just my husband, some cacti, and the occasional lizard. Body, mind, and soul were happy. I think we’ve got a good thing going.

No more solo Sundays

My husband and I have been Phoenix residents for almost 2 months now. We’ve started a new tradition that I absolutely love: Sunday morning hikes. 

I always had a Sunday morning ritual: a solo long run. I loved it because it was an opportunity to really test my body and clear my mind of any junk that the week’s mileage hadn’t taken care.

I always left my husband behind (and he was generally a good sport about it). Dave is not a runner. He’s a hockey player. He does love hiking, but there’s not much of that to be had in Illinois.

But now that we have mountains at our doorstep we can get out every Sunday and enjoy the outdoors together. He was in Chicago for a funeral last weekend, so I had to go solo. And that’s just not as fun.

So we made up for it today, with a glorious 6-mile hike in Scottsdale. We may have been a little overambitious (apparently we were supposed to tack on an additional 4 miles in order to actually reach the summit, ha!). But it was a great workout, with beautiful scenery.

And I got to enjoy a good three hours with just my husband, some cacti, and the occasional lizard. Body, mind, and soul were happy.

I think we’ve got a good thing going.

Filed under arizona desert hiking peace cactus mountain fitness exercise marriage health

0 notes

What I’ve learned in my first week in Arizona

1. It’s true. It’s super dry here. Your nose will bleed. It’s also true that it’s a “dry” heat. I’m so glad to be rid of the Midwestern humidity. But it’s still freaking hot. You have to drink more water than you ever thought possible.

2. The Phoenix real estate market reminds me of black Friday. Be prepared to be crazy, exhausted and broke at the end of the process. Well, I managed to avoid the broke part. But I think I’m lucky.

3. “Cord-cutting,” or getting rid of cable TV completely, is not ready for prime-time. At least as far as iPad apps are concerned. They are way too glitchy. However, FaceTime is a godsend.

4. It’s pointless to get a manicure a few days before hauling a 50-pound suitcase through the airport.

5. When you want to speak up so badly that it makes you twitchy, you should probably just do it. It’ll work.

I also learned a ton about the animal welfare industry. Way too much to organize cohesively and share just yet. I’m still learning, and am really excited about it. I work with some fascinating folks who do truly wonderful work.

Week 2: time to regain my sanity (after we sign our official lease), explore our new neighborhood and tackle a solid trail run at Lookout Mountain and hopefully a few other spots.

Filed under arizona moving sanity random learning