A traveling we will go....

Decided to start the blogs with just a general travel update post before I delve into the reason for the trip. Mostly because this one will be more of a random collection of pieces than that one so the flow doesn't have to be as tight. And Monday morning writing is rarely tight.

So anyway...Last Monday I headed off to Arizona. I had family business to take care of and since it was most likely not going to be pleasant and most likely going to be a bit overwhelming and I needed to handle it on my own due to the fact that I'm the only one in my family who can just take off without much notice I fell back on my years in advertising and the travel I did through that and turned the trip into a complete boondoggle. That was a super long sentence.

I could have probably taken care of what needed done in a day and a half. Flown in to Tucson in the morning, did what needed done and flown out the next afternoon. Instead I flew in to Phoenix, met a friend for lunch and another one for dinner, drove down to Tucson the next day, took care of business, had dinner with friends and spent the night with them, then visited some more the next day, drove back to Phoenix had dinner with other friends then flew out the next morning. See?  Boondoggle. And I'm not even ashamed.

Though I do believe that I had to burn off some boondoggle karma at the start of the trip. The stories aren't as great as "Is this your cat?" but nothing really is....

So here we go...

Monday morning early flight time. I am trying to figure out what time to get to the airport and Brent reminds me that it will be busy that time of day and since I've got the direct flight in to Phoenix I won't be able to use the super short Seattle only line. So I add a few minutes to what time I thought would be good and head on out. I get to the airport and of course the line is super long, but it's moving at a good clip. Until the woman a few people ahead of me didn't actually download her boarding pass on to her phone, just her travel itinerary and couldn't figure out why that wouldn't work. And the older couple in front of me is freaking out because the tickets they have in their hand say they are going to Atlanta instead of Orlando and can't figure out that's because they are going to Atlanta. Then they are going to Orlando. And this is where I start to wonder, "Have you people never flown before?"

Finally we get to security and well...

Security is always a treat these days. I'm not talking about how stupid TSA is or how they are infringing on my rights or any of that bullshit. I'm talking about those of you who have either A. Not flown in the past decade or B. Like to make a public spectacle of yourselves. You know you can't bring liquids so don't. You know you have to go through a screen so if you are going to insist on not doing it then drive. Or take the train. Or any number of other options. But don't hold up the entire line while you rail against "the man" so you can make a post on Facebook later about how unreasonable TSA was. Because let me tell you something...at 6 AM without coffee which is right on the other side of security you and I are about to have a lesson in unreasonable. And you are going to lose. And if you must wear a metal belt, a three pound watch, a jacket, a necklace and steel toed boots how about you do us all a favor and wait until you get to the airport to get dressed?

So finally I'm on the other side of security and the line for coffee is super long. A quick check at my gate to see when we are boarding and I have plenty of time. Well I would except for the people who can't figure out how to get through security without making a fuss also can't figure out how to read a menu while in line for coffee instead of waiting until they are at the register. But I got my stuff, got on the plane and wasn't even the last person to board... second to last, but not last!

So not happy at this point!

So we are off.  I posted about this during the trip. One of the things you can always count on when you are flying in to Phoenix is the mass confusion on what time it will be when you get there. They don't time shift (yay Arizona!) so half the year we are an hour behind them and half the year we are the same time. And nobody ever remembers which is which. For the record this time we were the same time.

I get in to Phoenix and it's going to be smooth sailing picking up my rental car because I checked in online the night before. So according to their email I will be in and out and on my way so much faster!

Or not.

Okay, so the only benefit to checking in online was...ummm...well...yeah, I've got nothing. I still had to wait in line with everyone else for the next available representative. I still had to go through the endless round of "no I don't want insurance, yes I'm sure I don't want it, I'm covered by my own policy, yes I'm sure" and "no I don't want an upgrade for only $20 more, a convertible in the middle of a sand storm? Really?"  I asked the clerk what the benefit of checking in online was and he didn't have an answer for me either. Good to know.

So anyway, car taken care off, and off to the hotel. Let me just say right here and now that the Google turn by turn maps are a gift to directionally challenged people. Because not only do they tell you exactly how to get someplace but when they tell you silly things like go North they recalculate the directions when you actually go East. It's awesome. And off to the hotel. Which I got the free upgrade to my room. Score! Or it would be if I needed all of this...

Though I did sit in the comfy chair and read so that was nice.

And then off to lunch with Jenny! I missed her visit to Portland a few weeks earlier. It was during C's Spring Break and with only one car trying to get him to appointments he had and picking up Brent from work it was a little tight to get downtown and back in time for dinner. And honestly I knew I was going to be in Phoenix in a few weeks so I could see her then, and get her one on one instead of having to share. Yep, I'm spoiled, and I'm okay with that. We caught up as best we could in limited time. She had an emergency dentist appointment to get to, boys and baseballs...not a good combination if you use your face to catch. It was great to sit and talk and laugh with her. We knew the basics of each other's lives, thanks to Facebook and my rambling in my blogs, but there is nothing like getting the real time inappropriate smile when bad news is delivered. 

I'm not entirely sure what I'm looking at...

Then Jenny was off to take care of teeth (which she had in a bottle in her purse, which could be the oddest flavor of water ever, Toothy) and I was off to find a pedicure. Which didn't go well. See, I was in Scottsdale and there aren't a lot of walk in $20 toe joints in Scottsdale. There are a lot of "we have an appointment next week" places. And a few "we could squeeze you in, that will be $50" places. So the pedicure was pushed and I went back to the hotel to read instead. 

As I was leaving the hotel I got my required dose of "people are so odd" that has to happen every trip. I was at the front desk talking to the clerk about my room upgrade, they wanted to make sure it was everything I had ever dreamed and more, when I hear someone loudly voicing their displeasure about the "ridiculous Barbie" I look down the hall and there is a very inebriated woman being helped out of the bar by her two friends and she is not happy about some Barbie. Then she points and me and says again, "Look at her! She's just a ridiculous looking Barbie!" I include this story because drunk people are funny and because I took it as a compliment. The blouse I was wearing must have been very flattering for her to think I looked like Barbie. I think I might have to wear it all summer long...

Then it was off to meet Dana for dinner. She is an incredibly talented writer who makes me insanely jealous with the worlds she creates. Do yourself a favor and check out My Caffeine Fueled Muse if you haven't already. Now Dana and I have been friends for years. We have talked about our kids, our husbands, our writing, told inappropriate jokes, gotten pissed at people together and this was the first time we had ever met. Yep. Another one of my Facebook connections! It boggles my brain at times how close you can get to someone without ever seeing them face to face. Dana is like my other friend Corrie in that I believe if life had taken a slightly different turn she could be my kid. She would fit right in to the family and nobody would ever question that her off kilter perspective was all mine. She also picked a sport's bar to have dinner in not realizing that it was the final game of the NCAA tournament and was a little surprised how many people were there watching. So she didn't get my love of sports, I blame her biological parents for that one. So anyway after about three hours of talking about everything from sports (she listened, I talked), families, high school, college, work, blogs and food it was time to let her get back to Marc and the kids. 

She took her glasses off for the picture so I did too. 

Next day was Tucson. I took care of the stuff that needed taken care of, blog to follow later this week, and headed off to the Staggs' house. Which my TripIt app had changed to Staggs Lodging. Which made me laugh. Because sometimes really odd things make me laugh. Okay, all the time. I visited with Brenda and Lindsey while we waited for Brenda's beau John to show up so we could go to dinner. And we visited and waited and waited and visited and then Brenda checked her phone and saw that we were supposed to meet him at the restaurant! Oops! So off we headed to dinner. And we had a small intimate dinner...okay, no we didn't. As we got there another firefighter that works with Brenda and John was arriving so we pulled two big tables together and had Brenda and the girls, John and his kids and this whole other family including infant triplets all together! It was a lot of fun. Now I'm not going to write a lot about the Staggs right now because Brenda pointed out I hadn't blogged about them yet so that blog is coming later this week. Now if you want to flatter a writer tell them you want them to write about you. It works like a charm.  But I will include a picture.

Brenda, John, John's son Adam, John's daughter Bri, Jaycee, Lindsey and Lindsey's friend from school.

Now as you are are looking at the picture you are thinking that Bri and Jaycee could be sisters. And it's even more pronounced in person. It was wild to watch Bri before Jaycee got there and think how much she looked like her, and then have it not go away once Jaycee got there! And one of the best parts of dinner was John admitting unless he is looking right at his daughter when she is talking he has no idea what she is saying. Years ago when I did a commercial for the auto dealership I got to watch how they make the super fast disclosure that happens at the end of a spot. They had me read the copy like normal then digitally they went in and just removed all of the spaces and pauses between words so when you played it back it sounded like I was speaking SUPER fast. Well Bri talks like that normally and every sentence ends in giggles. It's hilarious to watch and only Jaycee seems to understand what is being said. So Bri giggles, then Jaycee does her lady like gasp choke laugh, then Lindsey snorts and I about had to be picked up off the ground from laughing. 

The Staggs girls and I headed back out to the house and visited a little more then a little more the next morning, but like I said, most of what I will write about them will be another blog. But it was so good to spend time with them.

Checking out of Staggs Lodging

Then back up to Phoenix. Another hotel, a walk around a mall and then out to dinner with the Kleins. Andy went to school with Brent and I and he and I actually dated a little in school. Anita and he have been together since the late 80s but we've never met. See it's Facebook again. Andy was a year behind us in school so we didn't see him at the one reunion we went to, he left Albuquerque so we don't see him when we go back and we had lost touch with him for years after we left town. But thanks to Facebook we've been able to reconnect and catch up. And Brent and I "met" Anita and "met" Emily and found out everything he had been up to since we last saw him. Which may or may not have included a few hours in the gym. It was so much fun to reminisce about high school days with Andy and fill Anita in on details she was curious about. And to hear about when they got together. Andy lied about his age but he had a fake ID to back it up so that was okay. Well okay except for the fact that eventually he had to come clean to Anita that he was younger than he let on and his birthday was actually on a different day and he just admitted in front of his daughter with the mind like a steel trap that he had a fake ID...but other than that it was all good. 

Seriously though, it was a great dinner. I am a little in love with Anita, and not just because she's gorgeous and funny and sarcastic and can dance. Okay, well, maybe because of all of those things. And their daughter was perfect. Adorable and well behaved and taking notes on all of the embarrassing stories to use to her advantage later. But mostly I just dig this family. Here's where I blow a little sunshine Andy's way. Andy's best feature has always been his smile. He smiles with his whole face. Do you get that? There are some people whose smile never reaches their eyes. But Andy's whole face gets in to the act and I have always really liked that. Seeing him with Anita and Em and how they interact with each other and kid and joke and all of those great things it makes me smile with my whole heart that he found this family. And it makes me wish they lived closer so we could all hang out more. I believe if Anita and I teamed up we could take over the world. And it's always nice to talk politics with someone as smart as they are. By smart I obviously mean agrees with me. Ha! 

And it was nice to hear Andy mention my blog because that meant it was a clean sweep and all of the people I saw talked about reading my work. Which, as you all know, I don't care if people are reading it...but you know...it's always nice when people actually are.  ;-)

Seriously, how gorgeous is this family?

So back to the hotel then an early flight back out of Phoenix. After a flight delay in Seattle I finally made it back home with my mind brimming with stories and my phone full of pictures. I would expect a blog a day this week. So block out some time to read them all, because you all know when I say I don't care if anyone is reading this I really mean that's what I tell myself to make my 2 people saw this blog on Page Overview not sting so much...

Ah...boondoggle...how I've missed you.