I have traveled around a lot through different time zones and into different climates and cultures, but for some reason, getting off the plane here in Arizona just surprised me. It is beautiful here. It has been like 75 degrees every day. Sunny with a few clouds just for effect; lots of palm trees and bushes (though not much grass). It reminds me of Hawaii. Plus the fact that the architecture is different (lots of stucco/adobe) and there are lots of Hispanic people here. This feels almost like a different country to me. Perhaps I am wasting my time by flying all over the world in search of adventure. I think it is here.
It was really great to see my friend Merry and her boyfriend Scott again. They are truly great people. We have been just hanging out a lot here in the January paradise of Phoenix. They gave me a our of Arizona State University. They are both graduate students in geology furthering the world's understanding of the earth by memorizing the name of every rock imaginable. They are rather helpful when it comes to explaining some of the more obscure rock formations around here. They should be great guides for our adventure that starts tomorrow.
Tonight we are headed up to Flagstaff to stay with Scott's brothers. Tomorrow, our group of six adventurers will head down the Grand Canyon. Merry made reservations for two days at the bottom of the big gorge. We plan to survive on ramen and oatmeal while we explore around and contemplate man's insignificance in the big scheme of things. It should be a little chilly down at the bottom at this time of year, but we should manage to enjoy ourselves somehow. I can't wait.
Went to see Amistad this week. It was quite a good movie. It is rather fascinating to think of it in the historical context of our nation's history. I now have the urge to investigate the story a little more on my own. Frankly I am surprised that the Supreme Court came up with the decision it did. I would like to hear the real reasoning behind their decision if I can find the court ruling somewhere in the library. At any rate, it is definitely worth a few bucks to see this flick if you are at all interested in the story of America. It is definitely more important than Titanic, yet both stories will take you back to amazing places for only the price of a matinee.
We went for a little rock climbing yesterday. This marks only my third try at the sport. The first being indoors and the second being on a remote peninsula in Thailand. Yesterday was pretty rough. I couldn't get past the first couple footholds on my first attempts. I didn't really get anywhere until Merry created a magic (hand-made) foothold for me. Finally I reached the summit of our little hill. Scott and Merry are both quite good. They are the ultimate in outdoors couples. I wish I could find a mate to go play with. Brica and I shared some of the same adventure spirit, but our personalities didn't match in other ways.
I called Miho last night for no apparent reason. I was really pretty surprised that she picked up the phone. I figured that she would go home for New Years like everyone else. Anyway we chatted for a half hour or so about the kind of stuff you chat about when you only chat every few months. We concluded that we are both pretty busy, but we are generally happy with our lives. She is still dating the same guy and plans to look for work in Kobe when she finishes school a year from now. She said that she might come along for the Europe trip, but I don't expect to meet her again any time soon. Anyway, it was nice to know that she remembers me.
I finished sending out my Christmas/holiday cards and the videos that I made from the trip with Midori and Yai. I hope that my friends in Japan appreciate all of the work that we put into making that video and the pamphlet that goes with it. I finally wrote a short journal entry (Dec 27) to tell about some of the highlights. Midori and Yai also promise to go on part of the Europe trip with me, but I really don't expect to see them any time soon either.
Well, that is life for now. I am enjoying my break, but am a little scared that it is going by too fast. Until next time...