The Trip

SWMBO and I made a trip to Phoenix this past weekend. Once in awhile, we decide to go to the big city and "blow it out". This was one of those trips. It will take a while for our waist lines and our budget to recover but it was worth it. A great trip.

The main reason for going was to attend a reunion party of present and former employees of KPNX-TV in Phoenix. I worked there from 1972 to 1985 so I was not expecting a lot of people from my era. What a surprise! The party drew about 275 people, including probably 20 to 30 from my days at the station. It was great fun and I had a fabulous time renewing acquaintances with many former co-employees.

But after the party, we still had things to do. Sunday we went to a very well-juried art fair at City Center North . . . in far north Phoenix. Great art.

One young lady had a great time pulling the towels off the bottom of several of these wire sculptures to see what was underneath!

Since they're pushing up to Christmas, there were even some carolers.

The day before that, we decided to ride the new Light Rail system and got on it at Central and Camelback in Phoenix and rode for nearly an hour to Mesa, then back again. The system is very smooth and convenient and travels directly through central Phoenix, with stops at museums, downtown, and sports stadiums . . both in Phoenix and on the Arizona State University campus in Tempe. It's a great addition to the city.

Here are some photos from the train. The first, a nice view of the historic Tovrea Castle.

I felt like we were in San Francisco or Seattle as several riders wheeled their bicycles on board and hung them up vertically on rails.

There were some fabulous sculptures alongside the stations.

And a great view of Tempe Town Lake as we crossed the water.

Now let me tell you about the food.

On the way down to the city, a stop at Rock Springs for huge cheeseburgers and patty melts.

Friday night a wonderful meal at Steamers' restaurant in the Biltmore Shopping Center. Just forget about the S'mores dessert. After a huge prawn appetizer and a seared Sea Bass for me and a wonderful Calamari in Thai Sauce appetizer for SWMBO topped off with Swordfish, the dessert was extremely amateurish. But the rest of the meal, the restaurant and the service was fantastic.

Saturday early afternoon, we stopped at the Cheesecake Factory, where SWMBO dined on a pulled pork sandwich and I had a Flatiron Steak, par excellence. My steak was not thin like the Flatirons I had had in another restaurant, but more like a New York strip. Perfectly done and tender. We shared a great signature dessert which combined Red Velvet cake and cheesecake.

Sunday was careful. Just some snacking from our own hotel cooler until dinner at night. Then we went to an old favorite, Tomaso's Italian Cuisine. Owner Tommy Maggiore was in the house and I told him we had been coming there since he first opened the restaurant back in the 1970's. I had Clams Casino and SWMBO Stracciatella soup for appetizers, then she had Veal Marsala and I dined on Veal Osso Buco, which I had enjoyed there before. The risotto was marvelous and our shared Cannoli with some Lemon Gelato topped the meal, along with Tomaso's special Cappucinos.

Today was a coming-home day so we made the traditional trip to Trader Joe's market, checked out AJ's market (way too expensive for us) and went to a Miracle Mile delicatessen for Straw sandwiches before heading for home.

A quick stop when we were about 25 miles from home to finish off the trip with iced mochas.

And now the diet starts.

Well, actually, that may not be until Friday. After all, Thursday is Thanksgiving!

And here's one of the greatest "cats" of all time.

Catz

This cat looks like my Smoke but he isn't. Must be a distant relative. I must thank Warren from Touch the Wind for sending him and others along. I'll be sharing more of them with you in the days ahead.

Once I was blind . . .

I just had SWMBO take these photos to show how I inflicted myself on my fellow citizens today. I wasn't really seeking sympathy but I needed a long-sleeved shirt and this was the one I pulled out of my closet. I thought it went perfectly with the hat and glasses so I sallied forth.

Here's the rest . . . as Paul Harvey would say . . . of the story.

The shirt is actually some free advertising for a friend of mine who has a venetian blind company in Prescott.

You may all now release that breath you've been holding!

The Lacuna

I have just finished reading a new novel by the author Barbara Kingsolver. "The Lacuna" is a marvelous tale that leads a young boy to move to Mexico at the age of 12, to eventually work as a cook and other minor jobs for Frida Kahlo, Diego Rivera, and Lev Trotsky. After Trotsky is murdered, the boy moves first to New York and then to Asheville, North Carolina. He becomes a famous author with his novels based on Mexican history before running afoul of the House Unamerican Activities Committee during the Communist scare of the late 1940's and early 1950's.

The book is a spell-binding tale that weaves in and out of Mexican and American history.

Highly recommended by this blogger.

Patience and Wisdom

The Doctor is in the house