Vacation Report

Got back from our Tucson trip last night. Very nice little getaway, all told.

The trip down was a long 12 hours with a trailer. The trip back was under 10 without. Little bit of a difference, eh?

I think it covered just about everything a good vacation should. Visit with a friend who's no longer around here? Check. Visit to malls/comic shop? Check. Touristy side trip? Check (the desert museum in this case). Wonderful views? Check (perhaps odd, but I was most impressed with the view from April's apartment). Relaxation? Check. Hot tub time? Check. Minor injury? Check (I put sunburn in this category, but this time something went snap/pop in my side when it really shouldn't have). We even got in a trip to a carnival (Spring Fling). I think I can safely say fun was had by all.

I was a bit disappointed with the shopping trips, but I think that's more because my own interests have narrowed some and I feel I can get most 'common' things online for cheaper than off the shelf at a store. I think April's sold me on a PT Cruiser as my next vehicle (though I'm not planning to be in the market anytime soon). To her dismay, I'm sure, she didn't sell me on moving to Tucson. I can foresee certain adaptions I would have to make to live there, and... well, I don't think they would suit me well. I'm not sure that makes sense.

Anyway, I'm back. I feel pretty good in every way other than physical, and I'm pretty sure my side will heal up, giving a little time.

Comments

  1. alynnwellsApril 12, 2005 at 11:08 PM

    *sighs* Nothin' I haven't heard before. Somehow, it never occurs to people that Boston or Durango is as much an adaptation for me as Tucson is for folks from those climes. The human being is a wonderfully adaptable animal. How come I have more faith in you than you do? No dismay, and don't think I intend to stop trying. Dammit, I *told* you you should've visited in January. ;)

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  2. marinredwolfApril 13, 2005 at 8:53 AM

    It isn't so much feeling I can't make the necessary changes as being uncertain I would want to. It may be strange, but I'm more bothered by driving habits than climate. As-is, I find I have very little patience when it comes to traffic. That's not a great thing in Durango. In a city, though, things are ten times worse. I seem myself sliding more easily to becoming a cursing bundle of frayed nerves than letting go enough to just do what driving I need to do and not letting others get to me. Again, these thoughts and concerns may be losing something in translation to words.

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  3. northawkeApril 13, 2005 at 10:20 AM

    well, if she doesn't get it, I do. =) I was just in CA over the weekend, and the cities there were having the same effect on me. I curse about traffic in Anchorage, which can cause me to take *gasp* 30 minutes to get home from work! ;) And when I was sitting in traffic in CA, I was realizing how much I wouldn't enjoy that. That, and it's a whole lifestyle change to move from a small place to a big one. It's not something that's easy to put into words... and it seems to me that it's little things. Barred apartment buildings. Paying for parking at your own home. People not meeting each others' eyes. Everyone being in a hurry all the time. Hmm. I'm losing something, trying to describe it - but I'm pretty sure it's similar to what you're saying. =)

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  4. alynnwellsApril 18, 2005 at 10:51 AM

    I still think you sell yourself short. It's not so much that I want you to move to Tucson (although I'd love to have you here). It's that I see you unhappy with parts of your life. I see you complain about it. The complaints seem to boil down to variations on being stuck in a rut. On wanting something out of life that's just not finding you. Durango is a rut. There's a lot that will never find you there. And I'm not knocking smaller towns in general. Durango *in particular* is not a place of forward motion. For some people, that's great. The words that come out of your mouth/through your keyboard make me think you're not one of them. I hope to see you do something about it. I think you'd be happier. *throws two pennies into the jar*

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  5. alynnwellsApril 18, 2005 at 11:01 AM

    And that's why I'm such a strong advocate of Tucson. ;) City resources and small-town feel. You don't have to pay for parking at your own home, and it's a very laid-back environment. You don't get that "in a hurry all the time" thing. Mind you, we also still have the small-town politics. Which contributes to the traffic issue (in terms of having difficulty getting certain road projects implemented). So maybe you can't have your cake and eat it, too. Re: traffic, I think everyone reacts differently, and I think you don't know how you'll fall until you have to deal with it on a daily basis. I thought, before I moved there, that Boston traffic wowuld be the death of me. It actually had the opposite effect. I'm now very zen about traffic jams, because when you know there's nothing you can do about it, you have the opportunity to come to terms with it. And all the swearing I do at in-town traffic is less an expression of violence on my part than the simple fact that I talk to myself, inanimate objects, and the universe at large. It keeps me calm. ;) In other words, I get it. But I still think it's a choice you make, and that you're perfectly capable of living anywhere you want without developing a Mr. Walker/Mr. Wheeler problem.

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