Tonight marks our third full week in Tucson. Wow! The time is flying by! So many memories come back to me at the oddest moments. I'll be driving by a road, intersection, restaurant, school, etc. and have flashbacks to specific events that I haven't thought of in years. I can look at buildings, parks, intersections, and vividly remember all that used to be there...all the different names and changes through the years. I still know my way around...which isn't saying much, as the city's layout is a simple square mile grid!Here are the things I've been reminded of in the past three weeks:
1. eegees (on more than one occasion...)
2. desert rains (not enough...they're calling this the "Non-soon" season)
3. El Charro Mexican restaurant
4. alleys behind homes (where you put your trash cans)
5. Davis-Monthan Air Force Base
6. cicadas
7. lizards
8. Palo Verde High School
9. Kellond Elementary
10. Arizona/Sonora dormitory (freshman year)
11. Graham/Greenlee dormitory (sophomore year)
12. The UA football practice field (where I met Brian)
13. The benches outside the practice field where we studied for quizzes.
14. oleanders
15. Palo Verdes
16. pumping gas (have to do it yourself here!)
17. ocotillo and prickly pear fencing
18. bougainvillea
19. Red Bird-of-Paradise flowers
20. wrought iron bars over windows
21. warm tap water
22. oxidized car hoods
23. burrs
24. Casa Molina Mexican restaurant
25. low riders
26. Randolf/Reid Park
27. Golf 'n Stuff (wasn't it Golf 'n Things??)
28. Tucson Mall
29. Park Mall/Place (my first non-dormitory job, where I worked with Suzy)
30. soda can't be stored in a hot garage
31. Suzy, Dana, Jennifer (so far)
32. Rancho Montana/Campbell Ranch apartments (my first one with Korin)
33. KLPX (classic rock)
34. left turns after the lights
35. rooftops (homes and school buses) painted white
36. parking in the shady spots
37. Mama's pizza
38. Cool desert nights after a storm
39. white lights on La Paloma's saguaros
40. view of city lights as you head down Swan from Sunrise
41. Dash Mats
42. Lucky Strike Bowling
43. Gentle Ben's (in a new location)
44. The Loft
45. Bonnie Brae house
46. crackled desert dirt
47. bats
48. spray misters
49. Bookman's (used bookstore)
50. Mesquite trees
51. cactus (saguaros, prickly pear, chollas, ocotillos, barrel,
52. aloe vera
53. agave
54. yucca
55. Palo Verde trees
There's still so much I want to do and see. A lot of what I want to see are touristy things...for Katie. She hasn't been to southern Arizona since she was two, and well, you don't remember things from age two!
Still to do:
1. Slide Rock*
2. Sedona*
3. Flagstaff*
4. Colossal Caves
5. Saguaro National Monument
6. Old Tucson
7. Desert Museum
8. Gaslight Theater
9. Magpies Pizza
10. Blue Willow for breakfast
11. Kartchner Caverns
12. Gavi Italian Restaurant
13. Buy fresh tortillas
14. Tucson Meet Yourself
15. Fourth Avenue Street Fair
16. Caruso's Italian (where Brian took me for our first date)
17. Mama Louisa's Italian (a childhood favorite)
18. Mi Nidito Mexican restaurant (a long-time favorite of mine)
19. Mt. Lemmon
20. Sabino Canyon
21. Botanical Gardens
22. Winterhaven lights at Christmastime
23. Biosphere 2 (OK....this was all starting up when we lived here, and hokey as it is, we finally feel compelled to go see it!!)
24. San Xavier mission
25. Gates Pass for a sunset
26. Kitt Peak observatory
* I'm looking forward to crossing these off our "To-Do" list, as these are our Labor Day weekend plans. We'll spend time with Brian's family and some of his old childhood friends.
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