Tuesday, November 20, 2012

A Local Adventure

Some days, when you are tired and simply feel like laying around, that is what you need to do. For me, that was last Saturday. I planned on going to the last home football game of the season, but by the time I had finished lunch, I predicted the first quarter of the game would be over before I even arrived.
Rather than rush to the light rail to simply sit and be bored for forty minutes, then spend another two hours sitting on a hard metal bench, cheering desperately for ASU to score (our season hasn't been all that great), I decided to grab a picnic blanket, my book, Daniel and his camera and head downtown.
We each ordered either an iced tea or a toddy coffee from Fair Trade Cafe, and spread out in the nearby park with our books. We had every intention of reading them, but we decided talking would be more enjoyable. We discussed classic authors, foreign countries, and where we want to move someday. All in all, it was a nice rest from our busy lives.
When that became humdrum, we folded up our blanket and set out on a walk to capture the various and unique street art adorning the sides of buildings throughout Phoenix.
Wallace and Ladmo
Sentrock. I have one of his prints at home.
Fabulous framing, if I do say so myself.
I saw this being painted at First Fridays in November.
Brewery parking lot.
Part of a new park on 3rd Street and Roosevelt.







Thursday, November 15, 2012

Oregon Photos

June 28 to July 7, 2012
I honestly feel like there are no words to describe the amazing trip I took to Oregon this past summer, so I am going to let some photos do the talking now, and allow our recorded videos to do the talking later, after I get them all uploaded to YouTube. If you really like all of my adventures, then come over and see the fully edited (and too long for YouTube) documentary movie Becca and I made about our trip.




































Tuesday, November 6, 2012

If I ever were to get married in a courthouse, it would be the Yavapai County Courthouse in Prescott, Arizona. The beauty of that building has captivated me since I was a young child, traveling up north with my Dad on various Triumph Club trips. I've always loved the grassy square surrounding the white marble building, the tall trees wishing in the wind.
Yes, if I ever were to get married near a courthouse, it would have to be that one.

Sunday, November 4, 2012

Hacer Camping

Literally, "to camp."
I figure it is appropriate for the title of this post to be in Spanish, as the purpose of my latest adventure (a camping trip) was to study over the long weekend ASU likes to call Fall Break. And I did study, a lot.
A few weekends ago (three, to be exact) I took the advice of my office mate Bob, and set out on a study camping trip before Midterms. There was Political Science to be studied, the History of Journalism to be read, and Psychology to be reviewed. And what better place is there to do that than in the middle of a scrub brush forest, by the light of the sun, next to your boyfriend who happens to be studying some of the same items as you?
This is the first trip where I really had to ask permission of my parents to go. I've asked them for money (Europe) and I've asked them for blessing and for them to hold on to their peace of mind (Oregon), but I've never really asked them permission to go on an adventure with a friend. Even though I am a legal-age adult, I live under their roof, and because I would be using their tent and camp stove, I felt it necessary to ask if I could go on a camping trip with Daniel...just me and him.
After much deliberation, and assurance that his parents were letting him go (he told them he was going camping...not asked), my mother came around to letting me go. My dad was more alright with it from the beginning, as he said "We want you to feel [like an adult], and let you make your own choices. But if you need me to come get you, just call. No questions asked." There's a reason I get along with him better...he respects my choices, but still expresses he is there to help me if I need it.
That was on Tuesday. The rest of the week Daniel and I spent much time planning a menu, creating a packing list for each of us, and getting excited. This was our first overnight trip together.
Friday came around, and went. We left early Saturday morning, after I baked orange rolls and emptied my backpack of laptop, calculator, clicker and tablet, and filled it with hard back textbooks. Daniel picked me up and took me to his house, where we loaded the car with all of my stuff, and his few bags, and we were on our way!
After we stopped for the routine picnic food, which was simply ice this time, I picked up the car keys and drove all the way up to Sedona.
We arrived two hours later and stopped at the customary visitor's center to say hello to our forest service friends, and ask their recommendation for a dispersed camping site. We were pointed to a beautiful place somewhere south west of Sedona, where there were wonderful views of Red Rock state park. It was described as "Not too cold at night, but [you guys] brought a tent, right? Because you're going to want one." We had brought a tent, and it provided just the perfect amount of insulation.
We set up camp quickly, with my dome tent, chairs, and camping stove, and Daniel's shovel, tarp, and Subaru. It was nearly 2 by the time that was done, and it was time to shut off all cell phones. We were free from all social media for the weekend! We didn't understand that turning our phones off meant we had no idea what time it was, at all. So from then on, we followed the pattern of the sun. We woke up with it, we went to sleep when it set, and we ate when we were hungry. It was a glance back to the simple way of life.
Looking back, the rest of the trip was really just a blur. We only spent two full days at the camp ground, plus two half-days (so three days total). The weather was warmer than I would have hoped, as I packed sweat pants and footie pajamas (they make those for adults now, and they are just as comfortable as they were when you were a kid.) I ended up wearing shorts and tank tops, getting a light sun burn, and reading the day away.
The entire plan for the weekend was, after all, to study, and to study a lot. We sat by the fire pit reading for hours at a time. We went back into town once (on Sunday) to buy a starter log for our campfire, because all the brush was wet. Besides that, we stayed out of civilization's way!
Now that my midterms are over, I can attest that the plan worked. The hours we spent studying in our little dispersed campground paid off with two A's and three B's, which is pretty spectacular. Chances are, we'll plan another little camping trip for December, before finals start.