Everything is better with friends, including Jerome.

I had a plan two weeks ago to take a trip Jerome, by myself, to photograph the beauty that the old city holds. I enjoy spending time by myself, going on solo adventures, but I was a little nervous about driving all by myself.
Then I invited a friend. And another friend. And another friend. Then they invited friends. Before long, there were two cars filled with four people apiece caravaning up to Jerome, and I was the leader.
We left slightly after noon on Sunday, once Raquel had finished singing at church, and after everyone was able to convene at my house. All eight of us raided the refrigerator for yogurt and granola (a staple in my house) and decided to mix up who was in which car.

Connor, Liz, Brenna and Me

My car was stuffed with me, my babyhood friend Brenna, and two people I barely knew--Liz and Connor. Ben's car seated Ben, Andie, Raquel and Jon--four people I knew rather well.

We set off with two full tanks of gas and mouths filled with vegetables (we all like healthy food, and brought a ton with us).
We took the back roads on the way up, curving through Prescott Valley up the back side of Jerome, on the 89A.
At one point, everyone in my car needed to use the restroom. We were turning off the 89A onto a road that lead to Mingus Lake, and I didn't notice a the restroom, so I just drove all the way to the lake. A beautiful, bumpy detour. It felt good to turn down a random dirt road and drive until I felt like stopping.
We got out to stretch our legs, make noise, and use the newly cleaned restroom at Mingus Lake.
After everyone used the restroom and we tired of the lake (Mingus Lake is more of a large mud puddle, anyway) we continued on to Jerome.
We passed a few awesome abandoned mining buildings on the way up, down, and around the hills, but didn't take the time to stop and check them out. It was already 3:30 by the time we arrived in Jerome, and we knew most of the shops would close at 5 or 6.
Our two cars got separated once we hit the city--I parked up near the Holy Cross Church, in a secret lot near some apartment buildings. We all met up at the church and explored it for a little while. The interior is very beautiful, as was the semi-blocked off back patio. What can I say. A few gates won't deter a bunch of outdoorsy, adventurous college students.
Eventually we made our way down the hill and into the shopping area, where we visited a Native American pottery shop, a vintage shop, a kaleidoscope shop (I'm still amazed that people are willing to spend upwards of $2,000 on a kaleidoscope) and a large amount of vacant buildings.

Somewhere around there, our group of eight split up again, between the hungry people (who went and bought fudge) and the not-so-hungry people, who found an old film projector.
You can learn a lot about someone by watching what they do when they find an old piece of machinery. I learned that Ben, Liz and Andie are very curious people, who like to take things apart. Before long, we had the entire machine dissected and open, blowing out cob-webs and smiling at people who walked by. It was a pretty simple machine, after we got it figured out. Our big unanswered question still is, "Does it work?"
Eventually, we got hungry and went out to find the other hungry people. Liz and I bonded over being upset that Flatiron Coffee was closed for the day (The only place in Arizona I've found that brews Intelligentsia coffee. Liz loves coffee, too.) and everyone was a little disappointed that the pizza place we wanted to go to was closed, and the Mexican place we also considered had a very rude host.

After poking around a few more abandoned buildings and overgrown grassy lots, we wandered back to the side of Jerome we started at, and sat down at GRAPES, a wine bar/new-Italian restaurant. The eight of us filled two booths, which were promptly figured to be the loud booth and the quiet booth. I was in the quiet booth, along with Brenna and Ben (they're siblings, if I haven't already mentioned that) and Jon. We sat. We chatted quietly. We yawned. Ben and I drank coffee (we had to get back to Phoenix somehow). We split a delicious brownie covered in ice cream and some sort of fudgy-cheese cake chocolate goodness. It was a good dinner to end a great day.
When we wandered back to our cars, we decided to head back to Phoenix through Cottonwood. It was dark and enough people got carsick on the way up that we figured going back down the way we came was a bad idea.

When we stopped and got gas, Ben and Andie each bought a corncob pipe, and some loose leaf tobacco. We stopped at sunset point and sat taking in the stars, wind, thunder and lightning and TUNEYARDS.
We passed around the corncob pipe, recounted the day, and thanked God for each other. Just as it began to rain, we ran back to the cars, got in, and headed back to my house with Iron & Wine/Calexico playing in the background.

Cuba.

The plan is simple.

Kick ass.
Take names.
Get an A in 301.
Go to Cuba.

A new adventure has been placed before me, where I would be able to travel to Cuba as a part of a class writing about border issues in Latin American countries. This is more than a dream come true. It is a prayer answered. It is my motivation for JMC 301. My first big break. My shining moment, when I finally get to do something big with Journalism.

I just need energy and courage. Energy and courage.

Planning Party

Alrighty. I know I only have a few weeks left of school, but I am so ready for summer to get here. I spent an hour last night planning our family vacation to Colorado all by myself (I've never really adventured in Colorado before!) when I should have been doing homework, and now I just can't wait!
I'm not going to Lake Tahoe after all, but I have a slew of other vacation ideas in mind to distract me from that:

• Camping trip in Sedona/Flagstaff with Becca.
• Disneyland trip with Hannah and Mitchel.
• Colorado and Utah with the family and Becca.
• A trip to Pinetop at the end of school.
• Bro-Am in Encinitas (provided it isn't the same time as Colorado).
• Beach Cottages with parents and Hannah.

Granted, there is no possible way I am going to take all these trips. I have two online classes, limited funds, and one house to move out of and another to move in to. If I get to take three of these trips, I'll be happy. Which is good, because I've already pretty much committed to going to Colorado (it's a family vacation, how can I not go?), I'm definitely going to try to go to Pinetop with Brenna and Ben and maybe Raquel after my finals week. And, fingers crossed, Becca and I will get to take a weekend camping trip up to Flagstaff for fun.

So, yes. Summer adventures.

How to get to Tucson, Arizona.

Sometimes, you just have to jump in your car and go for a drive. Being spontaneous feels good.

After you get your low tire filled, of course.

After you haphazardly throw a bag with enough undergarments for the weekend, a toothbrush and deodorant in your car.

After you find you're halfway to Tucson (option #2, Flagstaff, but driving south sounded nice), and the tire that was low on air before starts to vibrate, you swear you smell burning rubber. So you pull off at the now vacant Outlets at Casa Grande (which you thought still had stores...shopping would have been fun) and decide "Am I turning around and going home, or just going to Tucson?"

And you decide you're definitely going to Tucson, because why the hell not. You're halfway to Tucson, anyway. You're equally far from a Discount Tire shop in Phoenix as you are from one in Tucson. You have a AAA card, and you know what to do if your tire blows.

And you keep on driving, at 5 to 15 miles per hour under the speed limit, in the slow lane, behind a massive manufactured home on a trailer, and you keep driving. And praying you make it in one piece. And call your dad and say you might need him to transfer money to your checking from your savings (or his savings, if he is so inclined) so you can buy a new tire. And praying some more. And call your friends in Tucson to see if they want to let you spend the night after this stressful drive.

And finally, you exit on Speedway, and you're in Tucson, where the speed limit is 35 miles per hour, and you finally feel safe driving.

And that, ladies and gentlemen, is how I ended up in Tucson.

I almost pulled over and cried on the side of the highway though. This is the last time I drive somewhere so far, alone, on a tire I think may problems. I did end up taking my car to Discount and finding out that I had a screw in my tire for the past few months, and that's why I've had to fill it with air on a nearly monthly basis.

Now that my tire is patched, and I ended up spending the night at my friend Sarah's (there are SO many people I know down here who wouldn't mind me crashing a couch or extra bed) and now I think I'm going to hang around, do some homework, lay in the sun, and learn how to play poker.

I have nothing to do (besides homework), nowhere to be, and I learned that a tire with a screw in it will be okay as long as you drive 55-60 miles per hour the whole way to Tucson.

Adventure of the month.

Le Tucson

I really, really should be doing my math homework right now, but who wants to do  homework when you can revel in all the fun you had during spring break.

I usually go out of town or do something really big and exciting for the entire week of spring break, but that was not the case this year because I have a job, and I really like my job, and I like making money from my job so I can save up for an apartment and whatnot. So I pulled a few strings and instead of getting a full week off work, I got my work hours all smushed in the middle of the week so I was able to go out of town for the first weekend of my spring break.
And, of course, I took a trip to Tucson. Now, Tucson isn't somewhere I usually like to go, but sometimes you just have to go visit the lovely people who live down there. This time, I visited my friend Kaitlyn (who I have known since I was a toddler) and my newly engaged friend Sarah, who I have known since 8th grade.
At Kaitlyn's house, I spent a lot of time bumming around, which is perfectly normal. Kaitlyn and I both immensly enjoy books, so we each finished one while we were down there (I finished Cannery Row. Is it just me, or does that book lack a plot?) and we also went to Bookman's to each buy a new book. I bought Blue Like Jazz and John Coltrane's A Love Supreme to accompany my book.
Another thing Kaitlyn and I always do is go for a walk in her backyard. Her backyard is not fenced in--somewhere it turns into a massive wash full of desert plants and jackrabbits. I always take pretty wildlife and plant photos when I visit her, and all the ones in this post were taken in her back yard with my new camera.

Sunday, after when I probably would have gone to church with Kaitlyn (second service, when Kaitlyn attends, was a bit too late for my tastes, and I really didn't want to sit by myself), I drove to Starbucks to delve deeper into Blue Like Jazz. I must admit, it is a very striking book. Full of unique imagery and one man's description of what "Christian Spirituality  is to him, it is a must-read for anyone who likes to sit around and contemplate the meaning of life. So, once my overpriced soy latte ran dry, I walked over to Trader Joe's and bought almond milk, turkey bacon, organic eggs and gluten free spaghetti sauce for my cooking duties at Sarah's apartment.
We stuck to our budget this trip (yay us!), and my grocery bill rang up to a whopping $17--three whole dollars under my budget.


My time spent with Sarah was divided between eating, drinking sugary drinks, laying by the pool, shopping for clothing (I got my Easter dress, a cute pair of shorts and some stretchy cute blue dress that is for the next time I set foot in a club, aka, never) and watching four movies: She's The Man, Angels and Demons, The Perks of Being a Wallflower and Benny and Joon.
It was wonderful to see both Sarah and Kaitlyn, as each of them are approaching new stages of life--Sarah is getting married and Kaitlyn is soon joining the medical work force. There is nothing in the world that will make you feel old like visiting two of your oldest friends and seeing how they have grown up.

Adventures in the Kitchen

When I’m in a good mood, I bake. When I’m in a bad mood, I bake more.

I'm in a bit of a funk lately. I'm planning a difficult schedule to juggle next semester, I just ended a three and a half year relationship with my boyfriend, and one of my close friends is getting married which just makes me feel old and somehow inadequate.

So I spent some time in the kitchen last week baking cupcakes, and some time in the kitchen baking cookies tonight. Who knows what else I'll whip up this week. (I definitely have to make a batch of homemade funfetti cupcakes for a birthday party on Sunday night.)

This is the batter of flourless peanut butter chocolate chip cookies, which are basically gluten free.

I was aiming to make ones like what I can find at Fair Trade Café here in Phoenix. The make the best gluten free vegan chocolate chip peanut butter cookies, but at $1.50 for two little ones...it's not cheap.

These cookies definitely matched the ones from FTC in taste, but not so much in shape. Instead of being cute little blobs of sugary peanut-y goodness, I got flat chips of sugary peanut-y goodness.

All in all, three and a half out of five stars.

My only problems is that they don't look cute at all like they did in the photos provided on the recipe website.

Also, they're a pain in the arse when it comes to getting them off the cookie sheet. I ended up sliding the entirety of the parchment paper onto the metal rack to cool. Not easy.

On the bright side, they taste delicious, and everyone at the office (who gets one--this wasn't a high-yielding batch) is going to be happy to eat them.

Coming soon: A post about my weekend trip to Tucson!

Adventures of 2013

Hey there, long time no see!
I have been really busy with school lately, and haven't really had time to go on any super crazy adventures, but here is what I have done as of late:

A trip to George's to clean in late December
I regret to inform you that this trip was definitely my least favorite trip I have ever taken. It was during my Christmas break, and the entire three days spent at George's with my dad and Daniel were spent cleaning the house from top to bottom. I never really considered George's Ranch to be a particularly dirty place (I prefer the term "rustic"), but from all the mop water, vacuum water, dust cloths, and disinfecting wipes we went through, dirty is the only word that can describe how that house was before we cleaned it.

Thankfully, we were able to take a short break on one of the days and go for a nice drive, where my dad and Daniel were able to go look for nifty rocks, and where I was able to play with the new Nikon my dad and I got for Christmas.
The rest of the weekend was regretfully spent cleaning. And watching movies. And making food.
As usual.

The Color Run in January
I don't know if you have ever heard of The Color Run, but it is basically 5 kilometers of colorful running/jogging/skipping/dancing/walking madness.
You start the run wearing all white, and at every kilometer mark, there is a crew of volunteers with cups full of dyed corn starch waiting to be thrown at you.
Of course, the day of The Color Run in Phoenix, it rained. Hard, cold, wet rain. However, we (me, Becca, Marissa and Becky) decided that we were not going to be sissy wimps and not go, or even be sissy wimps and bring jackets. No. We embraced the cold with goose bumps and shivers, and ran/jogged/walked the whole 5k in sub-comfortable temperatures.
And we hit up the dance party afterwards.

That's all that's really happened as of late, at least in the exciting-adventure realm. Daniel gave me a voucher good for one horseback ride in Wickenburg this spring, so that is most likely my next scheduled adventure. Stay classy, ladies and gents!