(More pictures to come)

Final Days in Prescott

The last few days in Prescott were filled with much work.  I did some at a place called The Raven on N. Coretz St.  My new friend Leslie has a business right down the road, and she is getting ready for an art opening on Valentine's Day. Friday, I met up with longtime friend and neighbor, Doug Crosby, at the Prescott Brewing Company.  The Fish Fry was tasty, but the local porter was outstanding.  I was truly flattered that he drove up from Glendale, and I hope he doesn't get fired for me mentioning that we were drinking like fishes at lunch.  (A huge exaggeration!)  He drove over to meet Cousin Paul and Lois, and on the way back through town, a really sturdy mule deer buck crossed the road in front of us.  Impressive.  Would've left a mark.



Doug and FA at the Prescott Brewing Co.


I'm with Doug having a very nice visit.  It's wild to see somebody from the past so far from home.



My third cousins (?) Kim and Rob gave me a ticket to the Sundogs game, and I'll give an update — The guy who sang the national anthem was phenomenal!  The team wore it's basic black uniforms, which were very classy.  They scored in a 6-on-3 situation with :24 left to tie the game, but lost 6-5 in overtime.  The Sundogs' goalie dove to make a poke check on and attacking player, and the puck cleared the zone.  The goalie was called for delay of game.  Huh?  As I see it, the biggest difference in the levels of play in the CHL, AHL and NHL are the refs.


Better Uniforms than the stripees!



The National Anthem was very patriotic.




This morning, Some guys were up the hill measuring to put in a new driveway, and they opened the gate to the pigpen.  Lois is on "Pig Duty" for the four pigs while the neighbor is away, but she was had her hands full, so I ran upto tell them there were pigs there and don't let any of them out or we'd have to play Pig Round-up.  They knew about the pigs and were good about it.  I emphasized that they better not let any pigs out, because there were five in there this morning and there better be five when they leave.  I sure hope they have a sense of humor.

Today, I said goodbye to Paul and Lois.  I don't think I've every met anyone that would invite me into their home as they did.  So as I begin this new chapter of my life, I am fully aware it would not have happened without them.  It was amazing to meet our Western family.  I'm glad that everybody is healthy, and also that Paul was able to locate and repair a leaky pipe to the cabin.



Super Bowl

Frog Angel's prediction:  The Saints. Who else — he's an angel.  He says the final score will be 153-0.  I asked him how he could predict such a score, and he replied that it's 22 TDs, and then the kicker was too tired make the extra point.

Kerry's Prediction:  New Orleans 33, Indianapolis 23.

Prescott to Sedona — The Mingus Mountains



I hit the road about noon to make the drive to Sedona, which is about 60 miles.  I drove along 89A through the Mingus Mountains, or as we would say in Irondequoit, the Mingya Mountains!  You climb and descend to an elevation fo 6,000 ft. along switchbacks and curling roads.  It was more exciting at night.  But the daytime scenic beauty is a major attraction, too, and you realize that much of the narrow, 2-lane road has no guardrail.  The route passes through Jerome, an old copper-mining town built into the cliffsides.  I was intrigued that, instead of a stop sign, they have a big ol' convex mirror. I stopped to take a few pictures because I didn't want to be the idiot who drove off the side of the mountain, and met an old fellow from Wisconsin.  Nice man, belly like a cheese wheel.
The colors in the mountains were phenomenal!

The Sedona Vortexes
I checked — Vortexes is correct, not Vortices.  I found 2 of the 4 and I think I was at a third.  I'll have to check the map.  Zeke, are you paying attention?!  I ventured up Airport Road to... the scenic overlook... and got some great landscape pics of chimney mountains and the red rock canyon.  Talked with four women from Utah, and contemplated standing behind couples and groups as they took their photos so they could wonder, "Who's that guy, and why does he have a frog?"  I continued up the hill to "America's Most Scenic Airport."  I got to see a few small planes take off, and a helicopter.  Very cool.


Helicopter makes a banked turn during take-off.  So neat to watch, and I can only imagine what it would be like to arrive via helicopter!


The red prop plane takes off.  I was amidst more than a half-dozen other spectators.  At the airport restaurant, I overheard a woman saying she was there for the fried cactus.  I'll have to try that!






Coming down the hill, I stopped at a little parling lot, big enough for about 9 cars.  I made my own space, knowing that Frog Angels merit special parking privileges.  I arrived at the same time as four very fun travelers from Oregon who instantly became curious about Frog Angel.  FA insisted that they take photos with him/her/it, and he developed a special alliance with Mel.









There, we climbed and hiked a treacherous trail on crumbling rock, and at one point, I fell to my death, straingt down the precipice.


From there, we did some sightseeing, and FA was inexplicably missing outside the Javelina Cantina. I panicked.  Then, I saw a little boy pointing, and it became clear that FA had made uet another friend.  



Further down the road, I decided we may have gone too far down the road to find the purported Starbucks.  I decided to turn at the next intersection.  It was Chapel Road, and the view was spectacular, so I drove down and parked.  We were outside the Church of the Sacred Heart, known as the Chapel of the Rocks.  Absolutely, inequivocably breathtaking!  The rain started falling, and FA urged me to go up to the Chapel to see it.  I knelt at one of the wooden benches to pray, and felt tears coming down my cheeks, for the beauty of it all. 








The Land of $13 Hamburgers

Dinner was a tough choice.  My criteria was cheap eats and a good beer.  I went to 5 restaurants, all vastly overpriced for my budget.  Finally, I couldn't take it any more and stopped at The Old Sedona Bar and Grill, which I was told is the most reasonable restaurant in town.  Burgers were only $11 there, and I had one with their award-winning Chili.  My memories and mental images of Sedona will last a lifetime.  Dinner probably won't stay with me the hour.  No, it was good.  And I had fun with the barkeep, Veronica.  Met a very nice couple there from Phoenix. 

I found 2 Starbucks in Sedona.  One closed at 7 p.m. and the other, in a Safeway, closed at 8.  I'm sitting in the grocery store now, sans coffee, and blogging. Consolation, they're playing good music.  Right now, World Party's "Ship of Fools," preceded by some pleasing 80's alternative.  Yeah, in a supermarket!  Behind me, one of the Sedona spiritual merchants is discussing religion with two strangers.  The conversation has devolved into how many tricks his dog knows.  People keep trying to buy lotto tickets out of the machine, but they stop selling those at 8 p.m. too.  Knowing this, if I had been on the ball, I would have bought a supply and scalped them for after-hours prices.  I could've made enough to buy a hamburger.

Update:  The Starbucks next to the Hyatt didn't even have wi-fi.  There was a very nice customer, Nicole, who gave me some inside info on where the "locals" go.  In Oak Creek, I found the Red Rock Cafe, which has wi-fi, a view, and really nice peeps working here!


All photos Copyright Kerry Gleason 2010