how to travel with a smile

2 son drive

Once in a while we head down to Tucson to visit good friends, Rachel and Robin. Rachel and I were in college together in Chicago and since discovered several parallels in our lives. We both live in Arizona now and ThePilot and I enjoy a drive down to Tucson to see them. Rachel is a photographer (Urban Abstrakt Photography) and always takes amazing pictures of us.

Last month we planned a drive down on a weekend that happened to coincide Tucson’s Pride weekend. I have never been to a Pride event in Arizona before this one. Arizona is too hot in June, the typical Pride month, to hold an outdoor event. They are smartly held in cooler months so no one dies of excitement.

One of the best things about any Pride event is the diversity within the LGBTQ population. We’re not all the same. Some of us stand out. Some of us look like you. We all have families and dreams and are deserving of love and dignity. I also love seeing all the colors and smiles!

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saturn day

We were watching a NOVA documentary one night called The Pluto Files. It’s about Dr. Neil deGrasse Tyson revisiting the findings that led him to declare that Pluto is no longer a planet. He also visits the birthplace of Clyde Tombaugh (discovered Pluto) to meet his detractors.

This documentary mentions the Lowell Observatory in Flagstaff, Arizona. The Pilot and I looked at each other at the end and nearly simultaneously declared we should visit the observatory. So we did.

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grand camp

I got asked several times if I camp when telling friends where we were going for The Pilot’s birthday. So let me tell you a little story.
When I was shorter, my parents used to take us camping in Whitewater, WI. My memories of those summers include mildew illness from our tent, being afraid to change clothes, and standing paralyzed in the semi-outdoor shower because it was infested with spiders. Things always happened to me in Whitewater. One winter I got lost in the dark night on the way back from the restroom and ended up in a bed not belonging to our family. Luckily, my parents knew this man and I was returned. That same winter I was innocently standing on a snow covered hill only to be mown down by a passing toboggan. The resulting brain trauma left me with a life-long aversion to winter sports.
On a summer trip there, I was stung by a bee. The resulting brain trauma from that left me with a life-long fondness for hallucinogenics

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