PHOENIX and TUCSON

Finally got the solar completed.  Seems to work fine but I haven't had a chance to try it out because I've been visiting, first for three nights in Phoenix at the home of one of my two best fifth grade friends, Jim ("Max") McBride.  Max's dad Jim was my dad's best friend and we moved next door to the McBrides when I was eleven.  Our neighborhood in Pittsburgh, Mt. Washington, was a little rough.  All dads were blue collar (if they had jobs) and all carried...issues.  Max's home life was, shall we say, not statistically predictive of success, but he was always surprisingly centered and connected to people then and is still. One of those guys you feel optimistic around.

We had a great time.  I caught up on the news from Mt. Washington and we filled in the forty year blanks, and watched the 1960 World Series 7th game on DVD.  (We saw it on TV in 1960, but not together.)  Did some hiking, too.  Beautiful uphill climb to Squaw Peak in particular.

I probably shouldn't say that Max was shamed into climbing the last little bit by a 69 year old lady on her way down, but it is the sordid truth.

The coolest thing in Phoenix was the Musical Instrument Museum, a collection of over 15,000 musical instruments.  It includes instruments from nearly 200 countries, with audio and visual displays corresponding to the instruments.  You can hear the different instruments played as you stand in front of the displays with headphones on.  Staggeringly beautiful.  Has an interactive section where you can try unique instruments as well. 

We also took a trip to a Steeler bar; Max has deep and constant connections with Pittsburgh and its sports teams.

I didn't get a chance to spend much time with Max's wife Kathy, but she thoughtfully baked some cookies and banana bread for me to take along.
Metropolitan Phoenix, more than 4 million people, is essentially flat, but has small mountains abruptly rising like pimples in random spots.  It was founded about 1865 by a Confederate Civil War veteran who engineered irrigation canals based on ancient Indian canals.  Much of its growth has been led by developers, often in cahoots with corrupt officials and sometimes organized crime.  Don Bolles, a writer for the Arizona Republic, was murdered by a car bomb in the city in 1976.  It was believed that his investigative reporting on organized crime and politics, particularly the relationships in Phoenix between real-estate developers, organized crime, and out-of-state corporations, especially in regards to land and housing fraud, made him a target.  Phoenix real estate took a major hit in 2008, similar to Las Vegas.

Phoenix is incredibly profligate with water.  There are many golf courses and lots of greenery in this desert spot, and there is apparently no tiered water metering.  Water is cheaper here than it is in Marin County, and it's wasted.  The volume of water coming out of the shower at Max's was staggering to me.  And, of course, everyone has a pool if they can afford it.

With the exception of two modest downtown areas, everything seems to be one or two stories, resulting in sprawl.  The summer heat can be overpowering; the large stadiums are domed.

Tucson once was larger than Phoenix, but no more.  Water is not brought to Tucson by the same system as Phoenix and it is noticeably scarcer and more appreciated.  In Arizona I crossed over numerous rivers and creeks and, without exception, they were bone dry.  All had names, though.

I visited my cousins Kathy and Patti in Tucson and spent a night in their home.  They plan to take a road trip around the country in a year or two.  K & P live in a surprisingly large and well built manufactured home in a community of perhaps 550 manufactured homes.  Very common in the southwest.

I did see some new homes being built and, surprisingly, some commercial building, including a new tilt-up.  Don't see much of that in California any more.  To the east is Apache country, where Cochise led his people in their struggle against the white settlers.

NEXT: NEW MEXICO