Our Mesa Link

Years ago my brother lived in Mesa. I visited once and basically saw his apartment, the nearest liquor store and a near-by bar (hey, I was 18!). Now Julie and John have a home in Mesa. In the last 4 days I have seen a few Walmarts, grocery and liquor stores...and a whole lotta paint!

Actually, we have been having a lot of fun. Not only just being in the company of two of our very favorite people but also feeling like productive, useful people for a change. The painting went well and I find it very gratifying to see the amazing change that a coat of paint can make. Case in point, the two pretty horrific pink rooms are now subtle cream and sage/ cream and brick. The remainder of the house got a good scrub down. We did manage a few breaks...Friday night we grilled steaks and sat around the fire pit. Saturday night we had a lengthy hot-tub and slumber party. And yesterday, we finished up and did a great hike at Lost Dutchman State Park at the foot of the Superstition Mountains.

The sky was fairly clear and the temps quite cool (like highs in the 50's). Actually perfect afternoon for a hike. The weather has been atypically cold and last night it apparently even snowed a bit as far south as Mesa. But Julie and I agree that a sweatshirt and jeans are still better than coats, boots and mittens.

After our hike, we all cleaned up and went out for dinner. Julie and I had seen a place called The Keg that reminded us of Pittsburgh Blue so we tried it out. Fabulous dinner! Fabulous service! And, of course, fabulous company! We are so sad that they are leaving for Minneapolis today. It has been so fun to see them and a huge change from our routine. Being in a home again, seeing family, actually working on a project. It has been kind of a reality check and made me miss my kids, grand kids, my house, even the mundane day to day life of work/chores/etc... a lot. Or as John put it...I miss my SPACE! Yes, I do.
Today, we will have a bit more time at Julie and Johns before they leave and then we will have tomorrow to explore a bit of Mesa before leaving Wednesday morning. Probably head south to just outside Tucson and try to find that heat and sun again.