Where, oh where have the weeks gone?

I am remiss. There I said it. What else can I say except that time slipped away from me and all of a sudden I realized that all my "busyness" (yes, that's a real word, my word) took me away from this blog. I don't know what's going on in 2014. Life seems to be speeding by faster than, faster than, well, you get the picture.

So what you may wonder, have I been doing that I haven't had time to write a simple blog post? First, there have been staff changes at my office which translates into more work on my plate. I could complain, but what's the point? That's life. Change happens. Other than work, I've been reading, a lot. Second, sewing -- working on a new quilt. And third, traveling a bit. In January I was in San Francisco for a meeting.

Earlier this month I traveled to Phoenix for meetings. After Phoenix my husband and I took a little time off to drive up to and stay in Prescott and outside of Flagstaff in the northern part of the state, then over to Second Mesa on the Hopi reservation. Talk about a change in climate and environment. When we left Phoenix and its suburbia it was hot, as in 90+ degrees hot. Small town Prescott was nice and balmy in the 70s and low 60s/high 50s at night. Bliss. Flag came in at least 30 degrees cooler with wind. Not so nice. Unfortunately it was even worse on Second Mesa, icy cold winds pummeled us. Wasn't the best day to visit. Swirling sands sweeping off the mesa hit us like glass shards. The museum was closed but the little restaurant at the cultural center was open, thank goodness. A bowl of red chile and beans warmed me right up, enough to head back down the mesa. We had hoped to spend more time up there however the winds made our plan unfathomable.

That night we stayed at the Navajo Twin Arrows Resort and Casino. What a delight. The rooms were large, extremely comfortable and elegant. Barely open a year the hotel is pricing the rooms and meals at much less than market rate. I assume they are low balling in order to encourage people to stay there instead of Flag. It worked for us. I don't know what I loved more -- the shower that was big enough to hold a family of four or the pinon pie at the seafood bar (which serves an outstanding lobster bisque, by the way). I can't even begin to describe the nirvana experience of that pie crossing my lips. I ate only the inside because gluten makes me pretty sick. I hoped that I didn't ingest any of the crust. At the same time I knew that if I did it would be worth the pain and agony. I decided that if ever I'm on death row or even my deathbed that's the last thing I want to eat before I leave this earth. Yes, it was that good.

We returned to Prescott for one last night where we dined at The Palace Bar. It has a massive, wood-carved western bar that takes up one entire wall, floor to ceiling, and goes back to the 19th century, giving the place an old west atmosphere and food to match. It's one of my favorite places in this small town of 40,000 residents. All together we spent four days and nights in Prescott; could have easily spent another week or more puttering around town, having breakfast at Sue Ann's Apple Pan restaurant, hiking the low hills strewn with boulders and pines, gawking at the Victorians in the Historical District, and hanging out at the quilt shops. Why you may wonder did we visit Prescott? My husband grew up in Phoenix and spent a lot of time in Prescott as a kid; our visit brought back a lot of memories. While the town has changed dramatically since those days he tells me the changes are good. So good that we plan to go back soon.

Till next time........