It was no doubt a crazy idea, but I decided while I was feeling the good effects of the anti-shingles drug regimen I would make a quick (five-hour) run up to AZ. My friend J needed to renew her visa at the border, she offered me a room at her mom's house in Tucson and she wanted to get back here before her husband arrived on their boat. I had a list of things I can't buy in Mexico like unsweetened peanut butter and coconut, miso, rice cakes, my favorite tea (Tazo black chai) and four months of mail that had accumulated at my AZ post office. Plus there were items my friends wanted. So off we went Saturday morning. It was a fun girl-time, yakking and soul-baring, thoroughly covering everything from how we manage depression to how we cook brown rice to make it fluffy. J is only slightly older than my son, and it was fun to pretend she's my grownup daughter and best friend.
J's real mom is a college prof and artist, and she was all aflutter getting ready to host a Sunday brunch, so we pitched in a bit and made a last-minute supply run, before starting in earnest on our lists. For maybe the first time ever, I found everything I wanted (and then some). We visited an Indian grocery where I bought garam masala and coconut powder for coconut curry, and we took time for an after-dark stroll through the grounds of the beautiful St. Mark's Episcopal Church, where desert landscaping has risen to a higher level of splendor. A revelation: I am learning to love cactus!
Another Tucson discovery was Sunflower Market (with three locations) where I can still afford to get whole grains, Whole Foods having given me a case of sticker shock last time I was there.
In my mail was a wonderful battery charger that will allow me to recharge my camera batteries instead of always having to go buy more AAs. My friend Sue in Oregon sent it, so I'd have the same charger she's had good luck with. Thanks so much, Sue!
So for us hunter-gatherers it was a triumphant though exhausting trip.
The drive back went fine except my Escort's brake lights won't go off, so it looks from behind like I've got the brakes on all the time. We pulled the fuse on them when we found the lightbulb was melting the lens on the top light. I was so happy to get home safely I almost melted with gratitude. I'll need to take it to the dealership, I've been advised, but in the meantime, I'm taking the rest of the day off.