Yesterday would have been my mom and dad's 64th anniversary if he was still alive, so I took her to Anthony''s Fish Grotto for dinner. She had a great time and even flirted a little with the young, handsome waiter. She even recalled their 50th when John and I took them to Laughlin, NV and waiters at the restaurant sang to them.
I’m getting my teeth cleaned Tuesday and will leave here Wednesday sometime, hoping to get as far as Gila Bend, AZ that afternoon. There’s a wonderful campground there out in the middle of nowhere with lots of petroglyphs and beautiful sunsets. Since I’ve only got a limited amount of money to spend getting to Kansas, and most of its going to have to be for gas, I’ve been looking into all kinds of inexpensive or free places to camp overnight besides the usual Wal-Marts, Cracker Barrels, and casino parking lots. I’ll meet my bicycling buddy Steve (Jenny, I DID meet him at L.O.W. in Tucson) at Manzano State Park near Albuquerque, NM for a day or so, then head up to Santa Fe to see a friend from high school. From there I’ll try to hit part of Texas and Oklahoma before Kansas. Need to fill in a few more states on the map.
Yesterday Lou and I took two of the pups to the desert again, as we’ve done every Sunday for the past three weeks, and explored some slot canyons we’d found last week. One of them went on forever and included some rock climbing and dog-lifting. Good thing Sh’ Tzus are small. We finally came out at the top and could see all over – it looked like a mini-Grand Canyon! Perfect weather, lots of little birds overhead, and I left my camera in the car. I told him he’d have to do it again next week and send me pictures.
I finally need to sit down today and write up my evaluation of the season at the lodge, including a request for a nice raise in salary. According to our boss, Adam and I made a hell of an impression on the group as a whole. They've been saying we are everything they've ever wanted, and that for the first time in years, felt like they were welcome in their own facility. It's great to hear things like that, and even better, to be encouraged to raise the price tag on that welcome mat a little higher.
I picked up an excellent book at the zoo last week, "Last Child in the Woods," which I'd wanted to buy for a long time but never got around to it. The author, Richard Louv, chairman of the Children and Nature Network, says this: "The children and nature movement is fueled by this fundamental idea: the child in nature is an endangered species, and the health of children and the health of the Earth are inseparable." I remember while growing up, we played outside most of the time, exploring vacant lots, climbing trees, riding bikes, building tree houses and forts, playing baseball, and so forth. But even though my daughters still did things like that (they're now in their mid- to-late-thirties), my 20-year-old son's generation spent the majority of their time inside for various reasons such as watching a lot of TV, playing computer games, and parents' fears. The author stresses that even though parents always tell their kids to go play outside, lately there are fewer, if any, places to just play that aren't controlled in some way by rules such as condo and home owner association regulations, city ordinances, and so forth. There's a fear of lawsuits, of injury, and of strangers. I think it's very sad that children (and adults) are missing out on such wonderful experiences, so am appreciating the book quite a lot.