The 21st.

Anna's Big Birthday is tomorrow. As I combed my mind for how to celebrate, my thoughts turned to how we would celebrate a wordly 21st. After seeing the following post on the "student affairs" website for Virginia Tech, I began to see what I'm missing for marrying the worthy gal I did:

The Risks:
One-third of women experienced a blackout during their 21st birthday celebration. To avoid blackouts avoid drinking quickly.
26% of women vomited. To avoid vomiting altogether consume fewer than 6 drinks.
30% of women had an estimated blood alcohol level = .28, putting them at risk for serious complications from alcohol poisoning.
To join most students who avoid these risks, take it slow, pace yourself, and take some steps to moderate consumption.
from: http://www.alcohol.vt.edu/21stbirthday/vtdrinkingfacts.html

Anna, the grass is always greener with you...Happy Birthday!! We better raise our blood chocolate milk level to at least .28 tomorrow!

One of the funnest parts of my job is seeing the cute, faithful spouses of my elderly patients. They're always so excited to ask how long I've been married so they can tell me about their 50, 60, 70 years together. Adorable--I can't wait to get to that point. So today there was another one of those moments...sort of. We got a call from the lobby from a husband of one of our patients (wearing suspenders, thick glasses, and carrying a cane) asking if he could come back to see his wife. But our ICU gets kind of confusing because we have three units all with the same numbering. So he, with very poor eye-sight, just asked to be guided toward bed 8. He found it, rushed in, and planted a kiss on the face of the patient lying there, only to find that it was not his wife! Rather, it was a young man! He was absolutely mortified, but I felt even worse for the young man...come in to get your pneumonia taken care of, and next thing you know, strange men are coming in to your room to kiss you! Luckily, everyone involved had very good senses of humor, so we could laugh about it.

Salt Lake

So Spencer and I just got back from a fabulous family reunion in Utah. I hope you all know I adore Tucson. Nothing beats the incredible lightning/thunder monsoons, the enormous rainbows, the desert smell, or the relaxed feeling that perpetually hangs over the city (since more than half of its population is retired) . But Salt Lake still strikes the "home" part of me because
-the mountains are so sudden and close they could almost fall on you

-the freshly cut lawns and flowers full of petunias or whatever make the whole city smell like a greenhouse
-the city is full of dogs, not cats...sorry Sally!
-December or July, you can always see snow somewhere
-it has a usable freeway!
-along with the greenhouse smell, there is always the BBQ smell in the evenings
-the tinkertoy downtown

-white streetlights (it sounds like a little thing, but they only allow yellow ones here in Tucson because of the nearby Telescope, so it always looks like the setup for a scary movie in the dim light...)
-brick or wooden houses with slanted roofs, ivy growing up the sides, a lawn in front, and a porch swing
-car radios blast country more frequently than Spanish rap
-there are actual creeks and canals, rather than creek and canal beds
-I walked to the gas station by my house for candy everyday of the summer until I was nine
-Saturday mornings you wake up to the sound of lawn-mowers
-Quaking Aspens
-the sound of crickets at night
-the view from Wasatch Boulevard
-and...not that I'm complaining, but getting above 105 is unusual up there!
Anyway, who knows where we'll end up--Tucson, Boston, Portland, or maybe Jamaica. But in addition to wherever I'm living, I'll alway call Salt Lake home...

Independence Day

Anna and I have become loners again. But we are alone together and life has never been better. After coming home from Utah I took off to Thatcher for a few days while Anna stayed to work in Tucson. After our time apart we realized how much we missed making fun of each other and have been in heaven ever since our reunion! We had a fun summer day yesterday. We woke up late, read books all day, ate watermelon and otter pops, watched the monsoon storms, strolled around the upscale "La Encantada" mall in the foothills in the evening, and watched the lighting roll across the valley. The monsoon season rocks!! We came home and I crashed as Anna stayed up till at least one a.m. finishing "The Kiterunner." Anna said she is glad to have read it, though wasn't always glad to be reading it. I felt the same. We woke up this great 4th of July at 4:44 am to go mountain biking at fantasy island. Last night's storm left the trail wet and we hopped off our bikes at the end caked in dirt! It was a ton of fun. We got home by 7:30 and had Orange Julius and are now preparing for fireworks (see pictures). Happy fourth everyone!