Wart Hogs and BBQ

The in-laws came out to visit us in Tempe from Kansas City, MO.  They have been here a few days and we have kept them busy hiking South Mountain (http://phoenix.gov/parks/trails/locations/south/index.html), photo ops at Canyon Lake (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Canyon_Lake_(Arizona), walks around Papago Park (http://www.tempe.gov/parks/parks/papago.htm).  Today we decided on keeping with the walking theme...to take them to the zoo.  We really enjoy the Phoenix Zoo because you seem to be able to get closer to the animals than in other zoos that we have been to.  Today the zoo was a ,well, zoo.  With kids being out of school, it seemed to be national take your screaming brat to the zoo day...we still enjoyed seeing all the animals especially the prairie dogs...I swear that I could watch them all day.

I did see an ad for the New Year's Party at the zoo, and the hubby and I are thinking about drinking in the new year with all the animals.

His parents are going home tomorrow, so we decided to go to Old Town Scottsdale to have dinner.  I love the Sugar Bowl and have noticed Earls BBQ located behind their building, but we had never eaten there.  We decided to give it a try, and I am really glad we did.  I had the pulled pork sandwich and boy did they give a lot of meat with that sandwich.  I loaded it down with their signature hot and spicy sauce and went to town.  I'm writing this several hours later, and I am still comfortably stuffed from their very large portions.  You know that a BBQ place is good when my BBQ snob of a husband likes it - he's from KCMO and fancies himself a BBQ expert.

Burgers...Lots of Burgers

If you have read more than one of my posts, then you know that I pretty much plan our outings based on the food nearby.  So, you can image how excited I was when I noticed that there were several "mom and pop" type restaurants near my new job.  (I teach 7th grade at PACS on 16th Street.) 

The first thing I noticed was a restaurant called "Fat Ass Burgers" ironically across the street from Weight Watchers.  (http://www.facebook.com/pages/Fat-ASS-Burgers/171915529522170).  This place was so good that I did something that I seldom do...eat there twice. This was the best, juice dripping down my chin, burger I have had since coming to Phoenix. Their fries are really good as well.  Basically, this place is going to be my go to lunch joint when I am at work.

Last night, we decided to try out Burgers and Bottles (http://www.grubhub.com/phoenix/burgers--bottles/).  I was happy with my n'awlins burger.  They were out of the bun that typically comes with it, so it was served on a pretzel bun.  OMG - I will be substituting this bun from now on.  I had fried pickles, and they were good - but I can think of three places that make better.  I didn't drink any beer, but my mother-in-law did and she said that it was really good. 

Motorcycles and Irish Coffee

We were invited recently to go to a viewing of the MotoGP movie Fastest (http://fastestthemovie.com/) at a local bar.  My husband is a huge (and I mean HUGE) MotoGP fan, so of course we went. 

The movie was being shown at The Fox and the Hound in Peoria.  (http://www.foxandhound.com/locations/phoenix-peoria.aspx)  First, I can tell you that the movie is a good movie and a must watch for anyone who likes racing sports in general and motorcycles specifically.  Now, for the stuff that we all know that I really care about...the food.  It was late for this middle school teacher, so we had already eaten dinner before going.  We ordered nachos for the table, and I have to say that they were the nachos I had been waiting for.  We have ordered nachos quite a bit when we are out watching UFC fights, but these were the first ones that fit into the image of nachos I had in my head.  (There were also a ton of them for about 8 bucks - all three of us were stuffed by the time we had finished the plate.)

Wheels and Wings in Tempe

I am officially married to a genius!  No really, ASU agrees with me.  We went out to celebrate the hubby making straight A's this semester.  This is his first straight A semester since starting college a million years ago - and he was understandably excited about it. 

I offered to take him out for dinner in celebration; he picked Buffalo Wild Wings (a chain that we went to a lot when we lived in NC).  (www.buffalowildwings.com)  The food and the service we excellent as always. 

We noticed Tempe Bicycle next door and since he wants to get a bike to ride to campus we decided to stop in.  The show was crammed to the gills with bicycles of all kinds.  It was amazing to me since I have never learned how to ride a bike, so I didn't know that there were so many two-wheeled options.  (http://tempebicycle.com/)  We were helped by the manager of the campus store, Debbie.  She was awesome.  It didn't take long at all for her to have him sized and taking several bikes for a test ride.  If you know how to ride a bike...I don't...I highly suggest you go down to talk to her.  My goal for this time in AZ is to learn how to ride a bike...so if anyone knows of bike lessons....

Art, Boats, and a Man Test

I don't know how we manage to cram so many unrelated things into a weekend, but I think this one takes the proverbial cake. 

Last night I was reading the local paper (we get weekend delivery) and saw a write up that Evermore Nevermore was going out of business and last night's 2nd Friday was going to be their last day.  I am a lover of all things weird, and the hubby likes comic books so we decided to go check it out.  I had high hopes for stocking stuffers.  Mesa has a 2nd Friday art walk (http://www.2ndfridaynightout.com/), and I have to say that it was very enjoyable.  There were unique arts and crafts type items along main street.  My favorites were a booth that sold "Harry Potter" type wands and one that sold unicorn horns.  There are several pop culture type shops - and one seemed to feature awesome t-shirts.  We stopped in at Lo-Fi coffee shop (http://www.loficoffee.com/) for a warming cup of coffee as we walked.  I wasn't impressed with their pumpkin spiced latte, but the hubby said that the chai tea was really good. 

This morning the hubby and some of his friends from the motorcycle discussion boards decided to test their stuff against the "Man Test" 5k (http://www.man-test.com/).  I went for moral support and to work the camera.  It is a 5k that features several obstacles.  The race didn't live up to it's hype, but they looked like they were having fun when they took the giant slip and slide down to the finish line. 

Sabine (our friend that ran the Man Test with John) suggested that we go see the Tempe boat parade, so after a nap and some warming up we headed down to Tempe Town Lake to see the boats.(http://www.millavenue.com/events/fantasyoflights)  There were so many people that we couldn't see the boats on the water, but I really enjoyed walking down Mill Avenue and looking at the lights.  I even got my picture made with the Mellow Mushroom mascot outside the restaurant, even though we decided to eat at home when we got back and not go for a slice. 

I think John is going to run Camelback Mountain tomorrow with some friends while I stay home and try to finally beat the cold I have been fighting since last Monday.

Wild Animals and Irish Food

Our one year wedding anniversary was yesterday.  It has been quite a year in our mildly unorthodox marriage (more on being married by proxy later). We decided to make the most of the last good weather for a while and spend the afternoon at the Phoenix Zoo.  (http://www.phoenixzoo.org/)

One of the things that I really enjoyed about this zoo as opposed to the Nashville Zoo are Grassmere or the North Carolina zoo is how close to the animals you can actually get.  I was having a close conversation with these two giraffes until some loud children came up and scared them away. 

After walking around the zoo, we decided to go to an anniversary (late) lunch on Mill Avenue in Tempe.  We decided to try Rula Bula Irish Pub since I love Irish food.  (http://www.rulabula.com/) The atmosphere in the restaurant was very nice.  It was so well decorated; I thought I could very well leave the restaurant and step out onto the streets of Dublin. I had the Fish and Chips, and while the food was adequate; I really wasn't impressed.  The fish and chips were good, but the atmosphere made me expect and really want better than just typical pub fare. I will say that the service was perfect. 

Spending Black Friday at Sun Devil Stadium

We almost missed last night's football game because neither one of us remembered that we had bought the Groupon for the game until just a few hours before kickoff.  Luckily, we remembered in time to walk down to Will Call and pick up our tickets.  The Groupon was for side line seats not too far up - and we weren't disappointed.  My husband was quick to point out that our seats were right in front of the cheerleaders...

I love to people watch, and the game didn't disappoint.  There was a couple behind us having a pretty serious relationship discussion (the only thing that makes me smile more is when couples have very private fights on one another's facebook wall). 

We live about three miles from Sun Devil Stadium, so we like to walk down to Tempe when we are going to a show or game and then catch a cab back home.  We walked down to the stadium stopping at Quick Trip to get me a pumpkin cappuccino - my one vice.  The game was a good game even if the Sun Devils tried hard to lose (and ultimately succeeded).  Then when we went to catch a cab, we tried to get one of the cool green cabs, but there were none to be found.  We ended up riding back home in a cab that had the cab thingie on the roof, but absolutely no cab equipment on the inside.  (It was also more expensive than usual...live and learn, I guess).

We will be looking for free things to do in the next month around Tempe.  I lost my job and want to save all the pennies we have until I start working again. 

Black Friday

Who among us hasn't had the dreaded alarm no-show?  Yep.  We had big plans to get out on Black Friday and pick up a few things we needed for the house.  The hubby and I lay down last night at midnight, and he set his watch for a very Black Friday respectable ...0330.  Then we awoke to the lights shining in our window at 7.  Epic Fail.

Not ones to let adversity (or over sleeping) get us down...we packed up the Mustang and headed to Tempe Market Place.  I was expecting a mad house - especially since we were getting there 5 hours after the shopping started.  There weren't many people there at all.  He left his gift certificate at home, so we ran back to get it, and I decided to stay home.  Aspergers means that I don't do so well with crowds.  He was able to get what he wanted with a minimum of fuss - although he said it had started to get crowded at 10 or so when he left. 

I didn't get anything...being laid off means that I don't know when I'll have money again, and I don't want to spend it on things that aren't absolutely necessary...you know: electricity...food.

Living lean, doesn't mean living lonely.  One of our friends came over to get help on her motorcycle and I made brunch.  Turkey and Broccoli Quiche.  Look for more recipes from me that include the star of our Thanksgiving dinner...we have two gallon sized zip bags worth of left overs.  mmm mmm

I have hopes to hear from Foothills Academy since they want their new teacher to start Monday, but I am a little frustrated by the job search.  Ok. I am a lot frustrated by the job search.  It seems like everyone has an ad out looking for help, but I haven't even gotten a call back from the retail stores I applied with (and it has officially started the busy shopping season).  It's all I can do not to take it out on my hapless spouse.  We moved here so he could go to school, and I left a tenured position to do it.  Since I had no intention of killing a student, I basically left a guaranteed job for one that ended after six months and left me with no income and a crap ton of bills. 

Music on the Mill

So...as you know if you are someone who follows along, then you know that I was laid off from my job as a curriculum developer in Scottsdale.  I've been frantically trying to find another position either in curriculum design again or back in a middle or elementary school classroom.  (Shameless plug alert: I'm awesome...hire me!)
My husband in a last ditched effort to make me feel better took me to dinner at one of my favorite restaurants...the Mellow Mushroom (http://www.mellowmushroom.com/).  The Hawaiian calazone that we always split was delicious as usual.  The really nice part of the evening was our walk up and down Mill Avenue in Tempe.  We didn't know that there would be lots of street musicians down on Mill.  I heard two who were really nice.  It was really enjoyable to walk hand and hand and look at all the of college-y shops while the pizza was digesting. 

Canned!

If you aren't a MapQuest or Goggle map junkie, it is 2,178 miles from Fayetteville, NC to Tempe, AZ.  I know this because recently I made the drive to take a new job as a curriculum developer for a Scottsdale company.  Six months later, I was told (with several other departments) that the company was "restructuring" and my services were no longer needed.  So, I find myself in a new city, a new state, and looking for a job. 
I spent yesterday trying to figure out where to go from here.  What to do and how to do it.  I applied for all of the jobs that I could think of - from other curriculum developer jobs to a position at the local Target. 
This is the first time in my life that I have ever been "let go" or "laid off" - somehow, neither title makes me feel any better. 

What I learned from GWAR

Monday, I went to my very first heavy metal concert.  It was, to say the least, an eye opening experience.  My husband has taken it upon himself to broaden my horizons, and apparently this includes having a large alien like creature jack-off on me.  So...let's be honest.  I don't listen to heavy metal and didn't know anything about GWAR.
I was expecting the dread-locks and the questionable wardrobe choices.  I watched with a kind of egotistical detachment.  I'm nothing like "those" people.  Then I watched a very theatrical show.  I watched a group of people having a great time.  I watched my husband jumping up and down, loving life while the band sprayed synthetic bodily fluids at him.  I also saw a group of people come together in support of a fallen friend.  At the end of the show, there was a tribute to Cory Smoot - the recently fallen member of GWAR.  People came together and remembered.  In that moment, they weren't people who wouldn't be able to have a professional job...(unspoken - like me)...they were just people who were experiencing the universal emotions like sorrow and loss.

As for the touristy stuff:
The marquee theater was a gritty venue that seemed to mesh well with the music.  It was the first time I had been anywhere to see a concert where there were no seats.  I highly recommend seeing one of their shows.

Getting a little culture

After a grumpy Friday night we were more than ready to get out Saturday. We had been invited to go out by some of John's friends that ride motorcycles.   They are all art students at ASU so the downtown art museum was the suggested venue.  I really enjoyed seeing their collection of fashion ...i enjoyed making fun of some of the outfits as well.  I was surprised by how small the collection was. 

Phallic Fair Foods & Good Soup

Have you ever walked around a state fair and looked at all of the foods?  Thursday, the hubby and I went to the AZ state fair (http://www.azstatefair.com/) to see the Sublime concert.   As we ate our way from one side of the fair to the other (my favorite way to see any thing), I couldn't help but notice how many phallic looking foods there were.  Everywhere we turned there were foot long corn dogs, roasted ears of corn, or bananas on a stick.   I couldn't help but shake my head and laugh at all of the little girls (well, teenagers) that were using the food to get attention.

The concert was a wonderful chance to people watch.  I didn't know who Sublime was before the concert.  I broke the number one rule of concert going by putting their name into Pandora to see what they sounded like.  Luckily, I liked what I heard.

The concert had one drawback for me (since I am allergic to pretty much everything).  People were enjoying themselves more than is technically legal.  Meanwhile back at the ranch, I woke up feeling like a gargled with glass.  (It's a shame that I get sick and don't even get to enjoy a secondary high.) 

On Fridays, the hubby and I have a standing lunch date.  Since I didn't feel good at all...I suggest soup.  I am a huge fan of Panera Bread.  There is only one small problem...Phoenix isn't a fan since there isn't one here.  We found a more than suitable stand in with The Wildflower Bread Company.  I had the roasted corn soup that was delicious.  We had a little bit of a wait, and the manager came by to make sure that we were happy.  We will definitely be eating there again. 

My husband wants me to add that the meatball sandwich was really good, too.

Unique date experience

I get groupons.  I'll admit it.  I'm mildly addicted to them.  I love to open my email in the morning to see what cool deal I can find.  Usually, the deals are for things that I don't need, don't want, or can't use.  Sometimes, however, I get a groupon for something that makes my breathless anticipation worth while. 

I used a Groupon last week to buy how-to pottery classes, because I thought that it would be a fun and unique date activity for my husband and me. (www.allthehands.com) I didn't know how much fun it actually going to be until I got there and started playing with the clay.  We arrived at the class a little late - warning! the studio is off the beaten track and 17th Ave doesn't look like a road since it isn't paved and doesn't have a sign - but we decided to take the class anyways even if we missed the start.  I'm so glad that we did.  After showing us basic techniques, the instructor let us go to play.  I made three pieces and the last two were pretty good.  The first one looks like a child's attempt at an ashtray - so I'll be sending it to my mom for Christmas.  Every parent needs a badly designed, hand-made ashtray from their child...even if the child is 30.

Since I don't consider it a date unless he gets me ice cream.  We left the class - laughing about how dirty we were (How did I get clay, there?! ) and had a pumpkin pie Blizzard from Dairy Queen.  I am going to be really sad when they stop selling those blizzards after Thanksgiving. 

Disappointing Fight...Great Sandwich

My husband and I have a standing "date" to go out and watch UFC fights.  We both enjoy MMA, and it gives us a chance to sample one of my favorite cuisines...the oft overlooked bar food. 

We decided to catch the fight and head out to American Junkie (http://americanjunkieaz.com/).  We were a little worried once we got there since the bar was full of Ohio fans, there to see the Ohio v. Wisconsin football game.  We were afraid that even though there were advertisements for UFC 137 that it wouldn't be on the TV.  However, the manager assured us that they would play the fight when it came on, and even though they didn't start it until about 30 minutes in...they did show the fight, and on a TV close to us. 

The bar isn't responsible for the lack luster fight.  What they were responsible for was done very well.  I had a Southwestern burger with peppers and jalapeno cheese.  This burger was the size of my head!  It was amazing, and the price at 8 dollars (including fries) was easy on the wallet.  We will definitely be back.

MIL's last day in town

It was my mother-in-law's last night in town before she flew back to Kansas City. 
We decided to put the chicken I had marinating back in the 'frige and take her out for one last night on the town.  Just down the road from the house is the Salty Senorita (http://www.saltysenorita.com/).  I had a steak and avocado salad that was just amazing.  She and my husband both had the chipotle burrito - I don't know how good it was since neither one of them would take a break from gulping it down to share.  (I take it to mean that it was pretty good.) 
We had to stop at one of my favorite places in Scottsdale and get an ice cream to enjoy while walking around and window shopping at all of the galleries.  I've only ever had the Sugar Bowl's strawberry milk shake.  One I find something delicious...I tend to stick to it.  (http://www.sugarbowlscottsdale.com/)

The Mother-In-Law is in town. Oh no!

OK, I actually get along with my husband's mom pretty well.  But, I did scrub the house from top to bottom before she got here, so she couldn't see the filth her precious little angle baby actually lives in. 

We had a pretty full weekend - trying to show her what we know about the state thus far.  She flew in Saturday afternoon, so we decided that we would take her to Pinnacle Peak Patio (http://www.pppatio.com/home/default.asp) for some a steak and to hear their live music.  On our way up to the steakhouse, we saw a sign for an Art Festival, but it was closed.  We were told that all of the things on the street in Scottsdale close at precisely 5 no matter what they are.  I thought that it was strange since it had just begun to cool off, but maybe there is a law or something...  Anyways, on to dinner we went.  The steak was, as always, excellent. 
Sunday we made a day of it.  We headed north after a breakfast of pie (fruit is healthy right?) at Rock Springs Cafe in Black Canyon.  (http://www.rockspringscafe.com/)  This is my favorite breakfast place so far. 
Then, we went on up to Montezuma Castle in Mesa Verde.  There were two hawks flying above the ruins - making a convenient photo op.
On to Jerome... I had been here before with my parents, but this time we took the time to poke in all the shops.  We found a toy store with an attendant who was having WAY too much fun, but I saw a few things that are going on my Christmas list.  Just down the road, we found a shop that sells Rubber Duckies!  (This is important because I collect them...)  We wet our whistle at the Spirit Room (http://www.spiritroom.com/).  I liked the atmosphere of this bar, but the live entertainment left a little to be desired. 

Onward and upward... on to Sedona for some red rock photo ops.  We took a short hike in Red Rock State Park.  It is an inside joke with a friend of mine to always take vacation photos that include my most prized possession. 
We had dinner at the Barking Frog Grille (http://www.barkingfroggrille.com/).  I highly suggest their buffalo burger from their "before 5" menu.  It was cooked perfectly, and I loved every bite.

Tasty Hamburgers

What married couple among us hasn't had this conversation. 
-What's for dinner?
-I don't know, what do you want?
-I don't know what do you want to fix?
-Nothing. I don't want to fix anything...I'm tired?
-So....take out?

Luckily, Two Hippie Beach House had left menus at my job and I "happened" to have one.  We called in our order (Bacon Cheeseburger for him, Green Chili burger for me).  Both burgers were delicious.  I will definately be eating there again.

Weekend at Christopher Creek

We decided to escape the unseasonal heat in the valley and go in search of fall leaves.  Since I am from "back East", I don't think that it is fall until I can make s'mores and crunch through leaves. 

We drove up Friday after work to our cabin at Christoper Creek Lodge (www.christophercreeklodge.com).  The cabin was really nice with a Franklin style stove near the bed - we weren't there very long before I had the hubby build a fire.  (Hey! vacation in the woods...need a cozy fire, right?)  We actually had the conversation that we could live there forever...if the bathroom was a little bigger. The lodge was dog friendly, so even Ginger - our Brittany Spaniel - got to go on our mini vacation.

We got an early start Saturday morning and headed to Tonto Natural Bridge.   (http://www.pr.state.az.us/parks/TONA/index.html)  Ginger was only allowed on the paved paths, so we saw the bridge from the top side.  We did take a short hike without her, and walked down the 80 or so steps to see the waterfall.  John raced me to the top and won even after spotting me 50 stairs.  (Sometimes I love bad knees.)

We went into Payson for groceries and some lunch.  The tourism information center (chamber of commence) gave us several dog friendly hikes we could take and told us about some attractions in Pine and Strawberry.  We decided to hike around Woods Canyon Lake.  It took about 2.5 hours and is about 6 miles around according to my phone.  We didn't get to see the famed Eagles that live there, but we did see their nest.  Ginger almost caught a chipmunk; I don't know who was more surprised about that...the dog or the chipmunk.

Once we made it back to the lodge, the husband prayed to the fire gods and grilled us some steak and asparagus.  I don't know if it was just "that" delicious or if we were just "that" hungry - but it tasted amazing.  He needed to know the score of the ASU/Oregon game so we walked down to this little bar/restaurant next to the lodge.  The Landmark at the Creek is a little gourmet gem in the middle of nowhere...I had butternut squash lasagna. 

Sunday, we tried to squeeze in a little more vacation before heading down the mountain and back to real life.  We headed up to the little town of Pine, AZ.  This is where we encountered our only icky spot in the entire trip.  We were told to eat at the Randall House for breakfast...the food was not that good made worse by the world's slowest service.  When we asked about our order (after waiting 45 minutes for pancakes and eggs), we were treated to rudeness.  (I got to hear the waitress rant about our rudeness while I waited in line for the restroom.)  We won't be back there.  We headed up to Strawberry and the Goat Creamery.  Directions to this place include the phrase "turn off the paved road", but the fudge and strawberry/jalapeno jelly is worth the dust on the car.

It was a great weekend...my only problem is now I need a vacation to recover from my vacation.

Who we are

Hi.
Since we've just met, I would imagine that an introduction is in order.  I'm Crys (and you'll hear a lot about my husband, John, and our dog, Ginger, too).  We live in the East Valley of the Greater Phoenix metro area. 

Now for the back story...
We moved from Fort Bragg, NC at the beginning of September.  John got out of the Army and is using the GI Bill to attend ASU.  I taught school for nearly 9 hellish years, and now I work for a private education company based in Scottsdale.  To say, I wasn't thrilled about moving all the way out here is putting it lightly. 

We are now to the point in the show where I tell you the purpose of this blog.  Since I wasn't thrilled about living in Arizona, I decided that we would spend the next two years while he is getting his degree playing tourist and experiencing as much of the state as we could. 

So fair reader, hang on to your ten gallon hat and cinch on your turquoise jewelry...you are about to be taken on a two year expedition of everything I can find.