Arizona Dreamin'

...on such a snowy dayyyyy!

It's been a whirlwind last couple of days, mostly consisting of marvelous rejuvenating visits with dear people.

After renting a new Jeep Liberty (woot) last Friday for our trek into the northern wild, Bert & I made a quick stop on our way out of town to visit a certain Rabbi I used to know. I didn't even know if he would be around the synagogue -- it was simply Saturday afternoon, Shabbat, and where else would he be? So we pulled into that familiar parking lot, moseyed down the hall toward the sanctuary, and I heard a familiar voice singing. There he was as ever: on the bima directing a group of Youth Orchestra and generally just zooming around like the feisty, red-bearded rabbi I remember. I decided to have a seat in the front row and just wait for a break in the rehearsal. But he spotted me walking down the aisle and paused in mid-sentence; did a double-take; grinned; then told the choir when they'd meet for the next rehearsal and descended from the bima shaking his head. It was classic! The first thing he said was, "I thought you were in Germany!"

Me: "Well, I am..."

Him: "No you're not, you're right here!"

We had a necessarily short but wonderful catch-up as congregants buzzed around trying to get his attention (as usual), then said shalom until the next time I stop by Tucson...

The next stop were the ladies at the salon -- everyone says "Hi, Connie!" and sends their love! -- and then we picked up a quick burrito at Los Betos before hitting the I-10 up to Phoenix, and Dave & Nena.

It was wonderful to see them! We showed up on their doorstep on Saturday evening and had a great time catching up over half-cooked burgers (ha ha, Dave!) and tasty wines. The original plan was just to spend the night; but since my buddy Matt was getting over a nasty cold, we forgoed (forwent??) the overnighting at his place and ended up loitering around with Dave & Nena until Tuesday morning, eking out every possible minute to just gab and hang out. They were great hosts, and just as fun and sweet as ever. It was like visiting family.

We fortunately also still got to see Matt, who, despite the germs, showed us the best beer & wine stops in town (can we say, 4,000 wines under one roof?) and cooked us breakfast on Monday. Every time we get together it's like no time has passed -- I only wish we could do so more often. Maybe next time will be on our side of the pond again for more Euro-sploring.