The GGA Project -- Day #144 "A-Wanderin' "

Damn!  I could swear I published this placeholder last night instead of just saving it as a draft.  Oh well. It's to be a two-post day again.  I'll deal with it.


So, this week (and month in fact) is bad for the GGA on account of a way-less-than-cooperative work schedule.  I may be taking a lot of new ways home or trying out every single restaurant within an hour of my work, but I've had a good long run so I can deal with one month of poo.


Today's New Activity: Exploring South Fremont's Desolate Charm


Today I decided to get as far away from the bank as possible during my lunch hour.  Nevermind that it was 143 degrees outside and my black car hordes hot air like a mofo.  I just wanted to pretend I had the freedom to drive and keep on driving,

or to pretend I was back in Phoenix when I saw the acres and acres of parched , desolate land in the areas surrounding the shopping center where I work.  I drove along the road that leads out of the shopping center and followed it...past dozens of tech companies and business parks, a few random fast food restaurants and gas stations, and to the end of the road, where I parked the car under a lone tree and imagined I had absolutely nowhere to be any time soon.


I forget sometimes that I actually love the heat.  I love the feeling of dry, super intense sun.  I love sweating in it too, though less so when I have to go back to work.  I always lament not having appreciated living in Arizona during the years I spent there.  Every time I've been back since I marvel at the beauty of the desert and the feeling of warmth that doesn't just beat down on you (though it does that too), it envelopes you and hugs you close.

Baking in my car today and contemplating this single bird (how long has he been sitting there?  How long will he continue to sit there after I leave?  What is he thinking about?) felt a little like being back in the sparse (and beautifully, beautifully sparse) expanses of that Arizona wide open.  And while the landscape really has nothing to do with the desert at all, it felt wonderfully new and refreshing to step outside of my air conditioned bubble and away from all the familiar immediate.