Arizona Trip July 2026 - Day 5, Part 2: Picking Up Cigars

 Friday, July 10, 2026

Today we decided to take a field trip to the Phoenix Art Museum. On the way there we stopped at Ambassador Fine Cigars which had been recommended to me by John and Dianne. 

What a great place! Their humidor was huge. There's another whole aisle on the other side of the one pictured above. The man working there was incredibly attentive and helpful. He checked for a cigar I was looking for and when he discovered they didn't have it he made a suggestion for a different one which I ended up getting. I also found a couple others I like. Their lounge is huge and very well ventilated. When I got back in the car Dale said he couldn't smell smoke on me at all. 

Arizona Trip July 2026 - Day 1, Part 2: Settling In

 Monday, July 6, 2026

Great to see John and Dianne. They grilled hamburgers for lunch and steak for dinner. So delicious! 

We also watched the World Cup game between Belgium and the USA. Belgium won. There's a certain dickwad in this country that seems to be building a track record for bad luck at sporting events. He will remain nameless. 

John and I smoked cigars by the pool to wind down the evening. Indulged in some Scotch as well. Very quiet and peaceful out. 

Arizona Trip April 2026 - Day 6 Part 1

 Friday, April 17, 2026

Left John and Dianne's at 10:00 am in our sweet new ride courtesy of Brenda and Irv. Haven't done a road trip in years!.

Arizona Trip April 2026 - Day 3 Part 1

Wednesday, April 15, 2026 

Dale and John got to the car before Dianne and I did. When we caught up to them they told us they lost the keys to the car. Nice try boys. Even though we did a good job staying hydrated we still went through the  McDonald's drive through to get some big iced teas.

Arizona Trip April 2026 - Day 1

 Monday, April 13, 2026

Very gloomy in Minneapolis today. Our plane to Phoenix was delayed 3x but they just let us board. 

Finally up in the air. 

Getting closer. 

John picked us up at the airport. Nice to see the sun. We've had some nice warmer days back home but it was cloudy and rather windy. Nice to be here and looking forward to a break from the busy-ness and stress back home. John grilled salmon for dinner and it was delicious. 

Pre dinner cocktails were gin and tonics made by John. After dinner Dianne made espressos. \

Phoenix - July 2023: Day 2 Good Morning

Sunday, July 16, 2023

Woke up early but to my internal clock it’s pushing 7 a.m.

Photos taken just as the sun was coming up at 5:46. It’s actually rather pleasant out although I’ve yet to experience what direct sun feels like above much above 100 degrees. 

The limes are looking good although these could be lemons which haven't turned yellow yet. I know John and Dianne have both a lemon and a lime tree. Can't tell 'em apart at this point. 

Took a soak in the hot tub. When I got out I didn’t hurry to wrap a towel around me because it did not feel cold! Same when I took a dip in the pool. 

Spring Break 2022 - Day 4: Winding Down

Thursday, April 7, 2022

Very windy night. Woke up a few times overnight thinking I was hearing thunder but found out in the morning it was strong winds. Dianne, John, Dale, and I all reported not having slept well. Strong winds continued through the morning but it really calmed down by noon. 

Dale and I took a late morning drive to see all the housing developments going up near John and Dianne. After we got some coffee at Starbucks.

We had lunch at Brenda and Irv's new senior living place. Our server was a woman named Marnie. Brenda and Irv have both talked about her as being a very wonderful person and they were right. It was nice to meet her. 

I had time for a quick dip in the pool after lunch. 

Diane and Brenda drove us to the airport and had us there by about 5 pm. 

Our flight got in to MSP around midnight. Not at all happy to see it snowing a little bit upon our arrival. 

Spring Break 2022 - Day 3: Dinner

Wednesday, April 6, 2022

After returning from Lake Pleasant I had a pre-dinner cocktail in the pool. Slow cooked ribs for dinner. Again, it’s so nice to spend time with everyone.

Spring Break 2022 - Day 3: Lake Pleasant Part 1

Wednesday, April 6, 2022

Spent the afternoon at Lake Pleasant. After lunch John and Dianne rented a pontoon and took us all out for a boat ride. 

Spring Break 2022 - Day 2

Tuesday, April 5, 2022

Beautiful sunny morning. I really love the plant life here in Arizona. All the pictures above are from Dianne and John's front yard. I'm hoping the cactus flower shown in the bottom picture blooms before we leave on Thursday. 

So good to be in sunny Arizona. 

Joined John in the hot tub early this morning and then got some pool time in after lunch. 

Dale and I drove to downtown Phoenix around 3:00 p.m. so we could hit our favorite dive bar, The Bikini Lounge. 

Back home we had a quiet dinner of pizza and were joined by Brenda and Irv. 

Spring Break 2022 - Day 1

Monday, April 4, 2022

Woke up to a light dusting of snow this morning. 

After boarding the plane I decided to watch a documentary on Julia Child. I read a fascinating biography of her almost 20 years ago. This film complimented it nicely and also brought up some new stuff I was unaware of. Very well done. 

Pre-take off.

Take off.

Above the clouds. Nice to see the sun after such a gloomy/rainy morning. 

I ordered a Bloody Mary. One of these days I'm gonna have to ask Delta what they use for Bloody Mary mix cuz it really is one of the best I've tasted. 

Delta is back to regular food service for it's flights after a couple of years of Covid restrictions, at least in first class. No more box lunches. This was really delicious. Black beans, carrots, snap peas, spinach, and chicken all topped off with a tangy sauce. 

Approaching PHX.

Dianne and Brenda picked us up at the airport and then we headed right to John and Dianne's place. Good to be here. 

We stopped at Brenda and Irv's new place.

Irv showed us his shooting medals. Harvey Ann wanted to see them too.

Irv always has some Bombay Sapphire on hand for me. He wanted me to bring it back to John and Dianne's for happy hour. He labeled it so everyone would know it's for me and only me. 

I had a little sip of the Bombay when we got back to John and Dianne's and then John made me his own modified version of a Mai Tai. It was quite good. You can see Irv in the background of the above picture. 

John made some grilled salmon and romaine for dinner and it was quite excellent. 

Again, like I said, it's good to be here and see everyone.