Tucson Road Trip, Day 5 +

Road Trip, Part 6

by Seann McAnally

 

The last day of our multi-generational vacation was a whirlwind. Connor and I are homebodies and the thought of spending a night on the road didn't appeal to us. We convinced Dad to hit Lowell Observatory in Flagstaff, the Grand Canyon, and Meteor Crater in one day - and then head back to Kansas City.

About 3 a.m., I regretted that. But first things first.

Connor and I both wanted to see Lowell Observatory. We're into Mars and telescopes. We got there way too early, but a very nice girl who worked there (Heather? Emily? Hannah?) let us into the Clark Dome, where Percival Lowell's telescope is. We got to move it around and pretend to look through it (nothing to see in the daytime anyway) and watch the dome move around, which satisfied us. They also had a Solar System walk there where every million miles was an inch or something like that; it really hammers home the scale of the Solar System ("what, Saturn's all the way over there?"). They also have a very decent hands-on museum in their visitors center, and Lowell's mausoleum is on the site as well (an interior shot of an awesome dome that overlooks his final resting place is shown below).

The observatory campus itself, high on a hill overlooking the town, is a peaceful, contemplative wooded environment and it was nice to just walk around there, and wonder why they had a bocce ball court in the middle of the woods. Flagstaff is a beautiful town, even though we got a little bit lost in it once or twice (I don't think there is a single straight line on that street map). If I ever moved to Arizona, I'd probably aim for Flagstaff. Here are some photos:

Then we drove north to the Grand Canyon. This wasn't originally part of our vacation plan, but when you're so close, why not? Folks who'd been there told me words couldn't really describe it, and they were right. These pictures don't really even describe it. You just kinda have to be there to "get it." One amusing moment is when Connor fed an animal cracker to a bold raven who walked up to our car. Later we saw a sign saying this is very illegal. We stayed about 45 minutes or so, gaping. I was very afraid near the edge. I don't do well with heights and it was really overwhelming. I fought the urge to grab Connor every time the wind blew. Here are some pictures:From there we drove to Meteor Crater, which isn't that far from Flagstaff. I've seen pictures of this many times in my life and, while it is not as overwhelming as the Grand Canyon, it has a power all its own, especially when you consider how it was made. There is also a decent museum here, but what we were interested in was the giant hole in the ground:

...this next photo is of me at the very bottom of the crater:

...actually, I'm lying. That's me in front of a mural in the museum that makes it look like you walked down to the bottom of the crater. After a long day of driving, that walk was not on anyone's agenda.

Then came the first leg of a very, very long drive. We left Arizona about 6:30 or 7 p.m. and got back to Kansas City at about 6 p.m. the next day. Maybe later. I don't remember. My brain turned to mush at about 3 a.m. In Albuquerque I got some 5-Hour Energy Drink which worked very well for about three hours. We listened to Coast to Coast A.M. for a while, until we lost reception. Then it was a brutal, pitch-dark drive through New Mexico. I'm not even sure when we hit Texas, but I do remember stopping somewhere in Texas, where my dad also imbibed the energy drink (a cop in Albuquerque recommended it, otherwise I don't think Dad would have taken it). These long, dark hours of monotonous driving were brutal. In the wee dawn hours, I stopped at a nameless trading post of some sort in Texas and got an off-brand of it called "Cowboy Up!" After that, I managed to get a few hours of sleep, and woke up in Oklahoma City. The rest of the ride wasn't too bad, and Dad managed to get a few winks in.

Then, of course, we hit I-470 in Kansas City just at rush hour. When we finally got home, I hit my bed and didn't get up again until 9 a.m.

Here's what I took away from our vacation:

I hadn't spent a lot of uninterrupted time with my dad in a long time. It was nice. I also got my first glimpse at a post-Connor world. By that I mean I have always dreaded Connor growing up and moving out because I couldn't see past it. What purpose could I possibly serve, if it's not to be his Dad and take care of him? But now I can see that there are lots of places to go and many other lifestyles than those I have known. Life can be pretty sweet when you get older, I guess, as long as you have your health and a little bit of money. My dad, who is retired, pretty much does whatever the hell he wants, when he wants, more or less, and that's something to look forward to. I was also glad Connor got to see so much of the country this summer (he went to Washington DC with his mom in June). We'll both remember the trip for the rest of our lives, and I do know that it's not my last trip to the southwest. I really like the stark nature of it. I loved Mount Lemon and want to go back and camp there.

Someday.

Tucson Road Trip, Three Generations, day 4

Road Trip, Part 5

First of all, here's a photo of Connor on Mars.

That's actually from the space exhibit at Pima Air & Space Museum that I forgot to include with my last post.

Day 4 of our vacation, we visited Tombstone, AZ. It's very picturesque and the downtown supposedly appears much as it did back during the tumultuous "Gunfight at the OK Corral" days. We skipped the gunfight re-enactment because we'd have to wait too long for it. Dad says he's seen it and we didn't miss much.

The real highlight of the visit was eating at Big Nose Kate's saloon, where Doc Holliday, Wyatt Earp, etc. used to drink. Or so they tell us. I had perhaps the best bowl of chili in my entire life at this place. It was loaded with jalepenos - I got one in almost every bite.

I also ordered a "large" beer. I very rarely drink, and when they delivered the "Big Ass Beer" to the table, I couldn't even finish it all. It, plus the chili, put me into a stupor, and I stumbled through the rest of the visit. The other place we examined in detail was the office of the Tombstone Epitaph (being a newspaperman myself I was interested).

After that I pretty much fell into the car and slept. My dad decided to drive to Nogales and we stopped there to look at Mexico (we didn't go in). I had fallen asleep in the car - if my dad had woken me up and said I was in Mexico, and not just on this side of the U.S. border, I'd have believed him.

Later that night Dad took us out to eat at a great Mexican restaurant. I don't remember the name. I figured the food would be different than the Mexican food in K.C., being so close to the border. It was good, but I think there's good Mexican food wherever there are Mexicans, so it tasted like the fare in the better Mexican restaurants here.

Then Connor and I walked around the mall for a while. There's a good game store there called Game Daze. Prices were, on average, about $2-$10 more per item than what I see in my local game store at home. There was an awesome chess set based on the Crusades, but it was $219 so I gave it a skip.

Exhausted, we went to bed early and got up at 3:30 a.m. for the last day in Arizona - a whirlwind day of telescopes and giant holes in the ground.

Family Secrets-Calvary Trooper

Family Secrets – Calvary Trooper

When my grandfather turned 17 he thought it was about time he left home to see the world.  So in 1922 he and a childhood friend of the same age took off from the only home they had ever known in Independence.  They had little money but thought they could work their way across the country by doing odd jobs along the way, besides they had been in Boy Scouts together and knew how to camp and live off the land so they figured.

In February they began to hitchhike after a flip of the coin determined they would head east towards New York.  I am not sure what they were thinking to leave then in the middle of the blistery cold Missouri winter especially hitchhiking in 1922.  There could have not been that many motorized vehicles traveling the roads back then.  However those cars or truck that were making such trips back then were probably more inclined to pick up riders than they would today.

The first day they had made it as far as Warrensburg, Missouri and stayed in a place that shall we say had less than a reputable reputation.  They spent more money there than they had planned.

I don’t know how long it took them or how they managed, but a week later they found themselves wondering around the back streets of St. Louis, cold, broke, and hungry.  They saw a recruiting poster with Uncle Sam pointing a finger at them telling them that he wanted them.  The recruiting Sergeant befriended them, fed them, and let them sleep in his office that night.  The next morning several your men arrived with their suitcases in tow to be sworn in to the U.S. Army.  The recruiting Sergeant told them that if they swore they were 21 they could join too.  Later that afternoon Granddad was on a train west to Cheyenne, Wyoming to be part of the 4^th Calvary.  He had never ridden a horse in his life.

He never related much about how he learned to be a Calvary troop nor much of anything about basic training or the army in general.  The only story he did relate to me was that one day while standing in formation the First Sergeant asked if anyone knew how to drive a tuck.  My grandfather thought that would be a good job, at least he could get out of riding a horse and the other silly minutiae that was probably in store for him that day.  He volunteered.  The rest of the afternoon he pushed a wheelbarrow around the company area hauling gravel from one end of the compound to another.

He started keeping a journal while in Wyoming but only for a short time and even then it was no more than a one or two word entry.  “went to town,” “saw Missy last night,” “twenty mile troop ride today,” “Inspection this afternoon.”  There were only entries like that for about 20 days.  I wonder who Missy was, or what a 20 mile troop ride must have been like, what did he do when he went to town, who were his buddies he did things with, what happened to his buddy he had joined with, I guess I will never know. 

He apparently did not like the army much so after 18 months of doing whatever he was doing he sent his father a letter asking him to see if he could help Granddad buy his way out of his four year military obligation.  That was standard procedure back in those days.

Some how the family managed to raise $1,500 and Granddad was a free man and returned to Independence.  As far as I know he never rode a horse again.

Tucson Road Trip, Three Generations, Day 3 part 2

by Seann McAnally

Day Three (part 2). After enjoying the vistas of Mount Lemon, we dropped off Grandma Jan and made our way to Whataburger. I seem to remember there being one in K.C. somewhere, but lost track of it. They have a guy who comes around to your table with little ketchup cups. Otherwise it's basically like a Burger King.

After that it was Pima Air and Space Museum. It was the most expensive thing we visited during our vacation ($14) but there's certainly a lot to see, and, in the opinion of well-traveled folks I asked about it, it is "Smithsonian quality." There were five hangars full of planes from all eras of aviation history (and brutally hot walks across arid gravel in between them). Again, I'll let the pictures do the talking. Here are some of my favorites:










After this, we were all hot and tired, and we enjoyed some time at the pool before going over to Grandma Jan's. Her boyfriend Kurt cooked some steaks for dinner. Then we drove out to the edge of town where it was really dark, got out Connor's telescope and found Saturn by dead reckoning (I spotted it, he homed in on it w/out the laser guide...which isn't easy). Then it was home for bed...

How can you beat a day like that?

Tomorrow: Tombstone.

Tucson Road Trip, Three Generations, Day 3, part 1

Wednesday, August 10, 2011

by Seann McAnally

Road Trip, Part 3

Day Three (Part 1). We woke up early and drove up to Mount Lemon with Grandma Jan. This was Connor and I's first mountain. About 7,000 feet up we got out of the car and walked around for a while - it was an awe-inspiring view. I could have spent days up there, and in some ways it was the best time I had during the whole vacation. Words can't really describe it so I'll let the pictures do the talking.

I had a very special time up on this mountain and had a chance to do some thinking about life and stuff...which is what you're supposed to do on a mountain, I suppose. But I won't get into all of that here. It's enough to say it was a quasi-religious experience.

Well...that's a lot of pictures to upload at once so I'll save Day Three (Part 2) for tomorrow - stay tuned for lots and lots of pictures of cool airplanes.

Tucson Road Trip. Three Generations day 2

By Seann McAnally

Road Trip, Part 2

Day two of our journey began with a visit to San Xavier del Bac, an old Spanish mission from the 1600s-1700s. This is where I first discovered the whole "dry heat" thing, as I drank about six cups of coffee before we left and was parched the whole time. I almost passed out climbing a big hill to get a good view. There was a cross at the top of the hill where Connor and I rested and looked around. The mission itself was in the full throws of a Catholic mass - we'd arrived on Sunday morning. On the way out of mass, Native Americans were rubbing some kind of reliquary and putting pictures of loved ones on it; it was almost pagan, but you could tell the people there had very strong spiritual feelings about what they were doing. Here's some shots of the place, which is truly beautiful. I wish I had more pictures of the interior - it was excruciatingly designed in Baroque detail. All I got that wasn't blurry was one picture of an angel, who I decided would stand in for Darius (Gonen's World folks know what I'm talkin' 'bout). Here are some pics:

Leaving the mission, my dad drove us to a scenic park so we could get our first good glimpse of panoramic scenery. We just hung out for a while and enjoyed the view. This was always my favorite thing to do on this vacation - just sit and look at the landscape.

That afternoon, we had a traditional Italian meal at my dad's girlfriend's mom's house. The meatballs were excellent but I had already filled up on pasta (they eat the pasta first, then the meatballs) and could only eat one. Then it was two rounds of desert...whew! I was slightly embarrassed that I couldn't eat everything that was set before me. We visited with Grandma Jan for a while (my dad's mom) and then rounded out the day by going to see Captain America. I even got a few hours in at the pool. All in all, a good day two. We slept like logs that night.

Tucson Road Trip, three generations

by Seann McAnally

2011 Road Trip, Part 1

Well, I didn't post a single time last week, because Dad, Connor and I were off enjoying the great American Southwest. Rather than put up dozens of photos and try to recount the whole trip all at once, my blog entries this week will all be about the vacation, day-by-day.

This was surprising even to me when I realized it, but I haven't been on an official "going out of town" type of vacation for my entire adult life, so I was really looking forward to this and it didn't disappoint.

First up, let's look at Day One of our journey.

This is a rest stop in Texas. It is essentially a glorified toilet, proving that indeed, Texans do everything bigger. We got turned around in Amarillo, Tex. in the middle of the night, but finally made our way back south toward Roswell, New Mexico. In Clovis N.M. we got lost, and ended up on a very creepy back-country road that I didn't think to take a picture of. The sign said it led to Roswell so we trusted the sign...but it was a dark, long road with only one other set of headlights in about an hour. Connor fell asleep, and my dad and I kept an eye on the car clock, looking for lost time like Fox Mulder (it seemed as likely a place as any to be abducted by aliens).

Here is Martin's Capitol Cafe in Roswell. We got there at 5:55 a.m. and had to sleep in the parking lot of a military academy, and killed time here until the UFO Museum opened. Let me tell you in all seriousness: this place has the best bacon I have ever eaten in my life. Period. I don't know if that's a New Mexico thing, a Roswell thing, or a Martin's thing. But it was damn good. I was almost full after eating three slices of bacon, so that should tell you something.

Here are some photos from the International U.F.O. Museum & Research Center:

Connor in front of a really cool plaque showing an Aztec or Mayan, I forget which, in a spaceship. Supposedly this proves the existence of ancient astronauts. That would be awesome. I want to believe. Exhibits like this one showcase the serious side of UFO research. This one, on the other hand...

...is me sadly viewing an alien autopsy. This is the dummy they used in the Roswell TV Movie (not the TV series, apparently). This photo shows the other, fun and cheesy side of the UFO Museum.

After that, time was ticking, and we needed to get on the road if we were to hit Tucson before dark. New Mexico was a long drive, but we passed through some beautiful Apache country. I thoroughly enjoyed this portion of the drive, because it was finally daylight and I was seeing terrain that I don't get to see back home. Dad napped in the back seat and Connor and I enjoyed vistas like this one...but the picture doesn't do it justice.

Of course, these hills were nothing like the mountains we would later see when we hit Arizona, but it was very picturesque and it seemed like a really beautiful place to live.

Late that afternoon, we hit the White Sands testing range. This picture was a fluke - it didn't really look like this from our angle, most of the time. But it proves that there is, indeed, white sand on site.

Finally, we hit Arizona - or what looked like it; I missed the actual border - and started seeing weird rock formations on the side of the road, like this one.

Again, the pictures don't really do it justice. I can't remember what this stretch was called. Apparently there was a huge volcano or something in ancient times that spat all this stuff up and it just landed this way and stayed there. In some places, it looked like the rocks were going to tumble off onto the road!

Before too late, we reached Tucson and my dad's resort-style mobile home community, which you aren't supposed to call a trailer park. It IS a trailer park, but it's for well-off 55+ folks and felt like a resort of some kind (I spent a lot of time up at the pool). We had some tasty burgers that my dad's girlfriend Beverly cooked for us. Then, since we were all very tired, we all went to see Cowboys & Aliens at the mall in Tucson. That was extra special because we'd been driving through the very same landscape all day that we saw in the movie, which made it "real."

So that was Friday night and Saturday - stay tuned for the Sunday morning entry, in which I almost pass out from "dry heat" on an Indian reservation, and then almost pass out again from a traditional Italian lunch.