It’s hard to imagine how I could have done a worse job keeping up with my fancy “Place Blog” idea, but I would still like to share some of the highlights of my time in the Phoenix area. I’ve been in Mesa (just east of Phoenix) since January 5th and I will be leaving on the morning of March 27th. For the most part, I’ve really enjoyed this trip.
I was able to find a furnished, one-bedroom apartment less than a block away from where I work. (I have a perfect view of the shuffleboard court.) It has been a much more comforting experience, having my own place as opposed to living out of an Extended Stay America. It feels nice to “come home” and not have to walk through the lobby.
The weather here has been amazing. Nearly every day has been perfectly sunny with a high in the 70s and a low in the 50s. The clear sky lends itself to spectacular sunsets and an intense display of stars.
Mesa, while not a small town in terms of population, has an unmistakably small-town feel. The people here are very friendly and the culture is very relaxed. Dressing up, for a lot of these folks, means putting on your black cowboy boots and tucking in your shirt.
I’ve been adopted by the owners of a small downtown restaurant. The family-run Jersey Girl Café is my favorite, all-time lunch spot ever. Every single menu item is delicious (Yes, I’ve tried them all). But the food is not what keeps me coming back three or four times a week. I’ve become friends with the whole family, parents, grandparents and newborns alike. Some of my favorite memories of this trip will be of the late nights, long after the restaurant has closed, that I have been invited to stick around and eat and drink and tell stories and laugh with the whole family. I’ve even found myself helping around the restaurant a couple times. It’s been comforting.
On my very short drive (or walk) to work every morning, I see Superstition Mountain looming large at the edge of town. Beyond it is the Tonto National Forest, which is nearly 3 million acres of total wilderness. Not only is it beautiful to see mountains every day (not something I am used to in Florida), but I am reminded constantly of all the hiking and exploring there is to do before I leave. There is a part of me that would love to ditch everything I know and spend years hiking through the wild alone. That part of me has been very excited here.
My biggest disappointment/ regret is not having shipped my motorcycle from Tampa to Mesa. It would have been pretty costly, but the perfect weather combined with the beautiful scenic roads winding through the desert mountains has attracted a large biker crowd to the area. You can’t step outside without seeing (and hearing) a group of bikers headed for the mountains to take advantage of the perfect weather and routes. Arizona has been great. Arizona on a motorcycle would have been even better.
In Roman mythology a Genius Loci was the protective spirit of a place. In contemporary usage, Genius Loci usually refers to a location's distinctive atmosphere, or a "spirit of place", rather than necessarily a guardian spirit.
Topophilia
Topophilia is literally love of place and is used to describe a strong sense of place or identity. Topophilia can be defined widely so as to include all emotional connections between physical environment and human beings.
A Place Blog
To me, traveling to a place is about understanding what that place means and how it works... about understanding what it means to be there. I'm very fascinated by the connections between physical environment and human beings.
Sometimes I will write directly about this connection, and, the rest of the time, the "Genius Loci" will be affecting me whether I realize it or not. I plan on using this blog as a place to write whatever is on my mind really, but my goal is to at least consider how my sense of place is both developing and being developed by what I am thinking.
Oddly enough, the creation of this blog is not so much about where I am but where I am not. I am not with you, my friends and loved ones, which, at the end of the day, is my favorite place to be.
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