MY DAY WAS SAVED

BY AN EIGHTH GRADER!

Cindy is a HR Director in her county in Pennsylvania. She had to lay off another 22 people this week. When she got the chance to attend a conference in Phoenix, she signed Kevin out of school and jumped on it!

Kids just want to know the adults enjoy their company. We have stacks of research that says they just want to be "with" their parents. Kevin hugged on his mother and loved her all day. They were refreshing.

They got the "special visit" to the airport overlook in Sedona, one of the spiritual "vortexes".





Kevin thinks he took the right picture of his mother, but I really took the one that shows how they enjoy each other. See me in the picture?

At Indian Garden, I ordered their lunch and tried to talk Kevin into a "scorpion lollipop", but he wasn't ready for that adventure.

By the time we got to the volcanoes in northern AZ, Kevin explained that he learned in his earth science class that volcanoes with more silica in them produce bigger explosions...... . Whatever - the point is he was conversing with adults who enjoyed having him. She sat next to me and he was behind me.

We stopped and collected lava rocks for his science class.

On the Navajo Res., I gave them an extra stop at the overlook of the Little Colorado River, an 800 foot gorge:

I found him a fossil imprint of a frog.

Here Cindy thought she was getting the real picture, but it was I who got the real picture!

A single mom and a teenage boy who love one another. There's hope.

They ended the day with a helicopter ride over Grand Canyon. She said she's terrified of heights, but had to overcome herself for Kevin. He sat in the front seat.

You're doing good, Cindy, you go girl! Goodbye , Kevin, my young friend. Come back to Grand Canyon someday with children you love - and remember me.

TWO FOR TWO !

Now we're on a roll. They each got on the van and politely introduced themselves and made friends. By the end of the day they had traded e-mails and posed for group pictures. That's more like it. Lynne and Andrea are vocational rehab specialists for the blind. Lynn is the assistant director of the program for the State of Massachusetts. She currently has four openings and would hire me "in a minute". I got her card and will send a resume. That would be a cool way to get a new job.

Grand Canyon was on Andrea's bucket list (left).

Lynn with Fred and Eleanor at the church in Sedona.

Fred and Eleanor were with me for their 37th wedding anniversary. Rock out, Fred!

Pam and Sylvia are two sisters from Montreal who commented several times through the day that they have never ever seen a perfectly cloudless, azure sky.

Brit kids often take a "gap year" to travel, either before they start university or after they graduate. Jonathan just finished University, a History Major. All the adults adopted Jonathan. Dear Lord, protect that boy, he's going to Las Vegas next.

A HAUNTING!!!!

I knew this was coming. I've been waiting for it.

Several weeks ago, I arrived at the Sheraton to pick up a family of three. Unfortunately the husband was too rotund to board the bus. He yelled at me for arriving in "too small" bus. Understand, it's a standard 15 passenger bus that fits standard sized asses. His was too big. So, he removed his horrified wife and teenage daughter from the bus. (I wonder what the little girl will think of when she someday gets to go to Grand Canyon. )

As I predicted, he expected a "Too-Fat-To-Sit" refund of all three tickets. ($450) Hell, no, you don't get a "Rotundus Refundus." Half of America would be claiming the Portly Discount. And if you could get a Fat Refund, what does that have to do with the other two tickets for the wife and daughter who weren't too fat to fit?

Luckily, he booked his ticket through one of those online travel agents. (Read: he found the cheapest possible price by doing business with someone in Mumbai, India). On the face of their e-ticket are bold letters: No refund under any circumstances. (People always want a refund when it rains or snows.)

I satisfied our part of the contract by arriving (albeit I did not have earth moving equipment with me), so we got our $450. I had to write a memo for the Travel Agent.

They always think they're going be clever and challenge the charge with the credit card company -- and the credit card company always sides with the customer. Fine, then the Travel Agent will send him to the Lap-Band Collection Agency for $450. As tight as credit is right now, no one needs a "ding" on their credit report. I 'm afraid you're going to pay, Mr. Tubbs McTubbville. You're going to pay an obese surcharge because my bus is too small.

Goodbye!

What are the chances

Seven-of-Seven would be outgoing, gregarious, inquisitive, and appreciative. They introduced themselves to each other, made friends, were curious about the tour, and enjoyed each other's company.

From the left:

Caio ( I thought his name was pronounced like the Italian word for good-bye. But it's, pronounced "kay-ee-oh") a software engineer from Sao Paulo

Kathy, a school administrator from San Antonio

KyanLang, an accountant from Madison, Wisconsin

Julie, from Toronto and Nadir from Montreal - both engineers attending the Green -build Conference in Phoenix.

Kyle, a mechanical engineering student and Lisa, a sports medicine student at NAU.

They enjoyed each other's company and were all generally fun to be with.

My van is always a microcosm. What is the odd chemistry that leads to reward or punishment? Why are some groups so much fun to be with and some are such a chore? There's no predictor. I dreaded this group because all but Kyle and Lisa were travelling single, which usually bodes that they'll isolate.

Caio, Julie, and KyanLang exploring red rocks in Sedona.

Caio's first time to see snow ( I know, but he thought it was a big deal, so we stopped the bus.)

C'mon, Let's Vogue, everybody strike a pose!

Even the animals vogue.

The common denominator on all my trips is ME but I can't predict which groups will be a reward to be with and which will be a punishment. What can I do?

A Charity Runnnn

Oops, my hand shook:Sometimes it's OK to do a "charity run" ( read: No Tips ) when I have at least two or three people who are interested, ask good questions, participate, and are appreciative. Such was the day. You know it as soon as you meet them in the morning.
Two retirees from Sun City, Janet and Larry. Moved from Chicago. Intelligent, educated. Good conversationalist. Appreciative.
East Indian computer technologist living in London. Expect NOTHING. But at least she asked good questions and made good comments. And appreciated the trip.

It was LaQuicia's Birthday and her son, Kyree had off school, so they came with me to Grand Canyon. They sat all the way in the back, slept, played vidio games, read, and generally left me alone.

Johnny and Tiffany - on their honeymoon --- travelling with Johnny's mother from Galveston. OK. Good luck, kids. My mother would have ABSOLUTELY done the same.

Add to the mix a couple of accountants from Sydney. The Aussies usually aren't any trouble but they're not clear on the concept of gratuities.
So, you know you're not getting gratuities today; but hopefully, you can enjoy their company --- which I did. I played with the little boy, I found lava rocks for him, and the fossil imprint of a seashell. I talked with the retirees. I giggled at the honeymooners....

AND NOW - A SPECIAL RETURN APPEARANCE FROM ONE OF OUR OLD FRIENDS


(drum roll)



Sister Margaret!

Everyone will remember Sister Margaret, noted speaker, missionary, Christian leader, and all around great lady.
I hoped she would be my friend. I like conversing with people who are intelligent, educated, and of a different opinion. There was going to be a little problem in our relationship. Sister Margaret didn't pay me.
So, as a sincere Christian Brother, I sent Sister Margaret this e-mail:

Sister Margaret,

A note to tell you the pleasure it was to be with you. I enjoyed my day with you and I wish you would be my friend. Your comments and insight I appreciated. In fact, I thought of you yesterday when I was giving my Stimulus Package / Indian Apocalypse lecture yesterday and I used Horace Greeley's name--- instead of you-know-who. I was almost tempted to mention the world wide flood when I showed them the monocline on the indian reservation.

I have a problem. I'm sure you know the workman is worthy of his hire, but you didn't pay me a gratuity when you left us. I assume you forgot or you thought it was part of the ticket price. It isn't. You owe me money. Please use my gratuity to bless an organization on which you and I would agree:

Assembly of God Home Missions
Salvation Army
Teen Challenge
Girl Scouts ( but NOT Boy Scouts)
Any program to help homeless teenagers

All these have my heart. ( If you don't choose a good one, I'm going to make you send my money to ACORN!)

Please keep in touch,

Paul

I'm sorry to report that Sister Margaret never wrote back.
Bad Form! I wanted to be her friend. Bad Form!
Sister Margaret has been around long enough to know that people see her behavior much more clearly than they hear her words.
She is banished - to the
HALL OF SHAME!

Feeding the Soul

Saturday the AZ. Office of Tourism booked me to tour contemporary art critics from New York and Los Angeles. I had no idea there IS an "art scene" in Phoenix, so I was treated to go with the artists to private studios and events. Art is good for the soul.

I was on vacation. I was just the driver - along for the ride. I was the tourist. Everyone we met was beautiful. Barry Sparkman (Abstractions Inspired by Nature) ( http://www.barrysparkman.com/ )

I was afraid to take too many pictures because I didn't know who would have concerns about copyright infringement, but I didn't mind being a "tourist-for-the day".

Dominick Lombardi is an arts guy from New York. He works on the set of Law and Order CSI creating crime scenes (think blood spatters). He was very nice. He went out of his way when he saw I was interested to explain techniques in abstract applications.

I only took pictures in the places where I saw Dominick using his camera. ( http://www.ddlombardi.com/ )

This really isn't Cake.


Ooops. I'm afraid I have to learn about my camera. Just tilt your head in the meantime.

At " The Trashy Sculpture Exhibit " Everything is made of trash.

A BEER GARDEN

Hector is a "Post-Chicano" artist, here with Sharon, an art writer for LA Times. His collaborator, Dose, is a "graphic street artist" ( I know what that is.) In their collaboration they use different techniques to arrive at symmetry. I didn't understand but Dominick said it was good and Hector's curator was so interesting. She explained why colors in Southwest art must be brighter than elsewhere because the sun at our latitude washes anything dull to beige.
OK.


Then there was lunch:


The Welcome Diner is on 10th Street and Roosevelt in South Phoenix. It seats eight - that would be 8 people. Built in 1947 by the Valentine Diner Co. in Kansas City, Kansas. It came complete with dishes, cookware, everything for $50 down and $30/month - as advertised in Life Magazine. It was first in LA till 1955, then on Route 66 in Williams AZ. for 10 years, then in Phoenix till 1975 ----- then it sat empty and abandoned on the same corner for 25 years.
I wonder how many people drove past and said, "I wish I could open a Diner", but never had the courage to give the Welcome Diner a chance, till the Diner finally found Sloane



This is one of those "Beautiful Souls" who never has understood why he doesn't" fit" in this world. Duh, Sloane, its because you ARE different. You're from Atlantis, Sloane, you're Indigo.
His business plan is, "I don't have customers, I only have friends."
No, really. The guy doesn't have customers. He has no hours of operation. He's only open when one of his friends calls and says they're coming over.
He describes it as part of his own "spiritual journey".



But his "friends" include other Indigos who pass their time on this planet as physicists, botanists, sculptors, musicians...... He's popular with the ASU Business Dept. (imagine the field trips for that class!) and Sociology Dept. It's a "Beatnik" hangout. One might find a chess tournament or poetry slam at anytime at... OR, he might be closed.

The day wasn't over till we went to the

3 Car Pileup gallery: occupied by a painter, a photographer, and a musician:
( http://www.randyslack.com/ )

Joe Willis Smith is a percussionist whose fifth grade teacher would be horrified that he bangs on

"Anything But" drums.

.

By day's end, I had been fed.