Home is where the hot is
As much as I loved Chicago, and Boston even more, my heart is in Phoenix, or more accurately, Arizona. Yeah, it’s hot, and no, Phoenix doesn’t really seem to have a “culture” per se, but the more time I spend here, the more I love it.
Maybe it’s because i was born here. Maybe it’s because they’re actually going to put in a train, so there’s at least an intention of addressing the mass-transit issues, or the fact that we have 350 days of sunshine a year. Today, for example, I’m spending the day on the coffee shop patio, and this tomorrow morning I’ll drive two hours with some friends and we’ll hike to the summit of the highest point in the state, Mt. Humphreys, in Flagstaff. It will be 102 degrees at home, but it will be 76 at the base of the mountains, and probably freezing at the top. Throw in an ocean, and we’d have just about every climate in the world within two hours of where I sit. Where else do you get that range of environments in such a short commute?
Yesterday, I met a young man who is also one of the few born-and-raised-here locals. He has a site dedicated to all things Phoenix, mostly for his friends and family around the country or recently transplanted people who just want to know what there is to do. We were actually interviewing him for a position in our company, and the other two interviewers in the room were transplants, on from Kansas City and the other from Southern California. As soon as they broached the subject of stuff to do in AZ, they all lit up and excitedly talked about all the things there are to do here.
Being actually from the area, I was amazed at the things they could rattle off that they loved about the state, and why they chose to move here. They gushed about the Grand Canyon, the Desert Botanical Gardens, the sunsets, the outdoor activities, and so on. Again the point was driven home that I live in a great place, and should feel fortunate that the only real issue we have to deal with is the heat.
And, as they say, it is a dry heat.
