Arizona

Photo by Mike Tennant

This past weekend my lovely sisters made their way out of the cold and down to sunny AZ.

Some highlights: laying by the pool, shopping, Pita Jungle (sorry Ashley), visiting family, climbing Camelback, celebrating Anna's birthday (Happy 19th!), watching Modern Family, relishing in the sun, and just being with with Laura and Anna--they make life fun. I love you both!

So yeah, Arizona. I think I should speak some words on my new State of residence.

Here are the things I thus far appreciate about Arizona:

1. The Sun and It's healing qualities.

2. Pleasant smells (I'm pleased 98% of the time).

3. The sound of Coyotes at night.

4. All varieties of Cacti.

5. Clean air.

6. Aunt Stacey and Uncle Dave who are making this transition easier.

7. Scottsdale Fashion Center (sometimes I end up there without remembering leaving my apartment).

8. I've seen more than one Black person.

9. Enzo's Gelato Bar (flavor of choice: pistachio).

10. The University 1st Ward and the fact that everyone attempts to meet one another and doesn't pretend that church is high school. Finally!

11. Really neat sunsets.

12. ASU--for making me laugh at myself and others.

13. Well organize roads and nice big street signs.

14. And finally, the gentleman at McDonald's who gave me a free Diet Coke.

But please don't tell Utah, she's still my #1 and might get jealous.

Riding in cars with strangers

I have evening classes this semester and I don't usually get out until around 10:30 pm. I also park really far away from campus, out near some train tracks and an abandoned warehouse (it's a long story why I have to park there) anyway, not the best situation for a child-sized gal like me that speed walks faster than she runs.

So lately I've turned into a little social butterfly in an attempt to get rides from my schoolmates to my car parked way the heck out in Gotham City.

I sure do seem to ask the most interesting people in my classes. I've already gotten a lift from not one--but two practicing Wiccans, a classmate's teenage son and his girlfriend, an alcoholic, a girl who was on So You Think You Can Dance, someone with the last name Lubck (don't know how that's possible), and the list of bizarreness goes on.

The best part of this whole thing is how I end up asking for rides, convincing the driver that it was their idea.

Example: walking out of class I asked Gloria if she knew if the buses were running this late.

Gloria: "I don't know...why? Do you park very far?"

Me: "Oh, well kind of but hey, it's a great workout!"

Gloria: "But it's so late and dark."

Me: "Just reason to walk faster haha!"

Gloria: "Uh no, you're coming with me."

Me: "No, I couldn't. It's probably out of your way."

Gloria: "No I don't care, I'm driving you."

Me: "Well this is just so nice of you, thanks!"

Done and done.

Mom and Dad don't worry, I've got it all under control. Luckily I keep forgetting deodorant so if anyone came within 5 feet of me and I began to perspire...we'd all lose.

Oh and we watched this little treat in class:

You really only need to see the first 30 seconds to get what it's all about, but skip ahead to 6:10 and it comes full circle.

New Name

Apparently my name is entered in ASU's database as Amu Campbell.

All of my instructors are attempting to memorize names based off of the database information-- so it's a real treat for me whenever I'm called on.

"Amu...is it? Well let's hear what you think about this chapter..." Real treat.

Even after I've corrected Amu to Amy it doesn't matter, I'm still Amu at the end of the day.

Typical

Today I noticed a fire truck and an ambulance at the elementary school playground across from my apartment. I, of a curious nature, headed over to see what had happened, who was hurt...etc.

Nope.

Just the local firemen and male EMTs having a shirtless game of soccer. It was hilarious, just like you'd imagine. All of them attractive, strong, tan, sweating..I had to laugh.

I also stayed and watched for a little bit.

A Few Funny Things

I'm still in complete shock over my move to Arizona and a quick start to school and when I'm suddenly thrown into new situations and presented with decision making my mind tends to think outrageously and irrationally.

I think I mentioned in my last post about writing a $20,000.00 check and wandering aimlessly through strange cities...that's just a small sample, it gets better--Today I walked into the men's bathroom.

Here's what happened: Taking in the confusion of the day and needing to relieve myself of the gallon of water I chugged that morning, I headed for the bathrooms in the Union building. Without really considering my surroundings I first open what I think is the women's bathroom door and found it to be a janitors closet. I laughed at myself and turned to see if anyone saw me do this, a few people sitting at tables did. Still laughing, I head for the door adjacent noticing the universal bathroom stick figure."Ah, the bathroom" I said to myself. In I walked and of course there are a couple of guys at a urinal and another washing his hands. Wide-eyed, I apologized and headed back out. Same people who saw me open the janitors closet were waiting for me when I got out...also very wide-eyed.

Yay for graduate school!

Side note: I'm at war with my roommate's cat. It only makes itself known to me when nighttime comes around but always in the creepiest way possible. Out of the shadows I'll hear a hiss and see gleaming eyes dart past me and disappear somewhere...watching. I sleep with my bedroom door locked but still lay awake in fear that he'll pick it with his dew claw and smother me in my sleep. The other night I got up to go to the bathroom and came back out to find a bag strategically placed outside the door and near the stairs. I'm convinced the cat placed it there hoping I'd trip and tumble down the stairs.

Well that's it for now.

First Day of Classes

12:00 pm: Feeling cute, wearing a new sweater. Due to lack of parking on campus I park in downtown Tempe-- a 15 min walk to class. I don't mind, I like walking.

12:15 pm: Arrive on campus, overheated. Sweater was a bad decision.

12:16 pm: Take in the environment: Billions of young people in shorts yelling things like "party!" and "dance!"...I'm being dramatic, probably seeing things through the eyes of heat exhaustion.

12:20 pm: Walk into the bookstore.

extremely crowded

12:20:10 pm: Walk back out.

12:30 pm: Decide to get my ID card.

Forget to go fix myself in the mirror. This happens:

*I know it doesn't really look that bad right here but you should see it in person, my cheeks are red and I'm definitely cross-eyed. Really, it's something special.

12:40 pm: Walk over to Jamba Juice and order a carrot/orange juice. Employees all seem to find it super hilarious that I like "grandma juice" and switch their language over to Spanish so I can't understand.

12:45 pm: Employee making my drink complains about the amount of time it takes to juice a carrot. I didn't care.

12:50-2:55 pm: Wander around sweating in my nice sweater.

3:00-4:00 pm: Institute. A girl wearing all denim volunteers to conduct. First, she speaks longer than acceptable about the Masters program she is in and then asks the class to share their favorite Book of Mormon story to their neighbor. Nobody participates. Denim girl turns to me and asks me to speak up on behalf of everyone... to this I reply by waving my hand in refusal.

4:10 pm: Step outside to a surprising and violent downpour of rain.

Run to next class.

4:30-7:30 pm: Drenched, I sit through Intro to Effective Instruction.

7:35 pm: Attempt to run through the rain to buy an umbrella. I'm too scared and don't make it.

7:40-10:30 pm: Sit through Content Area Literacy. Disagree with everything and get in an argument with the professor. Awesome.

10:35 pm: Work up the courage to walk 15 minutes in a torrential storm, sans umbrella, to my car.

Water up to my ankles, literally.

Can't see where I'm going and get seriously lost.

Car splashes me with mud (just like in the movies. In fact I said that out loud to myself).

Dark

Very cold.

10:40 pm: Girl spots me from across the street, asks me if I want a ride to my car. I don't hesitate to say yes.

Sitting in Alika's car.

Alika pulls out a car breathalyzer ignition interlock. This means she's been convicted of multiple DUIs and in order to start her car she has to pass a self-conducted breathalyzer test.

While her car takes 10 minutes to start up she tells me about her prison adventures and we listen to underground hip hop. Frankly, I'm terrified.

11:00 pm: Make it to my car. Completely soaked, confused, and tired.

Looking back it's funny/sad/typical of what my first day of school in a strange town would be.

The real incongruity here is what I'm most concerned about at this point: my new sweater headed for the dry-cleaners.

Hello from Arizona

Woof.

The last few days have been exhausting in every way possible.

Moving out of my home and into a strange apartment located in a different state is hands down one of the hardest thing I've ever done--emotionally.

I think the same thing can be said for my dear parents who accompanied me down for a few days to help me settle in. I didn't make it easy for them when I would, at random, burst into tears in restaurants, department stores, the car, walking down a hall, or anywhere really. Oh Amy.

My parents truly are so wonderful. Not much more can be said on this subject without me shorting out my keyboard from drowning it in tears...so I will let it be. My parents are wonderful.

Most of my emotions have been spent on my separation from this goober:

We've spent 19 years side by side and now we are apart. It's hard--harder than I ever thought it could be.

But people have been so good to me, seriously. My older sister Laura is taking every possible step to make this transition as easy as possible and she's doing it all the way from San Francisco, what a gal!

A big gigantic shout out to my uncle Dave and aunt Stacey for being so great to me and for living within 20 minutes of my apartment. I'm lucky to have such a wonderful family close by.

When it comes down to it, I'm down here for a reason: grad school. I'm excited to get back to school, I've missed it. And really-- if anything, I'll have some super hilarious stories about my absentmindedness writing a $20,000 check (oh wait that one already happened), or probably some super funny stories about the students at ASU. They seem sweet but I think there is a lot of potential for blog postings.

I miss everyone who is reading this post and I love you dearly.

-Amy