Howdy!
When you think of Arizona what pictures come to mind? Before I moved here I thought of vast plains of nothingness, lots of southwestern decor, cowboys, and vermin. I live in the desert now for 9 years. Not literally, but the desert nonetheless. I’ve met my share of scorpions, Palo verde beetles, and other creepy bugs of the like, but they were in my apartment, or at my job…in the city. It’s rare I see any cowboys, although I wish I could say the same about southwestern decor. *shudder* To get to the desert areas you have to do a bit of driving.
This weekend we took a drive and braced ourselves for the previously mentioned things. Dom’s mother invited us (including Gary) to visit the ranch she works at. So, we headed off in the morning to spend the day with her.
Gary, a.k.a. bubbies, a.k.a. beany bean bean, a.k.a bubbie knuckles, a.k.a baby bubbie, a.k.a baby bubba bean dip, a.k.a. squishy, a.k.a stinky, a.k.a stinky pants, a.k.a stinktron 2009, a.k.a. smelly, a.k.a. the f***ing cutest dog in the world, no contest!
He was being kind of crybaby whiner for the first few minutes in the car for whatever reason. Then, he finally relaxed and decided to nap the rest of the way there.
When we arrived Dom’s mom caught us up on her goings on and we had a beer. At 10am? Why not? Don’t judge me. After the drinky and talky we decided to go for a walky. This was Gary’s first visit to a ranch type situation where he could roam free and pee and sniff wherever and whatever he wanted. It was fun to see him explore.
He met some horses for the first time. He barked at them all tough-guy-like. It was hilarious! He kept getting in trouble with us for getting behind them and trying to sniff. I didn’t want him to become airborne from a swift kick to the face. Those horse butts are much higher up than he’s accustomed to.
While on our walk we ran into these folks.
Friends of Dom’s mothers out for a ride. Great folks, and beautiful horses. We all walked together to another friend’s property to say hello and Gary made some new friends.
Dom decided to ride one of the horses for a little bit. He asked me if I wanted to and I said “Nopey!” That’s right, I am a sissy la-la. I rode a pony at the fair when I was about 6 years old and that’s about the length of my horse riding career. Someday I’ll get the ovaries to get on one of those things. But, for now I’m okay with my sissy status.
We made our way back to the bunk house and Dom’s mommy made us clam linguine for lunch. Didn’t get any pics of that cause it was pretty much gone in a matter of seconds. It was delish!
The rest of the visit was spent chatting about old times, family, and just a little bit of politics. It was a great day, and it went by too fast. Next time will be an over-niter for sure. Gary had a blast and was pooped. He went to sleep as soon as we reached the highway.
Back to the city we went! The experience made me appreciate all the beautiful terrains this state has to offer. In a weird way it reminded me of California. When I moved here people would ask where I was from. When I told them, they would say, “Oh, I love the beach!” or, “Do you miss the beach?”. When I told them I didn’t really live near any beaches, they were surprised. Mostly at themselves for thinking everyone goes to the beach there.
I lived in a rural area, where there were lots of cowboys, and farmers. I lived hours from any beaches. I But, I always knew I could go to one. It would just take a little driving.
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