Winter?

Greetings!

Well, things are cooling down a bit here, with lows in the 30s and highs in the mid 50s. The whole state of AZ just had winter storm advisories, even blizzard warnings up north around Flagstaff. In Tucson we had strong winds and rain (much needed) overnight, and at higher elevations (above 6000 feet) there was snow and some road closings. But as I look outside the sun is shining and clouds are clearing.

This past weekend we had two different cultural events. Friday night we went to a local park, Tohono Chul, to hear Gabriel Ayala, a Native American classical guitarist. A few weeks ago I was in a charity golf tournament and he was one of my playing partners. He is a lot of fun and a great guitarist. In fact he has been touring recently with the Four Tops and the Temptations up in Canada, as well as playing down in South America. He has also been nominated for Grammys.

The second event I had been anticipating for many months. Once I saw the Vikings were playing the Arizona Cardinals in Phoenix, I wanted to get tickets to the game. Using Stub Hub (thanks, Gina :)) I was able to purchase two tickets back in August. Originally the game was set for 2:15 local time, and Martha and I were just going to drive up for the day. But the NFL changed the game to be the NBC Sunday night game. So, we decided to stay overnight rather than driving home late that night.

We parked for free in a high school nearby, and walked about 1 mile or so to the stadium. We passed lots of Viking and Cardinal folks tail gating. We arrived almost an hour before they opened the gates, so we had to wait. Many folks wanted to buy tickets, but the only tickets left were Club level at $500 a ticket. While we were waiting I met Jeff Dugan's (Vikings #83) mom who was there to pick up tickets Jeff left for his parents at will call. They live in Pennsylvania, but they follow him all around to watch him play. Any way we finally got in about 90 minutes before kick off. We got a few snacks to eat and relaxed while watching some of the players chatting on the field (Favre and Warner talked a good 10 minutes or so). We had good seats, upper deck but in the corner of the end zone, so we could see all of the field pretty well.

One thing I don't like about being at the stadium is the noise level. Not the fans, but all loud music they play before the game and during breaks. Some of it was painfully loud (am I getting old or what?) and I was thrilled when the game started so the music would stop. Another thing I don't like is the excessive drinking. One 20-something Viking fan two rows in front of us kept standing up on every play and when people asked him to sit down he was rude and obnoxious. Also, mid way through the third quarter a fight broke out about 10-15 rows behind us. I just didn't like the vibes anymore so Martha and I left after the third quarter. Shuttle buses brought us back to the parking lot and we headed for the hotel.

I am glad we went to the game. It was probably my only chance to see Bret Favre play, and though the Vikings did not win (at least the first Viking touchdown was in our corner of the endzone) there was no denying that they had tremendous fan support at the game. I guess I am spoiled in that I prefer to sit at home, in front of the big screen, snack on cheap food and drink, see all the replays, and have easy access to the bathroom.

Well, this week we begin the kitchen redo. Today and tomorrow the tile guy is here to tear out the old tile in the kitchen and family room. Then next week the cabinets will be replaced, and some tile will be laid. Then Christmas week the rest of the tile will be laid. The new counter tops will go in Jan. 7th after we return to Tucson from our dose of real winter in MN.