We finally completed the move.
It's been a good 6 weeks, and it's taken a little while to recharge (a bit) and get into the groove of things here in the high desert.
I don't really want to dwell on the move, but let me say it one last time; it was probably the toughest thing that we've had to do. Months of putting everything on hold.
Our house is finally for sale, and we're mostly just waiting on that.
But, now that's over, Dawna and I are getting used to living in Portal, AZ.
WHAT'S DIFFERENT?
- It's much cooler here. It's probably 15-20 degrees nicer here, most of the time, and if it IS hot, it cools off really fast once the sun is behind the Chiricahuas.
- The sun is intense. The sun will eat anything in the SW, but at this higher elevation, it's the eater-king. It dissolves wood. It chars rocks. It surely destroys the skin, so we don hats and long sleeves quite a lot.
- It's so quiet. We rarely see a car. The 80 freeway is within sight (like Rodeo, NM) but semis are tiny, and their sound doesn't carry this far.
- Neighbors are far off. There are 5 or 6 homesteads within sight, but they're pretty far away. If a neighbor stood in front of their place, I'm pretty certain that I couldn't make them out.
- The rhythm is different. You kind of have to adapt to the land, rather than have it adapt to you. We go to bed pretty early, and get up at 6:30 or 7 most of the time. I'm still a log, and I'm slow getting up.
- It is truly beautiful here. Not that I haven't said that anytime it comes up, but the Chiricahua mountains are magical.
- We take our dog Oni out for daily walks. It's been good for us to get accustomed to the altitude, and move our bodies more than before.
Rock Stackin'
For a lark, I've been stacking rocks on our walks, so that you guys can find us. I'm sure that the neighbors think I'm a coot, but you know, maybe I am.
Here's some evidence:
