An Arizona Cheesehead's Thoughts

Most of 2020 sucked. But, there were some good moments that made memories to cling to. I'm going to review some of those moments from each month. (Disclaimer - my memory isn't what it used to be so this is my story and I'm sticking to it regardless of reality.) It was definitely the dog days of summer in June.  I had the 2020 Rite of Passage in that I took a COVID-19 test. The good news is that it was negative. The other good news is that they didn't actually penetrate my brain with the swab but it sure felt like it. #donotrecommend Tammy and Michael made a grocery store run for me so I didn't run out of Diet Pepsi while I waited for my test results which would have been a crisis for sure. At that time, they were taking at least a week to get results back. Does not represent my actual cats. I finished up my second paint by number masterpiece. This one had so many little dots where I couldn't read the prescribed number so it was a lot of "let's go with t...

Most of 2020 sucked. But, there were some good moments that made memories to cling to. I'm going to review some of those moments from each month. (Disclaimer - my memory isn't what it used to be so this is my story and I'm sticking to it regardless of reality.) The home improvements continued in March. More complaining from Steven continued as well. Bzzzz. Bzzzz. Party lights on the back patio. Solar lights on the driveway and front patio. Hanging the lights was easy. The front lights were more challenging. Apparently, my front yard is a shallow layer of gravel on top of packed dirt impersonating concrete. Steven ended up digging holes with a screwdriver then shoving the bases of the lights in while I followed behind and attached the actual light part. It looks great except that I think all of the batteries (yep, solar lights with batteries) have worn out now so I need to replace them. It sure made my house easier to find at night. As is my way, I waited until the last minu...

Have you ever visited the MIM (Musical Instrument Museum) in Phoenix? If you're at all into music and history, you should visit it posthaste if you're in the Valley area. If you're not in town, plan on visiting it the next time you're here. It's an immersive experience. They have the world divided up by region then country and give you headsets that automatically play as you get close to an exhibit. Nearly every exhibit had audio and/or video of someone playing they type if instrument displayed if not playing the actual instrument. So. Much. I first went several years ago and thought it was very impressive then but they've collected countless more instruments and created many new exhibits. My Bestie from Minnesota visited last weekend and we were there close to opening time on Friday morning and spent 3 hours and 20 minutes with only washroom breaks and couldn't get through everything. It's at least a 5 hour adventure if you're like us ...

I spent the first part of August in beautiful Detroit Lakes MN (beautiful in August, pretty sure I wouldn't think the same in January) for a super big and long running country music show. It was my third WEFest and I truly love the event. When people ask me about the lineup, I start rattling off all of the acts. Most people, unless they listen to The Highway on Sirius/XM, go glassy eyed and politely nod because there are a bunch of up and comers they've never heard of. There are also always some "classic" country acts that have been around for a long time and that the young listeners may not know. I listen to The Highway about 90% of the time in my car so I know all the newbies. I've also been listening to country since high school which is, sadly, long enough ago to know the classic artists, too. Here are my thoughts on the performances. Any quotes are actually paraphrased because I wasn't smart enough to write them down right away and it's been ...

It took me two work charity golf tournaments to succeed but I won an Amazon Echo and a Dot on Friday. Sweet! Sweet, sweet victory! While I couldn't justify flat out buying them, I could justify buying raffle tickets for the chance to win them. It's all for the kids, after all. For those that know me well, it's probably surprising that I didn't win these last year. Frankly, I should have but here's what happened. I had put all my raffle tickets into the bowl for the Echo and Dot. While there was a lull in the action between morning and afternoon golf, apparently the raffle people were bored and decided to do some "practice" draws. Draw one:  Kathy. "What a surprise. Not." Draw two:  Kathy. "Again?" I don't know how many more they may have done but when it came time for the final draw it went like this: "The winner of the Echo and Dot is....Tina!" Ripoff. I was very clear this year. "No practice shenaniga...

I've been scouring my digital photos trying to find something to match some of the more obscure Photo A Day themes from Fat Mum Slim  and it has been a delightful trip down multiple memory lanes. I've shared some of the "oldies" on Facebook and I think my peeps have enjoyed that. The following three pictures called out to me for a story, not just a picture post, though. Two of my Iowan friends and I spent a short period of time in Milwaukee back in June of 2011. We roamed the city for a night and day before meeting up with more friends to see Jimmy Buffett at Alpine Valley. So. Much. Fun. We visited the Bronze Fonz statue and each posed for a picture with it. I wonder if our poses say anything about our personalities? I'm just a hugger. (I'm actually not a hugger, alcohol was involved.) Pete is too cool for school. Dawnie is, well, Dawnie. When it comes to counting my blessings, having great friends like these two ladies is very, very ...

One of the cool things at WE Fest were the meet and greets. Everyone I talked to said the artists were wonderful and patient. Jim tried to get us in on a couple but it appeared we were going to get shut out until he got a text from a friend "First 50 people in line get to meet Steven Tyler." That was all we needed to know to abandon the Apple Pies shots we were slugging at a campsite bar. As we hustled over, a friend of Jim's said hi and, since it was her birthday, Jim told her to come with us, right now , for a great birthday present. We got there in plenty of time and dutifully lined up. Anyone pulling a cell phone was threatened with getting booted from the line. Do you know how hard it is not to pull out your phone to check the time or messages when you're standing in a line? Hard. We sent Sandy the birthday girl ahead of us. She told Steven it was her 61st birthday and he told her it couldn't be because she looked so amazing. He then sang in her ear and...

I spent last week in Detroit Lakes, MN for a Country Music festival called WE Fest. It's been going on since 1983 and my friends, Big Jim and Mary Ann, have gone every year and my Bestie, Jim, has been to all but one. At some point last year, I said "I'm in!" What a fun event! Very well organized. Lots of music with a mixture of up and coming artists, established ones and a few rockers. We had VIP seats which included "free" beer. All those Minnesotans were complaining about which beer it was but I was quite pleased. What do those ice fishers know? You could also get Summer Shandy and Mike's Hard Lemonades. Following are my impressions on each act. Jim and I saw all of them, missing a few opening songs for some (long beer lines) and about 20 minutes for one act because we were at a Meet and Greet. We were in the 38th row so my pics were all crap because I only had my phone. Lesson learned - take the camera. THURSDAY Amanda Watkins The on...

In case you aren't wired into the world of Jimmy Buffett as I am, he announced this week that he's going to slow down next year. Of course, for Jimmy, that might just mean fewer concerts but more books, CDs (I believe they just announced a new Christmas one coming), plane trips and surfing. I don't think the guy will ever "rest". A few people waxed nostalgic about their love for Jimmy and I was reminded of three Buffett shows I've been to that were awesome in different ways. Wasted Away Again In Margaritaville The earliest show was when Jimmy and Mac came to open the Glendale Margaritaville (RIP) in April of 2008. It was an all day event. Mville gave the Arizona Parrot Head Club 500 free passes and invited a group of us for morning cocktails and some TV time on the local news. A parking lot tailgate followed and then they roped off the courtyard area across from the restaurant and put Jimmy and Mac on a stage in front of the Arena. Can you tell I wa...