Now to the gritty details...we left Lynchburg on April 6th at about noon. After a late night of loading and packing and cleaning and loading and packing and cleaning we finally got the U-haul loaded and were ready. We made it to Nashville the first night and then headed toward Altus, OK where we spent a day with the Nordstrom family. It was great to get to meet their newest edition and catch up. Cory and I got to share some miles in our bare feet on some flat OK streets and country roads. From there, we journeyed across Texas and New Mexico and finally into Arizona. Those are some boring states to drive through. Scenery was limited and very flat. Nothing compared to the hills of Virginia. Once we started getting close to Flagstaff we could see a large mountain in the distance. From Flagstaff the drive is all downhill into Phoenix. Once in Phoenix, Kyle Schultz came to our rescue and essentially moved all of our stuff into our apartment, with a little help from Patsy and I. THANK YOU KYLE!
Now I know that was a very abbreviated summary of our journey but below are plenty of pictures which essentially tell the entire story. Since moving here I have acquired a new hobby. Patsy's job requires a daily commute of at least an hour each way, my commute varies from 20-40 minutes depending on traffic. Problem is....we only have one car. Our apartment is conveniently located near a canal that has a bike path along it. It is also quite convenient that my job is located on the same canal and the same bike path. So for the last 2 weeks I have been riding my bike to and from work on days where Patsy cannot pick me up. So my running has slightly taken a back seat as I allow my legs to adjust to the added mileage. Again, this is all very summarized as I have been way behind on updating this blog.
New Lessons Learned.
1. We are pretty good at moving. This trip has taught both of us the value in throwing things away. The Lynchburg Good Will should have an abundance of good items resulting from our purging activities prior to the move.
2. We now know why everyone says that Arizona is "hot, but beautiful". When we first told people we were moving here everyone always had the same response..."It is hot there, but beautiful". That couldn't be more true. This state has so much natural beauty and beauty that is so different than any I've ever seen.
3. Jermaine is the best cat ever....
4. New beginnings are scary, but amazing as well. This move has taught us that new things are scary as all get out. When we finally moved into our apartment we both just sat there and had a proper sulk. The emotion and stress of weeks of rushed preparation all came barreling down at once. The most amazing thing is, we have quickly adapted and have made our place our own, and are loving every minute of it. Yeah there are times when we wonder what the heck we are doing but that makes it all the more exciting. We miss the mess out of our VA friends and really miss our families but we are confident that this is the path the Lord has chosen for us right now and we couldn't be more happy about that.
5. WATER! I have never drank so much water in my life. This state is so dry that you don't sweat...at all. But no matter how much water I drink, I can never get enough.
6. FLAT, but not. As you can see by the pictures. The state is flat....but also has "mountains". Now these protrusions of rock and sand are by no means the size of mountains that were out East, but they sure do the trick. We have been hiking every weekend and are hoping to hike as much as possible before the sauna is turned on this summer.
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| New Running Trail...FLAT! |
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| My new Ride to work |
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| An Arizona-style Mountain |
Well that is enough for this post, I'm sure I'll have more stories and additives as they come to me but for now enjoy the photos and updates. Be looking for race/training updates soon as I continue to get plugged in to the new running community.
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| Me looking ever so pensive |
As always...Jog on Mates!
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