You want to know something very insightful? Phoenix is a LONG way from Coleman!
My wife, Barbara, our grandson Jacob, and I traveled to the “Grand Canyon State” the latter part of July for our
son’s (Luke) wedding. We left on a Monday and took a leisurely(?) two-day drive to our destination, stopping in
Las Cruces, NM for the night after only an eight-hour drive. That left a short six or seven hour drive into Phoenix. I
almost failed to mention that I was pulling a trailer (borrowed from friend, Danny Armstrong), filled with food, BBQ
pits, coolers, fans, cookware, presents, etc. The bed of my pickup had about 1/4 cord of mesquite in it, too. Gas
mileage wasn’t too good there...SURPRISE! We did make one short stop between Wilcox, AZ and Benson to
show Jacob the beautiful Texas Canyon. It amazes me every time I see it.
We got there in the middle of the afternoon, and checked into our motel for the next three days, the Ramada
Limited in Tempe. I now know why they call it a “Limited”. The lady who checked us in, smiled and told us that she
was giving us one of the best rooms in the motel. I know now why she was smiling. We were on the top floor, at the
very end....the farthest room from the elevator, the lobby, the ice machines, EVERYTHING!
We had to tote coolers full of food for the wedding, wedding dresses, all our clothes, etc. up three flights of stairs.
Then guess what happened? The keys that smiling lady gave us would not work. As many of you might know, it is
not cool in Arizona in late July, especially after you’ve carried a pickup full of luggage up three flights of stairs. I can
just imagine that lady breaking up with laughter about this point. To put it mildly, I was not a very happy man.
Luckily, after about five minutes of stewing in my own sweat, I found a maid to let us in. Barbara took the keys
back to “Smiley” and got two new ones.
After a short rest, we tromped back down the stairs and headed to Fred and Deb Santiago’s (the new in-laws)
home, where we would spend the majority of our time for the next five days and nights. We unloaded all the food,
and made sure the briskets, ribs, and sausage were all still frozen. Thanks to some dry ice I got from the Shoppin’
Baskit, all the meat was still frozen as solid as a brick.
When we got back to the motel that night, guess what...the new keys didn’t work either. After about fifteen minutes
we got one of the keys to finally work. Barb went down and got us two more. I don’t need to tell you that they didn’t
work either. We stayed somewhere else Friday and Saturday nights, thank God.
Family and friends began to show up little by little. It was great to see all six our our kids together again. Lisa, and
husband George, and daughter Kaylee drove in from Citrus Heights, CA...a measly ten-hour drive. Levi and Leah
flew in from DFW. Evan flew in from Aspen, CO, and LaRae and husband, Ken, drove in from here.
Several of Luke’s Marine buddies also showed up for the festivities. It was great to finally meet Raf, P.J. and
Gunny. We’ve heard a lot about those guys while Luke was in Iraq.
We prepared a little each day for the Friday night rehearsal dinner. The guys moved the pit, stacked the wood, set
up tents, tables and chairs, while the ladies took care of most of the food prep. Barbara was amazed by Fred’s
sister-in-law, Rosie, who could chop pickles and peel hard-boiled eggs faster than any pros you see on TV.
Dale “The Chef” Watson put the five briskets on Thursday night late, so they’d be ready for Friday evening. He
had to get them done a little early so we could put on the thirty pounds of ribs, and uncounted pounds of sausage.
His wife, Betty, made her excellent rice dish, and helped Barb and Deb with food prep, too.
Friday was hectic to say the least. The rehearsal was at 4 p.m., but I had to stay behind in order to pick up Barb’s
parents at the airport. Why me? I don’t know my way around Phoenix, so of course I got lost going to the airport. I
finally got there, but then got bad directions on where to meet the flight. Thank goodness the flight was a bit late,
for I got to the gate just about the time they arrived. The way out of the airport was very confusing also. Yes, I got
lost again, and ended up in Mesa (wherever the heck that is). Shana, my new daughter-in-law, guided me back to I-
10, and from there I got us back to Fred and Deb’s house, none the worse for wear.
The party and meal that evening was great! All of the ribs were gone, all the rice, all the sausage, all the beans,
and three briskets. For some reason, there was a bunch of potato salad left. Only a couple of people got thrown in
the pool, and neither of them was me, so I was happy.
The wedding Saturday was held in downtown Phoenix. This was the first Catholic wedding ceremony I had ever
attended. The priest was very funny, and did a great job. I had heard that these ceremonies sometimes lasted two
or three hours, so I was relieved when we were through in an hour.
Everyone rushed to their vehicles so we could get to the reception out in Chandler, AZ. There were five of us in my
pickup, and we were about fifteen minutes from our destination when we got a phone call from Shana. It seems
that nobody remembered to give the bride and groom a ride. They were left standing in front of the church; he in
his Marine Dress Blues and her in a big wedding dress. We hooked a “U” and headed back, only getting
somewhat lost once. Thank goodness
for Erica’s instincts and directions.
Now, I don’t have to tell you that both Luke and Shana were just a little bit mad. There is an old saying, “if looks
could kill”, and if that is true then that couple would’ve been mass murderers. It didn’t help matters that there were
seven of us in my truck...in bulky clothing...in Arizona...in July. When we got to “The Castle” for the reception (the
last to arrive), people got out of our way.....fast!
The photographers then grabbed us and took numerous photos. Thankfully my part was over fairly soon, so I got
to get to the party quickly. I had a blast, and so did most of the folks.
The next morning came way too soon, as Barb and I prepared to skip out of town as quickly as possible.
Unfortunately, for me, Leah needed a ride to the airport to catch an early flight. Guess what? I got there and back
to the hotel without getting lost! Then we discovered that the guys had put two empty kegs in the back of my truck,
so we had to wait for Fred to come get them before we could leave.
At last, we pulled out of the parking lot at 10:15 Texas time. I made it about an hour before my eyes refused to
cooperate any more, and I gave the wheel to Barb. She, too, had trouble keeping her eyes open, as she could only
make it to Benson before she gave up. I drove to Lordsburg, NM (where gas was $2.57/gal.), and let Barb take
over again. She made it to the other side of El Paso before quitting once again. I just about had my wind back by
this time and made it to
Midland, from where Barb drove on into Coleman. I’m sorry, but 14-1/2 hours on the road is just too much for this
old man. I am still tired. I need a vacation to get over this...hint, hint.
The next time one of our kids gets married, it better be somewhere a heck of a lot closer....like Coleman, Texas!
|
|
