Road trip!

In Thatfamily we are prone to "jumping the gun." I won't add air to my tires because I am sure they will explode. Thatmom refuses to eat at Tommy Bahamas because people who make clothes shouldn't make food. And my Aunt, Toxicesq, will never live in California.

To be fair, of the three of us, Toxicesq has the most reason to stick to her guns. (Crap, there is an awful lot of arms language in here - I blame it on the wine and the intensely political "Lions for Lambs" Thatboy and I just finished watching.) The first (and only) time Toxicesq lived in California, it was marked by the death of her father. Then her brother (Thatdad) moved out here and had a heart attack. If there was any doubt, the final nail in the literal coffin was Thatdad's death this past February. You can't blame Toxicesq for associating California with bad things. Nevertheless, China moved out to California to go to school, leaving Toxicesq on the "wrong" coast. She rectified the situation by moving out to Arizona a couple of years ago, making her far more accessible to all of us. Although Thatmom and Thatdad had gone to visit Toxicesq in her Arizona home, Thatboy and I had never made the trip. And I had never set foot in the state of Arizona. When Thatmom found out I had never been to Arizona, she insisted we make a trip out to visit Toxicesq.

Although we didn't have any set plans on when this trip would occur, China's new job development spurred our plans onward. China leaves for Shanghai in August, and we decided we should make the trip before she left.

So Friday afternoon we rented a car, and headed out to Arizona.

One of my all time favorite sites are the windmills outside of Palm Springs. I always feel like a modern day Don Quixote as we pass.

Traffic was horrendous, and as it got later and later we decided a rest stop for dinner was in order. We hopped onto the internet and found a place in Blythe, CA to stop for dinner - La Casita Dos.



We started out with a pitcher of margaritas - well, all except Thatboy our designated driver.



I won't share the pictures that were taken after we consumed the margaritas, because there are certain members of our party who probably wouldn't appreciate it - especially since they don't remember taking them. I WILL however show you how quickly one member of the party consumed their drink. Notice how my glass and UDubb's glass is almost completely full...and someone else's is a lot less than full?




Thatboy ordered a combo plate with an enchilada and tamale. I tasted the tamale - it was okay, but nothing special.



Thatmom, Thatbrother and I all ordered the carnitas burrito. In San Diego we have what is known as the "carne asada burrito" which is just carne asada and guacamole, wrapped in a tortillas. I was thrilled to find that this burrito was the carnitas version!


See - just guac and carnitas!


UDubb evidenced her singular talent for picking the wrong menu item. Usually this is a trait her and Thatboy share. Her taco and tostada sounded like a good idea, but turned out to be an oily mess.


After what seemed like hours (because it was) we finally arrived at our hotel. The Sheraton Desert Oasis is actually very similar to our Palm Desert timeshare in that it has a jacuzzi in the bedroom.



The Sheraton differed in that they made us towel animals!



The view from our room.



Exhausted (and rightfully so) we tucked in to bed. Tomorrow I'll tell you all about our adventures in Scottsdale.