I was talking with a friend of mine who has recently moved to Phoenix after having lived in several large cities in the country. We were comparing her experience moving to Phoenix as opposed to her impressions of Boston, San Francisco, New York, etc. Of course, she noticed that the older, more established cities have distinct personalities… many works set in New York seem to have the city as almost a character in and of themselves.

Phoenix, the city, hasn’t been around long enough to develop that type of character on its own, in my opinion. That isn’t to say that the area doesn’t have its own character. I’ve felt like the environment itself is what defines so much of this place…

On first glance, there doesn’t seem to be that much here — we’re in the middle of the desert where its sunny over 300 days of the year. Once you take a closer look, though, you get to see so much more… from the beauty of the sunsets to the grandeur of giant storm clouds, the power and drama of the monsoon thunderstorms… when the seeming benevolence of 8 months of warm sunshine turn into withering heat.

A lot of people think of the desert as a barren place, but the magic of it is that it has long been a place full of life if only you take a closer look. Maybe that’s not the same as New York’s bravado, Hollywood’s glitz or Chicago’s grit. And yet, while I would like to see Phoenix grow up and mature a bit, I wouldn’t ever want to lose that magic.

The current issue of Budget Living profiles the Economides family and their super frugal ways. Some how this family of seven (dad, mom and five kids) has nearly 80 percent of their mortgage paid off in just ten years, carry no credit card debit and paid for both of their cars in cash — all on a below the median household income of less than $35,000.

But they aren’t keeping their penny-pinching secrets to themselves. They have a site and newsletter full of money-saving tips.

Last weekend my girlfriend and I went south of Tucson to Arizona’s wine country for her birthday. There are 3 wineries within about 10 miles of each other. The Village of Elgin Winery, Sonoita Winery, and Callaghan Vineyards. For $1 – $3 you can sample as many as 12 wines made right here in Arizona. Sure you’re lucky if you get an ounce per taste, but it adds up! While they’re all good (I’ve never met a wine I didn’t like), Callaghan’s wines stand out as the best. They’re nothing like CA wineries which probably have 5 star restaurants and whatnot, these are wine production facilities that have wine tastings. Nothing fancy, and no food. But, your hunger can be satiated at a place called The Grasslands Cafe (of German heritage) at the crossroads in Sonoita.

The most interesting wine we tasted and bought, was a very peppery red. I like robust wines, but this one is very unique. It has a distinct spice to it and is meant to be paired with hearty/spicy foods like Cajun or spicy italian. We came home with 6 bottles of wine which had an average price of $15/bottle. More than I’d usually spend, but it’s supporting non-corporate locally owned business.

I popped over to the Trader Joe’s at Town & Country after work tonight. When I lived over in Mesa, I used to hit the on on Guadalupe all the time… but the one downtown is less appealing somehow. I don’t think I like the layout. Bad chi or something.

My whole point for going over there was to pick up a tub of tapioca pudding, and of course they had none. I ended up getting a salad, some assembly of microwavable mexican food, and some chips. Of course now I’m craving tapioca again.

Does anybody shop at Sprouts in Phoenix? I used to go to the one in Mesa, too, mainly for produce and seafood… I haven’t found one close to my place down here yet. They made some mean tzatziki, too, and their fresh pita was always good.

A sign caught my eye as I passed an on-ramp to the 202 the other day. All I saw at first was “Society of Invisibles”. I was immediately curious. What was that? A secret club notice? A rally for butlers who pride themselves on their unobtrusiveness? I couldn’t imagine, so I went back and checked out the sign in detail.

Turns out it’s a sign for an album release party that takes place July 29th at the Old Brickhouse, 1 E. Jackson, Phoenix. There was a web address as well (www.geistaudio.net) so I checked that out as well. I’m not so sure about the “underground-ness” of the web site, but what I did find out was that the Society of Invisibles is putting out a hip-hop album. If you’re into that kind of thing you may want to check it out.

I ate over at the Autumn Court again tonight with Dyanna. I raved about this place the first time I tried it, and I still have nothing but good things to say. They’ve been around for over twenty years, but I think the quality of the food may have suffered in the past. That’s just judging from the reactions I get from long-term Phoenix residents when I ask them if they know of it.

If that was the case, it’s certainly not now. The food ranges from acceptable to pretty good, and the ambiance is nothing short of fantastic. It’s kitschy all over, from the individually carved wood ornaments to displays of plastic fruit to the glass jars of beans lashed to the walls. The low lighting and complete lack of windows provides a welcome respite from the typically inescapable harsh glare of the Phoenix sun.

Even if the food isn’t for you, the lounge in the back is a quirky, comfortable, quiet spot to enjoy an umbrella-adorned drink and relax with a friend or few.

Autumn Court
4300 North Central Avenue

Sunday nights are always strange for me. It seems like I try squeezing in as much as possible to make up for not having done “enough” over the course of the weekend. Tonight, of course, is no exception.

I spent Friday night at home with Adam, my cousin, and another friend. We sat around drinking, laughing, and watching movies. My cousin crashed around 12:30am, but the rest of us stayed up until 4:30am. It was a great time, and I was reminded yet again how lucky I am to have such a great group of friends.

Thanks to my hangover, Saturday was spent laying around, sleeping, watching movies, and playing World of Warcraft. The day was over before I knew it, and when I woke up this morning, I was thankful that I would be doing something. At least, I thought so.

My cousin was supposed to call me earlyish so I could finally meet her fiance. I guess things didn’t go according to plan, and I found myself still sitting around at 7pm, frustrated and bored out of my mind. Thankfully, Adam was up for getting together for dinner. As he mentioned, we went to Autumn Court and had some tasty food. It was my first time there, and I’m already looking forward to my next visit. The place is absolutely adorable inside, and the menu has a lot of things I’d love to try.

It’s already 10:30pm, and I’m trying to think of things to do before I have to go to bed and end yet another weekend. This will be a short but eventful week, and I’m already looking forward to next weekend, which promises to be full of fun times with family and friends. Happy week, everyone!

I’m devastated. Simply devastated. On the way to Cold Stone tonight, we happened to pass our friendly neighborhood Krispy Kreme store. I did a doubletake as we passed the drive thru because the drive thru menu was gone and in its place was a little sign that I couldn’t read. So I made my dear husband take a detour through the drive thru so I could read the sign. The news couldn’t have been worse. Really. My friendly neighborhood Krispy Kreme store is CLOSED. Forever. Yes, I can still go to the Arrowhead store. And yes, I can still get my Krispy Kreme fix at the grocery store or the convenience store, but it’s not the same. Especially when going into a store involves dragging a 22 pound eight month old in and out of the car. At that point, the whole donut thing kind of loses it’s allure. Ah well, I guess the bright side is that I won’t be tempted as often to soothe my chocolate craving with a nice fresh chocolate custard-filled Krispy Kreme. ‘Scuse me now while I go drown my sorrows in a little dish of Cold Stone sweet cream. *sigh*

We were sitting near our sliding door last night when we heard some strange noises. Voices, coming from what sounded like our backyard. Of course we opened the sliding door to investigate, and out bounded our 80 pound dog, barking his deep “I will bay a lion for you, just watch” bark. A rattle and a couple of door slams later, and the voices disappeared in a hurry.

At first I was a little worried, wondering if someone had been trying to get into our (empty, rock-filled) backyard, but then I remembered: I’d put some good stuff in the alley right outside our gate.

I’m lucky enough to live in one of the older (for the Valley) neighborhoods that still uses alleys. I love it. They’re great for large-item disposal, and for anything-you-don’t-want anymore disposal. Because sure enough, usually within a day or two, the items disappear. Our record large-item-disposal time was 2 minutes. (We had a broken washer gone that fast.)

But I never see the collectors. I figure they must be like The Borrowers.

If it seems like we Phoenix Metrobloggers talk about the weather a lot, well there’s good reason for it: it’s really, really, really frickin’ hot here right now. I’m sure come January, the Chicago Metrobloggers will have plenty to say about the snow. So bear with us for a while during our inaugural posts.

Although we complain about it often, it’s never as bad as your first summer here. The first summer is the worst! I was empty-headed enough to move here in August. August! In a car with no air-conditioning (!!) and my driver’s side window didn’t roll down. It was madness I tell you. Sheer madness!

But over the years, I — like all the others before me — have adapted. It’s a little thing I like to call Desert Initiation®. These are little realizations that remind us that, “Toto, we aren’t in Kansas anymore” but we are okay with it.

Like the first time you realize that you have to have the exterminator spray not only for common household insects but also for scorpions. Or the first time you are sitting outside commenting on how pleasant the weather is only to be informed it’s actually 102°.

Today I had to buy new windshield wiper blades for my car. When driving home during Thursday night’s storm I turned them on only to have them not wipe away the rain, but first not move at all since they were baked on my windshield in their stationary position. When they did break free, they proceeded to schmear the rain all over my windshield making visibility void and null. It seems that constant exposure to Ra has rendered my wiper blades useless.

I suppose having to drop twenty bucks every now and then for new ones isn’t as bad as having to buy snow tires and stuff. Plus, come December, we will all be in short sleeves enjoying the balmy Arizona winter.