(no subject)

B & I just returned from a lovely trip to Arizona.  Such good energy. Of course, having free days and nights is certainly part of it.  But still. :)

And - news! - I saw the grand canyon for the first time ever!!! With great company - my love & my sister. A mini-family trip. It was really beautiful (of course). And on the drive back along the main road to Flagstaff, we were the only people on the road, with a sunset that lit the snowy San Francisco peaks a soft glowing orange.

Flagstaff is the 3rd largest city in Arizona. To compare, some wikipedia facts:

Ann Arbor, population 114,000 (2000 census), 32% college or graduate students.
Flagstaff, population 58,000 (2006 estimate), also lots of students but couldn't immediately find the percent. (NAU has 15,000 undergrads, which would be 16%).

Water is the big question mark. I am not so naive that I don't realize that the west's development has led to some incredibly unsustainable water situations. (For an excellent - and readable! - story on this topic, see Cadillac Desert by Marc Reisner. And if you think that a water pipeline from the Great Lakes out to the desert is too crazy to propose, recall that a politician proposed just that during this very presidential primary campaign, until midwesterners cried foul. So it's an idea that will resurface in the future.)  Flagstaff gets its water locally from runoff & springs of the San Francisco Peaks, as well as from local wells.  I don't know the capacity/supply, though.

One thing's for sure - if we move out there, we're installing solar panels, and then pestering others to do the same. 

Anyway.

Hugs to you all.

(no subject)

 The little raccoon is back. I think he knows that we have snacks in here. And how is it that our cats always miss this?