The SnowBirds are Back in Tucson!!!

The SnowBirds are Back in Tucson!

I've been noticing the past couple of weeks that the roads are really getting crowded again. The temperatures are dropping and the cars are piling up. It just takes longer to get places. When I'm making an appointment to see homes for sale in Tucson - I need to be on time!

It reminded me of a blog a wrote a while back I thought I'd share again for the occasion. Road rage can be a dangerous thing, and combine that with all the different driving styles of the visitors and residents of Tucson, along with texting, cell phones, and agressive driving - well, it's a dangerous world out there!

Buckle up, leave early, and drive safe!

Things That Make You Go Hmmm - How's your Road Rage?

I clicked on Twitter tonight to leave a few posts and my eyes caught this blog link about things that make you mad. It was a very cute little story. I got to thinking about my own list of pet peeves, and more specifically, the role of anger when behind the wheel, and how that has affected my job.

REALTORS spend a great deal of time driving. When I was brand new agent, I proudly purchased two large, bright yellow door magnets for my car to proclaim to everyone that I was in real estate and ready to do business. I thought it would be a great way to visually remind all my neighbors and community members that I was a Professional.

There was just one little problem. I have this tendency to forget my turn signals or gesture/swear when someone cuts me off or pulls out right in front of me. I tend to play the passive-agressive role and slow way down when I get a tail-gater on my bumper and they can't get around me. And then there are the little old ladies barely peaking over their steering wheels that I race by on my way to some appointment or other.

In just a short time, I began to worry that having my name and phone number boldly imprinted for anyone to see might NOT be the best idea. All I'd need was some road rager calling me on their cell phone...

So have I mended my professional driving image and let the tailgater whiz by? Do I patiently wait through traffic jams and intersection snaffus with a calm facade presented to all? Does Great-Grandmama get the right of way now, no matter how slow she's going?

...I confess - it was easier to take the signs off. My car doors are bare now.

How about you? Do your driving skills divulge your inner flaws? Any embarrassing anecdotes to share?

- How's your Road Rage?

The Terrible Shooting in Tucson, AZ

Tucson, AZ hit the national news on Saturday, January 8, 2010, and in the most horrific of ways. If you read the news, turned on the television, or just tweeted and networked on Facebook - you've no doubt heard of the victims of a senseless crime at a Congress-on-your-Corner gathering at a Safeway-anchored shopping mart in Northwest Tucson.

My husband and I were out clearing away the outside Christmas lights, straightening up the garage and feeling energized for the new year ahead. We were smiling and having a good time when the neighbor pulled up and shared the news.

* * *

My daughter asked me last night if I was going to write about it, and I immediately said, "No".

I told her I didn't even feel like blogging about Tucson right now -- I was speaking with shock and pain, deep in the tragedy of the moment.

It's hard to put into words the terrible violation you feel when innocent people, going about every-day common errands are hurt and killed. We spent the next several hours in front of the television set, waiting for REAL updates and confirmed reports of exactly what happened.

I can't help but think of the lasting repercussions of this heartbreak. Beyond the most obvious dealings of loss of life, health, and feeling of security comes so many questions.

I thought about it a great deal during a night of little sleep. I thought about the other horrific events that have hit areas of our United States and even the world these past years.

A couple of very dear Active-Rainers called and/or called last night out of concern for "Tucson". The posts I read on Facebook are compassionate, and caring, and beyond finger-pointing and shallow hatreds.

One of the things I love about Tucson is its sense of community. We're mostly a common people with a cheerful word, and a let-a-car-cut-in-during-a-traffic-jam sort of mentality.

Tucson will bond over this. Security changes will be made, answers will be sought and found, and hopefully justice will be served. Somehow the families of this terrible tragedy will continue on.

We are more than this tragedy. We are above generalizations regarding news stories and incidents that have recently colored the media's interpretation of our beautiful City. This act of violence does NOT define us.

My family's thoughts and prayers go out to the family and victims of this tragedy, and more, to the community and workers of this neighborhood of NW Tucson.

We ARE Tucson, and we can be more, and will be more.

Does Washing Produce Get Rid of Bacteria?

Does Washing Produce Get Rid of Bacteria?

Wow - take a few moments to read the above post! It's time to start visiting this list of farmer's markets near Tucson that I recently compiled. Here,
I'll share!

Farmers' Markets

Alan Ward Downtown Mercado: south lawn of the Main Library, 101 N. Stone Ave., 8 a.m. to 2 p.m., Wednesdays, October through May; 8 a.m. to 1 p.m., Wednesdays, June through September (339-4008).

Broadway Village Farmers' Market: 2926 E. Broadway Blvd., 9 a.m. to 2 p.m., Fridays (603-8116).

Cat Mountain Station: 2740 S. Kinney Road, 8 a.m. to noon, the second Saturday of each month (578-8795).

Community Food Bank: 3003 S. Country Club Road, 8 a.m. to noon, Tuesdays (622-0525).

El Presidio Plaza Park Mercado: 115 N. Church Ave., 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., Fridays (339-4008).

Farmers' Market at Park Place Mall: 5870 E. Broadway Blvd., 1 to 6 p.m., Tuesdays (603-8116).

Farmers' Market at Tucson Mall: 4500 N. Oracle Road, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., Thursdays (293-7330).

Green Things: 3235 E. Allen Road, 9 a.m. to 2 p.m., Sundays (299-9471).

Marana Farm Stand: 12375 N. Heritage Park Drive, Marana, 4 to 7 p.m., Mondays (622-0525, ext. 242).

Oracle Farmers' Market: 2805 N. Triangle L Ranch Road, 9 a.m. to noon, Saturdays (896-2123).
Oro Valley Farmers' Market: Town Hall at the corner of La Cañada Drive and Naranja Road, 8 a.m. to noon, Saturdays (882-2157).

Plaza Palomino: 2970 N. Swan Road, winter: 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., Saturdays; summer: 9 a.m. to 1 p.m., Saturdays (www.plazapalomino.com).

Rincon Valley Farmers' Market: 12500 E. Old Spanish Trail, winter: 9 a.m. to 2 p.m., Saturdays; summer: 8 a.m. to 1 p.m., Saturdays (591-2276).

St. Philip's Plaza Saturday Farmers' Market: St. Philip's Plaza, southeast corner of River Road and Campbell Avenue, 9 a.m. to 2 p.m., Saturdays (603-8116).

Santa Cruz River Farmers' Market: Northeast Corner of Speedway Boulevard and Riverview boulevards, 4 to 7 p.m., Thursdays (622-0525).

Tucson Farmers' Market: St. Philip's Plaza, southeast corner of River Road and Campbell Avenue, winter: 8 a.m. to noon, Sundays; summer: 8 a.m. to noon, Sundays (882-2157).

Tucson's Green Art and Farmers' Market: 8995 E. Tanque Verde Road; 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., Friday and Saturday (982-2645)

Udall Park Farmers' Market: Morris K. Udall Regional Center, 7200 E. Tanque Verde Road, 8 a.m. to noon, Fridays (882-2157).

Beautiful Tucson

Been taking lots of walks this spring and decided to share some of the beauty with everyone. Enjoy the slide show below - We're positively bloomin' in Arizona!

Have a great spring!

What Can We Give?

In a city, we often learn to shut out the view of the homeless, the beggars at the corner, the ragged newspaper salesman in the median, or the people with signs standing stooped at free way entrances. It’s painful. It hurts to know people have it so bad, and we really don’t want to see it.

It triggers my inner struggle. I’ve heard dozens of scam stories – the people who work the medians and then end their day driving home to their nice homes in their nice automobiles-- the one who brags how much money they scored in a day of begging, laughing that they didn’t have to work at all. There are scams on TV, the internet, and on the radio news of all types, classes, and professions.

But, you can TELL who is indigent. The leathered skin, the worn clothes, the gaunt bodies. They can’t be faking it. In this economy, it’s very easy to lose a job, and then your car, and then your home. When 2000 people in Tucson show up for 200 jobs at Target at a job fair..you KNOW it isn’t easy. Don’t we all need help some times?

I’ve done hundreds of hours of donated work in my life, and helped with March of Dimes, Retarded Citizens of Wisconsin, Northman Drum and Bugle Corps (a teen’s marching group – not helping homeless and poor, but providing opportunities for youth) Primavera, Interfaith Community Center, and the Tucson Food Bank – to name a few. It doesn’t make the desire to make their pain go away any less. And I know daily I have blessings so much more than so many.

This past weekend my husband and I had a date night, and decided to go downtown to the University District, with a detour into the Y Generation night life on Fourth Avenue.
The main university district was maybe 2-3 blocks long and well populated – a buzzing and upbeat location. We decided to walk the 7 or 8 blocks through the college residential area over to Fourth Avenue, the home of our twice-yearly Street Fair.

Right away it struck us was how dimly lit it was, and so sparsely populated for 7-8 pm Friday night. On top of that, we didn’t see a single police car, bike cop, or foot patrol the entire evening. About half of the reatil shops were closed up. The bars and restaurants were open and had small clusters of people spilling out of doorways.

We got nervous. My husband, the retired NY policeman, reminded me to walk with authority with my head up. I told him to look mean. (HA) We passed a few homeless sitting on the sidewalk and one man singing away with a tip jar. I thought about giving, but in the dark, I was afraid to open my purse. I was afraid to draw attention to myself.

After dinner, we left an Italian place and I had half my dinner. I’d specifically ordered a meal with two chicken breasts, intending to bring one home.

We started a brisk walk back, at this point just wanting to be home. I noticed we huddled closer together, especially every time we had to approach or were passed by strangers. The trees looked taller, the hedges more overgrown…we even crossed over to a more open side of the street. By this time my purse was under my coat. We confided to each other we were a little worried about mugging. There just wasn’t enough pedestrian traffic, or light, or patrol.

A young man with a backpack passed us and my husband thought he heard him ask for money. I heard different.

“Can I have your leftovers?” He asked. He asked again, very quick, without stopping his walk. I turned around and followed him.

“Sure”, I said. “I didn’t even touch it!” He grabbed it and hurried down the road.

My husband asked, “What did he ask for?” He looked down at my empty hand.

I said, “He asked for the right thing.”

He just wanted food, and it was something I could give.

It didn’t sound like a scam to me. How many of us would ask a stranger for food, if we actually had a choice?

We reached our car about 15 minutes later and my husband let out a deep sigh. We’re going to save Fourth Avenue for daylight hours from now on.

What CAN we give in these times?
I think times are going to be tough for a lot more, a lot sooner.
What can we give?

RAGE on the ROAD

So, I'm really trying to work on my road rage. Anyone else suffer from it? Not the antagonist rage...but the passifest rage. The one that puts cruise on at 23 mph when someone is tailgating at my speed of 32 in a 25 mile per hour zone. The one that is swearing myself blue in the face when I'm stuck behind a truck merging at 45 mph when the traffic is buzzing by at 75 or 80, and the car BEHIND me tries to swerve round....

So, I got this little article at work. I'll share it with you.

For the next 7 days, in your journal or on a fresh sheet of paper, make a list of all of your responsibilities. Remember to list everything you do for your family, as well as any responsibilities outside the home. Include church, work and social too.
For each item on your list, describe how you approach the task. What are your feelings, how does your behavior or attitude change to fit the situation? Check your actions and re-actions.
Pick one or two items from your list. Over the next 21 days, consciously approach the task from a difference perspective, bringing your character and personality to it. In your journal, write about how you or your feelings change.

So I was lazy, and just looked at the big picture. WHERE DOES MY ATTITUDE NEED THE MOST ADJUSTMENT???

The morning I yelled "F*&@ing driver!!!" to the person who just about wiped me out, while on the cell phone to my mother was a reality check. Yeah, and I know...I should be READING THE INSTRUCTIONS and getting my bluetooth phone I got a year ago to work too. Hands free driving and all...

So what's YOUR attitude?????