Destined for the Desert

Well I got packed and finally drove out from Florida last Tuesday about 11:00 AM. But not before experiencing one last torrential Florida thunderstorm as I made my way up I-75. Traveling across the panhandle was nice across I-10 and I hoped to get a room somewhere around Pensacola but I kept driving until Pascagoula, MS. Tried to get a hotel room but there were none available. That area had been hit hard by Hurricane Katrina, many hotels were damaged and any usable rooms weres full of locals or disaster relief workers.

So I drove back to Mobile, AL but found the same scenario there. After searching for some length of time, I gave up and decided to keep going. I drove until about 12:30 AM and found a rest area somewhere between Louisiana and Texas and slept there until daylight. (Got to see first hand the terrible hurricane damage in Alabama, Louisiana and Texas). Wednesday morning I began the journey across Texas and drove until about 5:00 PM. Spent the night at a motel in Junction, TX, swam in the pool, ate Mexican and got a good night's rest. It was nice and cool that evening but the next morning it was freezing cold! It rained just about all the way though Texas and never did get above 65 degrees. What a rude awakening!

On day three of my cross country trip, I tackled the other half of Texas, made my way across New Mexico that afternoon, by sunset drove into Arizona, arrived in Tucson by 7:30 that night. Stayed at a hotel in Tucson over the weekend because the movers did not arrive until yesterday. Unloaded everything in a matter of hours and put the bed together but by midnight I was exhausted, but I finally got to sleep in my own bed! I didn't wake up until 9:00 this morning and that was only because my sister called. (I have to remind her about the three hour time difference!)

I'm currently living in Rancho Sahuarita, a planned community in the desert (about 90 minutes from Mexico). There are so many amenities for the residents there ... clubhouse, sports bar, lake for fishing or boating, water park, olympic size swimming pool, fitness center, coffee shop and many, many trails. Went hiking on Sunday in the mountains and plan to hike 14 miles this weekend. It's a different world out here but I'm learning to appreciate all of God's creation!