Right before I hit the road, I stopped by the grocery store down the street and purchased a few things for my breakfast and a parting gift for my nice Burbank friends. It was definitely a conversation starter and the cashier showed great interest in my story after I explained why I was buying beer at 9 in the morning. Every step of the way, I was more than happy to tell someone new about my trip and it didn't hurt when their face lit up with excitement once they heard the story. She wished me luck on the rest of my journey and I left with a smile.
Even though my friends were still sound asleep when I got back with my present, I had a great energy about me. I left them a quick thank you note, cleaned up the mess in their living room (put away the pull out couch and moved furniture back to where it belonged) and snuck out the door as quietly as I could. I didn't want to wake them just to say goodbye. Plus it would be more of a surprise when they saw their clean living room and the present in the fridge.
At this point I had realized how thankful I was for having a GPS system telling me where to go. I never would have made it through this trip without it. However happy I was to have that GPS, I didn't take into account the fact that where I was staying with friends was such a new neighborhood that the GPS didn't even recognize the street they lived on. Until I was lost, that is. So I called Sheena to rescue me and she was finally able to talk me through getting to her house.
I was worn out when I got to Phoenix/Gilbert, but I was very happy to see my friends and their new house. Being a few days off schedule, I was definitely afraid of being an inconvenience to Sheena and Chad. I knew that they both had to work, so I contemplated leaving right away as to not be a pain. But then I also thought that since it took me so long to get there, that I might as well spend as much time with them as I possibly could.
So I stayed a few days at their lovely new house. I got to see the pups too! I missed them and couldn't believe how much bigger they were. When they lived just down the street and would walk the puppies over to see me, they could fit in your hand! Now they were big enough to jump on you and nearly knock you over. I was happy to see that they could roam around the house freely and they seemed much happier than when I last saw them (when they weren't allowed in the house).
The house was MUCH bigger than I had first imagined. Even with all the pictures I had seen, it was still quite a shock to me. I got to stay in the guest bedroom. This was the first time along my trip that I had my own room that wasn't a hotel. They made me feel very comfortable, and actually I felt too comfortable. I may have just been completely worn out at this point, but all I wanted to do was sleep in and hang out at the house.
However, I did force myself to go out and explore. I went shopping. But that was cut short when the mall was overrun by kids and teenagers. It wasn't just Columbus Day, apparently school was out for Fall Break as well. And I didn't want to hang out with a bunch of kids, so I went to lunch at Joe's Real BBQ and then drove around looking for more shopping possibilities.
We played Wii sports that night, cooked dinner and stayed in for the night. And I had a blast (I even beat Chad a few times). I now want to buy my own Wii system because it was so fun. I went to a book club meeting with Sheena, April and their work friends. I thought it was such a great idea (that I know has been done a million times before, this was just the first actual book club I had ever been to). I took the book home with me after Kendra offered to let me read it for myself. I hope I can get to that soon....
Let's see...I'm so late in writing this, that I hope I don't forget anything!
They were so kind to let me do laundry while I was there. I was able to wash everything, so when I got home I only had a few days worth of dirty laundry plus some sheets and blankets.
I attempted to watch a movie a few different times and I finally succeeded in seeing Zombieland by myself. I thought it was hilarious and I still want to see it again. I once was terrified of going to the theater to see movies by myself. Maybe because of the roadtrip, I'm more comfortable in my own skin as it is. But I can't wait to go see more movies in theaters by myself. I am afterall, a great date.
We spent some quality time out for dinner a few times, since I mostly got to see them after they got off work. We ate Italian food a lot while I was there. We had pizza multiple times, calzones, etc.
We explored and joked around in Dick's Sporting Goods. Sheena and I found a cool park to walk around at. Sheena, April and I went to the Farmer's Market in downtown Phoenix as well.
Overall, I had a nice relaxing time in Phoenix/Gilbert. And there was just enough of what I like to call "touristy stuff" mixed in. I promised Sheena that I would be in a better mood for this visit (compared to my July 4th visit...) and I was. But I think I was worn out from all the traveling and her and Chad were worn out from moving and life in general.
I just hope I didn't wear out my welcome, because I'm hoping to visit them a lot more now that they have their own house.
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