AZ to DMV - Part 2

So After the Hootinannie of a rodeo, went back to our hotel. The hotel parking lot just happened to be where they held the "dance" (1 step. . . .2 step) after the rodeo. Fortunately, I had choosen a room in the back of the hotel, so I could get some sleep. Beware Aware and Prepare!!

The next morning when all the smart people went home. (I should explain that I mistakenly booked a 10:15 PM flight for Friday. Nice! So, having to vacate the hotel and only have 14 hours to kill, I decided to take the scenic route back to Phoenix via Jerome. Jerome is a former little mining "town" that is built into the mountain. It now has a bunch of little shops and is at an elevation that exceeds 5,000. The view is beautiful. Of course, if you are the only one in the car that fact becomes irrelevent because there are few guardrails on the mountain and I doubt that anyone would ever find your body after the 5,000+ drop unless you were lucky enough to have your gas tank explode.

Half way there, I met a Hippie/Indian guy, who was selling trinkets out of the back of his car. He took my picture in exchange for the promise that I LOOK at his stuff. . . .No! No! Not that stuff! Anyway, He showed me a bunch of semi-precious stone jewelry. He takes one and explains that this one help ease nervousness and helps with things like public speaking. Since, I found it odd that the one stone he picked up was for the one thing that I have a problem with, I bought it for $15. "Ching!" goes the Hippie. He also gave me directions that would get me to Phoenix without going back over the mountain (information worth at LEAST $15).

Being on the other side of the mountain, I got to SEE the fires that have been in the news! He's the thing. Before the drive, I was thinking "There are 1,000s of firemen fighting this fire for weeks. How hard could it be to put out a fire?" Once I saw this:

I thought "How the Hell would you ever be able to put something like that out." The good thing was that I used the 25¢ viewer and could actually see the fire. The bad thing was that the 25¢ viewer in the 100 degree heat made my skin smolder. From there I made my way back to the Airport. With only 7 hours to spare. . . . . .

To Be Continued. . . . ..