Back Porch View

My wife and I weren't very good South Pas residents yesterday. We flew back from Austin in the morning, leaving for the airport at 5:00 (Pacific Time). By the time we reached LAX--Thena made me promise to only fly out of Burbank from now on--we were running ragged. The fact that it took us an hour to get our luggage once we got to LA didn't make things any easier.

We had a four-hour layover in Phoenix. We took a taxi to Tempe and ate lunch near Arizona State University. This brief sojourn was a little more difficult than I would have liked as we had to lug around our carry-on bags as we walked up and down Mill Avenue looking for a place to eat. I had managed to sneak three bags on the flight, three bags full of papers and books that I was bringing back from storage in Austin. They might as well have been bags of bricks.

But our lack of participation in South Pas festivities was redeemed by the end of the day. When we heard the fireworks start, we ran out to our porch. Our apartment is on the second floor, and we had a great view of the display. There is something quite gratifying about being able to watch a complete fireworks show from your own place. It would have been nice to take part in watching the show with the whole community, but it was equally amazing to take in the weeping willows, the dandelions, the shooting stars, the dazzling greens and exploding reds --all from the intimate confines of our own porch.