Through the Southwest

PROLOGUE

The account of our travels through the southwest United States in August 1998 was written in the year following the trip, so it had propinquity going to it. And aside from the first 4 days, which were spent entirely in the Phoenix area, the account was researched and detailed. So then, why rewrite it? Well, it never was a finished product, in large part because I started off using bullet points to fix events in their place, and even though by the time I reached day 7, the narrative was fully fleshed out, I was still using bullet points. Now, I have nothing against bullet points in their place, but the telling of one’s travels is not one of those places. So here is a revised account. It remains to be seen what changes, aside from removing the bullet points, will be made. But I don’t intend to intrude on the tale of our travels with a bunch of meta-analysis about the writing process or my reflections on looking back upon event that took place 23 years ago. That is unless I find a compelling reason to do so. It’s my account, after all, so I’m free to do as I please.

BACKGROUND

The genesis of this trip was a training seminar Sharon was encouraged to take by our employer Reliance Insurance Company. The seminar concerned the handling of liability claims under the Truckers insurance policy, about which Sharon and I already knew more than the average bear since we handled such claims at work. And the seminar was being held in Phoenix, which just so happened to be where two of Sharon’s brothers lived, namely Paul and Kevin. So not only could she attend a seminar, but she could also visit family. Soon it was decided the whole family should go as well. The family at the time included me, age 42, Travis, age 5, and Eric, just turned age 3. The plan was to spend a few days in Tempe, outside of Phoenix where Paul and his family lived, and then travel through the southwest. The plans were further refined with the inclusion of Sharon’s parents, Pat & Wally, for a few days in the Phoenix area, and the for a couple of days outside the area.

Before the trip, I studied the southwest and plotted our course, hitting as many places as I thought we could reasonably visit. Not counting when my parents moved to San Diego in 1957 and moved back east in 1959, all before I had any recollection of events, I’d only been to the American southwest once before. And that was when my friend Jeff R. and I drove through in 1979 during our 53-day journey around the country. So I was excited to get back.