Home is where the...

I'm settling into Tucson in a weird sort of way. I say weird because I've been to Albu- querque and to Coronado National Memorial in the last two weeks. I've definitely spent at least as much time in those places as I have in Tucson.

The Pre-Service Orientation in Albuquerque has proven an incredibly valuable tool in making friends here in Tucson.

Part of my On Site Orientation has been going to work with one of the crews that was stationed in Coronado National Memorial, which is a hefty <1 mile from the Mexican border. Actually, it's a hefty <1 ft from the border, but we were working about a mile from the border. What does that mean? It means that the number of undocumented immigrants in that area is unbelievably heavy, as it's a completely rural area through which they can cross to enter our country, either for illegal but legit reasons, or to deal drugs or something of the sort. It was an interesting area to hang out in. I also saw a tarantula, 3 scorpions, a green snake (the crew saw 3 rattlers though), a road runner, a bunny, a falcon, some deer, some pretty awesome lightening, and a medical helicopter (that was evac-ing an undocumented immigrant that had injured himself), all while I was swinging a pick axe at rocks. Yes, that is why I went to college. It was incredible. I never saw the stars, though, because I went to sleep with the sun.

As far as the settling goes, I've made friends with a girl named Hailey, who was at the PSO in Albuquerque. She's fun, nice, kind, and used to an entirely different culture than I, coming from Michigan. In other fantastically exciting news, Ryan is moving down here in a couple of weeks. That makes me excited to no end. It's always so good to hang out with him. I've also attended a Presbyterian Church that I enjoyed, and already had to cancel a meeting with the pastor due to work obligations. I've found some really cute areas, including the one that I'm writing this from, which is adjacent to the University of Arizona ( a coffee shop, duh! called Espresso Art, that Erin would like). So, all is well, and I'm very happy to be here. Oh, and just so you all know, even though none of you know this exists, I moved here in (at this point) Tucson's 2nd hottest summer in history. 3 more days of 100+ (to equal 40) would break the previous record.