As a lot of you know (and some have figured out by deciphering my name) I live in Salt Lake City. But i'm not from there.
I was born in Phoenix back in 1968. My hometown has always been a place for me to change airplanes and little more. I have made a few trips down here in my youth, but none in the past 10-12 years.
So guess where my work assignment took me this week?
Yep...You guessed it!
Phoenix is 10 times the size it was when i was a kid. I have been driving around the entire valley doing work stuff all week and have visited pretty much every little neighborhood, and city. I am amazed at the amount of people here as well. WHERE did they all come from? What are they doing out here in the middle of the desert? What draws them here?
I called my mom and asked her what the address of our old house was, and she gladly gave it to me. We used to live in the North area of town,about three blocks east of Central Ave/Maryland, just outside of downtown (from what i can tell, Phoenix actually has TWO downtowns, the older part and all the tall buildings down by AmWest arena & Bankone ballpark). But a nice area nonetheless. So i popped the address into my trusty GPS and hit the road. I was shocked when i got there. From what i remember, we lived in a pretty nice neighborhood. Well, our subdivision still looks as it did. But it's the surrounding neighborhood that went to hell! I felt like i was in the middle of South Central LA for a second. What the hell happened??
So after that, i decided to find my old school. It's gone! Where it stood there are now houses. I know that it happens, but my heart sunk just a little bit when i realized it was gone.
I can also remember a time when there was nothing between Phoenix and Mesa. Now...STRIP MALL HELL! Again....Mini LA! Same thing with the freeways..WTF??
I can't knock Phoenix though. Everybody down here is how i remember for the most part. Very friendly and approachable. Most of the people i have spoken with and tell that i now live in SLC feel sorry for me being trapped with all those damn mormons. (They have a lot of LDS folks down here, but most of them live in Mesa.) And the snow...They must think SLC is in the frozen north 9 months out of the year.
Today is my last day here. I'll be back in happy valley this evening. I will miss Phoenix. But it's not the little desert town i remember.
I can't help but feel a little sad though.
Thanks for reading,
thatoneguyinslc