Greetings B2B Loved Ones!
Resident T here again, back again for the 4th(? maybe?) Family Letter in a row for y’all! After last weeks Grand Canyon undertaking, we were all fairly exhausted, so this week, the brave adventurers of B2B traveled to just outside of Tucson, to Catalina State Park.
On Sunday, per the usual routine, we awoke around seven, eager for our base camp weekend (as opposed to a full on backpack) and after a delicious breakfast of pre-trip burritos ( I ate way too many, a decision that I would regret much later) and Gatorade, we hopped into the van to begin the 3 1/2 hour van ride. Once again, we had a “country” van and a “hip hop” van. In my van we blasted some good ole’ Tim McGraw, some Trace Adkins and some others, and it warmed a Texas boys’ heart. Once we got there, we hiked around the side of a few hills to reach Romero Pools, where two of our guides (the intern didn’t want to) jumped in one of the pools for a nice little polar dip. Once they were in, the silence was deafening, for as the first time in recent history, they weren’t talking! After the hike back Residents M, A(1), and D whipped up some stir fry, and Resident A(2) who just hit his 3 month mark, shared his story. After the obligatory spades game, we slowly drifted off to sleep under a full moon, beautiful skies, and the cries of coyotes in the distance.
We got up Monday morning quickly, as all of us were starving. We voraciously devoured a delectable bacon and egg scramble, then hopped in the van for a quick jaunt to the next hike. It was a beautiful 9.5 mile hike to Sabino Canyon and once again there was water, so a few guys jumped in and did a few work outs, while most of us sunned ourselves on the rocks and relaxed, occasionally getting some cardio in as we sprinted away from the bees that seemed to enjoy provoking us. After our hike back we attended an AA meeting in Oro Valley, a suburb of Tucson. I honestly consider and many of the guys agree that it was the best AA meeting we’ve attended in quite a long time. Two great speakers, one with 36 years of sobriety, which was absolutely incredible! After that, we made some delicious calzones, and then the coolest part of my trip happened. As a joke, I howled back at a coyote when it called, and was immediately answered by almost a dozen others, which was pretty intense. After a brief contemplation on whether I had somehow managed to deliver a cross species insult, or had somehow just become the new pack leader, I fell asleep, followed by everyone else.
Tuesday morning came, and almost as soon as we were up were off. A short(ish) van ride later, we were home to a beautiful sunny Flagstaff day. Our day concluded with an in house AA meeting, and an impromptu trip to Dairy Queen, which made all of our days. As I type this, its sunny and 65, the boys are working on house cleaning, and its about time for me to go.
So until next time family and friends,
Resident T, over and out.
