What can I say about Phoenix, Arizona? Not a thing. Because I didn’t actually see Phoenix. And the reasons for that I elaborate here:

Reason #1: I’m a Terrible Friend
I was staying in the Phoenix area (Mesa to be exact) with yet another friend I hadn’t seen in several years and had barely kept up with. In the years since I saw her last, my friend’s work had moved her to Seattle, where she met a guy on eHarmony. They got married and moved to Mesa six years ago. There was so much to catch up on in both our lives that we talked late into the first night, and then for hours again the next day.

Reason #2: God & Cigars
When I arrived Saturday night, my friend said we had to hide out in the house because her husband (whom I still had yet to meet!) was out in the backyard with a bunch of dudes for “God & Cigars” time. For what time? She explained. Every Saturday night, her husband invites a bunch of guys over, guys from church or work or friends of friends, and they all sit around a fire in their backyard and talk about God and the real issues facing men trying to live an authentic Christian life. So it turns out her husband loves to talk worldview and faith and politics as much as I do, so he and I ended up talking a lot, too!

Reasons #3: Chris Pratt & Jennifer Lawrence
My friend’s house has a very cool arsty open plan living room AND they have an entire wall they use for watching movies. I hadn’t seen a movie in ages, and despite what Rotten Tomatoes said,  Chris Pratt and Jennifer Lawrence are just so watchable! So we rented “Passengers”‘ on my last night there.

Reason #4: You
When I started telling people about my trip weeks ago, nearly everyone asked if I was going to write/blog about it. Well, I was 8 days into my trip, people kept emailing/texting me asking when the blog was going up, and I knew if I continued on my trip any longer without starting my blog,, I would abandon the whole thing. So I stayed up until 3 AM on my last night in Phoenix and spent most of my last morning asking my friend’s husband – who was a former-IT-guy – a gazillion questions and finally launching the blog.

Reason #5: The Chicago Cubs
The Cubs hold spring training in the Phoenix area, and with that comes thousands of die-hard fans causing all kinds of traffic and jamming up the roadways. This particular weekend the Cubs were playing in Mesa.

But wait a minute. Maybe I’m not a terrible friend and we both just got busy. And who can blame God or cigars? They are both awesome (but certainly not equivalent). Time spent watching fun movies with good friends is never a bad thing, and what was I thinking? Its not your guys’ fault- I love you guys, and I’m truly humbled that people want to read about my trip in a blog.

So that just leaves the Cubs. That’s right, Chicago, because of you and your obsessed fans, I never got to see the city of Phoenix! I hope that silly little World Series trophy was worth it.