Author: Rudy

No bike ride this morning. I got up at 6 and had a shower. Went downstairs and started the coffee. We had no milk for the coffee so as soon as Dave got his butt downstairs I went to Bashas’ to get some milk for the coffee and some bread for the toast. 

When I got back I got the bacon and eggs going. I fried the bacon on the barbecue burner outside so I wouldn’t stink up the house. The eggs didn’t turn out as well as the bacon did but all was edible so that’s how we took care of it. 

I had to hurry a bit to make it to Mountain Brook for our 10:20 tee time, but we made it. Robert and Arlene met us there. We bashed away at a bucket of balls just to prove that we could hit long and straight before we actually teed off. Then things fell apart for some of us. Well, with all thoughts of a ‘great’ round shattered by the time we reached the second tee we had “nothin’ left to lose”, to which Kris Kristofferson says, “Nothin’ ain’t worth nothin’ but it’s free”. “Free” is good with me.

So we continued on that trajectory. And after nine holes the whole day so far was redeemed by a very fine hot dog from the Mountain Brook clubhouse kitchen, along with a draft of Kiltlifter. So all was not lost. We persevered and continued on. Things improved. The temperature was a bit cooler than yesterday and the wind was still gusting pretty good, but we were putting up a valiant defence and would not be denied two days in a row. By the time we reached the eighteenth green Dave and I were golfing scores that were more in line with our abilities. I, at least, was happy for the improvement. Still, the final score was not worth mentioning, so I won’t. 

We went home at around 2:30, a couple of hours before todays’ crucial (second) Stanley Cup playoff game against the Minnesota Wild.

The Dycks stopped by for ‘happy hour’ before it was time for the ‘O Canada’ from the game. We sat around drinking our gin and tonics and refused  to touch the chips and salsa that the gracious host (me) put out before us. Then we hopped into Robert and Arlene’s Honda and zipped over to Wahoo’s, hoping that they would still be showing the game on at least one of their TVs even though the Rogers’ deluxe NHL online package was letting us down. And sure enough, the first TV we spotted inside the bar was already showing Winnipeg’s “white out” fans going wild outside the MTS Bell Centre. It only took Dave a minute or two to spot his wife MaryLou right there in the middle of all those crazy fans, cheering on the Jets.

We quickly ‘reserved’ a table with a front-row seat for the game and began the task of cheering on the Jets. Vigorously.The guys sitting at the bar who kept giving us ‘dirty looks’ every time we got a bit loud ultimately decided to leave rather than to confront us. The poor Minnesotans sitting in front of the TV next to us didn’t have a chance against us rabid Winnipeggers tonight. We out-cheered them. Our Jets would not be denied tonight.

By the time we’d washed down our taco pizza with a few Kilt-lifters the Jets had not only out-shot the opposition, they had out-scored them too. Good thing! I don’t think we could have handled anything but a win.

We boys nominated Arlene to drive us back to the house, where we continued the celebration by finishing off the two ice cream bars in the freezer and the two leftover partial bottles of port. All was right with the world. The Jets are up 2-zip. 

The celebration continued for a little while at our house. Although it was still relatively early in the evening, by nine o’clock our guests had had enough and it was time to say good-night. We will meet again tomorrow afternoon at Sidewinder for one more golf game. 

I still had to write my journal entry for today. I opened my laptop and began writing my journal.

It was after eleven when I awoke. Dave had gone to bed. The TV was on. My computer was open on my lap. The last paragraph I’d written was incomprehensible. I turned out the lights and went upstairs to my bedroom. Took out my contact lenses. Deleted the last few paragraphs of jibberish from my blog. Uploaded the photos I’d taken on the 16th tee box today. Done. 

Tomorrow is my last day here in Gold Canyon. One more day and one more night. My time here has gone quickly. It’s been fun. But now it’s time to go to sleep.

After “sleeping in” until about 7:30, Dave and I went for a little ‘cruise’ around the neighbourhood on bicycle this morning. We cycled to Bashas’ and had a pastry and coffee. Then we biked through Mountain Brook and around some of the back roads behind King’s Ranch Road. We stopped in at the restaurant Wahoo’s to see if they would be showing the Jets game on their sports bar TVs tomorrow afternoon. (The guy we talked to ‘thought so’.) 

Back at the house we showered and got ready for this afternoon’s golf game. We had a sandwich for lunch. Then, just before we headed out, we FaceTimed my dad and sang Happy Birthday to him. 

We got a bit ‘lost’ in one of the RV parks across the road from Gold Canyon, looking for Robert and Arlene’s motorhome. It turned out we were in the WRONG RV park. Once we fixed that we put their golf clubs into the back of the van and set off for the Las Sendas Golf Course. It turned quite a bit windier than it was during our morning bike ride. The desert dust was creating some visibility problems on our drive, and gusts of up to 50 miles an hour was going to make the golf game a bit more challenging than it might have otherwise been.

We hit a few balls on the driving range before doing it ‘for real’ at the first tee at 2:20. The course was as tough as it was picturesque. Our round was not a quick round — we waited for the groups ahead of us at every tee. It was 7:00 by the time we finally finished (and I use that term loosely) the 18th hole and found a table inside at the restaurant for dinner. I think Dave broke a hundred on his round, and I scored around 115. Although the wind didn’t help our scores, it DID help to make us hungry and thirsty after the long afternoon. 

I drove the 20 minute ride back and dropped Robert and Arlene off at their Motorhome. Then Dave and I stopped at Wahoo’s again, just to make sure they were able to get the Stanley Cup playoff games on their TVs. Looks like we’ll be watching the Jets there tomorrow night.

Back at the house we had a drink and a bit of chocolate and tried to stay awake to watch Colbert. Not easy. By eleven it was goodnight and lights out and we were in bed. Forecast for tomorrow is similar — not as hot as it’s been for the past number of weeks, and still lots of wind. We have a morning tee time booked at Mountain Brook.

Got up a bit late again this morning. Since I’d fallen asleep watching Frontline last night I took the opportunity to ‘re-watch’ it online this morning. Then I  went downstairs and had a grapefruit. I was going to cycle to Bashas’ for breakfast, but then I found the cherry fritter I brought home yesterday in the fridge. so instead I made a coffee and warmed up the fritter for my breakfast. Then I got on my bike and cycled down to Bashas’.

I bought a nice fresh kaiser bun and some shaved Black Forest ham and an avocado. I cycled back home (UP the hill) and made a couple of fine sandwiches for Dave and me. At a little before eleven I drove to the Phoenix Sky Harbour Airport to wait for Dave’s arrival. 

I waited in the cell-waiting area but the sign kept saying that Dave’s flight from Vancouver was ‘en route’ — even though my phone apps told me it had landed. It turns out that the plane HAD landed but was on the tarmac for an extra 45 minutes while they waited for crew to help bring the plane in to the terminal. Eventually I got a text from Dave that said he had landed. I picked him up a few minutes later and we were back on the road, heading east back to Gold Canyon.

I decided that we might as well get our first golf game in, and since the Western Skies golf course had been so much fun a few days ago (and not busy) we turned off the 60 and headed south to the Western Skies golf course. 

In a matter of minutes we were on the first tee and ready to play a round. My game wasn’t quite as good as it had been a few days ago, but for the most part Dave and I had a pretty good round. After the game we sent a text to Robert and Arlene, who had made the trip from Palm Desert to Gold Canyon today — they were all set up in their RV campground and hoping we could have dinner together tonight. 

They arrived at the house not long after Dave and I did. The Dycks brought steaks and potatoes and salad and asparagus. Robert barbecued the steaks so they were PERFECT and we sat around our outdoor patio table and enjoyed a very delicious meal together. 

We sat around the outdoor table for the evening and reminisced about the ‘good old days’. The Dycks went home at around 10:00pm. Dave and I watched a bit of Colbert and then called it a night. 

Tomorrow we have a reservation for a tee time at the Las Sendas Golf Club for just after 2 o’clock. Looking forward to it.

Thirty-five years ago yesterday the Winnipeg Jets lost the third and final game in the playoffs to the Edmonton Oilers. The Oilers went on to play and ultimately lose to the New York Islanders in the 1983 Stanley Cup. It was a sad moment for me. I was watching the game at home on a Saturday night, along with most of the staff of Able Sound who were ‘celebrating’ with me the completion of my newly-finished basement. While I was partying in my new basement, Sue was having a baby at the St Boniface Hospital. Our sister-in-law Shirley, a nurse, was with her. She called me shortly before midnight and encouraged me to get my butt over to the hospital — our baby girl was about to be born. I took my leave from my “basement-warming party” and hurried to St Boniface. It was early Sunday morning, April 10. By the time I got there the big event had already happened. I remember my first meeting with that “wet pink little gopher” and wondering how that little creature would change my life. I had a short visit with Sue. She was tired but doing fine. She told me she would like to name our baby Alexandra. I was okay with that — I really had no opinion about it and was inclined to accept it partly because I felt some guilt for not having been there for Sue. It was around 2:00am when I got back home; there was a big lit sign on the front lawn shouting “It’s a GIRL!” Betty Anne Funk was in the kitchen making pizzas for the crew. The party was going strong. 

Happy Birthday, Alex. I love you more than I could ever have imagined 35 years ago!

We now take you back to regularly scheduled program already in progress.

Yesterday’s poem did not mention the kerfuffle I had getting back home yesterday. There is an entry gate into the subdivision where I’m hanging out that requires an access code. I can either punch that code into a keypad at the gate or use the fob that I keep in the van. Last night, hurrying home to enjoy the piping hot fried chicken I’d bought at Bashas’, the fob didn’t open the gate. Neither did the code I entered into the keypad. What now? It was dark outside and I was a bit hesitant to jump over the fence what with all the rattlesnake roadkill I’d seen the last few days. I waited for another resident to come driving up and open it up for me but that seemed unlikely given how early everyone here ends their day. I thought of parking the van on the road outside the ‘compound’, but I was hoping that if I ‘jumped’ up and down on the exit driveway I could trigger the exit gate to open. Luckily another car drove up and opened the entry gate and I quickly jumped into my van and followed it in.

All that to say that this morning when I went back to try my code and my fob another resident who was driving through the gate informed me that the ‘admin’ had deleted ‘old’ codes and I would need to email that admin person and send him photos of my fobs so I could get a new code. Hmm… not likely that I’m going to do that. So I went to the rental agent. She knew nothing about the change. Ultimately she gave me three alternate codes that she got from three other properties in the subdivision. I cycled back to the gate and tried them — two of them worked. So I’m back in business.

I went for another long bike ride this morning. I stopped at Bashas’ for a cherry turnover and a Starbucks coffee. When I got back to the house the load of laundry I’d thrown in before I left was done. I made the bed in the big room so it would be ready for Dave when he arrives tomorrow and moved all my stuff back into the ‘second-best’ room. 

By three o’clock I had cleaned up the house and myself and was ready for another try at a golf game at Mountain Brook. The temperature today (and forecasted for tomorrow) is 98 degrees. That’s around 37 degrees Canadian. That is hot. But, as we like to say, it is a DRY heat. So the number scared off most golfers, but idiots like me see this as an ‘opportunity’! 

I teed off and by the 4th hole I’d once again caught up with slower groups ahead. I jumped from hole 4 to hole 7. Now I was in the clear. After the 9th I went back to one and played the front 9 again. Yikes! I don’t know what’s going on, but it seems I’ve caught a ‘rhythm’ — my drives are all straight and far, and I can ‘see’ my putts sinking from 15 feet out. Look out, Jordan Spieth. I’m coming…

I got a message from Max and Alex — they would like to Facetime. Well, I’m 2 hours ahead of home and Max goes to bed at 8:30. That means I gotta be home by 6 my time. So I quit at 5:30 and drove home. Facetimed with the birthday girl and her ‘boys’. Things are great at home. Max was all excited about some very sparkly new nail polish he had picked out for Alex’s birthday gift. 

I fired up the barbecue and made myself a couple of delicious hotdogs for supper. Man, after not eating hotdogs more than once a year for the last 40, I’m doing my share of ‘catching up’ now!

After supper I spent a bit of time looking up Dave’s flight for tomorrow — wanna make sure I’m there at Phoenix Sky Harbour at the right time. Then I sat back and watched some of the Elton John special on TV — although at 9:00pm I switched to Frontline on PBS — more ‘Trumpy’ news.

Woke up at six

What’s for breakfast: Grapefruit
Who you gonna call: my mom
What you gonna do: go for a walk at 9:00

What’s on my feet: socks and shoes
What’s on my nose: sunscreen
What’s on my playlist: old Kristofferson & new Wailin’ Jennys
What’s on the ground: more dead rattlesnakes
What’s for snack: apple fritter from Bashas’
How about to drink: medium coffee from Starbucks

Continued walk through Mountain Brook
Up past the “Bishop’s house” in Vista Point

Photos: the walkway, the view from “Bishop’s” hill, the bright yellow flowering trees
Stats: 2.5 hours, 13kms

What’s for lunch: tomatoes, broccoli, carrots and St Pauli Girl
Where’s the afternoon golf game: Western Skies Golf Course in Gilbert
How are my drives: long and straight (what else is new?)
What’s my score: 90 (that’s better!)
Photos: the 8th tee, no one behind me, selfie (come on, put on a happy face), 17th hole reflections

Detour on the way home: Chandler Mall (one more belt!)
Late supper at home: fried chicken from Bashas’
What’s on TV tonight: Trumpy news on Colbert (only if I can stay awake that long!)

Who knew! I’m a poet
And don’t even know it.

Got up early. Made coffee and sat down to watch Fareed at 7:00 am. Then I went for a long bike ride — a couple of trips around the loop, plus some ‘snooping’ around the roads up in Mountain Brook where the homes are on the Dinosaur course. I stopped in at Bashas’ and had a cinnamon twist and bought a bun to take home for lunch. 

By the time I got home the final round of the Masters was already in progress. I sat down to watch. I made myself a great sandwich for lunch. Had a FaceTime call with Alex — we went through my mail which she had just picked up. After the call I watched the rest of the Masters. I was sort of cheering for Rory McIlroy but he was going in the wrong direction today. Then Spieth made an impressive charge — but not enough to take it away from yesterday’s leader, Patrick Reed. 

It was 4pm when the golf was over. I decided to take a ride in the van. I ended up on Signal Butte and spent a couple of hours ‘shopping’. I bought some new golf pants and some t-shirts. It was close to 8 o’clock by the time I had supper — a ‘double double’ at In-N-Out burger. 

Back at home I watched a Kennedy special on CNN and then the local news. Went to bed at around 11pm.

Not a lot of interesting things to say today. I was GOING to make bacon and eggs for breakfast this morning, just like Tim taught me to. I had even bought an extra bun at Bashas’ last night just for that. I haven’t had toast and peanut butter with my morning coffee for a over a week now. But I had all that fruit that I bought yesterday and the eggs and bacon would keep for a while longer. Maybe I’ll have that when Dave joins me here on Wednesday. So I had a couple of grapefruits and some grapes and blueberries. And coffee. Maybe I’ll try carving up one of those big ripe mangos for tomorrow’s breakfast. 

I drove around the corner to the Gold Canyon golf course at around eleven. Spent an hour at the driving range. Every shot went straight and far. I must be good now. I might have hopped on a cart and golfed a quick round right then and there but it looked to me like the tee times were all booked — the driving range was swarming with young muscled American boys, all ‘warming up’ at the driving range. It sounded like they were here for a weekend of expensive golf. From the ‘conversation’ I overheard in between stupendous drives, a few of these boys should probably have stayed at the fancy hotel they had booked for their little golf weekend — and the rest of them were already 3 or 4 beers in, trying to catch up with their buddies. Well, good for them. I can golf Monday.

After getting myself good and ‘warmed up’ on the driving range I returned home for a refreshing shower and lunch. Left-over pizza. Even better today than it was yesterday! Since I’m a couple of time-zones behind the folks back home here, the TV broadcast of The Masters had already started by the time I got home. I tuned in and watched the event ‘in progress’. Then I had a FaceTime with Max and Alex who were about to go play in the park because the weather at home was looking a bit better; the snow was starting to melt!

Out in my ‘back yard’ there wasn’t a hint of snow. The course was a lush deep green, the sun was beating down warming things up to 92, the warmest it’s been here so far this year, and the fairway was busy with golfers all afternoon. So I didn’t feel so bad sitting in my air-conditioned living room WATCHING golf on TV. I ‘snacked’ on some more pizza. When the golf on TV was over I had a little siesta. I should probably do that more often! Now I had no problem staying awake in the evening. 

Tonight I sat and watched TV — mostly CNN where Anthony Bourdain was eating disgusting local dishes (horse meat and fish guts) from exotic locations around the globe. One of MY highlights of the night was when I remembered that the kids had left behind a partially eaten bag of Cheetos Puffs. I found the bag in one of the cupboards and finished it off. Then I washed most of that bright orange food colouring down with a glass of red wine. Yum. That Anthony Bourdain’s got nothin’ on me.

A lazy day here in Gold Canyon. It’s hot. The golf course outside looks busy in spite of the heat and the time of year. I thought all the snowbirds would have left by now, but I still see a lot of Alberta license plates on the road here.

Today I left the air-conditioned comfort of my house three times. The first was late this morning when I (finally!) went to the Superstition Ranch Farmers Market in Apache Junction. In previous years this would have been one of our FIRST stops once we got here. And actually Tim and Alex DID go here a couple of weeks ago when they were here. The fruit and vegetables are so cheap here that you can’t afford NOT to eat a lot of it. Well, my $10 worth is probably too much for me to eat. Seriously! Nine fresh Arizona-grown grapefruits for 99 cents? Big ripe mangos for 50 cents each. Same for vine-ripened beefsteak tomatoes. Bananas for 39 cents a pound. Crazy cheap, but when am I gonna eat this?

When I got home I made myself the usual big sandwich, but added a couple of slices of tomato to the avocado, cheese, and ham. WAY too much food for a guy that really should be going for a long walk or a bike ride. Hmm… what am I doing?

I thought I would go to Mountain Brook for a ‘quick’ round of golf late in the afternoon — if I went late enough surely I would have the course to myself and could zip through 18 holes in under 3 hours. Big mistake! I drove my cart out to the first tee and GOT IN LINE! An elderly husband and wife were taking their sweet time rolling the ball off the tee box and down the fairway. And once they were safely out of range (100 yards down the fairway), two old gomers drove their cart right past mine up to the forward tees and hobbled out onto the tee box with their Big Bertha drivers and dribbled a couple of balls out onto the course. Oh boy! This is not going to be any fun at all. I actually waited around on the tee until the old codgers were out of sight, around the bend. I teed up a couple of balls and proceeded to whack them into the scrub that lined the left side of the fairway. Ha! I’m a fine one to talk! I should have JOINED the old-timers instead of pacing around impatiently on the tee box. Oh well. I might as well ‘practice’. So I played FOUR balls down to the first green. I spent at least 10 minutes just practising my putting, waiting for the gang ahead to move along far enough for me to hit a drive at the next hole. By the time I got to the green on hole #2 it was clear to me that things would only get more bogged down. I gathered my golf balls from the green and drove back to the clubhouse. Went in to complain and ask for a ‘rain’ check. Packed up. I thought I might go the Gold Canyon course where I have a ‘pass’ for the driving range. But the driving range CLOSED at 4 o’clock and it was an hour past that by now. So I went home.

Since I’d eaten a late lunch, and not exactly a ‘small’ lunch, I decided to wait until after 7 o’clock before going out to Wahoo’s for Friday night pizza. By then the crowd that gathers there every evening should have had their fill of karaoke and be heading home for an early ‘night-night’. Well lucky for me the ‘entertainment’, and I use that term loosely, was still going strong when I sat down at a table and ordered a Kiltlifter. Tonight’s musical trivia game was “which TV theme song do you think I’m trying to play” and I don’t know what was more obnoxious — the old guy on stage showing off all the ‘cool’ effects he could add to the drum track with his Casio keyboard or the drunk old ladies in the audience who hollered out every old TV western theme song they could think of EXCEPT the one that the Casio guy was trying to play. I guess no one was FORCING me to sit there — so I’m probably even more of a loser than the people I’m mocking!

I was thinking I should order a medium pizza so I could have leftovers for Saturday lunch. Dumb idea! Nothing ‘medium’ about the pizza here!  I had three slices and was STUFFED. I took home enough leftovers for at least two more huge meals. So what am I supposed to do now? Sit in front of the TV all weekend watching the Masters and eating cold pizza? That’s not what I came here for. (Like my mom would say, ‘that you can do at home, too!’) I am an idiot!

After yesterday’s “slack” day, I righted the ship today. I had my morning coffee and a banana. Then I went for a long bike ride around Gold Canyon. On my way home I stopped at Bashas’ and picked up a fresh bun. Made a humungous sandwich for lunch.

After lunch I drove back to Power Road to pick up my re-gripped golf clubs. On the way I stopped to return one of the two fancy new belts I bought yesterday. That made me feel better. The golf clubs also feel better. But how would new grips affect my game? I decided to try them out right away. So I drove across Hwy 60 to the Superstition Springs golf course. I’d only golfed there once before, back in January 2015, when Sue and I joined Don Hoeppner and Dave Driedger there.

Today I teed off as a single. The new grips meant that the worn out flat part of the grip was gone; how would I know how to line up the club? It felt completely different. But the first few drives all went nice and straight. I caught up with a single ahead of me after about 4 holes and we joined up and played together for the rest of the game. John is half my age, golfs 3 or 4 times a week all year long, works at Boeing here in Phoenix, hits the ball straighter and farther than I can. I enjoyed golfing with him. This golf course used host some PGA events but today it needs a little TLC. The layout is okay, no houses in play and there is more water than the courses in Gold Canyon, but some of the fairways need some irrigation or rain. My game didn’t improved with the new grips, but it wasn’t any worse either. It felt like I was playing with new clubs, so that was good. And I had fun.

It was a little after 6 when we finished. I drove back across the 60 to the Five Guys hamburger restaurant and had the “Little” Bacon Cheeseburger. Little? Not really, especially since I loaded it up with mayo, lettuce, pickles, tomatoes, grilled onions, grilled mushrooms, ketchup, mustard, relish, onions, jalapeño peppers, green peppers, barbecue sauce, hot sauce, and A1 sauce! And I had TWO large refills of coke — I think I was dehydrated from all that outdoor activity. The temperature reached 33 degrees (91 Fahrenheit) today and I probably didn’t drink enough water on the golf course. A burger and couple of cokes fixed that.

Just across the road was the Superstition Springs ‘cheap’ theatre. It was 6:40 and the movie “Hostiles” was about to start. I bought a $2.00 ticket and had no trouble staying awake for the next two hours as lots of cowboys and Indians got killed. Not sure there was a single ‘good guy’ in the show, but what can you expect for two bucks!

These days even the nights are warm here. (At home it is snowing tonight.) Walking out of the mall in short sleeves and sandals feels pretty good. I drove back to my home at the foot of Superstition Mountain. It had been a great day!

Hmm… I kind of ‘wasted’ this day away. I woke up early and then frittered away a few hours putzkying around the house. I had an eleven o’clock appointment for an oil change on the van in Apache Junction. I was almost late for it!

I was hoping the mechanic could figure out what might be the cause of that ‘howling’ noise that comes from my rear wheels when I’m driving slowly. They took off all the wheels and checked the brakes and pronounced them good — lots of wear left, all seemed to be just fine. They ‘sawed’ a few notches into the brake pads, so maybe that would remedy the problem. (It did not. A few hours later as I was driving around the parking lot at the Superstition Springs mall looking for ‘the best’ parking spot, that ‘waa, waa, waa‘ was as loud and annoying as ever.)

I drove to Power Road and ate lunch in the food court at the mall there. I was hoping there might be a movie that would interest me at the cheap theatre there, but there were only two shows that I could see myself sitting through and the start times didn’t match my schedule. 

I wasted another hour at Vans Golf shop just up the road from the mall. I don’t actually know what I was looking for — well, I KNOW that I was looking for something that would magically improve my golf game, but I know better than to believe that just because it works in one of those simulators they have at the shop doesn’t mean it will work on the course. In the end I left my irons and my driver at the repair shop there to have them re-gripped. I’ll pick them up tomorrow.

I had signed up for a free Steven Pinker lecture at Arizona State University for 5:00 today (thanks to a recommendation by Hans Neufeld). I’d been getting a steady stream of emails from the event organizer encouraging me to let them know if I was NOT going to attend so they could give the ticket to somebody on their long waitlist. Must be a hot ticket! The latest email said not to be late — if I wasn’t there by 4:55 I would forfeit my ticket. Okay, I might as well drive to Tempe; the Tempe Marketplace is a large shopping centre not far from the university and I can waste a bit of time shopping this afternoon.

So I went to all my favourite stores. Not really, unless you call TotalWine a store. Wandered around and looked at all the interesting imported and craft beers. I also went to a belt store there — Tim had bought a cool belt when he was here and I wondered if I might find one like it. I did. So I bought two, one black and one brown. (What is with me? Now I’m starting a belt collection? This is exactly why I do not go shopping. I know better.) Too bad I’d had lunch — there are a lot of interesting eating places here. Maybe I’ll come back after the lecture.

A little after four I drove down to the university. Traffic is getting busier. I circled a few times and finally drove into a parkade. I thought it was close to the hall where the talk was going to be, but I ended up walking half a mile, zigzagging around and between all the various university halls and buildings, looking for ‘Old Main’. I guess classes were out and the walkways were crowded with young people, carrying backpacks and gazing into their phones, going the other way. 

The hallways leading into the lecture hall were lined with folks. Wait List #1. Wait List #2. I went to the registration desk and one of the attendants there drew a nice fluorescent yellow highlighter line through my name on the list. And in I went. Row 3. Right on!

I actually don’t know who Steven Pinker is! The talk was entitled “Why Free Speech is Fundamental“. Hans had said he really wished he could hear him. When MaryLou heard I was going to see him she texted that she would love to hear him. The hall quickly fills up. Standing room only. Steven Pinker is up on the stage, looking at his prepared slides on his laptop. I take a photo. 

The lecture is mostly read from his notes. It is interesting, and especially so since I am in Trump’s America, where truth and civilized discourse is under attack. But Pinker doesn’t just criticize the alt-right. He suggests that universities also suppress free speech when they disinvite controversial commencement speakers. He believes that free speech is a fundamental right and in his talk he explains how important that ‘First Amendment’ is to a modern democratic society. 

Steven Pinker is listed as one of Time magazine’s “100 Most Influential People in the World Today”. Steven Pinker is an optimist. He believes that things can and will get better. He makes references to his latest book, “Enlightenment Now: The Case for Reason, Science, Humanism, and Progress“. I think I will have to buy the book. 

It is fun to be here. It’s invigorating. After the lecture there is a question-and-answer session. Long lines form behind the two microphones that are set up in the aisles. After about an hour the moderator cuts them off. It’s time to go — I skip the reception in the hallway and go try and find the parkade where my van is parked.

I had planned to go back to the Tempe Marketplace for dinner but I changed my mind. I had a fridge full of food and drink at home and it was already 7:30. It would take at least half an hour to drive home. 

Back at the house I lit the barbecue and made myself a gin and tonic. Checked out my new belts while the hotdogs were sizzling on the grill. After supper I sat down and watched TV again — more PBS Martin Luther King specials. I guess it’s the anniversary of his assassination. I remember that day back in 1968. I was 12 years old. We were visiting Abe Klassen, Tim’s grandpa, on the farm. The boys were playing outside while the dads were watching the NHL playoffs on TV. Dallas Northstars vs the L.A. Kings. The game was interrupted by a news flash. Dr King had been shot. I didn’t know who Dr King was, but I remember my dad saying this was not good. He said there would be trouble ahead. Riots and unrest. Tonight’s documentary showed that that IS exactly what happened.

I went upstairs so I could fall asleep watching Jimmy Kimmel. What else is new?