under the tucson sun...

no, that's not a spelling error. it's tucson, the most mysteriously spelled city name in the country, and there i basked in the sun from monday to friday. as most people were driving home from their all-too-thankless jobs on the all-too-dreaded first day of the work week, i was soaring over land and under space to tucson international airport via chicago-midway. the traveling was a little harrowing...that experience began with the discovery of a grey hair that was, in fact, attached to my head, on the way to boston-logan. i threw it out the window and tried to forget it.

next, there was the person with personal space issues that i met twice in lines at the airport. need i say more? haven't we all experienced those people who somehow think they're getting to the front of the line faster just because their body is vaguely brushing up against your butt? well, if you haven't, i envy you! i also couldn't finish the southwest magazine crossword, which was disappointing. lastly, i used the internet on my phone, twice...which is an a la carte feature, so i pay a dollar for each minute. this is a bad habit that needs to stop. and it made me question my level of dependence on the internet.

i finally reached tucson at 9 pm local time (actually 12 am in my body), right on schedule, and phil was waiting for me at the baggage claim. i thought about crying, but then thought better of it and just smiled to give my great big brother a great big hug. (he's not great big, he's just great, as in wonderful, and big, as in tall. but the hug was great big.)

so i guess i should have labeled this post "under the tucson moon," since we didn't even get to daytime in tucson...but that just wouldn't have the same ring to it.

this is my brother, phil. he is opening a very special present from my mom and i...our traditional frosted sugar cookies affectionately known, in my family, as Christmas cookies, because of their usual bell, tree, house, heart, and star shapes, and their timely arrival in december. this time, however, we pulled out the autumn cookie cutters to make some fall and new hampshire-inspired cookies. he was very excited and we both enjoyed them throughout the week!

don't they look delicious? (the star on the new hampshire could easily be confused with the location of concord, the capital, but it is actually strategically placed on bow, our hometown!)