I'm here in Show Low

Well, I finally made it to Show Low. Been here about a week now, so what do I think?

Here is what I see out my front door. Left, right, and center.



The A frame next door is abandoned, with a big hole in the skylight. I'm told it's been ransacked for any good parts, so what's left isn't worth much. But still the owners apparently don't want to sell. Interesting.

Well, it's pretty here. The junipers are tall, taller than the bushes at the Slabs; good for privacy. And shade, I'd imagine in the summer. But they aren't so tall as to block the southern sky, so my satellite dishes function well.

And it's quiet. Very quiet. I like that. At night, it is very dark and the stars are just wonderful. Since it's high, at about 6700 feet, the nights are still quite cold, but the sun is warm. We've had bad wind most of the days I've been here, but everyone says that's only in the spring. I've had to bring down the dishes and bring in the slides and just hibernate until the winds stop.

The gravel roads are pretty badly washboarded (is that a word?), and four miles of them until you get to the main road. And then it's another 15 miles into town. I'm not very happy about that.

Did I mention I can't breathe too well here, it's 6700 feet in elevation. They say I'll get used to it. Somehow, I don't think so.

I can see coming up for a couple weeks in the spring or fall, but so far I'm not burdened by an overwhelming urge to buy land here. Maybe I'll feel differently after I've been here a few more days.

My friends who have purchased are very happy here. Taylor is siding her little house. Carol loves it up here and is becoming the local real estate tycoon. And John, who was very skeptical, has fallen in love with the place and is as happy as a pig in mud, doing all sorts of work on their little lot. I'm very glad for them, but for me, I'm not ready to think about settling down.

As long as I have friends who will let me come for short visits, I'm very happy.