Ed

I got us lost today. Not lost, but I missed a turn and cost us over an hour.

I like to see myself as competent... but am I? What fictions sustain me? Earlier this week I found out that a close friend views me as Puertorican. I am, of course, but that's not an image I cultivate nor one that I think of as defining me. It was a shocking moment. How wrong am I in my image of self? In what other ways am I fooling myself? Am I a competent person? Am I considerate? Useful? Interesting? (no -- Ed.) Okay, not interesting. But darn, what the heck am I and how come I don't know? Am I the person I think I am? The people who know me well: what do you know that I don't?

It's been an interesting week, and the coming one will be too. I'm a bit shaken, and need to reexamine a lot of things about myself. I'll save you the boring introspection bits, but leave you with a question: Who are you?

Some people would call this part of the country ugly and boring. Their point of view isn't necessarily wrong... but it's sad. This beholder sees only exquisite beauty.

We drove through some incredible terrain today. Wide vistas, deep canyons. Red rocks, light green grass, dark green shrubs. Black mesas against a deep blue Southwestern sky. The land was constantly changing; every mile was different.

The photo at left is of (we think) Leche-e Mesa near Page. It's a striking mesa, visible for a long part of our drive.

We stopped for the night in Page, Arizona, right by Lake Powell. Had a surprisingly good dinner at Fiesta Mejicana: an appetizer of sauteed mushrooms with lots (LOTS!) of garlic, then Mole Enchiladas for Ginger and a Milanesa for me. The Milanesa (basically a latin american chicken-fried steak) was exquisite, a good cut of meat with great butter flavor. The Mole was a bit sweet for us, but still tasty.

After dinner, we drove around and stopped at a vista spot right after Glen Canyon Dam. Two young ladies were showing no fear of the canyon edge. I recommend clicking on the photo for a full-scale version. Gulp!