After the Desert Botanical Garden, Kate and I went to The Vig Arcadia (there are several locations) and sat on the patio and talked some more and had margaritas and guacamole and fish tacos.

Since we still had time until Denise was finished, Kate drove through the “chicken neighborhood.” The area used to have something to do with chickens – perhaps a farm – and when the land was sold and developed, all the chickens were set free. When you move into the neighborhood you have to sign a form stating you will not hurt the chickens. The hens and roosters roam free in the neighborhood entering whatever yard they choose. The neighborhood also has a few peacocks, so in addition to multiple hen and rooster sightings we saw two peacocks and two peahens.

Then we drove up South Mountain, where you get views of the entire valley. While up there, Kate pointed out the mountain we had seen when we were at the Desert Botanical Garden, Camelback Mountain, Superstition Mountains, and others.

Kate regaled me with various Phoenix historical stories but the best was about a woman who had murdered her roommates, cut them up (with help but they do not know who), put them in trunks, was arrested and paroled in the 1970s, when she became the hairdresser to the governor. There’s a man who gives tours in Phoenix where she learned all these stories.

We met up with Denise and I said goodbye to Kate. Denise and I grabbed something to eat and then went to The Nash, a jazz club where they have jam sessions every Sunday night from 6pm-9pm. Denise has been feeling the calling to go back to singing and she really enjoyed being there – even making up a mental list of musicians she would recruit when she can finally sing with a band again. There was a core house trio but they gave up their places for both pros and students. Everyone is welcome to sing or play. There were two older gentlemen, in particular, who were standout pianists. Some people think jazz and think, “I must play every note.” These men played with space in-between notes letting the other musicians shine and when it came to their solos they played the notes needed and not anything that should not be there. Wonderful end to a wonderful day.

By Carene Lydia Lopez