Friday night happy fun time
Okay, so last night, I thought I was headed toward a typical, I-have-no-life Friday night. I was sitting at my desk, reading an article in Time magazine, while an episode of Veronica Mars played in the background (yes, shut up).
And then, at 9:20, my phone rang. Who should be on the other end but Liz Benforado, wanting to know if I want to meet her at Denny's in central Phoenix.
But of course I did. That's one of the cornerstones of our friendship. So, I departed my house as she departed Arizona Mills - and yet, somehow, by the time I got on the 17 at Bell, she had already gotten to 16th St. and Camelback.
It took me a while to get there. I thought, "Oh, I'll get off at Glendale, go over to 16th, avoid the construction on Bethany Home at 19th and on Camelback from 19th over to Central."
TOO BAD 16th IS UNDER CONSTRUCTION FROM GLENDALE TO CAMELBACK!
That was annoying. But I finally got there just before 10:00. I had eaten dinner already, so our usual positions were reversed - I just got a milkshake, while she actually got something to eat.
After that, we wanted to do something - but it had to be something that wouldn't cause either of us to fall asleep (I had been up since 4:20 AM, her since 5:30), and it had to be something close by so that we could take one car, leave the other at Denny's, and not worry about it.
So, we turn out of the parking lot onto Camelback. I head east - and as I cross 24th St., I rhetorically ask, "As if I don't spend enough time over here each day, WHY am I headed toward the hotel?"
At which point, Liz said, "Oooh, I like the hotel. Let's go walk around over there."
Okay. So, over to the Hermosa Inn we went. It was a couple hours earlier than the last time we were over there, so everything was still open. We were able to walk around Lon's, and I gave her the "grand tour", as it were. There were a number of vacant rooms, so I got a master key and a vacant/clean list from Alissa, and showed Liz a Rancho, a Casita, and a Hacienda suite.
She was pretty impressed. She thought the rooms were nice, and then wanted to know what was going to be changed in the renovation. I told her that the Ranchos were going to be torn down and replaced, and that most of the other rooms were going to have a complete makeover, and when they were done, have considerably larger bathrooms. Liz thought that was a good idea, especially after seeing the Hacienda bathroom.
But then... then she asked if the hotel was really going to change in its overall feel. And I couldn't stop myself. Out came the pitch, like word vomit. "Well, that's why we're calling it a property enhancement," I replied. "We're going to be redoing and replacing some of our rooms, updating technology and amenities, and really bringing the resort to the top of the top tier of Phoenix resorts. At the same time, though, we're going to be preserving the legacy of Lon Megargee here at the Hermosa Inn."
It was then that I realized what I was saying, and I shut up. Liz started laughing, and said she couldn't believe that I had said that with a straight face. What can I say, I get a lot of practice.
After we left the hotel, we were driving down 44th St., back to Camelback, and I asked Liz if she'd ever been up on the south face of Camelback Mountain. She said no, and then asked if that was something you had to hike.
Hah! Something in Phoenix Liz hadn't been exposed to! A quick jaunt over to Arcadia Drive, a left hand turn, and up the south face of Camelback we went. Liz was suitably impressed - it IS pretty cool looking down on the city from up there - and we tried not to laugh at the teenagers toward the top who had apparently gotten in trouble with the Phoenix Police.
Well, after that, we headed back to Denny's so she could pick up her car. It was pretty late at that point. In fact, by the time I pulled out of the parking lot, it was after 12:30 (okay, so that's not THAT late, but when you're talking about two people who had been up as long as we had, it's pretty late!).
On the way home, I stopped at the Wal-Mart at 19th & Bell (I needed soap and deodorant), and it was weird. As I was walking into the store, I started having trouble focusing my eyes. I had no problem whatsoever when I was driving, but when I was in the bright lights of the store, my eyes just decided to quit working properly.
I finally got home and to bed around 1:30. Twenty-one hours straight I had been awake, so it was crash and burn time the instant I hit my bed.
But hey. It's nice to have fun on a Friday night ever once in a while.
And then, at 9:20, my phone rang. Who should be on the other end but Liz Benforado, wanting to know if I want to meet her at Denny's in central Phoenix.
But of course I did. That's one of the cornerstones of our friendship. So, I departed my house as she departed Arizona Mills - and yet, somehow, by the time I got on the 17 at Bell, she had already gotten to 16th St. and Camelback.
It took me a while to get there. I thought, "Oh, I'll get off at Glendale, go over to 16th, avoid the construction on Bethany Home at 19th and on Camelback from 19th over to Central."
TOO BAD 16th IS UNDER CONSTRUCTION FROM GLENDALE TO CAMELBACK!
That was annoying. But I finally got there just before 10:00. I had eaten dinner already, so our usual positions were reversed - I just got a milkshake, while she actually got something to eat.
After that, we wanted to do something - but it had to be something that wouldn't cause either of us to fall asleep (I had been up since 4:20 AM, her since 5:30), and it had to be something close by so that we could take one car, leave the other at Denny's, and not worry about it.
So, we turn out of the parking lot onto Camelback. I head east - and as I cross 24th St., I rhetorically ask, "As if I don't spend enough time over here each day, WHY am I headed toward the hotel?"
At which point, Liz said, "Oooh, I like the hotel. Let's go walk around over there."
Okay. So, over to the Hermosa Inn we went. It was a couple hours earlier than the last time we were over there, so everything was still open. We were able to walk around Lon's, and I gave her the "grand tour", as it were. There were a number of vacant rooms, so I got a master key and a vacant/clean list from Alissa, and showed Liz a Rancho, a Casita, and a Hacienda suite.
She was pretty impressed. She thought the rooms were nice, and then wanted to know what was going to be changed in the renovation. I told her that the Ranchos were going to be torn down and replaced, and that most of the other rooms were going to have a complete makeover, and when they were done, have considerably larger bathrooms. Liz thought that was a good idea, especially after seeing the Hacienda bathroom.
But then... then she asked if the hotel was really going to change in its overall feel. And I couldn't stop myself. Out came the pitch, like word vomit. "Well, that's why we're calling it a property enhancement," I replied. "We're going to be redoing and replacing some of our rooms, updating technology and amenities, and really bringing the resort to the top of the top tier of Phoenix resorts. At the same time, though, we're going to be preserving the legacy of Lon Megargee here at the Hermosa Inn."
It was then that I realized what I was saying, and I shut up. Liz started laughing, and said she couldn't believe that I had said that with a straight face. What can I say, I get a lot of practice.
After we left the hotel, we were driving down 44th St., back to Camelback, and I asked Liz if she'd ever been up on the south face of Camelback Mountain. She said no, and then asked if that was something you had to hike.
Hah! Something in Phoenix Liz hadn't been exposed to! A quick jaunt over to Arcadia Drive, a left hand turn, and up the south face of Camelback we went. Liz was suitably impressed - it IS pretty cool looking down on the city from up there - and we tried not to laugh at the teenagers toward the top who had apparently gotten in trouble with the Phoenix Police.
Well, after that, we headed back to Denny's so she could pick up her car. It was pretty late at that point. In fact, by the time I pulled out of the parking lot, it was after 12:30 (okay, so that's not THAT late, but when you're talking about two people who had been up as long as we had, it's pretty late!).
On the way home, I stopped at the Wal-Mart at 19th & Bell (I needed soap and deodorant), and it was weird. As I was walking into the store, I started having trouble focusing my eyes. I had no problem whatsoever when I was driving, but when I was in the bright lights of the store, my eyes just decided to quit working properly.
I finally got home and to bed around 1:30. Twenty-one hours straight I had been awake, so it was crash and burn time the instant I hit my bed.
But hey. It's nice to have fun on a Friday night ever once in a while.