Golden Glow of the Santa Catalinas

“This is Los Angeles. We don’t have weather.” --Jimmy Kimmel

The joke, of course, is: The best job in the world is to be a weatherman in Southern California; every single day in the 70’s and sunny! True, but an even better job would be to work as a meteorologist in Tucson, Arizona! After all, California has the occasional wildfire, flood, draught, earthquake and mudslide, not to mention the annual Santa Ana winds, which are always good for at least a week of special weather coverage - not so in this beautiful southwestern haven! The weather is superbly steady in Tucson, sitting neatly between 60 and 80, and sunny, always sunny, day after day, week after week. No snow, ice-storms, earthquakes, mudslides, winds of any kind, and only the occasional rainstorm. For those of us suffering with the extremes of winter weather on the East Coast, it’s absolutely infuriating!

Chris has a great love for Tucson – a beautiful city that happily survives in the shadow of Phoenix, its much larger neighbor to the North. Although Tucson has not been exempt from widespread gentrification, extensive expansion and steady commercial growth over the past few decades, it has escaped being consumed by the massive urban sprawl that has taken over Phoenix in recent years. It maintains the feeling of a “small city,” even while housing one of the countries most vibrant universities (University of Arizona), supporting a thriving arts scene, hosting some of America’s most unique chefs, and continuing its historical relevance as Hollywood’s primary Western set-location, a vibrant source of income for many decades past and still a tourist attraction today.

Although as an adult Chris can appreciate all the things that Tucson has become in recent years, his love of the city is most likely based in his childhood memories - it was the place he called “home” for many years growing up as a military kid. When the family returned to the States from their many stops around the globe, it was always to Tucson to see Grandma in her tiny mobile home at the foot of TV Mountain! Many years later, Chris attended college in Tucson, made many great friends, held all kinds of interesting jobs, and spent several wonderful years visiting with his grandmother, all of which has led to his continued connection to the city, the culture, the exceptional food – and the climate!

These are the beautiful Catalina Mountains that frame the northern neighborhoods of Tucson. For anyone who thinks the desert is “brown,” we invite them to spend a couple of months simply watching the changing landscape of this mountain range. Tonight, on a cool January evening, they’re glowing gold in the setting sun and will slowly turn to a reddish orange as the sun further descends into the West. The mountains often have snow on them this time of year, and in just a few weeks they’ll show various shades of green as Spring officially approaches. It’s been unseasonably cool this week, and we’ve been happy to have our jackets on, but even in January, the temps seldom will drop below 50 (unbearable to the locals!)

No matter what the weather, one of the draws to this beautiful city is its outdoor lifestyle – al fresco dining is very much the norm and most homes have some kind of outdoor living area, many with pools, some with fireplaces for chilly evenings, and almost all with outdoor decks and patios. The Tucson lifestyle lends itself to being healthy and active (something every jaded New Yorker scoffs at, but secretly craves), and Chris and I hope to maintain our youthful energy and uber-active lifestyle by retiring there someday! Somehow, finding a way to fully enjoy the city’s balance of good food, sophisticated culture and outdoor activity with its focus on recreational activities aimed at helping grown-ups wind down and relax (golf, spas, biking and hiking in the clean, clear desert air) seems like something we can get our heads around!

But for now, as we’re racing through airports punching the time clock on both sides of the globe, Tucson remains our “carrot” dangling just out of reach, beckoning us like an oasis in the desert, its sirens luring us toward the golden glow of the Santa Catalinas.