Are You In or Out?

Another day, another adventure with the family in Phoenix.

I woke up early and went out to Son Tony's patio to enjoy the beautiful weather.  In the summer temperatures of 115° weren't uncommon (and "lows" in the 90s), but this weekend it was quite pleasant.  Tony joined me, and before too long we heard other people stirring in the house.  It was time to start the day with breakfast.

After breakfast the parade of showers started. Even with two bathrooms, it takes a long time for six people to get ready in the morning.  Fortunately for some of the family, it was Sunday, which means NFL football.  Arizona is only one time zone behind St. Louis, but since it doesn't change to daylight savings time in the summer, the time this weekend was two hours ahead of what we're used to.  That means that the football game that comes on at noon at home started at 10:00 in the morning!

Finally everyone was ready to leave.  Our destination was Scottsdale.  Just like every other trip this weekend, we'd be in two cars. Son Tony drove the first one (with his brothers and Nicole in the car) with Tony and me following in the rental car.  I knew we were stopping for lunch first, but I was surprised when we pulled into a fast-food parking lot. Then I noticed we were at In-N-Out Burger, a chain we don't have at home.  I got excited.

I've heard people talk about how good the food is at In-N-Out.  I've also heard about their "secret" menu, which are off-menu preparations that you can order if you're in the know.  Thanks to Tony's expertise, I knew that if I ordered my burger "Animal Style" I'd get a sandwich that had mustard fried into the meat patties as they cook, then topped with lettuce and tomato, pickles, grilled onions and extra spread (sauce). The sandwich was messy, gooey, and wonderful.

We got back in the cars and drove to downtown Scottsdale. Sadly, since it was Sunday many of the small stores were closed.  Our group split up; some of us went to the mall and others hit a Borders across the street.  We rendezvoused later in the afternoon and drove back to Tony's for a BBQ feast, which included grilled tri-tip (a cut of beef new to me), chicken, and sausage.  There was an awesome Asian cole slaw, baked potatoes, corn on the cob, and apple pie for dessert. Everyone pitched in on the cooking and cleanup.

After dinner we talked, played games, and talked some more.  Some of us watched more football.  As I was headed to bed, the kids were getting ready to start a movie.  They asked me if I wanted to watch, but I wasn't ready for a two-hour commitment so I declined