Four Signs You Are in Tucson

Reid Park Zoo Humor

 I realized as I logged into the blog today that it had been more than a month since my last post. I have put some thought into why it is that I post less here in Arizona - the truth is, in Scotland, things were more "exotic."  Even a trip to a local town (like St. Andrews) was picturesque and foreign to readers back in the States.  I suppose I could say the same thing about Arizona. It sure is foreign here sometimes.  But it is still the United States and so...less exotic.

That said, I've been collecting pictures of (often literal) signs that you are in Tucson, Arizona. These signs and images epitomize Tucson for me. Every day on the way to work I drive by a strip mall [note to British readers: not what it sounds like] that I always want to stop and take a picture of because it contains the following:

• a tamale shop [one of the high points of Tucson food]
• a medical marajuana dispensary [which have mushroomed in the five years we've been gone, thanks to state legalization of medical marajuana]
• a store called "Metaphysics World" [which, although I've never been in, sums up Tucson's hippie leanings for me]

All have brightly colored storefronts with big signs - as you do in Tucson.  But on to some things I do actually have pictures of, because they aren't located on a busy thoroughfare between home and work.

Tucson Food

There are many great things about Tucson food - you take your pick of everything from multiple styles of Mexican food to sushi to Ethiopian dishes and everything in between.  Frybread, while certainly not exclusive to Tucson (it can be found throughout the Southwest) is something that you can find in Tucson, but definitely not Scotland, or the East Coast.

Frybread stand at a University of Arizona event

Another food (if you can call it that) native to Tucson is the Eegees slush.  For the non-Tucsonan Americans, imagine Subway decided to serve pretzels and french fries in addition to their subs, and instead of proper drinks, they served 7-11 slushes, in flavors that changed monthly. Imagine that you grew up with "Eegees" (the name of the restaurant as well as the slush) as a staple of children's parties, and as an adult you transitioned to "Iced Teagees" which are ice tea mixed with lemon slush.  Now imagine it's 100 degrees. Every day. For four months. Okay, you've got the picture.

Eegees truck at a University of Arizona event

Reminders that you are in the West

These reminders may take many forms - for example, homage to the horse culture of the West, like this sign spotted outside a park restroom:

Or, warnings you might not see anywhere else, like this reminder in the parking lot of the Desert Museum:

Or, this sign from a rest area parking lot (technically not in Tucson, but in Central/Northern Arizona):

Note: "Unloading of Livestock" is prohibited

Also not typically seen outside the West - reminders at highway rest stops that the local fauna could kill you:

 

Reminders that This Area Used to be Part of Mexico 

An additional, though distinct feature of the West is that for a long time, it was part of Mexico, and this influence is still strong.  Witness the selection of pinatas for sale at Target:

 

  

Truths About Tucson

I'll close with a few images, that like the juxtoposition of tamales, medical marajuana and metaphysics, express truths about Tucson. 

For example, the schools are aspirational...this actual sign from Audrey's elementary school heartens and distresses me at the same time:

Although it rains heavily during the summer months (and occasionally outside the summer months), very few roads in Tucson are built to withstand water.  In the best-case scenario (shown here, outisde our house), the middle of the road becomes a river, with some space to drive on either side.  

 In a worst case scenario, the road floods and you can only drive when it's raining if you have a high-clearance vehicle.  Which brings me to my last two photos - the truth about how big your car is if you drive in Tucson (that's my car on the right, next to a typical Tucson truck):

And finally, a sign that recognizes the complicated and ever-changing relationships between pedestrians, horses, and cyclists in Tucson: