This blog has so far mostly been about renovation - or retro-vation as we call it. Thus, it has mostly discussed construction and products, which is interesting to us, but we never forget the purpose behind all this and our ultimate goal: TRAVEL. We are mostly stuck right now for a variety of factors, but we did have a little adventure travel recently.
On a trip (without the Airstream) on Interstate 10 near Casa Grande, AZ, we ran into one of the infamous dust storms there. The desert develops a hard surface over time, so only disturbed soil generates dust. In that area, there is a lot of farming (Pima cotton comes from Pima County and Pinal County), and some construction. Thus, if the wind is strong, there are terrible dust storms, some of which occasionally result in massive pile-ups and shocking death tolls. No one seems to know what to do about it, including the AZ Dept. of Transportation. The only advice I've heard is get off the road - like onto the desert - and turn your lights off so no one follows you.
The problem is, you really have no time to react. It was that windy kind of day. The radio had alerts not to use leaf blowers and for people with allergies and respiratory illnesses to stay inside. We could see lots of dust devils and a brownish haze. Then, as we were driving south, a dust cloud rolled over us, instantly reducing visibility so we could not see the truck right in front of us. It was only for 3 seconds or so, but it was amazing to suddenly be so blind. Luckily, it was that brief and from then on it was fine, and the beautiful Arizona sunshine returned.
