Scare Myself Silly

There are moments when, in the middle of an activity or moment, you realize what you are doing is completely idiotic and you question your sanity. Yesterday, I had one such moment. After a wonderfully tiring day of moving into my classroom, hanging pictures, driving to Arizona (will be explained later), and shopping for groceries, I decided a quiet evening watching movies was in order. 

 

 Another teacher, Candy, has been kind enough to feed me and aid me in my moments of panic, and while I was at her house yesterday for lunch, she showed me her movie collection and created a pile of "must-see movies" for me. I took two of them home with me to watch this weekend. Now, if you know nothing else about me, you must realize this: I am afraid of hot food (it burns...) and I HATE scary movies. Why anyone would willingly subject themselves of an hour and a half of terror for entertainment's sake is beyond me. Not only that, but scary movies are, by definition, meant to SCARE you, so the residual effects of the movie extend way beyond the initial 1.5 hours of fear. Pointless, I say. But, I digress...

   One of the movies she gave me was "Copycat" starring Sigourney Weaver and Holly Hunter. Basic rundown: psycho-analyst turned agoraphobe courtesy of a life-threatening experience has to assist the San Fran PD solve a serial killer mystery. Toss in some gruesome deaths, scary music, creepy villain, and unexpected "jump out of your seat" moments, and you've got yourself a grade A thriller designed to turn me into a scared little girl. So what do I do? I decide at 9 at night out in the desert in a house by myself to watch this movie. WHAT ON EARTH WAS I THINKING????? Oh wait, I wasn't. That explains it.

 

  Needless to say, I had to pop in a more family friendly movie after Copycat was over (I couldn't not watch it...). The sounds of Ratatouille soothed me to sleep after a quick run-through of the house and strategic placement of boxes in front of the doors so I'd heard someone break in. I know, it's pathetic. But you try living by yourself on top of a mountain-hill in the desert, and then you can talk to me. 

  Now, to explain the Arizona adventure. I found out only a day before I moved that the one thing New Mexico lacked was a Chase bank. There are none in the state. At all. The nearest one is a lovely 1.5 hrs away in Show Low, AZ, and so I hopped in my car yesterday afternoon and drove the 120 miles to my bank so that I wouldn't get charged any fees and so I could deposit a check. Objective number one on my list right now is to switch to a closer bank... soon. However, should I remain at Chase, I don't think I'll mind the trek all that much. The drive was wonderfully simple and afforded me some of the best views the Southwest has to offer. Arizona is much greener than where I am living, and I had the pleasure of driving through a mini storm which just served to make the landscape even more breath taking and stunning. This place is an artist's dream, and if I possessed even an ounce of talent with a brush, I would be outside for hours at a time trying to capture it. I will try to take some pictures so that the people back home can see what I see, and maybe then you'll understand why I gave up everything and moved out west.