From ME to AZ: It's raining, in Arizona!

Hello Reader,

It's raining! In Arizona! ALL weekend! I love it!

I realized this weekend, I do not have much to wear in the rain. I have two pairs of shoes that are good in the rain (heels and boat shoes, horrible choices). I have a bright pink trench coat with no hood - so pointless - and a really thin rain jacket that is great in monsoon season when it's near triple digits not in the cooler season. This has inspired me to do my own southwest fashion week blog series.

But, not tonight. Tonight, let's talk Arizona/Arizonians in the rain and how excited I get about rainy days.

So, in Maine, when the first snow fall of the season happens, school children everywhere run to the windows to watch. I react that way each time there is rain out here. It is this novelty I have not seen for at least weeks if not months so I soak up every second of it.

When I woke up Saturday morning to see the down pour I busted out the macro lens for my iPhone to take pictures of the rain drops. It's a rare occasion these days that I get to see rain or even have the opportunity to take pictures of the rain, so I felt the need to record it.

One thing that growing up in Maine taught me was to always be prepared for the weather to change drastically without warning. And that is why I carry an umbrella with me at all times. I like to be prepared for the random rainy weekends. I think I also impress the locals who never seem to have umbrellas when they need them.

It's not very often that AZ looks gloomy. Most greatly appreciate the break from the intense sun, although I feel peoples' mood match the gloominess. I think it makes sense, if one is used to a high dosage of vitamin D 300 days out of a year, one would definitely feel some acute sadness on a rainy day.

Arizonians drive very slowly in the rain especially if they encounter a puddle. I do not drive in AZ, but I do my fair share of walking, and I realized I walk very slow in the rain. I also carefully tiptoe through any puddle I encounter (so embarrassing). In my defense, I have slipped in puddles - not fallen, slipped. I think it must be due to all the pollution, dirt, and other debris that settles on the ground never being washed away, so things get slick in the rain. I may be becoming an Arizonian (gasp).

Arizonians don't seem to to venture out in the rain (maybe because they are aware of the slipperiness). I took the image below walking in downtown Scottsdale on a Saturday night ...

I will say that although no one was outside, there seemed to be some happening places inside. I walked by one club and heard 'Achy Breaky Heart' blaring with lots and lots of voices singing along. And based on the claps I heard, I bet they were line dancing.

I did run in to a bunch of ducks while walking downtown. I don't know why there are so many ducks in the desert but there are.

Arizona is not built to handle water very well. This is a local park and playground area I walk by on my regular loop. Today, it was more like a pond and there was a flock of ducks swimming in it.

Also, all the dried up leaves that don't fall in autumn finally come out of the trees in the pouring rain. This adds to the dangers of slipping in puddles.