Cafe Aqui - Closest coffee shop to the south side

In fact, it actually is closer to "South Tucson" than I am. South Tucson is actually a small little village inside of Tucson - like the Vatican is a separate city inside of Rome. I, in fact, do not live in South Tucson, though people always think I do. I am much farther south than South Tucson.

...just to clarify that...

I've been thinking about coffee shops, because it's not exactly a part of south side culture, and I found this coffee shop that's much closer to here near of 6th Ave and 22nd.

It was a very random experience...

They put on a record when I got there

Met this random, awesome lady who wanted to trade clothes with me

Dang good espresso

Beisbol en el verano

One of my students plays baseball games on Sunday mornings at the park across the street from my house. It's been fun watching him - he's the catcher.

Also, I'm working on having more control over the layout of my blog...ie-pictures bigger and put exactly where I want them...so fyi things may be a little random...

current love of my life: Bon Iver

As far as music goes, rather than listening to lots of different artists all the time, I tend to get obsessed with a few people, listening to them for months on end.

Well for the past while, it's been Bon Iver...aka Justin Vernon.

His first album "For Emma, Forever Ago" (along with Joshua James) has been the soundtrack to my life for a while now. To add to the awesomeness, his new album, "Bon Iver" is coming out on June 21 - YEAHHHHH! But! The double awesomeness of NPR released a preview of the whole album - DOUBLE YEAHHHHH!!!!!

Here are some teasers from his first album...

He wrote this album at his family's hunting cabin in Wisconsin, to make sense of the video

On summer and iced beverages...

I've decided instead of spending money I don't have on iced lattes and gasoline to reach coffee shops, I'm going to get creative with iced drinks at the house this summer.

Working at the Sage has helped to know how to make iced tea, but it's also extracted some creativity that I didn't know I had (it gets REALLY boring making the same 10 coffee drinks all the time, so every barista begins inventing drinks after a month or so of working). Let the experimenting begin...

When we were in Mexico, Tia Mari served us this AMAZING grapefruit drink, and I HAD TO HAVE IT. We went down the tienda, and I bought 9 packs of Toronja Zuko mix.

Right now I'm currently drinking that, with mint leaves and lime juice - yyyyyuuuuuuuuuummmmmm.

The fridge with iced coffee (a basic and must-have), iced tea, and toronja Zuko.



As far as tea, I bought this Hopi tea, and turns out it's a great iced tea. Tastes kind of like chamomile. Boiled 3 bundles and added 1/2 c of sugar....yum x2.


This is the package if you are around 3061 N. Campbell Avenue.



And here's what the tea ends up looking like. Quite the lovely color and great with mint.

La casa finalmente

The house God has so generously given me

View from the back glass door of the main room


From the middle of the room


My mom brought these bomb chairs from indiana - i love the rivets!





I'm such a details person so the rug with the curtains above it makes me ever so happy


Coffee bags will go here


Awesome chest from Indo and a painting my great-grandmother bought here in Tucson in the 60's


From the living room into the kitchen


My mom wanted me to feel at home (if you didn't know I grew up in an Amish town)


The kitchen from the bar


Kitchen and laundry room


Got these fun knobs instead of boring white ones


Dishtowel from Anthropologie


The awesome tile by Jose! and view to the bedrooms


1st bathroom, which I may wash over with a more sage color


Guest bedroom - that turquoise door will eventually be over the bed


Multi-purpose room. For kids to play, studying, playing music, grading, etc.


My room! I was very stoked because it turned out exactly like I wanted it :)


My grandma made the lamps and the comforter, and my great grandpa actually made the table on the right


Antique dresser, plant from Emily, and "commissioning towel"


My bathroom

Card from store in Vermont ironically named because it's what the kids and friends have often called me

We had doorknobs like these at my house in Indiana

And to match

Well, that's the photo tour! I've loved being here, but I would also love more visitors! Feel free to stop by :)

Summer is HERE

And with that I decided the blog needed a little sprucing, because I've been feeling so uninspired to write on it.

So here we go!

School is out and Summer is HERE. I feel like it officially started yesterday when my student's family I'm tight with decided to take me to Mexico with them.

Let me just say the mom, Sonia, perfectly summed up the day by saying it was "the most miserable and wonderful day"...let me expound...

The day started off by dragging carpet to the street at 5 AM for brush and bulky trash, fixing summer school for Bianca, and the Raging Sage's coffee & scones.

Then we were off to Naco, where they're family lives. It's a little border hamlet near Bisbee. Unfortunately though, those little towns here in AZ have cops who are BORED OUT OF THEIR MINDS, and I got a ticket for going 11 over on the freeway.....gggggrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr.....

We get over the border and have the most wonderful day with their great aunt, Tia Mari, their 96 year-old great grandmother, and their cousins.


Sights of Naco

there are lots of broken down, very old buildings created with handmade bricks - so cool

awesome old church

huge church near center of town

the family + me

Bianca and her 96 year-old nana

Tia Mari - she is such a wonderful woman. She brought me medicine for my hands when my fingertips were peeling and made "sopes" for us when we were there. Now she's bringing us "sandia" :) [Their mission was to get me speaking Spanish, as I know a lot but rarely speak it, so it kind of worked and was lots of fun]

Un truke (no idea how to spell) de ajo - garlic truck. The town grows TONS of purple garlic!

Bianca at her nana's

Jocelyn and her tia

Such lovely women

La calle de nana - the street her grandmother lives on

So this all was the wonderful part of the day.

Then on the way home, as we're driving into Sierra Vista, Bianca screams, "Ahh - something bit me," followed by her sister crushing the bug with a water bottle. It turns out to be a red ant, which her father is highly allergic to, and it turns out Bianca is highly allergic to. Her arms were numb and her throat was closing all with 5 minutes so we had to stop at the Circle K and call an ambulance. Jocelyn and I followed the 2 in the ambulance to the hospital, where Bianca was completely drugged with enough Benadryl to put a horse to sleep.

That was the miserable part of the day.

2 hours later, we're back on the road with Chipotle, McDonald's, and a lovely twilight sky.

None of us were EVER so happy to be home...except Bianca who didn't know the difference because she was sooooo very medicated. Once we got back she went to put her pj's on and came out with them on over her clothes. :)

I NOW HAVE INTERNET - THANK YOU GOD

But I also have finals coming up this week, 150 cookies to make for my seniors, and a scrapbook to put together, so I will give you a more extensive update, including pictures of the house, later this week once school is out.

But a tidbit!

I spent most of my awake hours today helping 3 students get ready for my final. It's SO fun to just laugh with them, help them see how smart they are, and help them to believe in themselves...and then there's the bonus where I get asked questions like, "If mermaids were real, what would they eat?" ??????? My expertise as the oceanography teacher fails in this capacity....

The guy in the color photo and the two girls below were my study buddies :)