DAY EIGHTEEN

I had breakfast this morning at the restaurant upstairs-- California frittata. It had chicken, avocados, onions,
but no cheese. It was dressed tastefully with lime-citriano. I elected to have an english muffin for my starch,
and fruit instead of fried potatoes.

After breakfast, I got on the Road Runner. I had the same driver all day. He was a jolly fellow who told jokes
like [as we passed a sign] "Hohoz means 'walk in beauty' in Navajo. If Don Imus hadn't abbrievated it, he would
not have gotten into trouble." I got off at the stop near the Hyatt shops. All of them are rather expensive but I
did score three heart pins with words like "live," "love," and "celebrate" written on each one at a store named
Chico's. I also signed up for a tour via jeep tomorrow morning with a personable woman at a booth.

I walked down to the post office to mail a bunch of stuff home, got on the Road Runner and went to Tlacquepaque.
Tlacquepaque is a ritzy artsy place with many polished shops and art galleries. Clothes that my step-mother would
really love and look dazzling in. I bought a diet coke off the snooty woman posted outside the Mexican restaurant,
and some postcards and a geology of Sedona book off the guy at the bookstore who very well could be diagnosed with
Asperger's or something. And a wonderful c.d. from local artist Robin Miller, an older fella with shocking white
hair. I also talked with a personable have-a-tour-of-a-resort-if-you-are-single guy for a bit.

Done there, I ventured across the street to the New Age Center. I found there signs all over noting that they
charge for breakage. Someone obviously very much into the business end of things. They must have had a rush on
clumsy tourists at one time. I discovered that a guy was aligning chakras on a donation basis. I volunteered for
that and I followed an older agreeable hippy dude upstairs into a very hippy room which was cluttered but welcoming.
He told me that the past is an illusion and nothing is permanent and he said some other stuff which I repeated. I
know this is anecdotal only-- I did feel "clearer" at the end. And I will be following the suggestions to drink
two liters of water a day and eat better stuff and engage in humor and play. The last will be easy enough since
Blondie is very much a humorous playful doggie.

I got back on the Road Runner, headed back into town for more frugal coasters. Robert let me take his picture today
and I was glad of it. I meandered around and wound up at the Peace Place shop where there are Reiki practitioners.
The woman there let me use a drum and led me to the classroom/sacred space where I had a joyful time drumming. When
I returned to the store, a guy was there who had dug crystals in Herkimer [and elsewhere] for two years. I did
explain to him then that the "Herkimer diamonds" show up above ground when farmers plow their fields. My gram had
told me that years ago so I never did bother to go up there as a result.

I then walked over to the Cowboy Club for some rattlesnake. The rattlesnake came fried like tempura on skewers. I
opted for peanut sauce rather than the dip with the forbidden tequila in it. Peanut sauce actually went well with
the rattlesnake I thought. The flatbread was thick and delicious. I also smeared peanut sauce on that.

Back on the Road Runner to the hotel where I had some orange tea and raspberry coffee cake, then to the whirlpool/
hot tub for a sweet finale to a sweet day.

sapphoq n friends