Nothing

Know what’s between Phoenix and Las Vegas? Nothing.

I don’t mean it’s totally empty – on the way to Las Vegas, we drove by a Joshua tree forest and ate at an unfriendly hot dog place.

We also noticed a spot on the map off highway 93, between Wickenburg and Wickieup, for the town of Nothing, Arizona. I’m using the term “town” very loosely here.

On the way back, we stopped there, in front of the abandoned gas station that’s the only building in sight. According to the sign painted on the side, Nothing has a population of 4.

But even that may be an exaggeration.

November 10, 2016October 26, 2022

Route 66 Celebration in Flagstaff

Does hearing about Route 66 put Nat King Cole’s “Get Your Kicks” in your head too?

I don’t know the whole song, but I always chime in when he gets to “Flagstaff, Arizona.”

The “Mother Road” turns 90 this year, and Flagstaff is celebrating the milestone Friday (11/11). There will be food, music, games, classic cars, and bowling from 12-5pm between the Historic Museum Club and Starlite Lanes Bowling Alley. Bring cash – proceeds benefit the Military Order of the Purple Heart and Bowling for Vets.

If you’re in town through Saturday, you can also go to the opening reception for the It’s Elemental exhibition at the Coconino Center for the Arts 11/12, 6-8pm. You can find more ideas of what to see in the Flagstaff Visitor Center’s itinerary guide (PDF).

According to the leaf-o-meter, there is still some fall color, and the forecast looks good. It should be a great weekend to get your kicks in Northern Arizona!

October 13, 2016October 11, 2016

The Next Phoenix Fan Fest

Whether it’s your favorite lunch spot or a local festival, when something you enjoy goes from niche to well-known, you may feel you miss the “good old days” before the crowds. Of course, those crowds help keep corner cafes in business and sustain community events.

It’s true of Phoenix Comicon. I’ve heard plenty of long-time attendees wax nostalgic about the earlier events with their shorter lines and sense of community, while, of course, enjoying the bigger name guests and programming made possible by the larger numbers.

Enter Phoenix Fan Fest.

Why Fan Fest?

Meant to evoke the feel of the early days of Phoenix Comicon, Fan Fest is a smaller, more intimate show by design. There are fewer tracks with the focus on artists/comics, costumes, and kid-friendly events.

It’s also more interactive. As one organizer put it, think of Fan Fest as “come and do things” instead of just “come and see things.” You can learn to play Quidditch (adapted for muggles, of course), compete in MS Paint Pictionary, make something with Lego, and even compete in a build-off!

At the first Fan Fest, artists, attendees, and the community collaborated to create a crowdsourced comic character, Blaze. Last year, they invented a nemesis for Blaze. This year, you can be a part of brainstorming action sequences for the two, while artists sketch and bring crowdsourced ideas to life!

New Time and Place

While the first two Fan Fests were held in Glendale in December, this year Fan Fest is happening earlier (October 23 and 24) and moving to the Phoenix Convention Center.

According to organizers, the time change is due, in part, to feedback from attendees that it’s difficult to get time off to go to an event in the middle of the holidays. People may also be tight on cash that time of year.

Attendees had complained about the University of Phoenix Stadium’s location in the West Valley. The Phoenix Convention Center is much more centrally located.

The Convention Center is also built to allow for bigger guest panels, more programming content, and more variety. The stadium only had three rooms for panels (and they were down this weird, dark hallway).

One downside is that there won’t be any more free parking. However, there are more transit options, including light rail stops right at the Covention Center, so you won’t necessarily have to drive.

Organizers said exhibitors were fans of the changes, and they’re hoping you will be too!

– Fan Fest info –

October 23-24, 2016
Phoenix Convention Center
Passes (aka “Memberships”) for sale online. Adults: $25-40, Kids: $10.
Guaranteed seating (new!): Pre-purchase reserved seating for featured guest panels. Limited number for sale until Oct 20 via “Events and Parties” tab on Buy/Memberships page. $15/each.

We’ve received media passes to past events from Phoenix Comicon.

September 29, 2016June 22, 2021

Chile Pepper Festival in Phoenix

As far as I’m concerned, the annual Roosevelt Row Chile Pepper Festival is mostly an excuse to sample really delicious food from a bunch of Phoenix restaurants. The spicy selection includes items like tacos, stuffed chiles, donuts, desserts, and even beverages.

The next festival is this weekend, so here’s the scoop!

How it Works

You buy the number of tasting tickets and/or beer tokens you want at a table near the entrance – there’s no admission cost. Then you wander around the different booths and trade tastings for one or two tickets each. There’s also live music and market areas.

Proceeds raised help support the Growhouse Community Garden’s urban agriculture and education programs.

Last year, we went early, so we could go to Ballet Under the Stars afterwards. We bought our tasting tickets right as the festival opened, and there was practically no line. By the time we left, however, an hour or two in, a lot of people were waiting. Of course, it’s cooler later on. So…pick your battles, I guess.

Food + Drink

If you can’t eat spicy food, this is probably not the festival for you. I mean, you could just go and enjoy the live music. But all the tastings range from mildly to make-you-cry hot.

A few of our favorites:

Welcome Chicken and Donuts – Thai chili donut.
Paz Cantina – Blue corn taco with pork and green chiles.
Otro Café – Phillip liked the Mexico-style “street corn” with chili powder, cheese, and mayo on it.

At one point, I was ready to douse the fire in my mouth, so I got a smoothie, which was deceptively sweet at first – then the sweet disappeared and the crazy burn kicked in. It was unexpected. Like the photobomb from the smoothie guy.

Although beverage-wise we stuck with water and a bottle of Mexican Coke (and that one mouth-searing smoothie), there’s also a beer garden and margarita station.

Art, Craft + Community

On the market side of the festival, there were a handful of community and artist booths.

I dug the collage work of the multitalented Keisha J. Jones, who also models and makes delicious baked goods!

At the Valley Permaculture Alliance (Trees Matter) booth, you could make newspaper seed-starter pots, which inspired a CraftHack project.

Entertainment

When the music started, we watched Flamenco por la Vida. They perform flamenco music and dance superbly.

Some of their adorable pint-sized students danced, as well.

This Saturday, Flamenco por la Vida will be on stage at 9pm. I’m not sure if students will be joining them or if that’s past their bedtime.

A video posted by stephanieliebold (@stephanieliebold) on Sep 26, 2015 at 10:22pm PDT

There are several other performances during the festival, as well as cooking demonstrations and pepper-eating contests.

The band Mariachi Luna de Mexico played after we’d left. In fact, they strode in like some kind of guitar-wielding posse, just as we were headed to the parking lot.

– Festival Info –

The 2016 Chile Pepper Festival will be Saturday, October 1 from 5-10pm.
New location: 128 E Roosevelt St, Phoenix (Roosevelt/2nd St.)
Limited street parking will be available.
Light rail: Central Ave & Roosevelt St. stop is only about a block away (0.1 mile)!
All-ages event. If you plan to drink alcohol, be ready to show your ID and get a wristband at the entry.
There is no admission fee. Food, beverages, and handcrafted items will be for sale.
Details at chilepepperfest.com.

September 6, 2016May 23, 2023

Downtown Mesa Community Garden

There’s a community garden in Downtown Mesa that I’d heard about but hadn’t been to until my sister-in-law Liz was in town.

Mesa community garden

Isn’t it funny how you tend to see more of your city when someone is visiting?

Mural in urban garden, Mesa

Anyway, after lunch at Republica Empanada (at Hibbert and 1st Ave.), she asked about the gate next to the restaurant that leads into the Mesa Urban Garden, and we went to check it out.

I wasn’t expecting to see much, because August in Phoenix is rough on plants and only the most hardy survive. But there were still a fair number of things growing – veggies and vinca and this gorgeous trumpet vine with orange flowers and long green pods.

Community garden, Mesa

The garden is surrounded by walls with colorful murals, and there’s a Little Free Library made from an old phone booth.

I’ll definitely have to return later this fall!

Mesa garden

—