I'm going to a conference in Phoenix next week. Any recommendations on what to do, where to eat, etc?

I'll be with my boss so I dont' know how much free time I'll have.

stay inside.

Fake mono, stay in Louisiana.

No shit. I thought Southern Ontario was bad, but 110 in the shade is just insane.

Hotter than a well digger.

I live in Phoenix, so does Mot, though I have yet to meet him. what are the dates you will be in town? Where are you staying? What kind of food do you like? Post or PM with some info. I'd be more than happy to entertain a fellow Obnerist? for an evening or two.

We are staying at the JW Marriot Desert Ridge Resort. Same place as the conference. It will be just me and my boss, so I don't know how much free time I'll have. But if I can get away from her, I would love to meet up. I arrive Sunday morning and depart on Friday afternoon. And I pretty much open to any kind of food, but would probably like to try something local that I don't usually get here in Louisiana. Thanks. I'll PM you so we can exchange numbers.

Messkin food...that would be the ace food to eat. Ohh, and Fat Tire beer. Aces!

And wear cotton.

the only thing I have really done is go to some really big yuppie style restaurants in Scottsdale and the botanical gardens. oh yeah and swim in the pool - but that was in March and it was only 90.

to me, Phoenix is the exact opposite of Portland. New and clean vs. kind of old and dingy. Yuppie vs. hippie. Hot vs. cold. Dry vs. wet. Sprawling vs. controlled growth. Affordable housing vs. expensive housing. Big fancy malls and restaurants vs. yarn stores and hole in the walls. Liberal vs. conservative. Tanned good looking people vs. pale skinned people in baggy clothes.

just an observation.

aural's avatar is mesmerizing me.

Wear SUNSCREEN.

I'm not the one to ask about nightlife. I'm antisocial and so tend to just stick to movies and other places that won't have me wishing I'd brought a knife or gun to get rid of all the annoying people. However, if you're looking for music stores, I can recommend a few places. There's a Zia Records sort of close by the Desert Ridge area, located on Thunderbird and 40th street. If you get to Tempe, go to Stinkweeds (on Apache just east of Rural) and East Side (on University just west of Mill, also close by another Zia.)

In the Desert Ridge area is a big outdoor mall (I know, SMART IDEA given that it's 116 degrees outside) that has a movie theater, Tower Records, giant Target, various restaurants, Barnes & Noble or a Borders, etc.

If you want good Italian, I can heartily recommend Cicio's, which is on Thurnderbird and 32nd street. It's a family-type of thing, nothing fancy, but damn if their chicken parmigiana isn't the best, ever. They're open for dinner only, so don't bother trying at lunch. Good eats.

I just saw this is going on Tuesday Night

Tuesday, Jul 26th » Doors at 7, $10.

HELLO GOODBYE Eccentric and full of fun piano rock, on Drive Thru Records. THE ROCKET SUMMER Bryce Avery is the lead of this power-pop piano group on The Militia Group. JAMISON PARKER On Interscope, powerful and heartfelt. HOUSTON CALLS On Rushmore/Drive Thru, a pop punk band from Rockaway, NJ. WIRES ON FIRE Combining the influences of Drive Like Jehu, Black Flag and The Birthday Party, on Buddyhead.

this is where i"ll be

-go to Tempe and check out broads; best sightseeing that side of Athens.

-sit ouside under those mist things; those are cool.

-have someone explain a "Swamp Cooler" to you; I was mystified and intrigued.

Phoenix gigs:

Sun 07/24/05 Garaj Mahal Rhythm Room

Mon 07/25/05 Ebb and Flow Counter Culture
Mon 07/25/05 The Dollyrots Modified <<< RECOMMEND
Mon 07/25/05 Shannon McNally Rhythm Room

Tue 07/26/05 "Anger Management Tour" Cricket Pavilion (YOU KNOW YOU WANNA)
Tue 07/26/05 50 Cent Cricket Pavilion
Tue 07/26/05 Bizarre Cricket Pavilion
Tue 07/26/05 D12 Cricket Pavilion
Tue 07/26/05 Eminem Cricket Pavilion
Tue 07/26/05 G-Unit Cricket Pavilion
Tue 07/26/05 Green Lantern Cricket Pavilion
Tue 07/26/05 Lil Jon & The Eastside Boyz Cricket Pavilion
Tue 07/26/05 Obie Trice Cricket Pavilion
Tue 07/26/05 Pitbull Cricket Pavilion
Tue 07/26/05 Stat Quo Cricket Pavilion
Tue 07/26/05 Hellogoodbye Modified
Tue 07/26/05 Houston Calls Modified
Tue 07/26/05 JamisonParker Modified
Tue 07/26/05 The Rocket Summer Modified
Tue 07/26/05 Thrift Store Cowboys Rhythm Room

Wed 07/27/05 John Prine Orpheum Theatre <<< RECOMMEND

Thu 07/28/05 Need New Body Modified
Thu 07/28/05 Ian Moore Rhythm Room

These are in Tempe:

Mon 07/25/05 The Briefs Big Fish Sports Pub

Tue 07/26/05 Ted Nugent Arizona Beach Club (TAKE YOUR SHOTGUN)
Tue 07/26/05 Bayside The Clubhouse
Tue 07/26/05 Schoolyard Heroes The Clubhouse
Tue 07/26/05 Vendetta Red The Clubhouse

Wed 07/27/05 "Strhess Tour" The Clubhouse
Wed 07/27/05 Bleeding Through The Clubhouse
Wed 07/27/05 Darkest Hour The Clubhouse
Wed 07/27/05 Fight Paris The Clubhouse
Wed 07/27/05 Martyr AD The Clubhouse
Wed 07/27/05 Misery Signals The Clubhouse
Wed 07/27/05 Zao The Clubhouse
Wed 07/27/05 Dismantled The Sets

Thu 07/28/05 Eric Johnson Marquee Theatre
Thu 07/28/05 Brendan Benson The Clubhouse <<<RECOMMEND IF A FAN
Thu 07/28/05 Robbers On High Street The Clubhouse <<<LOCAL LA BAND I'D RECOMMEND

You didn't know what a "swamp cooler" was? I'd think that would've been popular in the south.

Edit: Apparently, swamp coolers are best used on my side of the country vs the other.

Only during the school year. ASU's done for the summer, so there's no one around right now except for the bums. Come back in April and hang out on the lawn in the middle of ASU. It is paradise for guys.

Probably not, they're totally useless in the humidity. My parents have one and get a couple/few good months out of them during late spring and early summer. Once late July hits, monsoon season starts (as of Monday this week, officially) the dew point is above 55% and therefore coolers turn into "wet warm air" machines. It's really disgusting to be in a place that uses coolers during the monsoon season. On the upside, we get some very cool storms during monsoon season, and we're gearing up for some right now.