Adventures in Mesa

Last month we went to Mesa, Arizona for a few days for my niece's high school graduation. Other than the fact that it was nice to spend time with nieces and nephews there's really not much to report. Except that, likely because TC and I went prepared for scorching hot weather like the last time we were there, the weather was fairly mild, and rainy. In fact, it rained during the graduation, which was held outside on the bleachers. Suffice it to say that we got wet.

The real adventure began after the graduation. Not knowing our way around, TC and I relied on GPS to get from point A to point B. GPS definitely took us the most direct and fastest way, but we found ourselves in some neighborhoods that we would have rather avoided. Such was the case when we were returning to our hotel after the graduation ceremony.

As we waited at a stop light for a green left turn arrow, we noticed that the SUV across the street directly in front of us was surrounded by police vehicles, four or so. In the darkness we could make out figures with long arms stretched out in front of them cautiously approaching the SUV. Naturally, I got nervous once I realized that those figures were police officers with guns drawn and was grateful when our left turn light went green. Just as TC was about to hit the gas, a police car came from behind us, swung around and parked in front of us. The passenger in that police car got out, drew his gun to cover his partner, the driver, while he opened the trunk and pulled out a gun case about 3 feet long. Then he pulled the gun out of the case. Then he crouched behind the police car. Then he pointed this hefty semi-automatic rifle toward the SUV across the street.

TC and I sat there stunned. As interesting and COPS-like this scene was, neither of us were too thrilled to be in the thick of it. Plus I've never been a fan of that show; it's too stressful (law enforcement obviously is not a good career choice for me, which is why I work in an office). But we couldn't go forward because this was the scene in front of us:


So we sat there for a few minutes, worrying that we might get shot at until a police officer who had parked behind us (by then there were ten or so police cars on both sides of the street) came over and told us to get the heck outta there by making a right turn. The right turn messed up our route, and we had to find our own way to the freeway.

But we found our way back to the hotel and did not get shot at, so right there we gotta be pretty excited, right?