Glendale, Arizona

Seven hours out of San Diego I stayed with my Aunt in Glendale. It can reach 115 degrees during the day so I time my arrival for early evening. I don't want all my videotapes to melt in the heat of the car. I hit a heavy thunderstorm in Yuma and get caught up in construction delays. It's after 10 pm by the time I get to my aunt's house. They’re usually in bed by now, but they’re waiting till I arrive to have dinner. She's prepared a special curry made with a fish called Kofum. I'm not really sure what it is, but it has a thick gelatinous skin that's very chewy. The fish isn’t available in Arizona, so her daughter brings her a frozen case in her carry-on baggage from New York a couple times a year. It seems that my aunt and uncle are prisoners in the house — trapped at once by the heat outside and the air conditioner inside, but I don't bother asking how they feel about it. My aunt is allergic to many things: wheat, eggs, dairy, nuts, I'm sure I'm forgetting something. So the move to Arizona was strategic, there's little in the dry air to aggravate her allergies.