Drifting through the Desert

Spike, Flower, and Sandy walk into a bar…..

Feb 01, 2026

Welcome in, as they say in the crystal shops of Sedona,

The “why” of this trip is a doozy. I met a writer in Croatia whose book idea enticed me and I offered to read it when she was ready. Few months later, she emails me to ask if I’m serious. I love books set in or after apocalypses (and hers holds multitudes) so I agree. She offers her guest room in Phoenix with the same free generosity that I offered my editing services. I take her up on her offer with the same eager joy - so a week ago, I found myself escaping a snowstorm, flying turbulent skies, and landing in a flat, strange place I hadn’t been since the early 2000s when I went to Scottsdale for an elaborate country-club wedding.

On that trip, I fit in a few days at the Grand Canyon and a weekend in Sedona.

Of everything I saw the first time around, Sedona was the place I longed to see again.

Here I was in Phoenix, in an Uber going to an address I had just been texted, to see friends that I had met only once after the week we spent writing together—this was the life-loving couple in Vienna who invited me to join them on a tour of Schönbrunn Palace in a horse-drawn carriage. Staring out at the mountains, I recalled with delight/shock/excitement that my filmmaker nephew (his company Fusis does mountain climbing footage) lives somewhere in Arizona. I texted him and turns out he lives in Flagstaff. So we set up a meeting in Sedona—kinda halfway-ish.

Remember Sedona?

Like all of Arizona, photos do no justice to the place

This week included: swimming in mineral waters, coffee at red rocks, magic crystals, luxury spa massage, meeting a favorite grad school friend, wine by the firepit, mahi on a mountaintop, Taliesen West, ribs by the fire, hours and hours of literary/book discussions, salmon by a poolside fireplace, drinks on a rustic porch, a mariachi band, a cactus-rich botanical garden, lunch at the Biltmore Hotel, an enormous wagyu steak, and lots and lots of delicious reunions.

this goddess is the BEST writer of desert fiction you’ll ever read

What I hadn’t expected was that my hosts here in Phoenix are both leadership and/or business development experts so that I am immersed in a weeklong leadership summit that is literally often on a summit. Whether on a mesa or table top, I am doing value decks, visioning, and strategic planning sessions - it is uncannily like a one-person executive training seminar. It requires copious amounts of caffeine.

I plan to emerge from my Southwest vacation with a renewed sense of self. Are you ready? I am nervous, but I think I’m ready.

Writing

I spent all week editing my host's novel. It is fantastic and the second it gets an agent I will not stop talking about it. I may not stop talking about it even before then. I can’t wait for Apple TV to turn it into a series. No joke, it is easily that good. Better.