Several years ago, Mike developed quite an interest in fossils, rocks and minerals. There is no explanation for this fascination, whatsoever. However, it became something of an obsession. It probably goes back to his FIRST FOSSIL FIND - on a road cut near some construction that was taking place in the San Fernando valley just down the street from where he lived. Here's a picture of it - the VERY FIRST ONE!
Mike's First Fossil.
Decades later, Mike and Candace would go to to "gem and mineral" shows that were taking place at the Seattle Center or Kingdome (now gone). She'd looked at (and bought) the gems, Mike would look at the fossils and mineral specimens.
Here's a sample of what we found:
Trilobites in Trail ... from 200 to 500 million or more years ago.....
Mike subscribed to a few "rock" magazines and discovered the "Tucson Gem and Mineral Show", which is this GIANTIC show that takes place there in late January / early February, every year. Try as we might, we can't remember exactly what year or why, but we ended up down in Tucson and visited a number of the exhibits which are distributed across any number of the hotels all over town. One evening we decided to go "upscale" and went to what we now consider to be the finest restaraunt in Tucson, "Anothony's in the Catalinas". This was the start of our long ride down the long, slippery slope. It was about 6 pm nearly the year-round sunset time in Tucson). We had a good table. There was a FANASTIC sunset going on to the west. There was an unbelieveable thunderstorm going on over downtown Tucson. And we were "above it all" in the foothills north of town, looking out on all of it. It was a done deal, mentally at least.
A year or two later later, we sold a rental property (Mike's first house, in Tacoma) and decided to purchase a replacement rental property in Tucson for a "tax free exchange". Somehow, we connected with a realtor in the Catalinas, Lew Webb, who took us around the area where Casa Deuda will be located. Lew was extremely patient with us, and without question or any reservations the nicest person we've ever met. Every time we called him on the phone he'd answer "It's a beautiful day at Ventana Canyon". Since we had the internet we could check the weather there .. he never lied. He helped us find a very nice property for rental, with the idea that someday, somehow, we might move in there as a "winter getaway". It was rented BEFORE we closed and has been ever since, by "snowbirds" from the northeast (Chicago and vicinity).
At the time we purchased the rental property, Lew took us "up the hill" to the vacant lots that comprise the "Ventana Mountain Estates", just to "look around". This is the high-end of the area called Ventana Canyon. We loved the views and the wonderful atmosphere, but could not figure out how we would EVER be able to pull off the purchase of one of those properties. We pretty much put it out of our minds for a couple of years. Lew looked at us and knew we'd buy and decide to build. He was very good. On a subsequent visit in early 1999 we decided to take the plunge and purchased a lot, regardless of the financial implications (which are not pretty).
To our infinite dismay and sorrow, Lew died at the end of 1999 while showing a lot not far from ours. We never got to see him again once we decided to purchase the property we selected. However, a small memorial to Lew now stands across from his old office as you drive up he hill towards our lot. In November 2000 we visited for Thanksgiving, and passed by several times ... we thought of Lew every time and will continue to do so for years to come. Here's a photo of it:
King of all he surveys
So, now we have this lot, and a builder, and some preliminary house plans. Yikes! Unless we win the lottery we have NO IDEA how we will pay for any of it, but our goal is to die owing someone or some bank a few million (or more), or to win the lottery. Having no children makes this stupid decision a lot easier for us. Soon we will sell our house in Seattle and move to Tucson and live for a year or so in our rental property while our builder builds. Then we'll sell that, the cars, the furniture, the cats (well ... maybe not the cats), the fish, and everything else and move into the new house on the high ground.
That will be Casa Deuda. We don't speak Spanish, but we stumbled on this name when Howard, our millionaire brother-in-law, graciously offered up a name (instead of a loan or better yet, a grant) for our new estate while standing on top of the hill looking out towards the south like Mike and Candace had done so many times before ---- look it up if you really want to know.
