Buddha Beach.

Last weekend, Tom and I took a little trip over to Sedona to stay with a couple friends of his. They took us hiking on Saturday and to the most amazing park called Buddha Beach. It was... the most amazing thing. I'll just post the pictures already.



























The path to the creek and the entire beach was just covered in these little stacked rock towers, like wee creatures had been building for ages and ages. The whole place was like a scene out of a Miyazaki film. Beautiful.


...Well, that's the last of my adventures in Arizona. Next stop: Oregon! And not a second too late, as I hear Sarah Palin will be visiting AZ soon. Dodged that one!

Part 3!

Letter 2, page 2:

God. Girl, you know I talked many times of my disapproval of married women who were not true to their marriage vows and said many times that I did not like what we were doing (this was all said before there was any wrong doing between us) but always you talked me into believing, in this case that we were some-what justified and you must admit that you did a lot of that talking before I gave in.

I told you my age and that I was sick and had been so for over a year, on that account and your youth (although you would not and did not tell me your age untill later) I was afraid we would not get along to-gether, I told you that i had very little money and classed myself as a bum and told you that I was none to good morally, but you told me to forget it, you seemed so affectionate and talked against every argument I put up about our not getting on together.

At all these meetings at the Park. you kept urging me to rent a house or go to Los Angeles. and rent a room so we could meet, or in other words, so we could go to bed. I was falling and I fell hard, Girl, I worshiped you, I could think of nothing else but you after the first few meetings.

You told about your "Pal" Mrs. Letha Y. how she and your Uncle. Mr. Charles E. were intimate, and that Letha was also intimate with Mr. Chas B. and gave me to understand that she would Step-out most any time with most anybody and offered to make me acquainted when she got back from her Eastern trip, but I said "No." Many times you have said, "Well, if you think I am bad you should know my 'Pal, Letha."

This is amazing. This whole affair just plays out for record all through this letter... if I had something like this from one of my ancestors a hundred years ago, I would frame it and hang it in the living room.

Part 2 of the Lela G. saga.

Lela? Via j/k_lolz.

I know you all have been waiting for this... the now infamous SECOND LETTER. I might have to post it in sections, since it's pretty long. Here's the first page, all funny punctuation and Random Capitals included.

Santa Monica, Calif.
June. 24-1923

Mrs. Lela G.

There is much that could be said regarding our first meetings and flirtation that took place at the shop where we first met, but I will skip that and start with our first meeting at the Park. One of the first things you said was that you were angry because I had not come into the Street Car the day before, as you were on your way home and I on my way to the Beach, some how that made a hit with me, It pleased me, yet I was sorry to think you felt hurt, your line of talk about your Husband's abuse of you and how hard you had worked most of your life, with everybody seemingly giving you the worst of it, worked on my sympathy and aroused in me an affection for you.

We met at the Park. several times in about as many days, you telling me over again about your husband, you called him a Son of a B---- and many other such names, you told me you did not love him and never could, you told of him coming back from the War. with a venereal disease and giving it to you and that you went first to one Doctor. then switching to Dr. H. you and Seth both going to him for treatments.

You wanted me to take you and run away from Home and I said, No I would not do that and advised you that if you could not get along with Seth to go to him and say so and tell him you were going to leave him and have an understanding with him, Although I did not know him I said with all his faults there must be some good in him as you had thought enough of him to marry him in the first place, and if you would talk to him he might straighten up and he and you get on nicely.

I talked so much against you leaving your home that finally you said, "Well, I am going to leave, and if not with you, it will be with someone else."

SUSPENSE.

...world hunger?

Middle-aged woman: That's my solution to world hunger and teen pregnancy -- duct tape.

This is why I love antique stores.

I was poking around an antique store last weekend -- the place was PACKED with stuff, some great, some not -- and I found a big cardboard box full of old papers. About half of it was newspapers and numismatist newsletters, but I persevered, searched the entire box -- and scored big.

I found three letters written by a guy called Elmer T., to a married woman with whom he was having an affair. As far as I can tell, all three were written after the affair took place, to serve as a record of events, for him, her, or possibly the lawyers (you'll see).

Anyhow, I can't resist sharing them. Here's letter number 1, that sets up Elmer's reason for writing and kept me in that antique store for hours looking for any other letters after it. (I typed this up exactly how it looks on this very old sheet of paper, hence all the errant periods and dashes -- although I am going to leave off full surnames in favour of initials, to protect identities and all, though it does seem kind of silly after almost a hundred years... does this sound like anyone's ancestors?)

June 24 -- 1923

Mrs. Lela G.

You have left me without any choice of action and driven me to this, for when a man is as square as I was with you and tried to give you as good advise as anyone could give and then a woman of your caliber, with the assistance of your friends, will run an undercurrent of rot against me to cause me grief and shame, that has shattered my mind and torn my very soul from my body, taken the last bit of foundation out from under me and left me nothing but jail and death to stare at, then it's time for retaliation.

I can stand lawful prosecution and jail better than I can unjust persecution from a Lustful Ingrate like you, I have begged, prayed and tried to hire you to have a talk with me but you would not listen.

The past ten (10) months I have paid for my sins with a torture of grief that only God. Almighty, knows and can understand, through the efforts of you and your friends the last five (5) months of the (10) you have added to my grief the wrath of man.

Wrath; that caused one of your friends to attempt Murder and succeed to the extent that I am left maimed and probably or eventually will cause my death,

You caused me to be followed and watched for weeks, also one of my friends was followed and molested, my statements will furnish you with what you were looking for and you can use them as you think best.

A short while back I would have let my soul burn in Hell for you but now it can burn in Hell against you, yet it shall not be fired with any untruthful statements from me, about you, for I will not give you that chance for consolement.

It's a nasty mess for others to read, but I used mostly words and expressions that were used and that flowed from your mouth as freely as from my own.

E. T.

WELL. Stay tuned for the next letter, which reads like a Savage Love column. Seriously.