Scottsdale calling...

Nothing, and I mean nothing, beats free because the sound of gratis is akin to "cha-ching!" So to be connected in such a place only compels random thoughts about the place in general. A somewhat tough proposition given the red-eye timing of arrival, complimentary shuttle and mad dash to the bar for a rather disappointing interpretation of something foolproof like a rib-eye steak sandwich.

Still, passing by the silhouetted mesas even in the pitch black darkness recalls Monument Valley and the specific cinematic vision one learns by constantly watching classic old John Ford westerns. Aside from the nouveau riche, where do the cowboys reside? And such is the dichotomy between manufactured memory and great expectations as the reality of the old frontier being yuppiefied by retirees versus the fantasy of Ponderosa and Adam, Hoss and Little Joe. Be quick on the draw, Marshall because God only knows when every which way is loose.

And this romanticism with family but maybe a few long hours drive northeast away. Indeed, to set foot on his land so many years removed from the gray concrete of cramped inner city claustrophobia in contrast to the plethora of low horizontal architecture which rules the desert landscape, mimicking a stark and arid rendition of suburban mall sprawl. To see such juxtapositions of cultures once indigenous, proud and independent now just figments interspersed and coopted by Manifest Destiny causes one to pause about how absolute is the whitewash that expunges and dominates any will.

Yet, he managed to raise his children here who as it were choose either to fly the coop eastward forsaking the mythos or to embrace its Hispanic roots staying close to the roost. Was it the promise of winterless weather that drew him or the call of the wild, uncharted territory unbuilt by Chinese railroad workers? That per se might be reason enough to justify his pioneering spirit, seeing how his black sheep status broke traditions, ignored rules and blazed new trails that ironically some of us followed. Sure enough, he absorbed the blows and accepted the blame to some degree but his definition of self, though inherently selfish, never strayed.

So within family history will he be the scapegoat or the visionary? Only his legacy can tell.