32nd Anniversary Of Moving Into Dr. Tom's Place

On this day in 1981, I moved from my office at the University of Arizona (the cramped quarter where I had been living for an uncomfortable month) into the relative tranquility of the hacienda-style house of Dr. Tom Edwards. I lived there until late 1986.

Strange place, Dr. Tom's. He was always trying to improve on the property, but the harder he worked, the more the place fell apart. Interesting memories:

• Across the street from the house where John Dillinger was captured;
• Intelligent cat that ate all the koi;
• The three-legged dog whom I could never outrun;
• the tarot reader and her optimistic forecast;
• the parrot that hated women, bearded men, and mailmen;
• the unfortunate canaries whom the parrot would systematically strip of claws and beaks;
• what happens when the water evaporates when hard-boiling eggs;
• the amazing library in the cabin on Mt. Lemmon;
• the mosquito-infested room;
• cockroach tales;
• the fellow who stared at the sun;
• puncturing holes in the sides of the Mercedes-Benz;
• unintended blackface;
• recovering the wounded in the motorcycle crash;
• the book project that never seemed to be completed;
• the flasher in the alley;
• the disorganized 22-year-old;
• the carsick Great Dane;
• how Inca Doves sound like cheerleaders;

And too many other tales!