Phoenix

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I've just seen a bit of cloud in the sky so I've had to come inside in case it gets a bit chilly - the weather forecast says it's going to average only 35 degrees (Celsius) here today and since being here I've become accustomed to the 40s... it's such a hard life!

It's been nice being back in Phoenix and seeing my relatives Luba, Terry and Sean. Nothing here has changed much so it all feels very familiar - like being at my second home! There are now four cats here, Sweepy and Tigger who were here before and Pepper and Tisha who are new. The cats only like me when they want to be fed.

The journey here was long and boring but I met a nice guy on the plane, Jordan, which at least made the flight go faster. I had a 13 hour stop-over at the airport in LA which was pretty dire. I managed to get some sleep but the floor was so cold and hard that it was difficult! At least no one mugged me.

I've been doing a bit of "swimming" (ie. sunbathing) and may even have a bit of a tan but it's hard to stay outside for too long! Yesterday I decided I'd walk to the mall which is only 2 miles away from the house but by the time I got there I thought I was going to faint... now I understand why no one wants to walk anywhere here!

I spent my first ever July 4th in the US which was good (and no one threw anything at me for British). We had a barbeque and Terry's brother Dan and nephew Hunter came round and then in the evening me and Luba went down the road to watch some fireworks - the best thing about that was the fork lightning that we kept seeing across the sky!

Luba has been really good at keeping me entertained while I've been here. We've been to the cinema and she's taken me to the mall a few times. We've also been to visit her friend Tony who has two shiatsu dogs who've had puppies. There are five of them and they're about five weeks old and are really sweet! Me and Luba want to steal them. Tony and his girlfriend Stephanie invited us round for a barbeque last night so we got to see more of the puppies and try to avoid having our toes chewed off.

It's been quite lonely here during the day because Luba and Terry are working and Sean is at school but it's nice in the evenings when everyone is around and I have some company. I've also seen my friend Daniel a few times which was great but unfortunately things have become complicated between us so I'm not sure if I'll be seeing him again.

I was originally going to stay in Phoenix for another week but I've decided that it would be best for me to leave sooner rather than later so I'll be starting my adventure tomorrow morning. Tonight I'm going out with Luba, Terry, Sean and Jules (Sean's friend) for a Chinese meal for my birthday and then I'll be coming home for an early night because my bus leaves at 6.45 in the morning.

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Photos

Weetabix
Looks like the Americans might be civilised after all. ;)