The Rock

The traditional view of the Grand Canyon from the Lodge is enjoyed on the veranda, this huge stone courtyard with a fireplace that I can literally walk into and did. I can only imagine the atmosphere it will create when a fire is roaring one chilly night and everyone is out for a stroll. The veranda is also the best place to get a signal from the tower Verizon erected on the South Rim last fall, so many times before the office opens or before I leave for lunch I will make a call or two sitting on the edge of the stone wall overlooking the North Rim. Tuesday night, however, I was introduced to "The Rock."

Like the lyrics of a Bruce Springsteen ballad, even the Grand Canyon has a place where the kids go to hang out. It is simply known as "The Rock." Down a narrow trail that branches off the one on which I took my afternoon run is a spot where you can make your way to a huge outcropping overlooking a side canyon. It is also a spot where you can get four or five bars on your cell and as I discovered, a place where the people with cellphones and unlimited minutes loan their phones to those who do not have one so they can call their family or friends to simply say "no, I haven't fallen in." I loaned mine to my roomie so he could call his family. He said his grandparents thought he was dead.

Maybe Bruce can do a song entitled "Five Bars On My Verizon and Paradise On My Horizon."

I still need that mini-fridge, but we now have iced tea in the EDR. Thank you, Jesus!