When you move to Phoenix, Arizona there are certain phrases and things you will start to hear and see often. Here are 10 things to know before moving to the valley of the sun:
We have all major sports and then some…
Wanting to watch basketball, baseball, hockey and football? Arizonans are lucky to reside in a town with all four professional sports teams. What a lot of people don’t know is that we also have plenty of other sports to watch including professional soccer, arena football, a NASCAR and Indycar raceway and so much more! Win or lose, Arizonans always love their hometown teams.
It’s a dry heat.
Perhaps the most common phase spoken by Phoenicians but heard all around the world. There is a good chance cowboys back in the day used this phase while talking to a buddy in a saloon. When anyone complains about the heat, Phoenicians have to remind themselves and others that it is okay it’s warm outside because it’s a dry heat.
We earn our winters
You survived what feels like the hottest summer ever – remember it’s a dry heat. When winter rolls around you’ll be giddy in the perfect weather. You’ll soon forget the dryness of the heat and start to wonder why you ever complained about living in Phoenix.
Snowbirds
The temperatures are dropping, the roads start to get busier and the drivers get slightly slower. Trust me, when the snowbirds come flocking, you’ll know they’ve arrived. The snowbirds travel to warm and sunny Arizona to enjoy the perfect weather. Who could blame them? No shoveling snow and endless sunshine! As long as you stay out of Sun City, otherwise known as snowbird capital, you should be okay! Towards the end of spring you’ll be slightly relieved the temperatures are getting warm again so the snowbirds will fly back to their homes up north.
Heavy coats for 70 degree weather
The summer has ended, fall has arrived. Since Phoenicians don’t have to shovel snow, basic people everywhere don’t want to be deprived of winter fashion. Don’t be surprised if you start seeing people wearing heavy coats, UGGS and scarves. People from Phoenix have thin blood so that when the temperatures start getting cooler, they have to warm up somehow! You can always tell who’s a local and who’s a visitor because visitors are the ones swimming, wearing flip flops and shorts around the valley in the winter.
It’s raining? Prepare for the Facebook post frenzy!
Monsoon seasons are quite a sight to see. Also, in case you didn’t notice the rain coming down, your social media feed will surely inform you. You’ll keep scrolling and scrolling, rain picture here, rain picture there. You might as well cut the cable because you have 3,000 weather reporters as friends on your social media.
See all the seasons in a week or even a day
The weather in Phoenix can sometimes be bipolar. Cold in the morning, warmer in the afternoon and by the end of the day you’ll be cold again. On occasion during the week you will have a crazy downpour for a few days and by the end of the week it’s back to blue skies and 75 degree weather. It might be a slight exaggeration, but you’ll learn to always bring a jacket everywhere you go, just in case you get cold.
Pumpkin obsession
Did you know that people who reside in Phoenix spend more on Halloween/Fall decor than any other state in the US? The only conclusion that seems plausible is that people in Phoenix are so tired of the heat that once fall rolls around they rejoice at the sight of the pumpkin. The pumpkin is truly the symbol that summer is ending and that perfect weather is just around the corner.
You learn to love water
Water – you’ll want to swim in it, drink it, and it’ll become your best pal. It’ll become second nature to drink water to stay hydrated. Waiters will give you water, and you’ll be offered water everywhere you go. Water will be your best friend. Then, when you get tired of water, you can ask for a prickly pear margarita, Arizona’s drink of choice..
You will never get over the picture perfect sunrises and sunsets
You will begin getting spoiled by the picture perfect sunrises and sunsets. Those who reside in Arizona know they’re lucky, and don’t take the beginning and end of the day for granted. You’ll probably see a lot of photos on your social media feed of the sun. The sun always looks different in each photo even if the photo was taken on the same night – everyone’s perspective of the Phoenix sun is different and it’s perfectly unique in its own way, just like Phoenix, Arizona. A true original.
