Tonight, we will see the latest edition of the heated battle between the Winnipeg Jets 2.0 and the Winnipeg Jets 1.0, aka
We all know that Arizona is home to our former beloved 1.0 Jets, being extremely hot in the summer, and full of snowbirds in the winter. But there are a few things that you may not know about the Grand Canyon State. So without further ado, let's get to the latest edition of...
The Saguaro cactus, the largest cactus in the US, only grows in the Arizona Sonoran desert. You can determine the age of the cactus by its height. It takes up to 100 years to grow a single arm. Cutting down a saguaro cactus is illegal. If you cut down an endangered cactus, you can face up to 25 years in prison. So don't be a cact-ass....
Arizona helped revolutionize the fast food industry in 1975. That’s when the McDonald’s in Sierra Vista opened the company’s first drive-through window.
At the time, soldiers from Fort Huachuca were not allowed to get out of their vehicles off-post while wearing fatigues. The owner of the McDonald’s franchise near the base pushed out a bit of one wall and installed a sliding glass window. Lines of hungry soldiers stretched around the building and Big Macs flew out the window as fast as the crew could make them.
For good or ill, our eating habits were forever altered, as well as my waistline, and the phrase, “Please pull up to the window” entered the lexicon...
It’s been in Arizona for almost 50 years, but when you stop and think about it, the fact that London Bridge stretches across a channel of the Colorado River in Lake Havasu City is about as weird as it gets.
In 1968, Robert P. McCulloch, Sr., the founder of Lake Havasu City, bought the world’s largest antique for $2.46 million.
The structure was dismantled, each of the 10,276 granite blocks were numbered, then shipped from London to Arizona, and painstakingly reassembled. The deal also included ornate lampposts made from Napoleon Bonaparte’s cannons captured at Waterloo.
The process took three years and in October 1971, a dedication ceremony welcomed the bridge to its new desert home...
I actually visited it, here's my picture of the London Bridge...
A former gold mining town now is most famous for its four-legged ambassadors. Burros loiter in the middle of the street and collect handouts from travellers. Here’s the thing, though: This wasn’t some scheme concocted by the Oatman Chamber of Commerce, Arizona Office of Tourism or any other agency. The burros initiated the program.
The burros are descendants of animals used by miners and abandoned when the ore played out. At some point, they said the heck with foraging.
Now they wander into town each day and stand around blocking traffic while people feed them alfalfa cubes sold in every store. (Please don’t feed them anything else.) In late afternoon, just before shops close, the burros mosey back into the hills. They repeat the scenario every day. Where else do critters organize a union and execute a business plan?
I've been there as well, here's my picture of the burros...
As the world adopts drones and next-day delivery, there are some folks who continue to opt for slower-paced, but cuter methods.
Indeed, one of my favorite Arizona fun facts is that the Havasupai, a small community of indigenous people residing in the Grand Canyon, actually receive mail (and supplies) by mule six-days-a-week.
Likely for centuries, but at least for decades, this has been a tried and true method. Take that, Amazon Prime...
The Grand Canyon is a literal wonder of the world. However, it’s so much more than just grand – it’s historic too.
Replete with marine fossils and other impressions left by insects and reptiles, the Grand Canyon provides a fascinating look at evolution and the world’s most fascinating prehistoric creatures.
One fossil type you won’t find here though is anything to do with dinosaurs, because the canyon’s rocks are actually older than the oldest known dinosaurs. Isn’t that inT-Rexting?
In Arizona, it is unlawful to refuse a person a glass of water...
Not only was Tequila invented in Arizona....
but so was the Chimichanga, a deep fried burrito...
In Nogales, the wearing of suspenders is prohibited by city ordinance. Women could be fined up to $500 and men up to $2,000...
And finally, in Tombstone, Arizona, it's illegal for anyone over the age of 18 to have less than one missing tooth visible when smiling. I guess former Jet Paul Stastny better not visit...
Now let's throw these Coyotes in the trash where they belong...
Go Jets Go!
Thanks to: 41 Amazing and Unusual Arizona Facts - Some You Won't Believe, 10 surprising things about Arizona that you probably don't know and 20+ Interesting & Fun Facts About Arizona (That Most Visitors Don't Know!)
Ok our Jets are playing very good right now so lets keep this hot streak going.
