August 13

Well, I finally made it back out. All of five hours of sleep after a nice long day yesterday, the fellow on the radio telling me about a heat advisory for the day and extending into the weekend, and it just seemed like a good time to wander around in the sun for a bit.

The intersection of Stapley and Main used to be the province of one of Mesa’s more recognizable citizens. Robert Disbrow, better known as Diz-Z to Mesans, used to work all four corners with his own brand of preaching and choreography. Diz-Z passed away earlier this year and online pages have sprung up as places where people can share their own personal Diz-Z stories, post photo and generally remember Mr. Disbrow. Here is a link to one at Living Times.  One of the regrets I have is not capturing Diz-Z for Mesa 2010.

Just west of the corner is Bosa Donuts. For many years it was a Dunkin Donuts and then combination Dunkin Donuts and Baskin Robbins Ice Cream. We used to get ice cream birthday cakes there. I haven’t tried the Bosa Donuts, what with being on a largely no-fried dough diet lately.

It’s a shame, but a lot of things have been closed or cut back in Arizona lately. Heck, who needs mass transit? Drive your damn car!

Sorry about that.

Back to Main Street.

Speaking of cars. Here’s a place on Main to keep yours clean.

China China Restaurant

Big Johnson’s Big Apple. This restaurant has been on Main for quite a few years. Used to be if you wanted to eat at The Big Apple, you had to go all the way into Phoenix to their 38th St and Van Buren location. But no more. If you hanker for what they call “Arizona Cookin’ Done Right” all you have to do is mosey on down to 950 E. Main for, as they put it on their website, “incredibly healthy portions of good ol’ down-home cooking, you’ll walk out with a full belly knowing you got the best bang for your buck, Real Food for Real People –” And yes, I do think the word they were searching for is “generous” or maybe “obscenely huge”, not “healthy”.

Across the street from Bill Johnson’s is an eating establishment that has seen better times.

And one next door too.

I guess not enough people came through that door with their bellies full of sopes and quesadillas.And for those of you who are wondering what a sope is, here is the ever reliable Wikipedia link to explain it all.

Miguel’s Beauty Salon has a festive air. But no website.

Interesting combination of businesses share this corner.

No easily locatable website for any of ’em.

Tacos el Grullo still seems to be thriving.

But once again, no website. What’s the matter with these folks?

Village Auto Electric

No, that won’t take you to their website, because I couldn’t find one. It will take you to Google Maps link with some nice reviews from customers. The one that caught my eye was from the fellow who wrote not once, but twice, that he was “overly impressed”. Hey, they’ve got to be good, right?

And what thriving business center doesn’t need its own center of finance? Forget the BofA on the corner. I give you Pioneer Pawn, where “We Will Treat You Right”. Once again (this is getting to be a theme) no website, but on the Google Maps page the one review gives Pioneer Pawn kudos as “the best place to have a firearm shipped.”

And here is the reason I pulled over on this short stretch of Main. Matta’s first opened on Main Street back in December 1953 and moved to this location across the street five years later. So that means they were there a good two years before my family moved to Arizona. Now they operate restaurants at the Riverview complex  and in east Mesa on Higley Road. But the Main Street location closed it’s door this past January.

Sorry it has been such a long dry spell between entries here. I’ll try to do better. In the meantime, don’t forget that you can sponsor Mesa 2010 with the simple and mutually beneficial act of purchasing a copy of Boomerang. Visit Amazon, Barnes and Noble or Boomerang’s Home on the Web to get the paperback. The ebook version is available from Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Smashwords, Sony, Kobo, and Apple. You need to have an iPad or iPhone to access Apple’s bookstore.