After taking the judges workshop in Vegas at the last competition, I decided to practice my judging in Phoenix for the America’s Naturals Competition. The trip was a whirlwind, both fun and exhausting. But not what I expected at all.

I flew to Phoenix in the morning and arrived at the motel; just missing breakfast. Luckily, I had a banana and an apple. (I’ll explain why that was a lucky thing later.) Anyway, I let the motel know I was in town and would be checking in later when I got a break from the competition. I arrived at the event at 9:45, which would have been plenty of time for me to leisurely say my hello’s and prepare for the show.

This was not the case; the paper work hadn’t been done for the competitors. I had to scramble to write down every category and every person’s number that was in each category. Luckily I copied the ones from the judge sitting next to me. I finished as the show began.

So, there I was sitting and judging with no break until 2:30. Okay, here’s where the lucky banana and apple come in! I also packed some almonds, walnuts, pistachios, and pumpkin seeds. At 2:30 they gave us four sticks of sate and I was fueled to run back to my motel for check in and get dressed. I made on it back to the competition on time for the 4:00 pm to 9:30 pm portion. Thanks again to my snacks!

My day ended with one of the best burgers I’ve ever had. The food truck outside the venue had an amazing Arizona western style burger (with no bread) smothered in kale salad and roasted corn sauce. It was incredibly delicious! I had connected with the owners earlier and we had a few laughs together before I went back to the motel. I saved half of it so I could heat it up in the morning before my early flight.

My body woke me up early. (As it does every morning whether I want to get up or not.) It was 5:30 am. I couldn’t sleep so I decided to get up before my 6:15 call. I got myself together, finished my left overs and was proudly ready before my alarm call at 6:20 am. “Good morning!” I said with cheer to the sleepy voice on the other end.. “Your taxi is here” he replied. I guess that’s one of the differences between staying in a motel verses a hotel. I quickly grabbed my things and make it out the door in two minutes. It was a whirlwind trip. We’ll see how I did in a few weeks.

With Love,
Saba