Anna and I hitched a ride with a friend of mine to the airport and left Portland International Airport at 11:00 a.m. We flew to L.A. (where we BARELY caught our connecting flight to Tucson). (To the right here, you'll see a picture of LA from our plane!) 
Sooo, we arrived in Tucson around 3:30ish where Tanya greeted us with a happy face and a camera. ("say cheese!") We decided that we would drive over to Wendy and Cass' place so that we could meet up with Jess as well (by this time I was so anxious to see them again I couldn't stand it).
The reunion between us was great. We picked up right where we had left off and began discussing what we wanted to do. We all went out and got Mexican food after Wendy got off work, and then went back to their house for a while longer...where we talked till late catching up and laughing about various things that probably wouldn't be funny if we heard them now! It was a wonderful day, and I knew it would be the start of a great trip.
The morning started out great! After Tanya and I went back to Wendy and Cass' we started decorating the folders that we had been given (with all of the essential stuff that we needed to know for our time there!) and ate Poptarts. Cass showed us her handy-dandy terrific first aid kit (that she was just dying to use) and made sure we knew that if we were injured, we'd probably survive! The only thing was that you had to have an injury that would cause a slow death, that way Cass could read the book and find out what to do. So, after hearing that our lives were in good hands and my fears were gone for the weekend, we headed off to Mexico. Cass had to stay around and pick up the other members of our group at the airport, Tanya had to work, so it just turned out to be Jess, Anna, Wendy, and Myself. It was a mild trip, and so we didn't get into trouble!
Okay, then when we got back, we met up with Aimee (who I hadn't seen in forever!) and the awesome and fantastic Lisa! From the start we all knew we'd be getting along...laughs began a second after we walked through the door. So, we cleaned up and went over to the hotel where we met up with Nora and her hubby, Chris (who is an awesome guy...especially because he put up with all of us!), and Michelle (you ROCK girl!)! So, we decided from there that we would go to Trail Dust Town for dinner.
From left around the table; Jess, Aimee, Michelle, Tanya, Chris, Nora, Wendy, Kirsten, and Lisa!
Dinner was awesome, and we were entertained by exceptionally cute cowboys (which always makes dinner more pleasant), and for the grand finale Cass decided that it would be cute for me to have a "birthday" (actually, it was the server's idea, but she was QUICK to go with it! Cass, you know I love you though!) So, I'm sitting there innocently (ha!) minding my own business (ha!) when two cute cowboys walk in with ice cream saying "I think someone in here has a birthday!"...well, as I'm sure you know that was my big moment. Sooo, one of the men (that we later formally met as "Parrish") told me that it was tradition for the birthday person to dance on the table. Heh, it's a true sign that I have great friends because in no time the table was cleared and I was on it dancing! Parrish and Nole's faces were dumbfounded, but then they started laughing. I got of the table, sat down, and realized that this would most definitely be a crazy trip.
This is all of us with Parrish on our laps. I think Cass had to take pictures with about 10 cameras, so we had to pose for a loooong time, but it doesn't look like any of us minded too much! ;)
Soooo, the rest of dinner went smoothly, and when we stepped outside the cowboys told me how surprised they were that I really danced on the table. It's kind of a joke and nobody ever does it. So at least I provided some laughs! Of course then I find out that Cass posts the picture first thing when we get home. Now I can't even deny it, so there's no more dignity for Kirsten in this fandom! ;)
For the rest of the evening, I had a few stunt guys come up to me and say "hey, are you the girl that was dancing on the table?"
Anyway, so from there, after the stuntshow, we went to the hotel and had a big get together in Jess' and my room. It was awesome, and we had more bonding time. In fact Parrish and Ryan (two of the guys from the show) stopped by to see what we were all about and ended up staying and talking for a long time. We talked about the show (imagine that!) and just got to know each other. It was a blast...and again, I knew that this could only mean that more adventures were ahead...
August 11, 2000
Friday was an amazing day! We all piled into our great van (Cass being driver of course...she's a great bus driver...Cass, you missed your calling. Yeah, I can imagine what you're doing now...I'm probably "number one" huh?), and headed out to Tombstone. Wendy stayed behind and took her car to get Raye from the airport...so they were going to join us from there. We sang songs on the way (poor Whitney Houston will never be the same) and after we crossed the vast desert (it was rainy), we arrived at the famous place known as "Boot Hill." The gang got out and walked around, took pictures of the gravesites and shared what little history we knew about the area with each other. 
Heather, Nora, Lisa, Jess, and Aimee!!
So after being freaked out by repeatedly saying to myself "I see dead people..." we moved on. After we entered Tombstone, Cass broke out the walkie talkies again and we began to walk through the town. We were hungry, as all weary travelers are, and so we stopped in a small little restaurant to get some grub. While we were in there, it started hailing REALLY hard...which was awesome, and the lightening would strike while the power to the building flashed on and off.
A little while later, Wendy reached us on the talkies and said that she and Raye had arrived at Tombstone. Cass and I ran out into the rain to meet up with them, and our group grew once again. We sat inside for a while, drinking sarsaparilla and eating chicken and such, just waiting for the rain to let up a bit. 
Tanya, Nora, Aimee, Heather, and Raye!
Finally it cleared enough for all of us to brave the storm, so we went outside and split up and began to shop through the town. Michelle and her mom also arrived shortly after, so our group (yes, you guessed it) grew even more! We had a great bunch of people and the fun had just begun.
Gosh, I guess we wandered around for a couple of hours (Tanya found this really cool hat, doesn't she look cute in it?) until we found out that there was a stunt show going on in a few minutes.
Tanya's hat!
The MAN himself
The next million was to get everyone back to the hotel and gathered again so that we could begin the festivities of the evening back at the Club House. Pizza was ordered and we got sodas and some various junk food.
Then came the fun part...reading the fan fiction! It was one of the best parts of the reunion because we got the chance to sit together, snack, and read excellent stories! After we had done that for a while, we decided that it would be fun to act out a scene from "The Kid"...sooo, parts were assigned and we began reading and acting it out. It was a blast too!!
After these festivities had ended, we decided that it was getting late, so we packed up our stuff and headed back to the hotel to get some sleep...upon which we would rise in the morning and head off to our next destination...Old Tucson Studios!
To be continued...
More to come soon!