A Wild Month

Someone asked us recently how we pick what goes on the cover. It depends, but usually what shows up is a person we hear about through word of mouth or a business that catches our eyes as we drive by. We heard about Nick Jensen, the music man on this cover, through one of our occasional columnists. Her daughters take lessons at Nick’s music school and she mentioned that we should check his concept out.

The owner of Strum University, 27-year-old Nick is a musician who decided to take his passion for music and turn it into a career teaching others how to play. A North Valley resident, Nick wasn’t content driving to people’s homes across the entire Valley giving in-home lessons. Rather, he had the idea to open up a fun studio where students could go to learn the fundamentals of instruments and how to play them. He made his idea a reality with the opening of Strum University. The name and concept intrigued us, so the 85085 Magazine crew stopped in to learn more. Find out what we discovered starting on page 24.

Turning to the weather, as we so often do, we figured there’s really nothing new to discover about the temperatures here in the Valley in September. Indeed, as our go-to meteorologist Shelly Sakala says, the best thing you can say about September weather in Phoenix is it’s “almost not horrible.” But, it’s not all bad news. As it turns out, there’s a lot more to the history of this month than you’d suspect. It involves farm shaming, missing days, and competitions over who’s got the world’s ugliest face. Don’t miss Shelly’s article on pages 12 and 13, where she offers up the wild history behind this notoriously staid month.

We’re sure you’re as ready to say “sayonara” to triple-digit temps as we are. Local columnist Cassandra Johnson apparently feels the same way, which is why she offers up an engaging travel piece this month. She suggests heading to San Francisco with your kiddos for not only cooler temps but for a opportunity for them to fall in love with the City by the Bay. Check out her crib sheet to get your San Fan sightseeing trip started.

We promise there’s a lot more to keep you entertained, so get reading.

Cheers!

ON THE COVER

Nick Jensen, owner of Strum University

Photo by Shannon Fisher Photography