Interesting how there can be such a variance our perspectives. Your friend is actually glad to reside where forests are absent. There IS something to be said for the panoramic views & the mild, winter seasons.
While the Sonoran desert surprisingly supports quite a variety of flora & fauna, others view it as being rather dull & absent of the abundant life found in more northerly climes. They'll even comment that the Grand Canyon, while certainly impressive, quickly becomes for them a huge, long hole in the ground, strewn with dead rocks & boulders. "Give me green grass & beautiful trees -- not the talcum powder they call soil & thorn-laden succulents they call plants."
In fact, the summer season of 2020 brought Arizona a new nickname as being the "furnace state" with daytime temperatures reaching 120° F in some areas. I must confess that the forests of the northern third area of the state seem a more natural location for trekking & hunting with my .54 cal GPR.
There's something for everyone, isn't there? Your buddy seems pleased as punch to be in the Mesa metropolitan area. And let's face it, unending days of cloudy skies & rainfall amounts that are what -- four times that which Arizona receives -- can become rather depressing. It's great to find a place one can call home.
