New Adventures
In which I share a bit about my next moves--literal and figurative...
Well, friends, it’s officially autumn, and you know what that means...
The mornings here have been quite chilly, and the leaves are starting to lose their green. As always, I’m reveling in it--especially this year, for reasons that I’ll get into shortly.
September has been an insanely busy month, as evidenced by my decision to repost all three parts of my previous “what I’ve learned about writing” posts. And since it’s been a while since I last offered any real updates, and since I did tease some possible changes in the offing back in July, I thought I’d share with y’all what’s going on in my world these days.
But bear with me, because... well, it’s a lot.
Busy, Busy...
September was a real whirlwind, y’all.
The first week of the month, I took a little trip to Taos, New Mexico, with the Bestie, aka Ethel, aka the inspiration for Rhiannon. It was a lovely getaway--a few days at a resort with a little pampering at the spa, a drive up to Taos Pueblo, some shopping, and lots of conversation that I sorely needed.
I only had a few days at home before we were once again on the road. We went back to Arizona for another visit with the folks, the kids, and the grands. It was a jam-packed trip that included one day to drive to San Diego to see my son’s promotion ceremony, but was mostly focused on looking for a new house near the folks.
Yes, that’s right. Our 4.5-year experiment up here in North Idaho is about to end.
We are moving to Arizona.
The Reasons...
The main reason we’re moving is to be closer to my in-laws. They are both in their 80s now, and since we both work remotely, we feel like it makes sense to move down closer to them, just to be close and help them manage whatever they need as they age.
While I’m not especially excited about another interstate move, I think this is the right thing for us at the moment. All of our kids are out of the house and on their own adulthood journeys now. We aren’t pinned down to any particular obligations here that we can’t let go. My parents live close to one of my sisters, so I feel like they have someone who can help them if necessary. And with my son’s family in San Diego now, we’ll be pretty close to the grandkids, and that’s a plus that North Idaho cannot offer.
We plan to move in November. I may have to put the blog on hiatus to get some packing and such done, but I’ll let y’all know so you don’t worry that I’ve gone dark again.
As for how long this relocation will last?
That’s a really big unknown right now. It’s possible it’s just a season while the folks need us, but it’s possible we’ll love it once we get accustomed to the heat. The house we’re buying is lovely, and it’s in a nice neighborhood. And I confess--I am excited about going back to a city that has multiple food options every night of the week.
In the course of contemplating this move, I’ve done some reflecting on our experiment up here and what I want to do differently in Arizona.
Perspective
I don’t want to say that moving to North Idaho was a mistake, but I do feel like it was a move we took in desperation. There was a lot going on in Oregon at the time--including pretty stringent pandemic restrictions--and we wanted to get away. Whether we should have waited it out or not is a question I will ask myself for probably the rest of my life, but at the time, it seemed like the right choice.
But I will say that living in this little town for the last 4.5 years has clarified a few things about me and the kind of life I want...
I need good restaurants. One of the things I have sorely missed about the Portland-Metro area is the wide range of food options. Whenever we were bored with our regular (and quite tasty) haunts, there was always something new to try. In this little town in North Idaho, there are a few good places, but hours and open days tend to be pretty limited, especially in winter. I am very much looking forward to a city with more restaurant options. Maybe that makes me shallow, or maybe that just makes me basically a Hobbit.
I like the amenities of a city. We typically drive to Coeur d’Alene for big grocery trips, haircuts, specialty stores, and the like. I’ve moved all of my healthcare to providers in Coeur d’Alene for various reasons, so again, it’s an hour to get to the doctor. I have realized that I prefer the options and variety available in a larger city.
I have soured on small-town life. Having grown up in a small town, I thought I would enjoy getting back to small-town living, but I have not. I think I only considered the soft-focus Hallmark movie images of small towns. It’s worth noting also that I grew up as the daughter of a family with a long presence in the community, while here, I’m a newcomer. Newcomers are always viewed with suspicion in small towns.
But all that said... There are things I will miss about this place.
The wildlife. I see wildlife almost every day here. We’ve seen eagles, elk, pelicans, herons, turtles, and too many deer, wild turkeys, and grouse to count. We even saw a great gray owl once, and a mountain lion once ran in front of The Man’s pickup (don’t worry--it made it across the highway safely). While I don’t care to meet said mountain lion face to face, I will miss seeing deer on my morning walks and runs.
The safety. The area we’re moving to is not necessarily unsafe, but there is nothing like the trust of a small town. People regularly leave cars and houses unlocked. I can’t tell you how many times we’ve seen empty vehicles unlocked and running in parking lots around here. Cities just aren’t the same.
Our house. I know this creaky old place has issues, but I have said since we moved in that our 110+-year-old house has great character. I will miss that character. I know, I know--it doesn’t have ductwork, the doors don’t shut right, the floors are uneven, and it’s about as porous as Swiss cheese in the winter, but it has the kind of charm a 2013 suburban ranch won’t achieve for another 80 years, if ever.
So what will I do differently in Arizona?
A Resolution
I am not going to wait to make connections somewhere.
When we first moved here, I was distracted by a lot of things, including parenting and a pretty heavy freelancing load. When I finally had the mental bandwidth to meet people, I’d seen some things that gave me pause, and I allowed my misanthropic, hermit nature to overtake me. I finally did push myself after my youngest moved out last year, but too little, too late. When we get to Arizona, I intend to push myself into meeting people somewhere just as soon as we’re settled.
It might actually be easier for me to find a “tribe” in a larger city than it is here, primarily because there will be more options. If I try something and don’t fit in, well, I can try something else. My particular brand of weird finds it tough to connect, admittedly, but there just have to be more possibilities in a city with over 100,000 people in it.
I have no intention of giving up knitting, crocheting, or exercising, though. And I will definitely continue writing. I am making plans for the freelance side of things that I’ll likely execute after the move.
And as for fiction?
Well... I am making some changes there, too.
I’ll fill you in on those next week.