Where To Start?
Posted 06-26-2009 at 09:15 AM by PhotogGal
I've enjoyed following other people's blogs and have wanted my own for some time now, but many blogs seem to have a theme or reason for their existence, and I can't pick just one. So this blog will be representative of my scattered thinking, what draws my camera to my eye and the places I travel to or things that excite me that I run across. If you enjoy reading it, that will be great. If not, it will give me pleasure to do it anyway, so it's a win-win situation.
I lived in the Chicago suburbs all my life until 12/07 when I relocated to a suburb of Greenville, South Carolina -- partly to be near family/grandchildren and partly because of the lack of snow in the winters and the scenic beauty and photo ops there and in the surrounding area. There was about a 5-6 month adjustment period, where at times I questioned my sanity or felt very lonely away from my old friends. But I got through that and have come to love my new life there.
I didn't realize just how much the Carolinas have become my true home until I visited the Chicago area (where I'm writing from) for the second time this summer. In the same way that I enjoy being a grandmother to my stepsons' children more than I would have liked being a mother of my own, I think I enjoy Chicago more from the perspective of being a tourist than I ever did as a native.
As a grandmother, if the kids start acting up or getting sick, you can turn them back over to their parents. As a tourist, if the weather sucks or the traffic drives you nuts, or you think the people are rude or the prices too high, you can leave and go home.
Now, I've already been here two weeks, and I'm not quite ready to leave. I've enjoyed taking the double decker bus tour and seeing the sights in the city -- some that I never saw when I was living here. I've had my Chicago hot dog, Chicago pizza and all those things that I do truly miss. But I've had more than enough of the jet engines roaring overhead in the condo complex I used to live in and am visiting in; more than enough of the heavy traffic and the potholes due to the horrible winters; more than enough of one of the highest sales taxes in the country . . . well, you get the picture.
I've taken some great photos and some just for memories. I've seen my former doctor and my former hairdresser (who just can't be replaced). I've done some shopping but only in stores we don't have in Greenville or things I can't buy there. Everything else is cheaper back home. I'm dividing my time between quality time spent with good friends and doing all those things that bring me pleasure and store up enough memories of each to last me until my next visit. However, the whole time I've been here, I keep thinking of how much more I love living in the Carolinas and how much easier life is there than it ever was or would be here.
The bottom line is that I think I've found my true home, and I found it when I wasn't really even looking. I'll be eternally grateful to my stepson Eddie for making the decision to get out of Florida and move to Greenville. Were it not for him, I would never have even visited there, much less relocated.
I lived in the Chicago suburbs all my life until 12/07 when I relocated to a suburb of Greenville, South Carolina -- partly to be near family/grandchildren and partly because of the lack of snow in the winters and the scenic beauty and photo ops there and in the surrounding area. There was about a 5-6 month adjustment period, where at times I questioned my sanity or felt very lonely away from my old friends. But I got through that and have come to love my new life there.
I didn't realize just how much the Carolinas have become my true home until I visited the Chicago area (where I'm writing from) for the second time this summer. In the same way that I enjoy being a grandmother to my stepsons' children more than I would have liked being a mother of my own, I think I enjoy Chicago more from the perspective of being a tourist than I ever did as a native.
As a grandmother, if the kids start acting up or getting sick, you can turn them back over to their parents. As a tourist, if the weather sucks or the traffic drives you nuts, or you think the people are rude or the prices too high, you can leave and go home.
Now, I've already been here two weeks, and I'm not quite ready to leave. I've enjoyed taking the double decker bus tour and seeing the sights in the city -- some that I never saw when I was living here. I've had my Chicago hot dog, Chicago pizza and all those things that I do truly miss. But I've had more than enough of the jet engines roaring overhead in the condo complex I used to live in and am visiting in; more than enough of the heavy traffic and the potholes due to the horrible winters; more than enough of one of the highest sales taxes in the country . . . well, you get the picture.
I've taken some great photos and some just for memories. I've seen my former doctor and my former hairdresser (who just can't be replaced). I've done some shopping but only in stores we don't have in Greenville or things I can't buy there. Everything else is cheaper back home. I'm dividing my time between quality time spent with good friends and doing all those things that bring me pleasure and store up enough memories of each to last me until my next visit. However, the whole time I've been here, I keep thinking of how much more I love living in the Carolinas and how much easier life is there than it ever was or would be here.
The bottom line is that I think I've found my true home, and I found it when I wasn't really even looking. I'll be eternally grateful to my stepson Eddie for making the decision to get out of Florida and move to Greenville. Were it not for him, I would never have even visited there, much less relocated.
Total Comments 4
Comments
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You are living proof that it is OK to go somewhere else, even if you are not 20 years old. I don't have children, but 18 years ago I relocated from LA to Seattle after the death of my husband coinciding with an unbelievable chance at a job transfer. To this day, I still miss the beach, a good pastrami sandwich and mom and pop mexican food. I also miss my best friend of 49 years. Lately, I have decided to sell my home in WA to move south to Arizona to be able to afford a home that is large enough so my best friend, who is developing Alzheimer's, can spend the rest of her life in my care, or have the proceeds from the real estate to help in her care.
No one should every be so glued to a spot that they refuse to consider another location. They will be missing out on a lot. Thanks for your blog.Posted 06-28-2009 at 02:30 AM by yukiko11
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Wow, it's a cool blog, it kind of shows the human aspect of everything. I see your picture and wonder who you are and the life you lead through your pictures you take and now through your blog it adds a little human touch. Nice!
Through my work, it takes me all over the place...well around the USA and sometimes in Central America where I am now. In 2007 and 2008 I spent time in Kankakee, IL. sphincter capital of the world.
Well I know that's not nice, but every time I turned around, I was told I couldn't do it and they made sure that it would happen. Interesting isn't it. I think Midwesterners have a way of thinking on how it's going to be and that's how it going to be.
They told me..."Look, you are an out-of-towner and because you are, you have NO say in what goes on around here and you will never have a say on what goes on around here....you get it!"
I travel from state to state, rink to rink, building programs for rink owners that are in trouble. But for people in the midwest, they would rather see the rink fail then to have someone come in and try to help the rink owner build programs to keep the rink open.
They have a tendency to think that things are good they way they are and they don't want things to change. again, they say...by sides, who are you to tell us how things should be run. Funny isn't it.
So today, I find myself down here in Monterrey Mexico. A far cry from the hockey world in which I live in. But the owner here at this rink would love for me to build him a hockey program for his facility. Icecomplex.com
So, I will be down here for a year and a half until I find another rink that needs my help. I do love your pictures. I see that a lot of them have a southwestern, hispanic feel to them.
My wife and I own a home in Scottsdale, AZ. But because my last name is Lopez, it hard to find work in Phoenix with the last name. We are originally from Seattle where both my wife's family and my mother lives. But in 1993, I left my head coaching job with the U of W to build an Olympic hockey team in Mexico city. After 2 years, my contract was cut do to the devaluation of the peso, and I moved to Scottsdale because my wife's dad lived there and because my wife likes the Spa thing.
But, it hard to find work there because when I go searching and they hear my last name...the job is fill all of a sudden. So, I have to find work outside of the state, and my wife had to find work in Philly but she works in Madison, WI. So we have a phone relationship just so we can pay for a home that we don't live in.
I have two cats and a cat sitter that I pay for. The house comes complete with heating and air conditioning so the cats don't die and I have someone come twice a day to play with them and feed and change the litter box. When I die, I want to come back as a rich families cat. Not a poor family because they will have a tendency fatten you up and eat you...so says the mexicans down here.
Maybe we will come out of this and decide that having a home in Scottsdale and trying to keep up with the Joneses is really not that important.
So the next time you have a bad day...think about me. That will cheer you up....LOL.
Anyways, keep the pictures coming, I haven't seen some of your stuff in a long time, but I will be looking.
Rob Lopez - aka: head coachPosted 11-28-2010 at 01:48 PM by Head coach
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Enjoyed reading your blog, and your hair looks great, by the way! Will be relocating to Greenville in a few months with my husband and youngest son, and reading this made me feel a bit getter at leaving my great group of friends here. I keep telling them I will visit and they can come visit me, but it won't be the same. Hope I can make another group of friends while keeping the old!Posted 07-04-2013 at 11:42 AM by BigRedBeth
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It's called loving life and making people smile...
Posted 11-18-2013 at 06:32 PM by TN Tin Man
