Too often, since our move back from the west coast four years ago, I find myself comparing Seattle to Atlanta, which is not really fair since we were childless two-income folks living in a hip location in Seattle, and here we are parents and chose to live outside of the city so that we could benefit from the good schools in our area. Suffice it to say that the comparison is often unfavorable. It starts with the fact of the dual ocean mountain view that was available there and the "nothing" view that is available here and usually goes downhill. . . .
In my mind, I have created a "fantasy Seattle" and conveniently forget how lonely I was to be so far from my family; how ludicrously priced single family homes were; and how 9 months out of the year, I cursed the freezing weather and had the blues (and then some) because of the constant drizzle. I remember only our friends, the mountains, the great nights out we had, the delicious donuts, the delicious salmon, the great coffee and lightening-fast baristas, the progressive politics, the public transit, Pike Place Market. . .and, then I feel sad.
But, Atlanta is actually a pretty great town and the south also has many good points. Now that the weather has broken (blessedly early) and it is starting to feel like fall, and our daughter is sleeping again, it is easier for me to focus on these good points. I'm going to memorialize my top ten Atlanta favorites here for when I start dreaming about "fantasy Seattle" again:
1) My mom & dad live 45 minutes away; my brother and Woody live 10 minutes away. We don't have to get into a plane to see my family--ever.
2) The sun shines often here. Whoa--the weather has been gorgeous lately--mid to upper 70's, low humidity, crisp, but not chilly at night. I did not have the air conditioning on at all today. Simply lovely. Add to that the fact that even when it's cold in the winter, it's often sunny, and it's pretty splendid!
3) The food. There were a lot of great restaurants in Seattle, but the food here is more soulful, for sure. And, there are also a lot of great restaurants. And, we have a WONDERFUL international market in our town that has beautiful produce at wonderful prices. .. .in short, we often eat like kings.
4) Our house is lovely--especially the kitchen and especially the porches. I think this one has been easy for me to lose sight of lately since the tree fell on our house, but the truth is that we are very fortunate to live in what is quite possibly my dream house and something we never could have lived in in Seattle. It's old, but re-done, so has character and convenience. And, it has SUCH a wonderful kitchen for all that great food we're always buying. Peter & I had a tiny galley kitchen in our apartment in Seattle, and while we made some good meals, we often bickered as we bumped past each other there--not a problem here!
5) The graffiti in Atlanta is marvelous. It is edgy and gritty, but also very artistic and the city has designated plenty of spaces for whole-wall murals. I love these bright pockets of surprise and artistry sprinkled into my day.
6) I live close enough to work to ride my bike and actually dare to do so from time to time because there are no neck-breaking hills. Biking is definitely my favorite form of exercise. :)
7) People are often popping in unexpectedly because they have a layover or other travel that takes them through Atlanta and we get to see them!
8) Not everyone is white here. In fact, many people are not. It is so awesome to walk around and see a mix of hues, rather than just one.
9) So many festivals! Atlanta is definitely a festive town and the various festivals definitely mark the seasons here in a very pleasing way.
10) The pace is more chilled out. It is true that the South moves a bit slower and I really, really love that.
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