There will be some changes coming in 2009 - the biggest one will be mine and Jason's move to Maryland in March! (What an oddly-shaped state, by the way.) House hunting has yet to begin, but we will be somewhat close to DC. While being able to drive to the Grand Canyon and Yellowstone has been beneficial, living in the middle of nowhere is not sustainable. I recently had to drive nearly 500 miles to get my car repaired, the nearest airport is two and a half hours away, and the nearest Target is longer than a 70-mile drive. While I won't be happy about the increase in traffic, I am excited to be near museums, restaurants, and shopping.Crazy stuff about Carlsbad, New Mexico that I will NOT miss:
1) Having things thrown and/or shot at my house. Besides having a truck window shot out, we have had the garage hit by paintballs, eggs, and a beer bottle. The mailbox was also hit by a baseball bat. There really is a general lack of pride in the whole community. The very day an art exhibition was installed at the local library, it was destroyed by vandals.
2) Stepping in dog poop in my own yard. I don't have a dog.
3) Having to call the police on people shooting at the speed trailer across the street.
4) Being forced to buy nearly everything at Wal-mart.
5) Not being able to eat out on the weekends. I don't know why most of the restaurants in town have decided to close on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday - it seems like an odd business model.
6) The majority of the gym's equipment being broken at any given time.
7) The community being completely unconcerned with the environment. Most people drive huge, unnecessarily large trucks. Also, because there is no recycling pick-up, most people don't make the effort to take their recycling to the drop-off center. Even then, the center doesn't accept glass or tin cans. (AND, people leave weird stuff there, like the satellite dish I saw today in the aluminum bin.)
8) There simply isn't anything of good quality here. This isn't a wealthy community, and so $4.99 all-you-can-eat pizza buffets will always thrive, and any gourmet pizza restaurant will fail. Oh Indian food, how I miss you so.
I could go on and on, but you get the idea. I will miss my house, since it is cozy and painted colors I like. If anyone has any insider Maryland-suburb tips (like "stay away from that road, people will totally steal your hubcaps") feel free to spill! And is this really the Rockville Library?? If it is, I'm already in heaven. (Link to Flickr set)
