These Are a Few of My Favorite Things

Dan occasionally says, speaking of New Mexico, "I really like it here, but I'm not sure you like it as much as I do." I wish I could put his mind at ease, because I do like New Mexico, even more than I thought I would before we moved.

Some things I like about New Mexico:

• Beautiful and varied scenery
• Hot air balloons
• Four distinct seasons
• Awesome sunsets
• The combination of Hispanic and Native American cultures, arts and foods
• New Mexico's rich history
• Shorter travel distances to family
• Albuquerque's good shopping
• Abundance of cultural opportunities (concerts and other performances)
• The new friends we've made

If we were to leave New Mexico, I would miss these things, and more. But that doesn't mean I don't miss some things about Oregon and Alaska. I think that is what is confusing Dan when he asks if I really like New Mexico.

Some things I miss about Oregon:

• Pumpkin patches in the fall
• Christmas tree farms, where we cut our own real trees
• U-pick fields and orchards, where we could pick sweet corn, strawberries, peaches, apples, Marion berries, and on and on
• Houses that are made out of something besides stucco
• The Oregon coast - my favorite place for renewal
• Camp Yamhill
• Thick, lush green lawns
• The smell of bark dust
• Powell's Bookstore and Fred Meyer
• Great Chinese restaurants
• Teaching ESL classes at George Fox University
• The old friends I left behind

Some things I miss about Alaska:

• Fresh-out-of-the-water salmon, halibut and king crab
• Cool summer temperatures
• Long, long summer days
• Deep snowfalls
• The Northern Lights
• The view we had from our condo (see the picture above)
• Day trips on the ferries
• The Permanent Fund Dividend
• Certain smells that mean "home" to me: skunk cabbage, low tide, creosote on the docks, spruce trees
• Up-close-and-personal encounters with black bears, eagles and whales
• The old friends I left behind