Greetings from North Carolina!  And more specifically, the mountains of western North Carolina.

I safely landed here just shy of three weeks ago and have managed to settle in quite nicely.  For now.  The move and house sale in Orlando went smoothly and without a hitch.  I kept waiting for something to go wrong but it didn’t.  Shocking.

I am now in a temporary apartment (technically it is a condo, but to me it is an apartment).  It’s a reasonably comfortable space but it’s not “mine” and most of my stuff is in storage.  That being said, it’s in an awesome location on main street in a small town where most everything is in walking distance (except a grocery store).

I am set to close on the construction loan for the house here in a week.  I’ll breathe a little easier once that goes through and all is approved by the bank people.  The house should have been “ordered” last week or the week before.  Hard to say, I have sort of lost track of town.

So the picture up above was taken at my new happy place – the North Carolina Arboretum which is only a 30 minute drive away (but will be closer when I move).   The Blue Ridge Parkway and the Pisgah National Forest (with waterfalls!) is also just a short drive away.  I’ve been out walking/hiking at least three times since arriving – and would have gone more often except the weather has been crappy.

Which brings me to the point of the post.  I lived in PA for 37 years near woods and mountains and streams.  I can’t remember going out for walks / hikes more than a few times.  I grew up in a very small town and couldn’t wait to leave.  Spring and fall were pretty but not that big of a deal – it happened every year after all!

Then I moved to FL where it was sunny nearly all the time.  And hot.  All.The.Time.  At first it was really nice to live where it was warm in the winter but then it seemed like it was always the same. Always sunny and always warm (well, HOT).

For the past 10 or 15 years, I planned to go somewhere in the fall to see the leaves change and to get out of the heat.  I always figured I’d get over missing autumn.

Then I went to Shenandoah National Park in September 2017 and realized how much I really did miss fall – everything about it.  And I missed driving on back roads with farms.  I felt homesick after 17 years.  How could that be?

Now I live in a town that is really a small city with a compact downtown.  Life is laid back here.  The pace is slower.  There are no crowds every day, no lines every where you go.  The people are genuinely nice.  There are fewer hassles.

I came to realize that when I was in PA, seeing the mountains and woods and small towns was just a normal thing.   I didn’t appreciate it while I had it.

And then I had sunshine and heat all the time.  It became boring and expected.  I began to look forward to rain just so it wouldn’t be as hot and for a change.

When I came to Asheville last April, it was SPRING and all the flowers were blooming – daffodils, azalea, dogwood, and tulips.

I had forgotten how much I loved daffodils and tulips!  And spring, there is something magical about spring, too.

How can you be sad looking at blue skies and spring flowers?

The move here has been good for me in a number of ways.  Change is good, of course, but it also made me realize how much I have taken for granted over the years.  Sunshine is once again something to be celebrated.  Spring is beautiful and something to look forward to.  And crappy weather in winter gives a new appreciation for summer warmth.

Looking forward to many adventures here.