The View From Here

When I am in Texas I see bumper stickers and magnets, you know souvenir schtick, that say "I Wasn't Born in Texas, but I Got Here As Fast As I Could". I always snicker when I see them because I WAS born in Texas. My first fourteen years were spent in the same Texas place and I never knew anything different. It was nice, hot, but nice. My family moved to West Virginia in 1984, I didn't like it at first, missed my friends and had that whole teenage angst thing going on, but after spending about fourteen years here, I consider it home.

Now, there isn't much in West Virginia, at least where I am now. The capital is Charleston, and it's big by WV standards, but small sections of Houston could swallow it whole. West Virginia University is in Morgantown, which is one of my favorite towns in the world, it is eclectic and homey at the same time. The campus is beautiful and the parks surrounding it provide scores of outdoor entertainment. My friend lives in Harpers Ferry and I hear from her that it is growing by leaps and bounds, seems the DC crowd is looking for some peace and quiet, but I have never been there. My parents live in northern WV so they have access to Pittsburgh if they desire some city atmosphere, but they are secluded, living on top of a ridge away from even the small town that houses their address. It is beautiful up here. I look out the windows and see trees instead of privacy fences. I do not hear the neighbor's private conversations because the houses aren't smashed together like a lego village. I have seen robins, cardinals, orioles, and woodpeckers just today. The deer come to the house like pets looking for food. There is even a small black bear back in the woods whose Mama left him who comes scouting for his meals now and again. We might see an occasional squirrel in my southern neck of the woods. Don't get me wrong, I love my squirrel, but I would love to have a little more nature and a little less Walgreens and pavement in my everyday world. Of course, it would come with a price. I am already feeling the Target withdrawal and it kind of sucked being cooped up in a hot house on a rainy day without the old Chuck E. Cheese option to fall back on. I felt the urge to go to Kohl's this morning, but the closest one is over an hour away. I miss my urban conveniences, but I love the fresh air and beautiful scenery that is West Virginia. I wasn't born in West Virginia, but I got here as fast as I could.