Anniversary of a Different Sort

Today marks the anniversary of the day Oregon became our home. My mom finally got up the courage to ask us recently if we were planning to go back to San Diego after I graduated. (She was afraid to ask because she figured after one winter here, we'd be looking for any reason to head back to Southern CA. Come on--we're made of tougher stuff than that!) Our response was swift and decisive, "No way!" While we are certainly grateful to have grown up in San Diego and have so many good memories and wonderful friends and family there, we have just completely fallen in love with Oregon life. What's to love? Let me count [just a few of] the ways...

• Traffic is NOT a part of our lives. It's the first thing I say whenever anyone asks how we like Oregon. In my former life, I spent an average of 1.5-2 hours in the car every. single. day. Charger game or a concert at Cox arena? Forget it. You might as well stay at the office until six. I used to fill up my gas tank every 5-6 days. Now? Once a month. It's a beautiful thing.

• Small towns are wonderful. Corvallis has ruined me completely. I thought moving to a small town was going to be a really difficult adjustment. There's no mall? Portland is the only place with a Nordstrom? (As if I even have money to spend at Nordstrom. Please, let's be real). We're not going to have a Target in our town? You don't drive on the freeway? Won't everyone know each other? Isn't that weird? These were all the [silly] fears I had prior to moving. Honest truth: they are not things I even think about twice. Less is more. It simplifies life oh so much. (And if you DO need a big city fix, Portland is just a short 1.5 hour drive away).

• The commitment to buying local. Local produce, local beer, local goods. It's all right at our fingertips. You know where everything comes from, how it was grown or produced, and who's benefiting. Win, win, win. Buying local is a totally cultural, normative behavior and a completely accessible, doable endeavor. You might pay a little more for it, but the quality speaks for itself.

• Summertime U-pick. Berries are abundant in the valley during the summer months-- and so are U-pick farms. It's fun, inexpensive and so, so yummy!

• From our house, the coast is just an hour away, Portland is an hour and a half away, Bend is just 3 hours away, and Crater Lake and my parents' house is just 4 hours away. You can be at so many very cool, and very different places within just a few hours around here. We did tons of weekend trips last year, and still have more on our list.

• You don't have to pump your own gas! I really thought I would hate this, but it's actually really nice (and it provides jobs for a whole lot of Oregonians). It's especially awesome when the weather is cold and rainy and you get to stay in your warm car.

I could go on and on, but I'll stop there. Of course, it does have to be said that it sure rains a lot. And while living in a college town certainly has its perks, being surrounded by thousands of 18-22-year-olds can get old. But those are seemingly insignificant when compared to all the ways our quality of life has increased. We still don't know where exactly in Oregon we'll end up, but we're soaking up our time in Corvallis for as long as it lasts!

Happy Labor Day-- hope you're all enjoying the holiday weekend!