Places I've Lived

I've traveled a lot and been fortunate to live on both coasts.
For me, the West wins.

Photo by: @N05 / CC BY-SA 2.0

I grew up just outside of Albany, New York, which is the state's capital and located in the upper north part of the state. When people say they're from New York everyone assumes it's New York City. I hadn't actually been to New York City until I was an adult on my own and traveling for work.

When you're from my part of the state and people ask you where you're from, it's standard to reply, "New York....(pause)...upstate." Takes away any confusion about them asking you for facts and information about the big city.

My parents and I have done a lot of research into our family tree and have been able to validate that our roots in New York are long and industrious. (We're not sure what happened to us along the way....just kidding.)

One of the most interesting facts we uncovered recently was that Augustine Hicks Lawrence is my great-great-great-great-great-grandfather. (Yes, that's five "greats".) He was a banker and investment manager in Manhattan in the very early 1800s. The building he owned in downtown Manhattan was just (June 2009) classified a historic landmark and is one of only five buildings of that time period that remain standing. He was also a signer of the Buttonwood Agreement which launched what is now the New York Stock Exchange.

My family tree to
Augustine Hicks Lawrence
1769-1828

Augustine N Lawrence
1793-1872
son

Luqueer Lawrence
1855-1898
grandaughter

Luqueer Meylert
1874-1926
great-granddaughter

Charles S Warde
1893-1961
great-great-grandson

Gertrude Eleanor Warde
1928-1977
great-great-great-granddaughter
(my beautiful grandmother)

My Mom (Love ya!)
1947 -
great-great-great-great-granddaughter

Me
1967 -

And then the moving begins....

Photo by: largerich / CC BY 2.0

When I was 10 years old, my father got a new job in Colorado and we moved - away from all of our family, friends, and the only house I'd ever known as home. It was a bit rough at first. Living in Colorado, though, gave us some adventures I'll never forget - even though we ended up living there for only six months:

First rattle snake

First time I sat on an red ant hill

First time I had a friend who had a donkey, a ferret and a parrot as pets

First time I ever saw petrified wood (it was all over our property)

First (and only) time I ever lived on a dirt road

First (and only) school fight - yes, some girl tried to choke me!! (Sucks to be the new girl)

As much as I wasn't keen on living there, I do love Colorado and it's some of the most beautiful country I've ever seen. We could see Pike's Peak off in the distance out our front window and even took a trip to the top once. Gorgeous.

Photo by: whatshappening / CC BY 2.0

Bless my father - he quickly got a better job in Portland and we left Colorado after only a few months. He moved on ahead and my mother had to drive four kids and a dog from Denver over to Portland in the winter. We hit a blizzard in Wyoming and had to spend the night in the car on the side of the road waiting for the snow to clear. Somebody was thinking ahead, because we happened to have sleeping bags and pillows in the car.

My family moved again, this time to Pittsburgh, when I was 18. I stayed behind for college, I said, but for a boy in reality. Stupid boy. Stupid me.

However, the west coast is home to me and Oregon had so much to offer. Skiing on Mt. Hood, the beach in the summer (cold even in the warmest months), kite flying, Saturday Market downtown, the Rose Gardens...I miss them all. I even miss the rain, although it was the number one reason I eventually wanted to leave.

combusean / CC BY 2.0

Ah...my home for the past 12 years and afraid I can never leave. As I write this, it's about 110 degrees outside and I'm sitting on the patio with my laptop, a fan blowing on me and the sparkling pool a few feet away. Yes, it's damn hot but I love the sun and we only have to deal with the intense heat for a couple of months. The rest of the year is astonishingly beautiful and comfortable. There's not a lot of greenery here in the desert but it has its own beauty: small geckos that climb your backyard wall, roadrunners scampering down the street, palm trees, mountain views and light breezes. It's perfect.