5 more miles, beautiful weather & a Question of the Day
Hey guys! Happy Tuesday, or happy Fat Tuesday! I had my pig out meal of pizza and cheesesticks last week so I am choosing not to celebrate today. And we ate at an Indian buffet yesterday, which I'm sure probably had a lot of calories, but I'm not sure. We just had a light dinner last night, so the net effect was probably pretty good. The buffet was good, not great. We had really built the whole thing up a lot in our heads, since it's something we never get to do. So, when we did the choices they had were pretty plain Jane and not nearly as good as the stuff we normally order off the menu. But we've been!! One more thing crossed off my list of things to do in life.
Today is GORGEOUS! It's 8 pm and 59 degrees! I was embarrassingly overdressed for mine and Pippin's am walk this morning. Around lunch it was 69 degrees, and at 5.30 when I headed out for my run it was 65. Yeah! It took me a while to get into my form, but once I did I felt great. The foot was a little grouchy for the first mile, but then I focused on my form and the music playing on my nano and it all fell into place. I love it when that happens! By the time I finished mile 3 I was just MOVING. The sun was setting, I was wearing shorts and a tank and everything was perfect. I was just....gliding. I had started out slowly so I wouldn't mess with my foot, so my first two miles were around 10 min/each. Mile 3 was 9:40, then 9:15, then 8:43 for Mile 5. It was great! I ran up on one woman in my continuing stealth running! I swear she had looked at me at least 3 times, but I didn't startle her dog either. Once again, I should have forced her to give me her wallet for being an unaware woman near dusk, walking alone. And her dog (some sort of boxer mix) should be fired! To top it off, sweet hubby Brent had dinner waiting when I got home!
So, none of that is really interesting enough to prompt you to post a comment and I'm too lazy to see what bizarre pics I may have on my camera. (Although Brent did snap one last night when I was doing pilates. It was this weird foot circle thing, and AS ALWAYS, Pippin was my partner and was about 1 mm away from being kicked by my swirling feet. For whatever reason he started picking up one of his feet too! It was hilarious.)
But, I do have a question. What's your favorite city to live in and why? I love reading all the lists about where the best cities to work, live and run are. They're all so funny and DIFFERENT! One of them I recently read said Nashville has the best skin. Huh? They somehow had decided we are more likely to wear sunscreen. And HOW do they determine that??? We're also the 8th worst when it comes to commuting. THAT I believe, and that's really sad since we're nowhere near the 8th largest city in the US. The most recent one I read listed cities by rent price. Of course NYC and CA cities were topping the list. N-ville was 32nd with a rent price of $740, which sounds reasonable when you average out the ghetto parts and the nice parts. So, what do you think? If you could live anywhere in the US where would it be????
Well, I've got some personal stuff I need to work on so take care! Have a great vacation to the TONS of you taking some time off!
posted by Rae @ 6:12 PM
26 comments
26 Comments:
65 degrees....*sigh*...a few more weeks 'til we get that up here! :)
That being said, I really DO love Cleveland. It's a fun little town. Lots of bang for your buck, too. But if I could live anywhere in the U.S., I'd pick Sedona, Arizona. It's so beautiful. My husband and I got engaged around there and almost just stayed. :) ha ha
One of the guys I work with is in your area today...he called me with the warm weather news! Wish we'd get some of your weather up here!
Best cities? I've travelled a fair bit and must tell you (impartial & unbiased Canadian that I am) that Halifax, Nova Scotia http://www.destinationhalifax.com/ and Vancouver, British Columbia are tops! http://www.tourismvancouver.com/visitors/ are tops!
Sounds like you really loved your run today!
That question is a little tougher than it sounds, and I'm going to have to think about it some more. My impulse answer is Austin, TX! But I also really like the thought of living by the beach ...
I have no idea how anyone can answer this question! i feel like it takes so long to get to know a place and have an educated opinion....i like BOTH cities i've lived in (boston and dc) but i have no idea what anything else is like...but i also love the outer banks, NC...but is that a city??
but just from visiting i do LOVE Austin, TX, liked just12finish said...
I'm still hoping they move NYC to California... (I sent a letter to the Governator!)
As my profile says, I've lived in big cities like San Diego (my birthplace, Phoenix, and the Tampa Bay Area.
I've also lived in rural North Carolina, semirural Vermont, and now suburban Pittsburgh.
When I moved here, I experienced a culture shock that I had never EVER experienced before. I'm not big on Harleys, mullets, or football, but all three abound here, so it really took me some effort to feel comfortable here. I remeber my first day here, and I wrote the most tragic email about how lost and secluded I felt. Later that evening, my father called and just kind of set me right; gave me some focus. I moved here for a purpose, and it was possible to make things work. Since then, I've found a pro soccer team and a college gymnastics team to follow, and attend most of those events, and have formed personal bonds therein.
But, OK, the question I think is what were my favorite areas to live, and why?
1. Brattleboro, VT---It is a town (and county seat) of 12,000 near the NH and Mass. borders. It has many worn-down, but not dumpy, industrial brick buildings downtown on US 5. The downtown core is just chock full of arts and crafts places, a music venue or two, and a really neat indoor skate and wall-climbing park for teens. Brattleboro is just full of quirky, eccentric people that most likely moved from major cities outside New England. Brattleboro had a huge writeup in USA Today recently, when there was a nasty debate over a planned statue or plaque or something in memory of a fallen Iraq war soldier from Bratt. Bratt is a VERY political town. A thinkers town that was described in USA Today as a "college town without the college". I went to college 10 miles up the road, in Putney, in a quieter, much smaller, but equally quirky town.
Sacramento, CA Hard to describe, but it's a gorgeous, albeit summer-hot city of 350,000, and the capital of California. Liberal-leaning, but not quite so much. I think I just appreciated my time there because I grew. I made friends, engaged in hobbies, started to travel (discovering Greyhound) and just had a really fun, but wholesome, time, also at college (a bigger one!.
Long story short, those two places---it tore me up to leave both of them. I had never experienced that with any other place I've lived.
Very interesting and provocative question! Thanks for listening to my rambling.
LOL@ Cory. I was born and raised in Parkersburg, West Virginia but "I'm not big on Harleys, mullets, or football" either!! Living there for 18 years was crazy!! I couldnt' wait to leave. Anyway, I live in Houston, TX now and I love it!!! We live inside the loop with all the other young late 20s-early 30s crowd and it is great!!!! Austin is pretty awesome too and I Love San Diego. I'd love to live in La Jolla, CA as well.
I'm so jealous of your wonderful weather. I'd love to be going out in shorts right now.
I've lived a bunch of places in the US...Nashville (Brentwood...same diff); Cherry Hill, New Jersey (close to Philly); Vienna, Virginia (outside DC); Kansas City; Lawrence, KS; and Chicago. Of all the places I've lived, Brentwood was my favorite and will always be considered my "home." Chicago is great, but we're smack downtown and I hate how crazy it gets around here (I'm not exactly a city girl). Running along the lakeshore path is stunning and the running community as a whole is unrivaled here. Cost of living is insane...the amount we paid for our condo is enough to buy a mansion somewhere else...and I have MAJOR issues justifying paying $40k for a "bad" parking space in our building (I shit you not). Chicago has its ups and downs...I'm just yearning for a more spacious place where you can get more bang for your buck. I can be happy anywhere though.
I'm such a mountain girl at heart. We had a log cabin up by Swanee when we lived in TN. I'd love to be in Murfreesboro or Columbia and a quick zip up to the smokies. Because of this...I would absolutely adore living someplace like Boulder or Ft. Collins, CO. I know I'd do well in Boston and Seattle, too...and of course Nashville. But I need some place a little smaller...Ft Collins/Jackson Hole, WY/Salt Lake City, being of perfect size.
One can dream, right?
If you could live anywhere, where would you live, Rae?
Actually, Cassie, I used to live in La Jolla, in an area called Bird Rock. Much less pretentious that much of La Jolla, but also eerily quiet (well, at least around Bellevue Avenue).
If I had to live in San Diego again (which would be far from the end of the world), I would choose Hillcrest, probably. I just kind of like the particular buzz there (although I hate how Off The Record has shifted its focus toward grunge and goth types. That record store used to be lots more eclectic. My apologies if you have absolutely NO IDEA what I'm talking about).
My parents live currently in Del Mar, a darling town immediately north of SD, near UCSD. Kind of reminds me of some of the footage of the central coast in the movie Sideways (again, my apologies, if...).
Parkersburg Parkersburg Parkersburg. Or maybe it was Clarksburg. Anyhow, I went to a gymnastics meet at WVU (main), and on the way back, got rerouted by Greyhound through a town about an hour south of Mo'town---either C'burg or P'burg. Either way, it "had lots of potential" as they say. It's just evil to let old buildings rot like that, though.
Pgh has plenty of that happening, though.
Glad to hear your foot is feeling better!
I'm partial to Philly, but that'll happen when you spend a big chunk of your childhood there.
Don't you love when you're just gliding? Glad your foot is feeling better.
I'm a California native...so I'm biased...but there are so many amazing places to run here...depending on what you're looking for.
1) The East Bay has miles upon miles of beautiful hilly trails (Mt Diablo, Briones, etc)
2) Southern California is more metropolitan but has great running weather year round.
3) Here in Half Moon Bay - we have the city (San Fran) close enough to be accessible...yet are in the middle of no-where...I can run hilly wildlife preserves or along the beach.
And that doesn't even scratch the surface....
What's up? Cool blog...
Favorite city? Tough question, but a good one. I've lived all over the place.... San Francisco is nice, but sometimes too much. Boulder is near perfect, but lacks diversity and culture. St. Louis - eh, STL sucks. Boston is pretty dope. I dunno? I guess every place has its pros and cons.
Take care. Keep running!
Who is taking time off? It is 30 degrees here..woohoo Spring time :)..where are my shorts :D
hahaha.
I only live in Toronto, Canada my whole life. I love the way it looks in the summer when the smog hovers over the city. :)
Awwwww man! Now I miss Phoenix (never even been to T.O., just Calgary)! I knew there had to be a reason those sunsets are so famous----SMOG!!!!
Hmm...it didn't take the first time. If this shows up twice, I'm blaming Blogger. argh.
After moving all over the US, it's a tie between Mammoth Lakes/Crowley Lake, CA and Saranac Lake, NY. Both are mountain towns, with four seasons, lots of water and plenty of outdoor recreation. Lately, Mammoth has pulled ahead slightly...
I was born in upstate NY, raised around SLC, UT, started college in southern GA, moved to CA to be a rockstar, moved BACK to UT to go back to college, lived in Denver for one year, and finally, Seattle WA, where I have been since 1995.
Seattle is my absolute favorite. The weather is moderate; snow rarely sticks, and it's not too hot in the summer. The views of ocean, lakes, and mountains are breath-taking. We have all the conveniences that come with a BIG CITY, but you can be alone in nature just a short drive away. The peeps are mostly laid back west coasters... but we do have some imports (like me I guess). There are TWO Starbucks on every corner. .... I guess that about covers it :)
I remember way back when I used to think Starbucks was a completely hip place. I used to even have a white T-shirt with the green and black circular quasi-hippie logo (I accidentally thought the same when I moved to Sacramento from NC, and the local Borders sold Borders T-shirts).
Seattle's pretty neat-o, despite Big 'Bucks. I have family in Woodinville, WA (who work the cliched Boeing job), and on Lake WA (U-Dub/Microsoft), The latter aunt and uncle are moving to Vancouver. I guess they want to be able to live downtown, and Seattle doesn't really have that.
Haven't been in 15 years, so I don't remember downtown Seattle too well, except for the Needle, which we went up.
I'd like to see Stadium High in Tacoma. That's where they filmed part of 10 Things I Hate About You (called Padua in the movie). Lovely scenery in the movie.
I know its not USA, but I actually quite enjoy living in Canberra, Australia's national capital though winters here suck. Perth (Capital city of Western Australia)has great beaches and Sydney is great for a holiday.
Cool that your foot is feeling better.
I loved Boston and NYC when I visited but not sure I could take the winter anymore after 23 years out in CA.
Milwaukee, Wisconsin. And before you groan and totally discount it, you need to know we brew much more than beer. (Although Riverwest Stein from Lakefront Brewery is absolutely fantastic!)
Milwaukee has a thriving arts, music, and sports scene. We even have a professional women's football team. It's a relatively diverse city with an active LGBT community.
It's a small big city where Harley Davidson, Johnson Controls, GE Medical, Manpower and other large companies have set up headquarters.
Even with a huge, city-wide road construction project in progress, the commute to any of those places really isn't bad.
Oh yeah and we do make brats to go with all that Riverwest Stein. Thankfully, there's the Lake Michigan Lakefront for running, jogging, walking or rollerblading off the calories.
I feel obligated to mention San Diego -- it does have a lot going for it. But if I could live and run anywhere, it would be Williamsburg, Va. It's got four seasons; hills if you need 'em; beautiful settings; great local races; and is close to other marathons like Richmond, Shamrock, Marines Corps, etc. Yeah, definitely Williamsburg.
I want to say somewhere in Colorado, but I have never been there so I won't.
If I had to pick right now I would pick Portland, Oregon. It is stil close to family, and actually where my wife grew up and has also been voted one of the best running cities in America. Forest Park has some of the best trails within a city that any city has to offer and the Mountains and Ocean are just a short drive away. However, the prices of housing are steadily increasing so that sucks.
Philly has- to my surprise- become a really great city for young people. There's music, art, comic books...real estate market is getting crazier in some neighborhoods...but the traffic is not as bad as Hotlanta! I love NY, but the cost to live in the city won't suit a librarian, but if you commute in.
I've lived in GA, MT, OH, and NJ. No experience west of the mississippi.
88 degrees today in Ft. L! Running tomorrow along the river. Redheads way stick out here.
I’m going to have to go with Rob on this one and say Halifax. Unless! I was still single then I would move to St Johns Newfoundland for sure. I think every young man should go there at lest once before tying the knot.
I know what your saying with buffet’s. There ok but not what you would expect if you ordered form the menu. But we been lucky for the most part there better then what we normally have at home.
Cheers.
Rice.
my favorite: eastern seaboard/coastal cities
Having lived only in Canada, I can only speak to Canadian cities. I've lived in almost every province and each has great places. It would be cool if one could take the best of each to make one great city.
I have to however admit for many reasons Calgary, where I live now is simply the best, especially if you are a runner. So much green space to run in its like big city living with a country atmosphere.
My second choice would be Victoria BC, for its beauty and the ocean but far to quiet a city for this wild and crazy pink lady...lol.
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