Corvallis vs Everywhere Else

I've lived in Corvallis for a little over five years now. Not once has it really felt like "home." This is not to say I don't like it here, it is a nice area, but when I was in NJ, NY and CA I felt at home almost immediately. These areas aren't perfect either. For instance, NY and CA have sales tax, something I have grown used to not having here in OR. I'm spoiled like that. I also want to say that this blog isn't an indication that I'm going to move. I couldn't afford it right now anyway. This entry is basically a bit of whining about why I would like to live elsewhere, but acknowledging the things that keep me here.

First of all - almost all of my friends live somewhere else. My best friends live in either NY or CA. My best friend in the world is having a baby any day now and I don't get to meet him until he is 3 months old. And even then, I'm only going to be there for 24 hours! I only got to see her when she was maybe 3 months pregnant - and unlike me at 3 months that brat wasn't showing. (I'm not bitter over my whale-like state while pregnant. Really.) When I was preggers with Owen, one of my other best buds was preggers with her second that was also a boy. I would have loved to have done that together in person instead of via email! Sometimes I just want to drag my kids over to Erin's so we can watch Bones (THURSDAY!!!) while the kids destroy toys, but it's a 500 mile drive or 2 hour flight, so not really happening. I have my group here, and I LOVE my MHMs.  (When are we going out again girls?) But in a lot of ways it's not the same. I hope that one day it will be more like it is with my other friends if we all stay in the area for a long time. But there is something about just hanging out with someone who knows you really well and has for a loooooong time. I don't have to explain me - they already know.

Another Corvallis negative - food and culture. Oy. Granted, I lived 14 years in the NY Metropolitan area (or near it at least).  Food was yummy. Pizza was real pizza. Chinese was GOOOOOD. Field trips were to The Museum of Natural History, The Metropolitan Museum of Art and The Bronx Zoo. Shopping was awesome. There were huge malls everywhere with more stores than I could know what to do with, or possibly spend my very little money at. California had a million places to eat that were awesome. (In case you haven't noticed - it's all about the food for me. It's why I'm fat) There are places there I still want to go to and haven't.  And I cry a little when I think of Saporros or Smalleys. Even Bubba Gumps. How many birthdays did our group do there? Here the restaurants are alright at best. I have yet to be blown away by anything food wise in Corvallis. Thankfully, we recently got a Chipotle, so I can get a yummy over-priced burrito now. Every chinese place is just "eh." There is good sushi! But sushi is sort of good or really not, right? Don't get me started on the pizza. There is some good stuff that they call pizza. It's not really pizza as far as I'm concerned.  But it is still pretty good. I almost wept when we got a Trader Joe's. Seriously. There were some tears. As for culture.... well, I can go to Portland. They do OK there. But....

Okay, now before you think that I hate Corvallis, I should say that I really don't. Unlike Salinas, I will not get shot here for making the wrong hand gesture while talking in the car or for wearing the wrong color to the mall.  Or just walking in the mall at all, for that matter. People here seem unaware of what living in a gang area really means. I think some of them think those shows on the History Channel are fictional. It's all sunshine, lollipops and rainbows in Corvallis. We had one kidnapping/murder before I moved here. But neither the victim or the murderer were actually from Corvallis, if I remember correctly. Since then.... ummm.... those frat boys sure cause a ruckus downtown. Of course, given enough to drink, so do my MHMs. :) As far as public schools go, Emily's is alright. It's not the greatest (there is no art program and the music program is minimal at best) but the teachers are good, and the administration does seem to really care about the students. Specifically for me, the entire faculty seems to know who Emily is, and not for bad reasons. The principal is very active in making sure Emily gets all she needs and makes sure he is always keeping up on her progress. He has even started asking about Owen - making sure they are ready for him when he arrives. Em goes to speech, so he was asking if I think Owen will need it too, so we can stay on top of it before he even starts. By the way - Owen turns 3 next month! He doesn't start kindergarten for over 2 years!

We also live in a nice neighborhood. Thanks to my momma, we live in a house far beyond our means. It's not big. As my daughter often points out, all of my friends have nicer houses in the area. But, the backyard is huge (biggest in the entire neighborhood. You can google earth it.) and it is only a 5 minute walk to the school. Even more exciting - soon the house will be just ours. Woo. And speaking of my momma - she lives 40 minutes away. I can't imagine not living near her. She is the only babysitter I trust. Bonus: she does sleepovers on occassion! 

Sooooo..... what's my point? I guess I don't really have one. Aren't you glad you wasted your time reading this? Seriously though, I guess it's just that moving around a lot can suck. Especially when you wind up essentially stuck someplace when you would rather be somewhere else. But if I had to get stuck somewere, I am glad that it is here. And that I managed to get into Hoover school so I could meet the MHMs. At least they know I am mean, bitter and sarcastic and I don't have to pretend to be nice and "super-mommy" for them. (My kids eat candy and chips people - deal with it! They also eat green beans and brocolli, ok!?!? But that is a topic for another blog/rant) But I also really really miss my people! I guess that is the real point of the blog - I miss you guys!!  Love you!!

Ok.... next blog, less upsetting. Promise.