(And a cluesticking for the techsupport idjit)

Aw, she wasn't even an idiot, she just couldn't help me with someone else's issue! But she did kind of try. And she did give me the right number to call next.

It was only recently that I realized I'd never lived anywhere of my own choosing. It had always been circumstance driving the choice-- like I couldn't afford to go out of state for university and when we lived in Nashville and NE Ohio, it was for school for Lewis. Jax was because family wanted us back down in Florida so they could be closer to our kids.

So, once the kids are out of school, we're gettin' the hell outta Dodge and I get to pick. I think that vacations for the next several years will consist of potential Future Places to Live.

Aw, she wasn't even an idiot, she just couldn't help me with someone else's issue! But she did kind of try. And she did give me the right number to call next.

retracts cluestick::

I love living in Los Angeles, brown air, brown trees and all. I hope I never have to move. This city sings to me.

If I do move, I think I will need to live in some other big city. I like spending time in the wild, and it replenishes my soul when I am there, but I need to live in a city.

Oh, Empress...

Quick Gossip Girl question: is Vanessa Dan's best friend from his neighborhood?

Yes

Kansas City is pretty good for a place to live aside from the too hot summers. Lots of greenery and rolling hills, ample water supply, nice seasons, close to the Ozarks, low natural disaster factor, cheap housing, and, in my case, close to family. There is a distinct lack of mountains though.

My realtor is droning away on the phone. I know he's saying important things, but god, I kind of wish he'd stop talking.

(Though the good news is that the house is under contract. Yay!)

Chicagoland girl born-and-bred, didn't see the ocean until I was 14 and we drove down to Florida. My sister and I hit the beach in St. Augustine and had the best time swimming and frying our skin to a deep red crisp (which admittedly wasn't as fun). The first time I saw a mountain was when we drove up to New England two years later and took the Skyline Drive in the White Mountains of New Hampshire. I still haven't seen the Rockies other than from above while flying over them to the west coast.

I find that there is a beauty to the flat farmlands in northwestern Illinois. You can be driving along a country road (much better for pretty landscapes than the highway), go around a corner, and then gasp at the vista spread before you. Especially in the fall, when the colors can get so vibrant.

But, for pretty farmland, you really can't beat Lancaster county in Pennsylvania. My stepsister lives there, and it is gorgeous.