So I had to make a trip to Redmond, WA to meet with a customer. Every time I fly into the Seattle Tacoma International Airport, I get pangs of regret that I never made the move to the Seattle area. I lived here for months back in the mid 90's, staying in a corporate apartment, and making it my home base for about 6 months. It was such an awesome experience. I was young, in my first professional job, and living/working on my own in a whole new town. I made friends, went out, played tourist. So much fun.
So as I was driving to my hotel on this most recent trip, I got to thinking about all the rental cars I've had on my many trips to the area. Bizarre, I know, but that's the way my mind appears to work. On this trip, I got a brand new Ford Fusion. It is a little small for my tastes, but is actually a pretty neat little car. It handles well, and has a surprising amount of pickup. I had to test it because on my way from my house to the Sacramento "International" Airport, I tried to beat a woman in an Acura MDX off the line in my 1999 Toyota 4Runner and got SMOKED. Pathetic. I love my 4R, but sadly, it is no race car. Not like driving my wife's Volvo with the big V8, or even this little Fusion.
But I digress... my trip down memory lane led to me trying to catalog all the rental cars I had in Seattle since 1996. I did so using Twitter, with the hash tag #seattlerentalcars.
I'm on the road for a night, away from the kids, this is what I do. I play silly Twitter games.
I wonder if I'll ever make the big leap and finally move to the Seattle area. I think Elle would be game. It isn't too far from her roots in CA. The weather is the one issue. I personally love it, especially since having lived here for a couple of seasons, I know that the "always rains in Seattle" bit is a scam to keep Californians away. Everything is green and lush. So much water everywhere. And I don't think it has ever gotten above 100 degrees here (you listening Roseville!).
The problem I always have with daydreams such as this is that reality always gets in the way. If I am going to live up here, I want to really live in the heart of it. Get a cool house on Mercer Island, or a loft in the city. Live on Bremerton in a bungalow, and ferry into Seattle for work. The reality is that I would work in Bellevue, way out I-90, and I would have to live in the 'burbs - Anywhere, USA - because the price of things is ridiculous. Maybe it would still be worth it. Seattle is a great city, I love Bellevue. The lakes are great, close to mountains, lots of nature. Nice people. Plenty of coffee.
Maybe some day...
