I have lived in the south my entire life. Born and raised in Houston, Texas, a stint in Austin for culinary school, nearly three years spent in Charleston… and now I am 14 miles from the Canadian border. You might be thinking, why in the hell did she move there? And trust me, I have had that question run through my mind every other day. It’s heartbreaking to wave to someone and them glare at you like you ran over their dog, or would rather look at the ground than make eye contact in a grocery store. Southern hospitality is real y’all, and Bellingham, Washington doesn’t have an ounce of it. No matter how uncomfortable I might make people with my outward optimism and confrontation- it’s a piece of me and I never intend on losing it. *rant over*
On another note- I moved here because I wanted change. I wanted to experience something out of my comfort zone. New flora, fauna, seafood, produce, dairy, coffee, and coast. Zachary and I were given an amazing job opportunity here. A new challenge in and of itself and we are trying to figure it out the best we can. All I know is that there isn’t Whataburger and no one knows what the fuck pimento cheese is, but I have found Guerro corn tortillas and that’s all that matters.
Washington might not have Bluebell (Tanya from Bluebell Customer Service, I am still waiting) but the PNW has so much to offer, especially Whatcom County. We are living and working in Whatcom County- this county is the largest producer of raspberries in the nation, the valley is literally row after row after row of berry production. Blackberry bushes are incredibly invasive here and line nearly every highway as a weed, if that puts in perspective how fertile this land is. From blueberries, blackberries, raspberries, huckleberries, strawberries… if its name ends in berry you better believe it’s grown here. They call this place the land of “berries and dairies” and thats no joke. There are at least 123 operating dairy farms in Whatcom County- talk about the land of milk, cheese, and butter.
As much as we are surrounded by farm land, we are also located on the coast of the Pacific…to put in perspective the magnitude of the landscape, there is an active volcano in our county… Mount Baker. No site you would ever see in the Lone Star State or the low country, talk about change.
I am overwhelmed to say the least. A brand new job, new state, new city. Living out of the North Face duffle bag I packed January 28th, gratefully living in a condo in the meantime before we can move into our new home, but the condo still isn’t “home” nonetheless. Planning a wedding, planning a future with the man of my dreams. I mean hell, there’s just a lot going on. As much as I am trying to figure it out, I do miss home, and my moms mac’n cheese.
ten thousand miles and counting 