Settling In
This is my view in the mornings as I drink my tea. We have a nature preserve right behind our apartment so it is peaceful and quiet. I am planning a whole separate post about all the wildlife we have seen in the preserve but today’s post is a random collection of my impressions of living in Ohio for a grand total of 12 days.
People are so friendly. I am a New Englander at heart and I am very used to the standoffish attitude typical of the area. Here everyone wants to talk to me and I don’t quite know what to think of it. So much friendliness, so much chat, so confusing. We went to the bank to open accounts and the woman helping us spent a long time providing restaurant suggestions. We paid at a store and the woman at the register heard something we said to each other, realized we weren’t from the area, and started suggesting beaches on Lake Erie. She even wrote a list for us. Even if people don’t know we are new to the area they are still simply friendly and chatty. In theory, I approve but in actuality it is frequently catching me off-guard. I am not the type of person who is always mentally prepared for a chat!
My daughter and I walked to the library the other day. Let me repeat that: we walked to the library. All my dreams have come true.
There is a secondhand bookstore two miles down the road from where we live.
I thought we were pretty ruthless when we were packing up our house but apparently we weren’t. We went from a reasonably sized house to a slightly smaller apartment but we don’t have the storage we had. There is no attic, garage, or basement and we don’t have a family room. Thank goodness for the walk-in closet in the master bedroom. Some women, I am sure, turn it into a lovely dressing area. I, on the other hand, have things like my husband’s toolboxes in mine.
Northeast Ohio is more rolling than a lot of the Midwest but it is still so much flatter than Connecticut and the roads are so much straighter. It looks familiar and different all at the same time. That is true of much about the area we are living in. There are Targets and Walmarts everywhere so that feels like home but all the grocery stores (except Aldi) are different. The school year runs earlier so the kids here are done but my daughter still has a month to go. Our new congregation’s meeting times (on Zoom) are half an hour off from our old times which throws our instinctive schedule off. Most changes are little, unimportant ones but it is those little, unimportant things that make up a familiar life.
We are settling in. Maybe one day I will be the type of person who chats to everyone she encounters. I doubt it though. The New England genes are strong.
8 Comments
Brona
What a glorious view Jen – I can almost hear the birds from here!
jllee656
It is a lovely spot to start my day. And you are right, the birds are singing constantly.
Lisa
That’s a lovely view! It looks like you’re reading a British Library Classic?
Our county libraries have just re-opened, with limited capacity. I had books reserved for pick-up, and yesterday I went into the library to get them instead of calling for curbside pick-up. I choked up just walking in, wandering the shelves, when one of the librarians helped me check out. It was so comforting to be there again, surrounded by books I haven’t read yet.
My family lived in the Pacific Northwest, Georgia and Michigan at different times when I was growing up. I went to grad school in Massachusetts, and I was suprised how different it felt there. After only two years, it was a bit of a shock to come back to Michigan and that midwest warmth.
jllee656
Yes, my new local library has a few Crime Classics! It is so exciting. There is nothing like a library or a bookshop for pure comfort.
I lived in the midwest years and years ago and I had forgotten just how friendly people tend to be. It is definitely catching my kids off-guard.
Debbie Rodgers
The first day we were in Nova Scotia, I waited at the pharmacy for the clerk to finish a conversation with the woman ahead of me. Visiting. Catching up. Although I was initially annoyed, I quickly realized that the slower pace that allowed that kind of transaction was a big reason we wanted to be there. 🙂
jllee656
The slower pace does take some getting used to. It took us forever to open bank accounts because the very kind woman kept getting distracted recommending restaurants to us!
Katrina
What a lovely view, we also back on to woodland, but not that close. It is strange how different humans can be if they are from another area, mind you age can come into play too. I used to be too shy to speak to people but now I am happy to strike up conversations with just about anyone.
jllee656
I do find regional, and country, differences very interesting. I agree, I am much better at polite chitchat than I used to be when I was very young.