homesickness & happy birthdays.

Texas....oh, how I miss thee.

This month has caused me to think about how much I truly miss living in the Lone Star State.  Don't get me wrong, I love all of my new found California friends.  I just really miss Texas and my family.

I know many who are not from Texas will not understand such loyalty.  To help, I've compiled a list from various sources as to why I love Texas more than California.

♥We're taught to say "yes sir" and "yes ma'am" and to respect our elders.  We also say "howdy," "fixin' to" and "ya'll."

♥California may claim "real" cheese and avocados....but Texas claims 100% Grade A Angus Beef.  Who wants avocados and cheese when you can have steak and potatoes?

♥Our elected leaders, while often not perfect, are not former actors, wannabe actors, widows of actors, formerly engaged to actors or want to work part-time as actors while they "serve" the people as politicians. By and large, Texas politicians are people who care about making Texas better through making things better for Texans.  Seems to be working.  And...our last governor became the President of the United States.  "Ah-nold" isn't even eligible. 

♥Texas is the only state that can legally fly its flag beside the United States flag...at the same height.

♥Three words.  High. School. Football.

♥Texas is the only state that can secede and become its own country.

♥Our sports teams and heroes are better. With simple names like the Dallas Cowboys and the Houston Astros ... Texas teams are honest, simple and a real representation of our people.  We don't have pretentious names such as The Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim. Also, how does the nation's second-largest city lose not one, but two NFL franchises? In college, The Heisman Trophy was named after John William Heisman, the first coach of Houston's Rice University. Greatness personified.

♥Geographically, Texas has it all. In one state you can find mountains, canyons, thick, piney forests, beautiful desert landscapes, the great plains, gorgeous coastal plains, and even swamps if that's your thing.

 

♥We have better songs about our state.  "California Dreamin'" and the The Gatlin Brothers' "All the Gold in California" just can't compare to classical anthems such as "The Yellow Rose of Texas," "Texas, Our Texas," "Deep in the Heart of Texas" or even more campfire-friendly cuts like Jerry Jeff Walker's "What I Like About Texas" or Waylon Jennings' "Luckenbach, Texas." Additionally, our music doesn't fall prey to East Coast/West Coast rivalries ... there are no worries about turf wars in country music. 

♥The cost of living is remarkably lower. The price of land and residences are exponentially lower.  The difference in what you can buy in Texas for $250,000 vs. California is shameful. We have no state income tax and no taxes on capital gains.  No further words about this are necessary.

♥It's safer in Texas. Whether the calamity be weather- or crime-related, Texas fares better than California.  Your wildfires cannot be topped and no amount of Earth-rattling will dump us into the ocean.  As far as crime goes, we both have the death penalty ... Texas just isn't afraid to use it.

♥Our economy is stronger. The Lone Star State has more Fortune 500 companies than any other state in the Union.  Texas has 64 compared to California's 51 -- including three major airlines, AT&T, Dell, Texas Instruments, ExxonMobil ... just to name a few. According to the article in Trends magazine, Texas also created 70 percent of all new jobs in 2008 and enjoys a robust surplus.  California is adding roughly $25 million per day to its $26 billion in debt.  Ouch.

♥We are Texans.  We are a proud people.  While we never claim to be perfect, we are real and we strive to make the Union a better one through a better Texas.  What matters there isn't how plastic you are or how tan you are ... it's about who you are.

♥We have Blue Bell ice cream, Cracker Barrel, Chicken Express, Cheddar's.....shall I go on?

As the great Sam Houston once said, "Texas could survive without the United States, but the United States could not survive without Texas!"

Amen.

Also....today is the birthday of one of my very best friends!  Actually, one of the people who make living in California that much more fun!

 

Happy Birthday Israel!  So glad you were born! :)

It always helps to have friends who make your stay more bearable.  I have to admit that although I've been really homesick this month....I'm so grateful for my amazing friends who keep laughing & enjoying my time here.  You guys know who you are.  If I tried to make a list, I'd forget someone and would forever be afraid to walk in a dark alley. ;)  Love you guys!

oroville...how i love thee.

Just when I thought I would never feel at home in California...I was proven wrong.

I feel like I've always been one to embrace change. I almost require it daily. Being an ADHD kid, I crave variety. One thing I've always been content with however, is the familiarity of home. Everyone knows exactly what I mean.

The familiarity of walking into your mother's kitchen and already knowing how it's going to smell.

Going into your favorite restaurant, seeing your favorite waiter or waitress and ordering "the usual."

Attending church with people whom you have known since you were a child.

Showing up to work and having the same conversations with your co-workers that you do every other day.

Familiarity is comforting.

In August, I left all familiarity and comfort to live in California. Something I never thought I would do. I love Texas and the pride that comes along with calling myself a Texan. I love my Texas sports teams and I love the Texas flag.

Now I'm in California: a state with a bear on its flag.

Honestly, I'm pretty excited about my new journey. I'm beginning to feel the thrill of stepping outside my comfort zone…and I like it.

Of course, I still miss the familiar. I miss the smell of walking into my mother's kitchen. Especially on "Feed the Children Night." These are the Saturday nights when my brother, his family and my husband and I join them for dinner.

I also miss meeting up with Dad at the ranch to fish.

I miss my weekly trips to Los Amigos with Jessica, and occasionally Misty, Kelly and my dad. Ordering my usual Old Style Enchilada and Diet Coke from Nick, Rebecca, Luke and the rest of the crew.

I miss my home church of 20 years, Savoy UPC. I miss seeing the many faces of people who have watched me grow up in that same church since I was a little girl. I miss the friends who grew up there with me.

I miss my "family" at Fannin Newspapers and the job that I came to affectionately call "the best job ever!" I don't know how I'm ever going to enjoy working another job. I'm not sure that it's possible to find TWO jobs in your lifetime that you absolutely love. I know it's not possible to find another Tim. My Fridays will never be the same without crunch time with Tim and Jessica.

My friends are greatly missed! I miss girls' nights with Gina and staying up until 4am...laughing until we can't breathe. I miss double dates with Amber & Michael. I miss seeing Blake nearly every day. I miss having dinner with Rick & Leta and hearing Taelor yell "Ammers! Ammers!" Playing drums with PS150 and the Texoma Gospel Saints. Drum lessons with Trey, Michael and Aaron. Seeing my swarm of neices and nephews. Dinner with Michael & Monica and rolling on the floor from Michael's comments.

So, this marks a new chapter in my life. While I'll miss the familiarity and comforts of home, I choose to believe that change is good. And amazingly enough, I have been proven right.

Since the first service I attended in Oroville, I felt at home. There's just some familiarity there. Something that feels comfortable.

I absolutely love Bro & Sis Krantz!! They're so amazing! The interest that they have shown in helping in Jeremy and I overwhelms me sometime. They're the epitome of what a pastor and his wife should be. I'm sure they have no idea how comfortable they have made me feel and just how much that means to me. It definitely means a lot when you are about 1700 miles away from your entire family.

I'm also enjoying getting to know my new friends in Oroville.

Sis. Amy and I have quickly learned that we are both capable of causing trouble. Because of this, it is probably a good thing that I only get to see her about once a week. More time together could be catastrophic!

Sis. Holly is the sweet, quiet one. I know that I need someone like that around to even me out. She does that most of the time. Sometimes the quietness causes me to talk more to fill in the space. Poor Holly.

All the Praise Team girls (you know who you are) made me feel welcome from my very first service. It really meant a lot seeing that I played drums in my very first service there. I was nervous, but they eased my anxiety and made me feel like I was just one of the girls.

Wow. I've rambled quite a bit now. I feel like I need an organ player to come to the platform and "give you some hope."

Needless to say, I have found a new home in Oroville. I'm so thankful for my new church family. I love you guys!