Well, I am STILL here and STILL unpacking.
My will to go through boxes at this point waxes and wanes. I feel energized on days when it is brighter outside - I would say sunny, but we have had but one "sunny day" since December. During the winter, the east side of Cleveland is known for its gray days. We get socked in with a solid cloud cover that makes the outdoor light bleak. Oh, the sun is up there. And If I am about 30 minutes south or west, the sun is more likely to show its face. Otherwise, I am quickly reminded of why I hated my childhood in Shaker Heights.
Moreover, we still haven't found my full spectrum light and I am about ready to buy another.
But do I regret moving here?
Not for a single second.
I have all but blotted out that eleven years in Baltimore. Oh, I know I was there, but it seems like decades ago, and fading fast. I may need to reread this blog to remind myself of the things that happened. Or not.
As for indoctrination to "The Heights", well, I continue to find lovely people all around us. Save for a nasty woman in Home Goods the week before Christmas - and frankly, I too can understand why she was unpleasant - everyone has been at least a good sport, but most are simply wonderful.
Streets and avenues aren't a thing here like they are down in the city of Cleveland - it's either a road, a boulevard, or in rare cases, a lane. No "garths" either. The is a "Mews" in Cleveland Heights; haven't been down that one yet. Traffic lights on main roads? They are freaking everywhere. So are "Stop" signs.
And what about the snow? Well, we haven't had one of those 12-24" storms yet. It comes and goes. The rain, on the other hand, has turned the back year into a bog.
Honestly, a bigger problem are the dear herds. They are fucking all over the place. And Bambi doesn't trot away when humans are around. Oh, no. They just sniff at you like you are the hoi polloi.
We had a button buck looking into the house through the back door while I was coming up from the basement. Scared the shit out of Cookie. Did he trot off? No! The bastard just looked at me like I had farted in a packed theater.
Still, the wonderfulness of being here outweighs any minor inconveniences.
Glad you're settling in - albeit slowly. I'm not sure how I'd react if I walked into a room to see a beady pair of deer eyes staring at me through the window! Scream, probably.
ReplyDeleteAs for "streets" - we have none at all in the whole of Wood Green. Jx
Down in the city (Cleveland) there are Streets which mostly run north/south and Avenues which run east west. There are Roads as well, the most infamous is Kinsman Road. By the 1950s its condition and crime was so notorius that the cities of Shaker Heights, Beachwood, and beyond renamed it Chagrin Boulevard when it runs through them.
DeleteAs for the deer, you really don't want to piss a young buck off, because they will charge you, especially if they think you are a challenge to their dominance to breed a doe. But these mutha fuckers are HUGE.
Some people consider wildlife returning to cities or suburbs as a sign of an improving environment, but it is just the opposite. The natural areas are now polluted or simply bulldozed for housing developments, and the deer and other wildlife simply have no place to go. Some think the deer are cute, but they are large animals, and although not usually aggressive, they are an incident waiting to happen, such as when one inevitably will hurt a child or pet. When I lived in Moreland Hills, there was plenty of contiguous woodland for them to live in, and also if you made any noise or opened a door they dispersed instantly. The giant owl that perched in my driveway and refused to budge was another story.
ReplyDelete--Jim
If I let the storm door slam, that can startle them. The real problem is do I really want to be the reason it bolts down the drive, and into the street causing a car to hit it. That answer is no. But I think we need deer signs for the roadway. And we need deer whistles for the cars.
DeleteSo glad you're adjusting well, hopefully the weather will improve come Spring? As for Wildlife migrating into populated areas, Parnassus is right, we've had such sprawl of Humans encroaching into their Habitats they have no choice now but to try to live among us and adapt, or perish. Here in the Desert we have Coyote, Cougar, Bobcat and Predatory Birds coming in... and carting off people's Pets like a Buffet. Can't say I blame the Wildlife, they just do what they do and will take the Path of least resistance, but, it can be scary. There are becoming more negative conflict between them and Humans and of coarse the poor Animal is always 'blamed' for what we've done to cause the problem. I'm sure in a Perfect World they would rather have their Habitat back and avoid us.
ReplyDeleteI am told we have coyotes, but haven't seen one. And if the dogs are outside, we are outside. No thing is gonna hurt my babies.
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