Do you ever sit around fantasizing about living somewhere else?
Lately I've been wondering if some person with a nice New England or Pacific Northwest -- or Midwestern if it's on a lake and near to some cultah and an airport -- property with some land that's all fenced for deerhounds and pretty and private might want to live in San Francisco for a year and do a house swap.
I'm aware that this is a form of escapism, but who wouldn't want to escape from the year I've had?
The only reason I'm not doing this, really, is that I don't want to leave my darling nephew. He's four years old, and I know that they hit an age where they're just not that into their aunties, LOL, and I don't want to miss this time with him now.
I wonder if I could get his parents to come with me?
My dream place would have a couple of acres or more, all securely fenced, with a pretty vista and some water. The house (or cottage or bungalow -- I don't need a lot of space) would be all or mostly on one floor, light-filled, not 70s-ish, but old-fashioned or modern doesn't matter to me that much beyond that. One bedroom is plenty, it has to have high speed internet, and I would especially love French doors leading out to the garden. And a fireplace.
And while I want it to feel like the country, it also has to be near to somewhere I can get a good espresso, not too far from an airport, and there have to be good veterinarians, including specialists, nearby.
Despite my constant whining about weather everywhere I go, I went to college in Evanston, Illinois, right on the shores of Lake Michigan, and I do understand what hot, muggy summers and cold, brutal winters are like. That's why I'm not actually moving to these places, LOL, just daydreaming about living in one of them for a year.
However, I draw the line at the South -- just too hot and muggy for me. I'd rather live in Alaska than Florida. I'd bend as far as Philadelphia, or maybe New York.
This is almost certainly just a daydream, but it's a particularly satisfying one. So induldge me. Do you have real estate fantasies, too?
No, I never do. ;-)
Posted by: Gina Spadafori | 02 January 2010 at 04:30 PM
You can come here anytime, Christie! You too, Gina... The summers here are actually quite pleasant, since we're a couple thousand feet up. This winter has been unusually snowy due to El Nino. Last year we didn't have any snow until March. Right near VA Tech, with their vet school, 30 minus from the Roanoke airport... wanna come visit? There's a 4 year old here you could play with... LOL
Posted by: Bonnie K. | 02 January 2010 at 05:14 PM
All the time. My current fantasy involves Vermont... or Canada.
Posted by: Alison | 02 January 2010 at 05:45 PM
Oh, constantly. My fantasies feature not only the PNW but also Paris, Vancouver and New Mexico. And of course San Francisco.
Posted by: Kim Thornton | 02 January 2010 at 06:57 PM
Paris and Vancouver work for me.
Posted by: Christie Keith | 02 January 2010 at 07:21 PM
You might like Dallas. It isn't muggy. Yes, it gets hot, but usually it's a nice dry heat.
We've got a decent sized back yard, but better yet, there is a huge greenway park across the street.
I just can't think of someplace I'd like to trade to.
Posted by: Kathleen Weaver | 02 January 2010 at 07:29 PM
Kathleen -- Texas is way, way, way too hot for me. But I'm glad you're happy there!
Posted by: Christie Keith | 02 January 2010 at 07:45 PM
I'm probably the only person in the world who loves Seattle.
Posted by: Terry Albert | 02 January 2010 at 08:15 PM
Kathleen - Dallas is only 'not muggy' when you compare it to Houston. :P I live here, I'm allowed to say that. P
I love my little house in Dallas, but I'm really hoping to move to someplace with mountains and/or ocean (the Oregon Coast, around Newport is my current dream destination, or the high desert in NM) - I love my job, though, and don't want to leave that. I also want to pack the dogs up into a car and be an RV/art show/dog show gypsy forf a few years, too.
Posted by: Cait | 02 January 2010 at 08:30 PM
Here.
Somewhere between Cambria and Paso Robles, with a sturdy little tin-roof ranch house and enough land for a USBCHA Open trial. Don't need the vineyards. I'd slit my wrists before I'd leave California [though a pied-à-terre in Paris would be tempting].
Posted by: Luisa | 03 January 2010 at 02:27 AM
LOL Never dream of elsewhere because where I live is pretty awesome--and I have lived in a manor home in England (on an island no less), on the beach in the North coast, etc., (before I make you gag).
I am seriously considering relocating out of So. Cal. cuz I hate it.
BUT the reason I live where I do is because I can take a jaunt down to the beach or the desert without a problem.
Getting away might do you some good and I know there are some house swap sites so maybe you need to pursue that dream.
In the meantime, I am in Monterey heading up to Santa Rosa. Have to leave on Tuesday for sure--if you have time for a coffee or something drop me a PM on Facebook.
Posted by: Ark Lady | 03 January 2010 at 09:44 AM
Sometimes I dream of a warm tropical island with endless sandy beaches and impossibly blue water. But I'm not ready to live where there's no change of seasons. Yet.
Have you considered Ithaca, NY? Maybe you could do a house swap with a Cornell professor looking to take a sabbatical to your location. It may be a bit too far north for your liking, but Ithaca's a pretty cool town. They do have a small airport and the Cornell University Hospital for Animals. Plus it's at the end of Cayuga Lake, so there's your water. It's also about a four hour drive to NYC for when you're in the mood for a larger city.
Posted by: Ellen | 03 January 2010 at 07:40 PM
I like Ithaca a lot. I have a friend there, too... wonder if he and his partner would like to spend a year in San Francisco?
Posted by: Christie Keith | 03 January 2010 at 07:45 PM