Leslie

Every year my parents would allow us to stay up to see the Northern Lights. Imagine lying on your back in the snow and watching the Aurora Borealis display. We didn't even know we were born.

Kaffy Mintcake

That sounds amazing Leslie. How did you end up in Texas?

Leslie

Most of the ones that I knew did leave. Only a very few stayed. I still have a couple friends up that far North though.

Juswus

how fantastic

Leslie

My mother is from here. Her mother was married to a military guy who was stationed at the AFB. She met my Dad in high school and the rest was history. We/they lived in a numerous different states throughout my and my sibling's childhoods. They sort of had that gypsy thing going but gravitated more toward Maine and Texas because of extended family.

Kaffy Mintcake

Did you enjoy moving around and seeing so much as a child? Or did you resent it? Or did it depend on the day?

SagenOnion

Chuck an extra couple of ice cubes in your vodka.

Leslie

For my own innate nature it was pretty manageable. I don't remember ever being unhappy. It probably contributed to some of my personality defects though. For a couple of my siblings I would say it was quite difficult and I have one sister that is still bitter today because of the lifestyle we had growing up.

Kaffy Mintcake

I'm really interested, probably because I have a horrible case of wanderlust and have only ever lived in Ohio. (Unless you count 5 months in Europe as a student.)

That's something I've wondered about ... especially as my family no longer lives anywhere nearby ... moving around a bit and experiencing different things sounds appealing ... but perhaps it's a case of the grass is always greener?

That being said, the childhood memory you just recounted sounds amazing!

SagenOnion

You are certainly in the right spot on this forum. Other than the occasional abnormality, a specific bearded Yank residing somewhere off google maps in Misery springs instantly to mind, most of the people on here have moved far from their place of origin and in many cases experienced a major culture shock. The grass is very often greener and I personally have had second thoughts about a move on many occasions but, in most cases, I have become happily ensconced in my new surroundings.

Aroostook County is not for most people though. Having said that, neither is Ohio You sound like you are going through the pangs of return after a great trip elsewhere. If you are going to do it, do it before kids put a damper on the project. I managed to drag them from SoCal to Maine, but there is no way on earth they would allow me to move them again.

Leslie

It's complicated. I live a lot inside my own head and always have done so. I believe that kids (and adults) with active imaginations are much more suited to a transient lifestyle. What you end up with though is very few deep or lasting attachments to people or places. On the upside, I'm very adaptable and believe that I could be content almost anywhere, as long as my immediate environment is not overly harsh. That's not the case for everybody and (as we've witnessed here on BE) some people suffer terribly because of drastic changes to their environment. Personally, I don't care where I live as long as my own private life is satisfying - that's not really the same thing as wanderlust though. At this point in my life, I would never move just for the sake of moving. If you don't have a real purpose for a move I'm afraid you may be disappointed. Looking for an external location to satisfy your longings is a recipe for failure, imo. I think my parents finally figured that out and eventually did stop upping sticks every time they got bored or things weren't going their way.

Leslie

When I was growing up nobody cared what the kids thought. We'd just wake up one morning to find our shit was packed and there was a moving van parked out front.

Kaffy Mintcake

I hear you. Do you ever long for the knowledge you'd have many years from now?

One of my biggest fears is that I'll never leave Ohio ... but will instead become a soccer mom driving a van. I realize that's not a terrible fate, but we only live once, right?

At 33 years old, I also have to think about the fact that if we want to have a family, we likely need to get started.

SagenOnion

Sadly, my family is not the democracy that the US military is.

Leslie

We weren't military. My Mom's parents were but not us. We were just human chattel.