What Will I Miss?

I am just going to say it. I have not been a huge fan of Iowa. It has not been my favorite state to live in. Perhaps it was because we moved FROM North Carolina to Iowa and then moved again from AUSTRALIA back to Iowa. Two climates that are much better, in my humble opinion. My life got a little complicated there for awhile so if you have followed me for awhile you know about our moves. Regardless, I am thinking that Iowa has not been the state where I have achieved a blissful state.

I am getting ready for the big transition . I am moving from one four letter state to another four letter state. Not sure how long it will last but it is what we need to do right now. I am the one doing the moving. Well, me and the cats. The hubby will be doing his work thing and commuting and flying and driving and enjoying the bachelor lifestyle at times.

As I have been ~~procrastinating~~ preparing for said transition I decided that I have been guilty of being an Iowa basher. There—I said it. They say confession is good for the soul. To put my troubled mind at ease I decided to come up with a list of things that I LOVE about living in Mason City. Complete with links where applicable!!! Enjoy!

Soyphisticated Candles I LOVE these products!!! I have blogged about them before and give my artisan, Camille Lee, a shout out whenever I can. Her products are wonderful and she is a truly gifted person! I will miss being able to drop in at her shop but the good thing—she has a website!!!
North Iowa Farmer’s Market (and Harrington’s Sweetcorn) The loveliness of this market is beyond words! And it is right down the street from me–so close I could walk if it were not for all the bags of wonderful produce, baked goods and other wondrous things that can be found there. Harrington’s SweetCorn is also a prominent thing for me in the summer—-love to stop and pick up a dozen (and there are usually 2 0r 3 extra ears!) ears for us to enjoy! Yum yum!
Hobby Lobby is almost in my front yard! It really is! It is amazing!!! Again, I have to drive to be able to transport all my treasures home.
The Lantern Japanese/Chinese Restaurant–absolutely the best restaurant in town! Consistent and delicious—we have never had a bad meal here and feel like we are kind of part of the family. Love the Wasabi Calamari appetizer and all of the entrees are simply wonderful. My mouth is watering!!! Shout out to owner Ocke Satrio, his wife, Jennifer and his sister, Linda, for always giving us a wonderful experience!!!
My new deck….I have gotten to enjoy it for 9 days—-some rainy, some nice—since we got home. It was the best thing we could have done to make our outdoor experience better!
My sunroom—-this is a pic of me with my sissy in May when she came to visit. The sunroom is my ideal room 3/4’s of the year!!!
Kush Salon and my favorite stylist there—Amanda! It takes awhile to find someone who does your hair right after you move. I lucked onto finding Amanda pretty early on in my tenure here in Mason (notice the local lingo there?) and followed her to Kush after she left another salon. So happy I did. If you are ever in the area you need to go there–they do it all and do it wonderfully. I will miss her tremendously.
Little or no traffic. It is true. When you live in a town of this size (about 28,000) there really is not a huge traffic issue and it takes about 15 minutes to go from one edge of town to the other. That is a plus!!! Now I am not going to say that the drivers here are all that great but hey—I am focusing on the positive here so we won’t go there!
Mason City Public Library is a wonderful oasis for me! They have renovated it and the wait was well worth it. I love going in, having a cup of coffee from Bestsellers Coffee Shop and spending time catching up on reading in a wonderful atmosphere. I love my Kindle but I also a huge fan of libraries!
Breezy weather. Weird, I know. But it is always a little breezy here. Sometimes more than other days but there is almost always a little bit of a cool breeze. Even on the hottest of days. Nice. I will miss that.