Top 5 of living in Odessa, TX

Since I don't want to settle in Odessa for the long term, I can't say that I will ever grow to love it.  I eventually want to live in either the San Antonio area or the Austin area. I need a bigger city.  Can't get my sushi fix out here.  There are no musuems to speak of (Confederate Aviation Museum does not constitute what I am looking for).  And very little of the things that make living in a city so much fun.  But, Odessa does have things going for it.  And here are my top five.

1)  The sky over west TX....omg.  It is so amazing.  So beautiful.  The land here is so flat that it seems as if you could just continue walking into a sunset forever.  I have never in my life seen such amazing sunsets.  And the clouds are so close you could almost touch them.  It reaffirms my belief in my Creator every time I witness one.

2) Unbelievably amazing friends and family.  I have been so welcomed here by EVERYBODY.  I have made friends that I believe will be here for a lifetime.  And I have a family here that loves and supports me through thick and thin.  Hanging out with these people or being able to call them when I need them, it makes living here worth it all.

3) The best mexican food I have ever eaten!  Fast food, sit-down food, fancy food, home-cooking.  Most all of it is absolutely wonderful!  Rosa's Cafe---it is the bomb! Fresh made tortillas.  So good.  You cannot get Mexican food like this in GA.

4) Amazing church.  I am so loving my new church family.  We started attending in November and it feels like I have been there my whole life.  I love hearing our praise and worship singers on service days.  My kids are in love with their Sunday and Wednesday teachers.  It is awesome.  I do miss my church in Barnesville, but FUPC is now my home church. 

5) The drive in movie! Six bucks gets you two new release movies and you get to watch them from the comfort of your car (with the baby strapped in her carseat)  So much fun!  You get to watch the sunset (had me at that) and then lay back in your seat and watch two great movies. 

There are lots of other things that I love here.  I am in an amazing school.  My son is going to a prestigious magnet school.  My husband has an amazing job.  We are truly happy.  While I miss GA, and I always will, Texas is now my home.

Ta-ta!

Manda

My first ever blog...what I miss about living in the South.

Okay, guys!  Everybody else is doing it, so why not me? 

Blog-a place to put your thoughts and feeling out there for the whole world to see...scary!

Well, I guess I will let you know why I decided to blog in the first place.  I am a recent transplant to the "great" state of Texas from Georgia.  Can we say culture shock!?  OMG!  I am missing so many things. 

Grits! Trees!  Flowers!  But most of all grits! I mean where I was born, grits are a first food.  Most Texans have never even heard of them.  And if they have (like my darling husband) they equate them with ant killer.  What the heck!?  What does a good southern girl gotta do to get a good Southern meal in this place?!  I am so sick of Mexican food (no disrespect to my wonderful Hispanic friends) but I want some fried chicken, collard greens and cheese grits!  Come on Texans...you don't know what you are missing!  Southern food is an art form...

Trees!  What the heck!  I live in quite possibly the most flat place on earth.  It has it's own beauty (amazing sunsets) but I sure do miss my cherry blossom trees, pear trees, magnolia trees and just about any other beautiful native GA tree.  I miss shade. I miss the smell of fall.  BUT I must admit I am loving the lack of tree pollen allergies.  So W. Texas, you got that going for you.

Flowers!  Specifically, flower beds.  In my native home, flower beds are part of everyone's home. Well, almost everyone.  Some of us, like me, have a black thumb and must live vicariously through other's green thumbs.  I digress.  I miss amarylis, buttercups, day lilies, gerber daisies and all the beautiful flowers that grow so prolifically in GA.  Here, there are cactus and other green bushes.  Just not the same....sniff.

I have complained enough....my next post will be about the wonderful parts of living in W. Texas!

Ta-ta!
Manda