Thursday, March 23, 2006

States I've visited

I didn't get tagged, but I got inspired by Robin to play this silly game. I'm ashamed I haven't been to more states (some I'm not sure about whether to count)

but here's the states I've visited:



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1. Arizona - My mom has cousins there. I visited them as a child and as a teenager now and then. I loved being so HOT. I had my first real kiss there.

2. California - I thought I wanted to go to college at Pomona, so I flew into LA for the day from Phoenix and visited when I was 17. Taking the bus in LA was an experience

3. Colorado - I think the only time I've been there was when I flew through Denver going somewhere. I dont' think it really counts. But I almost moved there after college, my best friend from high school lived in Boulder at the time (Now she lives in Portland, OR)

4. Connecticutt - My mom had cousins there too, and had had a vacation home there as a child. We went and visited when I was in junior high at some point. I mostly remember the ocean and buying sparkly nailpolish with my cousins.

5. DC - We had friend there when I was a kid, and as a teen and adult I've been there for marches. It's a freaky city, in my opinion.

6. Delaware - I grew up in Philly, and my Dad still lives in a suburb that is closest to the Wilmington stop on the train. I'm sure we drove through it lots when I was a kid, too, but I'm not sure.

7. Florida - not since I was little. My dad had business trips to Miami when I was 3 and 5. I caught pneumonia there - my mom says from wet hair and air conditioning.

8. Idaho - I've been through it on the train from Minneapolis to Seattle, but not sure if I've ever actually set foot there (it's pretty narrow, I don't know if the train has a rest stop there)

9. Illinois - I spent a semester of college in Chicago, and take myself to lunch and a dip in the lake (if it's warm enough!) there when I take the train through going to Philly.

10. Indiana - same best friend from high school went to Earlham for a year. I visited her there. Was that my only time there?

11. Iowa - I went to a Nobel Peace Prize Forum at Luther college in Decorah. I've also been to a camp there to sing with Quakers (Nightengales)

12. Maryland - I visited Johns Hopkins when I was looking for a college, and have just been there - I think most often on weekend drives to buy booze with my Dad, because it's cheaper there than in PA (doesn't that sound wholesome??)

13. Massachusetts - My sistser lives in Wellesley now, but last time I visited she lived in Cambridge.

14. Michigan - My Dad was born in Detroit and grew up in Croswell, 3 hours north. I visited there a lot as a kid.

15. Minnesota - Home sweet home! Y'all don't know what you're missing.

16. Montana - the train again, but I know that we stopped and walked around there. It was a train with no smoking car, so they had to stop and take smoke breaks. I hate smoke, but crave fresh air, so I would hold my breath and run past the cloud by the train and skip around until it was time to go. I think we also had a long break to go buy food there. I really want to visit Glacier Park, it was just beautiful, what I could see of it.

17. Nevada - My cousin from AZ got married in Las Vegas when I was 14. I thought it was really funny, but his girlfriend was from there, and it wasn't a cheezy wedding at all. I wasted a lot of money on slot machines though.

18. New Jersey - The shore, what else?

19. New York - My mom grew up in Manhattan, and much of her family is still there. We lived in the 'burbs there a few times when I was a kid. I visited the finger lakes region after Gathering in Rochester a few years ago. It's beautiful there.

20. North Carolina - another college visit. I really wanted to go to UNC, but I got waitlisted and never called up. Stayed with a (Michigan) cousin there.

21. North Dakota - train again. Again, I can't even say for sure I've ever set foot on the ground there.

22. Ohio - Cousins in Cleaveland when I was a kid, plus trains, plus my sweetie is from there (rural OH, not Cleaveland) but I haven't visited with her yet)

23. Oregon - I have a good friend from high school and a good friend from college there now. I have visited a few times. It's perhaps the only other US city I can see myself living in aside from Minneapolis (though, really, really, I do like nice weather!)

24. Pennsylvania - I grew up there. I miss crocuses and stone houses the most (we have both here, but much fewer and farther between)

25. South Dakota - my ex's parents live there. Plus we went to the Badlands once - breathtaking!

26. Texas - my (NY) cousin lives in Dallas now, but I've never visited. Perhaps only stopovers on the plane.

27. Vermont - My NY cousin's other Grandma lived there. I went up there with them one summer, and swam in a quarry. The coolest thing.

28. Virginia - Family friends in a DC suburb when I was a kid.

29. Washington - Have visited Seattle a few times. It's a great city, but I feel consistently not hip enough when I'm there.

30. West Virginia - Only drive through and train throughs. Though I know I have set foot in it. I made a point of doing so so I could count it on something like this when I was in college.

31. I can't believe I forgot Wisconsin, my closest neighbor. My newest dog, Jordan, is from Wisconsin (or at least was fostered there before coming to me) My ex is from Eau Claire, where her parents still lived when we met, so I've been thre a lot. Also Madison and Milwaukee for Nightengales, and the first time I went to FGC Gathering was 1998, when it was in River Falls (where it will be again next year, if I'm not mistaken)

2 comments:

Robin M. said...

I had to tag myself too. I like the sidenotes part, especially.

ef said...

sidenotes part? I wish I could figure out how to make the map smaller so it didn't push my sidebar to the bottom of the page!