things i miss about where i came from (st. pete (mostly) & tampa, fl))

...replace my city with yours and take part!

i currently live in south london and am deprived of the following:

- *proper* thunderstorms/ hurricanes
- the sun(sets)
- jasmine, hibiscus, gardenias & bougainvillea
- short commute to beach (only went around sunset, tho- i burn!)
- consistent warm weather (hello, earth, it's may! 10 yrs here and i still am not used to cold feet in may  )
- drive thrus! (ok, there's one at mcdonald's but i never eat there, soooo)
- taco bell/ vallarta's/ various other restaurants
- the swigwam (which i've recently discovered has been moved off the beach- blasphemy!)
- downtown st. pete (jannus landing, the pier, the square of shops around williams park, salvador dali museum)
- crescent lake
- busch gardens and lowry park zoo
- my own back yard
- having a dog (we are in a small flat with a mean cat, sooo....and it seems an impossibly to be able to move )
- big houses!
- friendly customer service
- not having to explain where i'm from/ why i'm here every time i speak to a stranger
- cruisin'! (esp. up 1st ave. n. & down 1st ave. s.)
- tropical heatwave/ circus mcgurkis)
- rob & kevin 
- etc...

things i don't miss:

- insane heat (which *was* most of the year...)
- cockroaches
- mosquitoes
- jocks/ rednecks/ barbie dolls/ idiots

***

it's funny because i hated being in florida most of the time i was there but ten years on the list grows of the things i miss about it.  hand me a slice of that humble pie, please...

anybody??

OK, I'll bite.  I usually try not to dwell on "home thoughts" but it does happen to all of us.

I miss (aside from son and cat):
my house (which my father designed and had built) with closets and tons of insulation
my refrigerator (with freezer on the bottom)
all the furniture my great grandfather (cabinetmaker) made
driving
proximity to a Wholefoods Market and pumpkin muffins
my aunt
all my stuff (still don't know what I'll be able to bring and what will get scrapped)
TV shows like "Greater Boston"
different wildlife: birds and wild flowers
stores like Kohl's and Target
window and door screens
good public library
cheaper prices for nearly everything
the cemetery where my parents, grandparents and great grandparents are buried (well, it's nearly Memorial Day)


Do not miss:
snow and especially ice
snow-shovelling
crap public transportation
supermarket bread
skunks (although a faint whiff is evocative)
the tons of junk mail that came to the door every day
having to take all the trash and garbage to the dump every week -- and pay for the privilege
worry about health insurance in general (I was lucky but others aren't)

skunks (although a faint whiff is evocative)

I'm curious.

anybody??

I have been over here a long time, and there is nothing I miss from the roasting hot, drab, smelly, dusty hell-hole where I grew up being controlled and judged for everything.  When I first arrived in Glasgow, it was like a haven and Disneyland rolled into one for me, and I still love it here.

I may have been quoted on Facebook a few days ago saying 'I miss Fritos', but I hardly think that counts, as it was just a momentary craving caused by a photo of Frito Pie.  >shrug<  I can buy them online if I want them badly enough! 

I'm curious.

You've never smelled a skunk?

I'm curious.

A skunk blasting off outside your open window -- or all over your dog -- is totally obnoxious.  But a teeny aroma blowing on the breeze out of the woods just brings back memories of those woods.

Not too fond of woodchucks either, especially when they move in under your porch.

A skunk blasting off outside your open window -- or all over your dog -- is totally obnoxious.  But a teeny aroma blowing on the breeze out of the woods just brings back memories of those woods.

Not too fond of woodchucks either, especially when they move in under your porch.

A skunk blasted our little dog once.  She ran in the house and (in her agony) rubbed it all over our sofa and bed.  Took a month before she was odor-free and a special chemical treatment to get the stink from our furnishings.

A skunk blasting off outside your open window -- or all over your dog -- is totally obnoxious.  But a teeny aroma blowing on the breeze out of the woods just brings back memories of those woods.

Not too fond of woodchucks either, especially when they move in under your porch.

No I know what you mean. I like rain on hot side walk. And oddly enough a few years ago I was reading that there is a cologne shop which specialises in stuff like that. There was a "fresh baked bread" cologne...and a "rain on hot pavement".

I have been over here a long time, and there is nothing I miss from the roasting hot, drab, smelly, dusty hell-hole where I grew up being controlled and judged for everything.  When I first arrived in Glasgow, it was like a haven and Disneyland rolled into one for me, and I still love it here.

I may have been quoted on Facebook a few days ago saying 'I miss Fritos', but I hardly think that counts, as it was just a momentary craving caused by a photo of Frito Pie.  >shrug<  I can buy them online if I want them badly enough! 

I agree. I lived in an awful suburb in the states and it in no way compares to the life I've made in London. The weather here might be a bit crap, but I wouldn't trade it for the tick and mosquito-filled, sweltering, humid summers I used to experience. Also, as a lefty socialist, it's easier to not be judged harshly here for it. And while I love and missed soul food, going back recently showed me that even my love of certain foods has serious limits.

Also, as a lefty socialist, it's easier to not be judged harshly here for it.

It's rough out here in the trenches. Green welly militia dug in everywhere.

I just returned from an unplanned, emergency trip to NC. A couple of days in the 70s, but mostly high 80s. I craved a cool evening here instead of AC and high humidity outside.

I had my annual *real* hot dog craving satisfied, but I missed my lovely bacon sarnies more.

The faint smell of a skunk does bring back memories. So does the smell of a hot car engine cooling down on a hot summer night. Memories are wonderful, but often become distorted as we age.....I know this all too well 

I haven't moved yet (22 more days!) but last night after a popup thunderstorm I said how much I'll miss the smell of rain on hot asphalt. But then this afternoon I went outside and started sweating immediately because it is approximately 2000% humidity, and I will not miss that at all!

ah! finally on a pc and can take part properly! thanks for playing everyone!

yes! agreeing with others here~

missing:
my refrigerator (with freezer on the bottom)
- actually, i am missing a "grown up" fridge. sooooooo sick of the little one, having to squat down to get anything in or out, but have no space for a big one, wah!! i would put it on a table or something but the countertops stop that idea :/ will brainstorm later 

window and door screens
-don't need them for the doors (we're in a flat  ) but i made some for the windows- magnetic- does the job

rain on hot side walk smell
- oh yeah, that's a good one! but sometimes i smell it around here, so that's ok. sometimes i smell pittsburgh with the combo of bus and cold air and i haven't lived there since '77! talk about a flashback!

"I craved a cool evening here instead of AC and high humidity outside."
- actually, that's one of the weird things i kinda miss...going grocery shopping, leaving frozen because of the ac then getting in a nice, hot car. of course, the pleasure only lasted about 10 secs before speed cranking the windows down (i didn't use ac) but still...at least there was some pleasure, lol.


Do not miss:
crap public transportation
-drove (or biked) everywhere anyway but yeah! cracks me up when people complain about having to wait 10 minutes for a bus- especially since it's *not* 1000 degrees out! 

worry about health insurance in general
-ooh yeah, that's a good one! i didn't use the doc's much back in the states, nor do i here, but the older i get, the more i will, soooo, it's a big plus in staying here...unless the nhs does indeed crumble then reconsideration is needed!

other stuff:
Albatross, i can't stand fritos but i know what you mean i just discovered our fav newsagent has twinkies!! 79p each but still- nice to get that twinkie fix!

never had any skunk (of the mammalian type) or woodchuck experiences!

"Also, as a lefty socialist, it's easier to not be judged harshly here for it."
- i am similar in that i'm like green party, vegetarian, not a racist :p, weird hair, etc etc and there were a LOT of narrow minds in tampa bay... over here you still have your narrow minds but it's different, not as harsh, and there are a lot more people willing to accept, or at least tolerate, someone different.

sonofasailor, Green welly militia dug in everywhere.? what does that mean? i mean, i know what green wellies are but...?

inversed, where are you moving from and to?

sonofasailor, Green welly militia dug in everywhere.? what does that mean? i mean, i know what green wellies are but...?

From wikipedia:

"Green welly brigade" refers in a deprecating way to well-heeled people who find their recreation in the countryside.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brigade_(pejorative)

A lazy stereotype.