Friday, September 05, 2008

Gratitude-A-Day September 6, 2008

Today, I'm grateful for freedom. Yesterday, I wrote about my feelings of sadness in moving further away from family in Minneapolis and said I would write today about the reasons for moving. This post is going to be a simplified version of these feelings but I hope to be able to dive into this topic in greater detail in the future.
  • I've lived in Minneapolis (SouthWest Minneapolis specifically) my whole life - except for 8 semesters in college (Beloit, WI). I want to experience living in a different setting. Different in terms of attitude, natural landscape, history, culture. Moving to Des Moines, Chicago, Kansas City, Madison, or St Cloud would feel very much like Minneapolis. Different to me would be west coast, east coast or another country. The deep south would be different but isn't appealing to me. Seattle is different.
  • When I went to college I was amazed what it was like to suddenly be in a place where all of the people around me were new. No one had preconcieved notions of who I was. This created an opportunity to define myself anew and shed habits and social conditioning I carried from earlier in my life. I see moving to a new city (although some people already know me in Seattle) as another opportunity to define myself with a relatively clean slate. I figure that I'll have 2-4 of these opportunities in life and I want to make the most of this one.
  • I want to find out what it takes to create "home" in a new location. I'm excited to figure out all of the simple things - where is the grocery store/post office/corner store; what are the local radio and TV stations, what do people talk about at the bus stop. I'm also excited to learn the vibe of a new community - how does the city wake up in the morning; what are the pressures the community feels; what vision does the city share for the future. And, what does it take for me to feel at home in a new place?
  • I've always lived close to my immediate family. This is the flip side to my post yesterday - I want to experience how it feels to be removed from my family and loved ones. What does it feel like to be a long way away when they are sick/hurting and celebrating/joyous. This might sound crazy but it's something I'm interested in experiencing.
  • In addition to moving to a new place I'm also starting a new chapter in my career. By founding Gottschalk Technologies, Inc I'm going to be learning and growing as a business person and professional in ways I can't begin to imagine. I feel that by combining this new buisness venture with living in a new community will provide the right kind of stimulus and freedom to break new ground and learn as quickly as possible. I feel kind of stale in Minneapolis in terms of my professional growth. When I'm in Seattle I feel fresh and new.
  • I've gotten to know Minnesota and the surrounding communities VERY well in the time I've lived here. For the last few years I've found myself yearning to have a new home base to explore from. Living in Seattle will provide a fantastic opportunity to explore and see and experince new places and things on a daily/weekly basis. This includes neighborhoods, restaurants, theaters, clubs, museums, day trips, bike routes, races, weekend trips, backpacking, the ocean, the parks and a whole bunch of other things.
I'm also VERY interested to hear from the rest of you about your experiences moving to a new location or how it feels to anticipate an upcoming move. Please share your thoughts, feelings and experiences in comments!

1 comment:

Richard Crose said...

I got married in October and moved to New York in January with my new bride. It was the best thing that we ever did. Away from friends and family we set out on our own to conquer the Big Apple. We met lifelong friends, discovered the best places to eat, saw the best plays, fireworks and street parades --all on our own. Most of all, it brought us together like no other experience we could have had. We were in it together, we supported each other, we encouraged each other and we experienced things together we see in each others eyes twenty-seven years later. Opening night of Carmen in Lincoln Center, the museums, Coney Island at night, our favorite restaurant in Greenwich Village. We don't talk about it much any more; we don't have to. It is something that is ours and ours alone.

Good luck in your new endeavor. The people back home will welcome you with own arms. As you grow, some things never change and that is what they embrace.