Loving Rhode Island

Today, much to my dismay, I realized that I had not yet written anything about the state of Rhode Island, which is a pretty big focus of this blog (hence the name).

I am originally from upstate/western New York (quite close to Canada, though, ironically, I have been told on more than one occasion that my "accent" sounds Minnesotan) and moved to the Ocean state for graduate school. While completing my master's, I lived in southern Rhode Island and was only a ten-minute drive from the ocean. I certainly did not love the fact that I was also a ten-minute drive from a grocery store (who wants to drive ten minutes to buy groceries?) but during my first two years as a transplant in this state - and this third year of living closer to Providence - I learned that there are a lot of things to love about living here. Rhode Island might be the smallest state, but it's got a lot of heart!

• The Ocean
  I realize that this seems very obvious, but there really is something special about living in such close proximity to the body of water that separates us from (and connects us to) so much of the world.
  


• Newport
  The reason that I decided to even apply to graduate school in Rhode Island is because I took a trip to Newport during my undergraduate days and, in every sense of the phrase, fell in love with it. (Later, I found out that I had an eerie connection with Newport. I will definitely share this story another time...)
  


• Damn Good Seafood
  I suppose it says a lot about my Catholic upbringing for me to admit that I was excited (thrilled, really) to discover a small fishing town in southern Rhode Island called "Galilee." I swear to you, even in the dead of winter you can smell fish and saltwater  dancing in the air. My initial introduction with this little town made me realize how fresh the seafood really is. And there are SO many restaurants to choose from!
  


• Providence
  Affectionately referred to as "the creative capitol," Providence is truly one of the most beautiful cities that I have had the pleasure of visiting (next to San Francisco, which loses a few points right off the bat for being so expensive). Plus, I find it exhilarating to know that some of the brightest minds in the world are in downtown Providence at Brown University.
  

There are certainly many more things about Rhode Island that I love, and I will undoubtedly share these things in the near future. (I will also, at some point, post about the things that I do not love, but in the interest of being positive for many of my first posts, I will refrain for now.)

I don't know if we will settle here or if we will move elsewhere in the coming years  (another topic that I will surely cover in the future), but for now, I am thankful to live in a place that, for the aforementioned reasons (and others), I love.