Exploring Red Wing: Our New Home

This is an older picture. The snow has been gone for weeks.

Sometimes this blog veers from food into the other tales of my life. Though I love food, there are many new changes in my life that I want to share with my readers. As previously mentioned, I am in a whole new places with no familiar faces besides my husband. For the past two months, this beautiful state has been a frozen wasteland, and I subsequently have been confined to a 500 ft apartment. It may not be much, but it's ours, and after taking a couple of months to adjust to the change of graduation and moving, I am ready to embrace my new home.

The gift of warmer weather and sunshine lately has done wonders for my mood. Just a week ago, the temperatures were below zero, and I never thought I would see temperatures in the 50s and 60s so soon. It is a much-needed blessing, because I have been told I have "cabin fever". Well, if you were unemployed and in a tiny apartment seven days a week, you may be too. Or maybe it's just me.

Regardless, Brett and I have taken this opportunity to explore the surrounding area. He explores the downtown with me in the evening while Baxter, my dog, and I check out the neighborhood during the day. I love our walks. My poor dog has been stuck inside more than I have. The ice and snow hurts his paws, making him limp and shiver as he tries to do his business. That is fun for no one, but this week, we are free!

So here are some things I have learned about Red Wing, good and bad:

• Local businesses are the heart and soul of this town: local bakery, butcher shops, grocery stores, restaurants, and a book store. One stop shopping is for the boring.
• Thrift shops have just become my new favorite things, considering we have three downtown, and two are within two blocks of where we live. Oh the possibilities!
• People are really nice here, and if you go to a park or in a store, someone is probably going to talk to you. 
• Getting your drivers' license, car registration, or anything else is a HUGE pain. Minnesota's DVS is nothing like Indiana's BMV. For once, Indiana is really, really good at something. 
• Coming from a world of fields and flat lands, the hilly and water front Red Wing is a huge change. Also, the Mississippi River is absolutely gorgeous. 
• It is odd to walk out my door and realize I live between two huge bluffs. It is like looking at mountains. Did I mention I am from a flat state?
• If I thought Indiana drivers were bad, then you have not been to Minnesota. Expect people to cut you off, not wait for their right of way, be impatient, and speed every where you go. 
• There are no ice cream stands or hot dog stands like back in Indiana. :( DQ and Culver's cannot compare to Sycamore and B&K Root Beer. 
• Everyone goes outside as soon as it warms up. I have seen many families outside walking just for the fun of it. Plus, Red Wing really promotes walking as part of being healthy.
• There are no country roads, just high ways and town roads. 
• I love living near downtown. It reminds me of where we lived in Lafayette and makes this place feel more familiar.
• Everyone knows where my husband works as soon as I say Prairie Island. Nuclear plants tend to be well-known, since they are not common. 

The bluffs along the Mississippi River

Though Red Wing, Minnesota is part of the Midwest, it is quite different from my hometown of Logansport, Indiana, and our college town of Lafayette. It may be full of farms, but it still retains that small town livelihood that was lost long ago in Logansport. I miss my family, friends, and the familiarity of back roads and being around people who know us best. This place is strange, but over the next year, I hope it will become home. A place where I am  happy to return to after adventures to far away lands. In saying that though, I have to become part of the town, and that is starting to happen.

So here are my goals for the near future:

• Get a job, if not two, in the next month or so, which is a great way to get to know people and start to pay off my student debt. See I can be optimistic sometimes! 
• Starting buying my meat and bread locally when we need it. At least if I buy my meat from the small shops here, I know where it is coming from, and it has to be better than anything at Walmart. Plus, it's pretty cheap anyways.
• Get a library card, and start checking out books. One, I love books. Two, I need to stop spending money on books. It's an addiction. 
• Make our apartment feel like home. Currently, I am in the middle of rearranging our enclosed front porch to make it functional yet comfortable, so we can actually have people over or just sit out there and play cards, eat dinner, whatever.
• Lastly, remember that this work is not in vain. Yes, we may have a few more hills to climb in the near future, but together, I know Brett and I can do anything and have fun at the same time. Could it really be worse than both of being a full-time students and working at McDonalds? I doubt it. 

Together, I know that Brett and I can make anywhere home, and it is time for us to start building our lives here. It's a new part of my life, and I am actually finally read to embrace it rather than hiding scared in the apartment. Some of us may take longer to adjust than others, but I am not ashamed of that. Considering my depression and anxiety issues, I am proud of how I am adjusting. It could be much, much worse, and I am thankful to have a supportive husband who is patient with me and understanding.

So I invite you today to go have your own little adventure, whether it is just a walk around the neighborhood or creating something new in your kitchen. Life is short, so enjoy as many moments as you can. Put down the smart phone, turn off the t.v., and spend time with the ones you love.

Have a wonderful day!