by Lindsey

You may have noticed that I haven’t written in a while, readers. (If you haven’t noticed, that’s okay, too.) Things have been busy in my neck of the woods. In early May, I applied for a job and completed two interviews. I accepted the position in June, went to my first board meeting, and found a place to live (in my new little Stars Hollow-esque town). I’m thrilled about this opportunity, but I’ll save that for another post. For the past three weeks, I’ve been finishing up things at my old job and packing up my life. Tomorrow I’m saying goodbye to a place I’ve called home for more than four years.

If you’ve ever visited Music City, you know there’s a lot to love about Nashville. It offers shopping and amenities (aside from an IKEA, but no place has it all). Culturally speaking, Cheekwood and the Frist have been treats to visit during my time here. As one might expect, the opportunities to see live music are plentiful. My favorite Nashville concerts include Death Cab for Cutie, Fiona Apple, Josh Ritter (twice!), and, the folk queen of hearts herself, Patty Griffin.

I think I might miss the food most of all, though. Next time you’re in town, grab a non-dairy latte from Crema or a cortado con leche from Eighth and Roast. Get tacos as Mas Tacos Por Favor, sushi at Peter’s Sushi and Thai (their number is saved in my phone), grits from B&C, everything at Silly Goose, and eat a Marathon veggie burger (the best I’ve ever had anywhere) and truffle fries from Burger Up. Think of me fondly as you do.

Though this has been the longest I’ve lived in one place other than my home town, I have moved several times since graduating from college. My trajectory went like this: Savannah, GA –> Greeneville, TN –> Chattanooga, TN –> Nashville, TN. It’s funny to look back and think about each place you’ve lived. I miss Savannah like an old friend. Her charm seeped in deep during my short time there. Greeneville is my hometown, so it’ll always make me feel a little claustrophobic and a lot nostalgic. Chattanooga was a pretty little bump in the road, but I’m happy to say I got a couple of wonderful friends out of that deal. Nashville was an answered prayer: a way out of a job I didn’t like and into a place already home to several friends and family members.

Of course, not everything has been biscuits and gravy. As much as it pains me, I’ve realized that now is a good time to leave. People have been slowly trickling out of my daily life since I arrived. It happens so slowly you hardly realize. First, a college roommate gets married and moves away, then a friend finishes grad school and gets a job elsewhere, and others find serious relationships and drop away into coupledom. It happens. It’s natural. Naturally, it was bound to happen to me.

In addition, the traffic truly, truly sucks. I mean, it’s not Atlanta, but it’s still pretty bad. I started having panic attacks while living here (largely originating in said traffic). My apartment flooded in a freak pipe accident a couple of years ago. I had a live bird stuck in my apartment wall over a long weekend. The city sees lots of severe weather, though the @NashSevereWx Twitter account helps us all through.

I know I talked about the food a lot, but what I’ve come to realize in the last few weeks is that it isn’t the city of Nashville I’ll miss. You’ve heard it said that it’s the people that make a place home, but those are not empty words. Even with all the changes and people leaving, etc., that still holds true. It’s the people I hate to leave behind.

The other truth in all of this? I’m really looking forward to an exciting new job, living in the mountains, and small town traffic. Good and bad, it is difficult to leave any place one has come to call home. I’ll look forward to visiting, and I’ll take comfort in knowing I never really leave any friends behind. FaceTime is a beautiful thing.