I spent mother’s day with (predictably) my mother and sister, watching Waking Ned Devine and playing Rummy-O, the official game of the Riddles household, a tile game that often leads to story telling (as most tile games tend to do.) Mom started talking about how the characters in the movie reminded her of “The Irish Family,” first generation Americans who would I can’t say anything more about, as they will be written into my Great American Novel someday. Then SisterRiddles started talking about her year in Ireland, and how just talking about it hurt her, she missed it so much. If I had more guts, I’d just pack everything up and move to Ireland. Unfortunately, the Riddles family would be greatly missed, and I am a chicken. But some day, I’m gonna do it, dammit.
Where would you move if you could just snap your fingers and be there?
I would probably go to some off-the-beaten-track place, with quaint little homes in a sunny but cold climate.
One of the spots I’ve always dreamed about is a small village on the Lake of Zurich in Switzerland. I’ve never been there, but I’ve seen from maps that the only way to get there is via boat or foot-path. Now that would be great!
Another place (never seen in real life) that would tempt me would be Iceland. Geysers, beaches, mountains, volcanoes, the country has it all! Plus there’s one volcano (Sneffels) that has at the bottom of its crater a tunnel that leads to the center of the earth. Perfect for getting rid of those guests that insist on visiting you for longer than three days.
The Keys.
I’d brave the tropical storms, large insects and unbearable humidity to lay on a hammock in Margaritaville with a laptop resting on my belly as I tap out my next bestseller (nothing but escapist romance and fantasy) and sip a cool umbrella drink.
Back to St. Petersburg. What a city! I had the best time there… of course the experience may be tempered somewhat by the necessity of earning a salary this time around, but I think I could handle it.
Naturally, money, income and taxes are not a problem in this fantasy, I would pick a semi modest manor home in England with luxuriant gardens, a stable full of horses and staff.
I’m one of those people that does whatever the hell she wants and lives and moves where she wants to live. I’ve lived in seven different apartments in the last 4 years.
Presently, I love New York.
Next stop will probably be New Orleans. Then Italy.
Saltwater Maine. Somewhere way Down East, past Cherryfield. Right on the ocean, of course, with a view up and down the rocky coast. A few bean-rows out back, and a tater patch.
The Florida Keys are good, too, for the two or three months out of the years that even I wouldn’t want to be in Maine. Way the hell down, but not as far as Key West (although I’d be happy to meet up with BigGirl down there for some serious bar-hopping). Maybe Big Coppitt Key or Summerland Key.
Monaco, Prague, Florence, in that order. Monaco has no crime, a great view of the Med, and wonderful people; Prague is ancient, inexpensive, and fun; and Florence has great museums and galleries, as well as being beautiful.
But right now I’d be happy if I could just move back to Toronto.
Well, I did that about 3 years ago, I chose itty bitty little town outside of StateCollege, PA, so my kids could be around their dad. And I will be doing it again next month, next stop, Santa Rosa, CA. If money were not option, I’d have to say I’d probably have a few here and there, New York, San Francisco, Venice, Athens, Paris, Sydney, Cabo, Puerto Rico, etc.
I would like to go to the Keys or the Bahamas. But I would probably move to Alaska. My wife has always wanted to spend time up there. And I would love to see the Northern Lights form inside the Arctic Circle.
Hawaii - either Kauai or the Big Island. I would also consider London. And if money was no object, I would have homes in both places, as well as one in my present hometown, Fort Worth.