I Remember - Charleston Style

It's crazy to me that 6 months ago, I was on the road driving through a lot of states I had never seen before. And in a couple days I'll be doing the same thing, but this time heading to a place I've been my entire life.

So knowing that, I wanted to write about a few things that stuck out in my mind before I leave. Things that hopefully I will remember forever (regardless of how random they are) but if not I can come back to this blog and read about it again.

I remember:

-The first night we finally got to Charleston. Of course I got to see my very first Southern storm. The rain in the south is not like the rain I was used to in Seattle. Even when the wind whips around in Seattle that rain isn't as hard as it is in Charleston. It was almost like the rain drops were bigger than I was used to. And I remember driving to our hotel that first night, barely being able to see out the windshield and suddenly hearing this loud CLAP and BOOM immediately afterward, seeing as how a bolt of lightning had either just struck the car, or had hit somewhere very close to us. I thought it was a fitting welcoming party.

-Trying to unpack that night. Trying to pull all of the luggage and everything else out of the car in a downpour. Only to check in to a hotel we absolutely hated and moved out of the next morning.

-Losing my ass in the market during the drive out to Charleston. Only to make back everything while trading from a hotel room at the Residence Inn in North Charleston. Sitting there, waiting to move in to our house which still had renters in it. I remember the free beer and free food they had at the Residence Inn. I guess this is something they did at most of the hotels down here. Free breakfast - and not just your standard bagels and muffins, but actually pancakes, waffles, bacon, sausage and eggs. And free happy hour dinner. Free keg of beer, and typically a BBQ dinner.

-Taking the dog on a walk around the hotel and her getting bitten by ants. At that point I realized I had to take the "critters" down here a lot more seriously than I did at home.

-Going to the most empty Costco I had ever seen in my entire life. Granted, it was during working hours, but the parking lot was almost empty. I remember sitting in the car and eating a Costco hot dog (which wasn't as good as back home) and a salad in the sun and feeling that nice breeze.

-Getting my car shipped to the hotel and driving to the house we'd be living in for the next 6 months. Windows rolled down, blasting the music and driving through the gorgeous lowcountry. That turn off of the 526 to Daniel Island surprised me the first time. It was almost a 90 degree turn that I thought I would be run off the road by.

-Going to the Isle of Palms for the first time. And looking around and thinking to myself, "This is what a Carolina beach is supposed to look like. I can't believe we live so close to this." And immediately understimating the power of the sun and getting burned. I remember swimming in that ocean - tiny waves but still a lot of fun. Cheaping out on an umbrella that would constantly fly away on us.

-Sitting by one of the many community pools on the "DI" and reading my book. Wishing I was retired down here.

-Being so scared the day I left for Europe. Which was only 10 days after moving in to our new house. It was storming throughout the morning and the wife was so afraid to be alone in a new place.

-Having my cousin that had lived down here for a few months introduce us to all his favorite places to eat. Jim and Nick's, Sushi Hiro, Home Team BBQ. There were so many great places to eat in Charleston - Tsunami, King Street Grill, Fatz, Huddle/Waffle House (not really), Five Guys, Dog and Duck, Gene's Haufbrau, Virginia's on King, Joseph's, Seabiscuit, Boulevard Diner, Bookstore Cafe, Sweetwater Cafe and Fulton Five only to name the restaurants I can think of.

-The food down here. Collared greens. Shrimp and Grits. Fried Chicken...and waffles. Fried green tomatoes, pickles, and okra.

-Downtown Charleston. All the shops. All the old homes. Battery Street. King Street. East Bay Street. Calhoun. The frustration from the lack of a grid system and too many one way streets in the wrong places. The bar scene downtown off of Market and the way people dressed up down here to go out. Walking across the Arthur J Ravenel bridge. The Farmer's market they held every Saturday morning. The crepes, the mini-doughnuts, the live music, art and fresh farm produce. All the churches and graveyards, the cobblestone drives, the government buildings that had survived generations. The ghost tours - one on boat and one by foot.

-Going to Florida multiple times to visit the wife's Grandma. Realizing each time how much better a city Charleston was than Tampa Bay. But happy to play golf for free. Watching an old projection screen TV each time until we conviced her to go out and buy a new LCD. Being stuck to leather couches in a house that was 82 degrees. Swimming in an outdoor pool that wasn't much better.

-Discovering the surrounding areas and all their small town Southern charm. Hilton Head, Beaufort, Savannah, Columbia, Folly Beach. It's nothing like where I'm from. Each town has it's own character. That's something I'll definitely miss coming from the land of strip malls filled with Quizno's, Target and Starbucks circa 1990s. There are buildings and houses down here that are centuries old. There's something about knowing that generations of people have walked the same path as I have. New buildings definitely have their benefits but after seeing what history has to offer I just think they lack soul sometimes.

There is definitely more memories in this head of mine. When I get them out on paper I'll post them up in October.