"The sky is filled with stars, invisible by day" Longfellow 16/365

Now don't get me wrong, there is a lot that I love about living in the city...... but after being back here at the farm, I realize how much I have missed some of the little things that the city does not offer. The great thing about this place is that it is actually only about 19 minutes away from the Houston city limits and about 5 minutes away from I-10... but it seems like you are out in the middle of nowhere (but in a good way!) The first thing out of every one's mouth that comes to visit is "I had no idea this area existed. How did you find it?" It was just total luck that my parents stumbled upon this place. Unfortunately, every motorcyclist and bicycler in the Houston area appears to know about it because it is the number one spot for weekend rides which can make for a frustrating drive into town if you are in a hurry and stuck behind what seems like 100's of cyclists.

Some of the things that I have discovered that I have missed about this place are:

• The silence (except for the kids across the street with their super loud exhaust pipes on their trucks...the one kid got his off of a cement truck. They are huge!!!!)
• The way it gets so dark at night.
• Seeing owls flying around in the moonlight.
• The stars, the moon, and the smell of fresh air. If you have never thrown a blanket into the bed of a pickup truck and just looked up into the night sky then you are missing out.
• The way people you don't even know, wave at you when you drive by.
• The sound of birds, frogs, and cicadas.
• Being able to walk around outside in whatever you want (pajamas!!) and nobody cares.... because they can't see you (well, for the most part anyways. I know for a fact that several of my neighbors have binoculars and use them on a regular basis to see what is going on.)
• Seeing my little dogs run around in wide open spaces without having to worry about them. I also love just being able to open the door and they can go outside on their own. Austin has some great dog parks but it is still a hassle to take them on every little outing.

Things I have not missed include:

• The mosquitoes
• Spiders and other annoying bugs. There is a serious spider problem here that no pesticide in the world can fix. We are talking huge, scary, in your face spiders. When my parents first moved in, I was surprised at all the spider webs in the eaves and in between the windows. I quickly learned that no matter what you sprayed or how often you clean... the come back with a vengeance just a couple days later.
• The tendency for the front yard to be under water after a heavy rain. This is the price you pay for the beauty of the humongous 100 year old pecan trees in the yard. They grow here because this area had to have been under water at some point.
• You can't just make a "quick trip" anywhere. Anything is going to take you at least 20 minutes.
• Neighbors who seem to know all of your business...how they know everything about what is going on in your life I will never know.