Asheville
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Covid Safe Activity
Every December, for as long as I can remember, I have loved driving around one evening looking at the neighborhood Christmas lights. As a Realtor, looking at pretty homes is a passion so seeing them in a different “light” is mixing business with pleasure. I have passed along this tradition to my children. We bundle up, jump in the car, and sing Christmas songs as we comment on the great effort our neighbors put into their display. It sounds magical and it truly is. It’s one of the few moments that my kids don’t fight in the car or ask if we are there yet. Fortunately, this is one of the few holiday traditions untouched by Covid. It seems that in 2020, people have more time to put into bringing cheer to others through their decorations. Maybe it is just me looking for a silver lining but I must say last night did not disappoint.
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Rudolph in North Asheville?
Probably not my most exciting blog but I had to share. As I was running around the Rose Garden this morning in the freezing cold, a HUGE buck was in a friends yard. This is exciting to me because I am used to seeing bears, turkeys, hawks etc but never a deer. Is this a Christmas sign? Is Rudolph scoping the area for Christmas Eve?
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Closing Day
Real Estate is an amazing career. Every day is different and just when you think you have it figured out, something new and interesting comes along. I thoroughly enjoyed the opportunity to sell a friend of a friends home. Super excited for the sellers to downsize and a new family to enjoy a special property.
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The Church with No People
Yesterday my daughter got confirmed at Central United Methodist Church downtown. Normally, the church would be buzzing with people on a Sunday morning during Advent. Covid has made the most routine things seem anything but. Although the service was with masks, socially distant, and with only a handful of ministers as onlookers, it was special.
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Asheville Traffic Jam
When I lived in Atlanta, I had to plan my day around traffic. A 10 minute drive could easily take an hour. In Asheville, things are a little different. Don’t get me wrong, every now and then I will sit in a construction zone and that familiar anxious feeling creeps back. More often than not, cars are stopped on Kimberly Ave, Charlotte Street and neighborhood thoroughfares for turkeys. They take their time and don’t seem to feel the urgency to hurry out of the road. For some reason, I don’t get stressed for these delays.
Happy Thanksgiving!
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Facing a Fear
This past weekend I had the opportunity to do something that has freaked me out for years and years. My cousins and I went skeet shooting. This is not a country western song about cousins, shooting, whiskey etc. It was a personal challenge that pushed me out of my comfort zone. The sound of a gun ignites a feeling in me to flee. I am a flighter and this is a trigger for sure. Once I accepted the challenge and decided I would pick up a shot gun, I went all in. I didn’t want the instructor to load it for me. I wanted to do it all. Feeling the kick back from the first shot was an adrenaline rush. I pushed aside my fear and squeezed the trigger a second time. Success. I hit the clay pigeon (I think that is what they called it). After a few rounds the fear turned to enjoyment. Do I want to go buy a gun now? No. Would I go skeet shooting again? Absolutely. Did I push myself out of my comfort zone? For sure. I can apply this feeling to my real estate career. There is always something new that I encounter in every deal. I will face the challenge and unknown and attack it head on. Stepping outside of the center lane is hard but worth it.
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Bucket List
Three of my dear friends and I set out on the Appalachian Trail for my 44th birthday celebration. I have always been fascinated by this mythical trek and had never set foot on it (even though part of it is 25 mins from my house). One of my trail running buddies mapped it out and we set sail at 7:20 AM. The weather was cold at Sam’s Gap where we started. We ran for 6.2 miles to the most beautiful bald perfectly named Big Bald. On the way we passed 6 hikers. I asked where they were headed and they said Georgia. They were through hikers. To me they were unicorns. I am amazed by people that can hike from Maine to Georgia. Just like an Ironman, hiking the entire AT is on my life’s bucket list. I wanted to stop them and pepper questions, but I just told them how impressed I was and let them continue on. When we made it back to the car, my fantastic friends surprised me with a birthday cake and Perfect Day IPA which was so fitting for the special morning. I truly couldn’t think of a better way to ring in another year.
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Blogging as a Covid Activity
I really should have started blogging earlier. Frankly, it was one of those things that I knew I should do but kept putting on the back burner. Between homeschooling, mothering, exercising, real estate, keeping my house in some type of order, etc etc I neglected the blog. I also had great ambition to clean out all of the closets in my house and organize my drawers but it never happened. Oh well.
If you are going to quarantine, Asheville is a pretty fabulous place to do so. I have spent tons of time outside in the last 8 months. I dusted off my middle school tennis racquet, learned how to can pickles, trail ran on the AT for the first time, explored tons of swimming holes with my 8 year old, biked all over this town and checked out the newly completed greenway by the river arts district. I vow to run and bike on it lots and lots.
In my free time, I have loved the real estate boom we have seen in this town. I’ve learned something new with every transaction and gotten to see some beautiful homes along the way. Pretty sweet job for someone that truly is passionate about where they live.
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Setting Up Shop In A New Town
Moving to a new town is hard. Let’s not sugar coat it. We can skip over finding a house, moving in and getting the lights turned on. What about the little things like where is the closest grocery store, who is a reputable dry cleaner, is it to late to get my child on a soccer team, just to name a few?
When I moved to Asheville, I had all of these questions. My daughter was 4 months old and I had no idea how to fill my days in a new city. One day while walking around Beaver lake with my parents, my mom said, “Emily, I am going to find you some friends”. She knew I was struggling and lost. Two young women were strolling together in the distance, my mom walked over to them and said, “My daughter is new to town and needs some friends. Y’all look nice.” Little did I know that my mother hit the jackpot. One of the women happened to be a Realtor and gave me her card. My husband and I were renting at the time and considering buying, so I gave her a call. Fast forward 10 years and I now work with that Realtor at Asheville Realty Group, our daughters went to the same preschool and now elementary school and we live in the same neighborhood.
The moral of my story is that you never know how one new person will change the trajectory of your life. My mom gave me the nudge to put myself out there and make new friends. Thank goodness we were at the lake that day. My Realtor showed me the basics of Asheville living and I couldn’t be happier.
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Why Asheville?
First blog, hmmmm. Where to begin? Perhaps why Asheville? What makes me never want to live anywhere else?
I have been fortunate enough to travel extensively throughout my 41 years. My family moved around when I was younger so I am no stranger to starting over. In my head I am a big city girl. I lived briefly in NYC, Atlanta for almost a decade and Charlotte as a small child. So these things do not equate to living in a small town for the rest of my life. But here I am, putting down roots in western NC. So why?
#1 The People
I am always amazed at the interesting people I meet in this town. This isn’t the easiest place to find a job so a lot of people bring theirs with them or piece together a few odds and ends to make life work. I find myself sitting at a dinner table with friends discussing how we got to this place. A vacation that felt like home. A love of outdoors. Born and raised and was drawn back. Everyone has a story.
#2 The Beauty
If you know me, you know I love to run and ride my bike. This is an athletes paradise. The Blue Ridge Parkway is in my back yard (not literally) but part of my usual biking route. Have you seen the views? Crisp fresh air, amazing climbs and descents, fall foliage people seek from all over the US, just part of my everyday routine. And lets not forget the trails. Before I moved here, I had never run on a trail. Strictly a road girl in the ATL. There is nothing like getting out in the woods to get away from it all.
#3 The Food
I like to eat and Asheville does not disappoint. It is nearly impossible to narrow down a list of my favorites. I love being a tourist and going to the spots you have probably read about in national publications, but you can’t forget the hidden gems and food trucks that make this place special. Need a recommendation? Send me a message and I will be happy to share.
