I Like Provo.

So, Scott, as you know, is a transportation engineer.  And he's been working on the I-15 Core project, but the thing is, it's almost done.  Finis.  No more engineers needed.  So things are going to be changing in the very near future.  We have a few watched pots we're trying to get to boil/choose between, and when everything is done-and-done, we'll fill you in.  A long-distance move seems highly likely.  In the mean time, I have something to say:

I like Provo.

Now, I know what assumptions everyone makes about Provo, and not all of them are wrong.  But not all of them are right, either.  In most ways, residential (non-student) Provo is pretty much akin to any of the other bedroom communities between here and Ogden.

But it's better.  It has plenty of authentic food joints that thrive with the RMs anxious for a taste from their other home.  BYU has the MOA, tons of music programs, (I missed seeing Mandy Patinkin due to my brothers' wedding.  Is it normal to still be crying about that?) a wonderful genealogy library, Education Week, some really cool special exhibits, and a great dose of nostalgic charm dating back to 2002/2003, when Scott and I spent the year studying each other far more than anything else.

And here's the stuff I like that's really, really pivotal to me that nobody else cares about: it's really easy to get raw milk.  There's two separate but well-staffed health food stores nearby.  There's Sprouts, which has great produce, very affordably priced, with a great organic selection, too.  I have Jeff, my "egg man" who sells me pastured eggs for $3/dozen and doesn't balk when I tell him I want seven dozen.  The Farmer's Market is just across the street from our house, and it's my favorite thing to do on a Saturday morning.  I have a great source for grass-fed beef and even organ meats.  Dr. Christopher's herb shop is just in the next town, and it's one of the few places to get bulk herbs for a decent price without going online and having to pay shipping.  I can even buy a gallon of my extra-virgin, cold-pressed organic coconut oil at a local store instead of paying an extra $15 to get it shipped here.

And I know my reasons are mine and mine alone -- after all, who else cares if they can buy their astragalus or raspberry leaf for a good price? -- but it really drives me nuts these days to hear people act like Provo's only identity is as a community with a problem.  Of course, it's absolutely true that when you get a lot of people who have the same religious background, that's going to skew things.  And distort things.  But that's worth working through, worth helping people understand.  It's an opportunity to be a missionary not necessarily to spread and sound the gospel, but to at least share a few gospel ideas they may not be fully understanding.  

It's not perfect.  I know.  Maybe that's why I'm comfortable here: I do get the vibe that most people are busy trying.  Imperfectly trying, with each of us failing in our own unique ways, but all trying together.  And we all have a common goal that unites us -- a very elevated, divine goal... one I can always support my neighbors in.*

I am gonna miss it here.

The end.

*This whole essay has had the undertones of "Everybody in Provo is Mormon!"  Totally not true.  Totally didn't have time to properly address that.  Lots of people are, and it is definitely perceived as being that way, so I just kind of went with it.