♫ Airporter - Shing02 & Marcus D ♫

As I write this, in 6 hours, I'm heading to the airport and departing for Seattle, Washington.

I used to live in Washington, specifically a city nearby Seattle. My close family moved to Florida a few years ago, and I don't feel at home here. Maybe, I... move back?

I've thought about it for a very long time. A trip to revisit the place would be a great start instead of jumping straight in with packing my bags and moving (Not like I can even do that without substantial effort and devotion). Now that a trip is on my doorstep, it's hard to describe how to feel. It's hard to feel, for an odd reason.

I went with my family to Tennessee to meet a relative new to my life. This state is beautiful!

After living in Florida for the last few years, I missed hills. TN has hills galore!

Honestly, I don't really know what travel blogs write about, so I will instead use this blog post as a journal to overcome feelings and plan my goals for the upcoming trip.

Enjoy the pictures, though. PSA: Open images individually to see their full, uncropped size :)

Pictures and journaling

Photo of a balcony-side view of the Great Smoky Mountains, with a nearby cabin, endless trees, and mountains.

Although, I didn't do much exploring. The Airbnb we stayed at was wonderful, and the goal wasn't necessarily about Tennessee, but about family.

Photo of a green luna moth resting on the side of a lamp outside at night

As the Washington trip approaches, I need to have a different approach to this trip than any other I've been on.

Photo of a half-eaten pizza along with numerous other items on a restaurant table, including salt and pepper shakers, plates, and water bottles.

I'm going to not only tour colleges for next year, but the state as a whole. Do I really still want to live here? Or is it just some sort of nostalgia of childhood life affecting my views?

Photo of a small shop, selling countless items such as stuffed bears, coffee, spices, and more that's hard to see in the back of the room.

To that end, I want to use the time I have to my fullest. 4 days, so 2 full days to experience Seattle. I think I'll spend a day to hang out with old friends in my old city, too.

Photo of an indoor snow tubing attraction.

I don't want to sleep in for this trip, and I don't want to spend most of my time relaxing in our accomodation.

Photo of nature; trees, dirt, bushes, weeds, and other greenery.

What will I do with this extra time? I'm not sure. You know what sounds nice? Waking up early, walking out of the room to a nearby coffee shop and grabbing a drink in the cold Seattle morning... Seattle is infamous for having a Starbucks on basically every block. Local places, of course, are great too.

Photo of a high school football game, taken from the sidelines.

Speaking of cold, I miss that too. Florida is too hot and humid for my liking.

Photo of a strange, small object in the middle of a triangle formed by red caution tape saying "CAUTION: ELECTRIC LINE BURIED BELOW". The object appears to be a board with two plates on the top of its front side, with marker drawn to make it look like eyes, as well as a smile drawn below the plates.

There is a lot I miss about Washington. Will it live up to my expectations? I don't want to have too many.

Photo of a cloudy day at a parking lot surrounded by electric lines and tall hills coated in greenery.

I'm looking forward to the trip above all. Washington may not be how I remember it, but that's okay.

In the past, I could have done so much more, and so much better. I'm nowhere near the best person I can be. At least I'm improving now, and fighting for a better future as much as I can. So, the one thing I hope to get from this trip is determining what I will be spending my final year of high school working towards.

Good pictures would also be nice to get too.

-James