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07.24.2007 // 31 Comments // Aldrich Ct. Townhome Top five things I’ll miss about Lawrence

Barring any (more) unforeseen changes to our schedule, Michelle and I should be nearing Sioux Falls, SD this time tomorrow. We’re hoping in the car tomorrow evening and heading off to the great Northwest. We were supposed to leave on Friday — but our movers called today saying they’ll be here early. Thus, we also need to leave early in order to beat them to Seattle. No worries — I’m excited to get there and have a weekend to get settled before I start working in the new office on Monday.

Guess how many turns there are on the 2000 mile route from Kansas City to Seattle? One. Yes, one. Take I-29N, hang a left on I-90, and that’s it. I thought that was amusing.

Lawrence, KS, is definitely the coolest town I’ve ever lived in. Certain people who’ve never been around here like to think we live in the proverbial BFE, but the reality is that Lawrence is a fun, hip college town with a killer music scene— a mini-Austin, if you will. So, while I couldn’t be more excited to head off to Seattle, there are some things I’ll miss about this town. Besides the obvious ones (Haley, family, friends, and my World Online co-workers), here are a few of them:

  1. Being able to see every Chiefs game. I’m pretty concerned about this. Not being able to watch the Chiefs every Sunday this fall is going to feel really, really strange.
  2. Chipotle. There’s only one Chipotle in Seattle, and it’s not extremely close to where I’ll live or work. It’s a short drive, but I’m sure I won’t get to eat there two or three times a week like I do now. Bummer.
  3. Free tickets to shows. As I said, Lawrence does have a great music scene, with some very good local groups and good national acts coming through regularly. Thanks to my hookups at Lawrence.com, I was able to get in free to most things. I’ll miss that.
  4. 500 square feet. Our place in Seattle is about a third smaller than our current one. We’ll make due just fine — we really have more room than we need now — but I’ll still miss the extra space.
  5. The really hot days. I’m strange. I like it when it’s 95 degrees and humid as hell here. On the flip side, I hate it when it’s 25 degrees and there’s an ice storm outside. I won’t get either of those in Seattle (although, there was a 95+ degree day there a few weeks back, if I recall!).

But, to be fair, I can easily come up with five things I’m looking forward to in Seattle:

  1. The ocean. Ever since I was very little, I’ve been fascinated by the ocean. Being a few blocks away from an inland sea which houses Orcas and six-gill sharks is pretty damn cool, if you ask me.
  2. Seafood! We don’t get much great seafood in the Midwest. Can’t wait to get my hands on some good stuff.
  3. Being a tourist in my own town. I’ve lived around the Kansas City area all my life. I’ve seen an done everything there is to do here. It’ll be fun to have new museums, zoos, aquariums, parks, attractions, and so forth. I’m sure I’ll get tired of going up in the Space Needle by the third time someone comes from out of town to visit, but right now it sounds like fun.
  4. Durrant-mania. Hey, why not?
  5. Being involved in a larger local web nerd community. Although the KC/Lawrence web community is bigger than you might imagine, it still pales in comparison to the size of that in Seattle. Should be fun.

Look me up next time you’re in Seattle, yo!

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Comments

  1. 001 // Troy Thompson // 07.24.2007 // 8:19 AM

    Congratulations, Jeff! Working for Blueflavor should be awesome! By the way, who’s going to organize the Lawrence/KC meetups, now? One Chipotle in Seattle?! The shame!!

  2. 002 // Joshua Works // 07.24.2007 // 8:48 AM

    Chipotle is as near-to-heaven as one can get in the Midwest, but your #2 on the Seattle list (seafood) is a pretty tough competitor. Fortunately for you, I see more Chipotles coming to Seattle long before seafood comes to Kansas.

    We’ll be in the Tacoma/Seattle area next July for a wedding, so maybe we’ll give you a buzz. Godspeed & happy roadtrippin’.

  3. 003 // Brent O'Connor // 07.24.2007 // 8:57 AM

    Chipotle is one of the major things I miss since I moved to Joplin, MO in April. Any Chipotle executives listening? I need a Chipotle in Joplin and it sounds like Jeff needs one closer to his apartment in Seattle!

  4. 004 // Geof Harries // 07.24.2007 // 9:10 AM

    Chiefs? Well, you can go to Seahawks games instead (blasphemy, I know).

  5. 005 // Chris Griffin // 07.24.2007 // 9:18 AM

    Strange, there’s several Chipotles in Portland. Ironically, my ex-girlfriend’s dad is a contractor, and he has built a few of the Chipotles here in Portland, but he lives in Seattle.

  6. 006 // Nicole // 07.24.2007 // 9:46 AM

    Ah, my old friend I-90. Be sure to stop and get the free ice water at Wall Drug (Wall, SD) — you may need it in the blazing heat of the Great Plains. In the blazing heat may not be a good time to stop and check out the Badlands, however. Though beautiful, it’s friggin’ hot out there. The Black Hills are cool (western SD). Thankfully, your swing through Wyoming is short although the view of the Tetons to the west as you near the Montana border is pretty spectacular. Bozeman and Missoula are both fine stops in Montana (both have cool historic downtown districts), avoid Butte, MT if possible. The mountain views as you cross the panhandle of Idaho are among the finest I’ve seen (and I’ve lived around mountains nearly my whole life). And then there’s eastern Washington, which, luckily, leads to western Washington.

    Anyway, I hope you have a great trip and have at least a little time to take in the scenery.

  7. 007 // Baxter // 07.24.2007 // 10:16 AM

    So long, and thanks for the fish.

    Seriously, good luck at Blue Flavor, be careful during the move, and I’ll tell my sister in Montana to give you a wave!

    You’ll be missed round here.

  8. 008 // Wilson Miner // 07.24.2007 // 10:45 AM

    I’m going to pretend you didn’t list Chipotle as one of the things you’re going to miss about Lawrence.

  9. 009 // Tom Watson // 07.24.2007 // 11:12 AM

    Can’t wait for you to get here, and I’m hoping the Seafood will make up for the lack of Chipotle.

  10. 010 // Nate Manderfeld // 07.24.2007 // 12:05 PM

    @Wilson I suppose Jeff’s comment holds the same merit similar to someone from the west coast laments about the loss of In-N-Out burgers.

    @Jeff, you could have picked something besides Chipotle from a growing list of possibilities:

    Boulevard beer (ok, save for your fruity drinks) Indoor furniture &#8230 outside Lawrence is the center of the (Google) Earth [specifically Meadowbrook Apartments] The college town inviting atmosphere and incredibly friendly people The Plaza Kansas Motor Speedway Kansas City Royals (super cheap entertainment)

  11. 011 // Jeff Croft // 07.24.2007 // 2:16 PM

    By the way, who’s going to organize the Lawrence/KC meetups, now?

    Drew pretty much organized the last two, anyway — I’m sure they’ll be fine. I’ll keep the mailing list going. :)

    Chipotle is as near-to-heaven as one can get in the Midwest

    I’m glad you see it my way. Almost certainly the greatest fast food ever made.

    We’ll be in the Tacoma/Seattle area next July for a wedding, so maybe we’ll give you a buzz.

    Definitely do. We’ll have an extra bedroom if you need a place to stay.

    Chiefs? Well, you can go to Seahawks games instead (blasphemy, I know).

    I’ve actually always liked the Seahawks. I used to not be able to admit it, since they were in the same division as the Chiefs (old AFC West). Once the ‘Hawks got moved to the NFC, though, I was free to root for them. I don’t usually watch NFC nearly as much as AFC, but the Seahawks are definitely amongst my favorite NFC teams.

    Strange, there’s several Chipotles in Portland.

    Oh yeah? Well, for Chipotle, it’s worth the two hour drive. :)

    Ah, my old friend I-90.

    Thanks for all the tips, Nicole! I’ve been along I-90 in South Dakota and Wyoming, but Michelle hasn’t, and I’ve never been up through MT, ID, and WA. So, it’s good to hear there is some nice scenery along the way!

    I’m going to pretend you didn’t list Chipotle as one of the things you’re going to miss about Lawrence.

    Screw you, WIlson. :) You, of all people, know how much I loves me some Chipotle!

    Can’t wait for you to get here, and I’m hoping the Seafood will make up for the lack of Chipotle.

    Oh, I’m sure it will. Chipotle is great, but there’s probably hundreds of good places in Seattle we don’t have here. It’s a fair trade. See you in a few days, man!

    I suppose Jeff’s comment holds the same merit similar to someone from the west coast laments about the loss of In-N-Out burgers.

    Yes! Thank you, Nate!

    Boulevard beer (ok, save for your fruity drinks)

    Right. Boulevard is apparently a kick ass beer, but since I don’t drink beer, I won’t miss it much. :)

    The college town inviting atmosphere and incredibly friendly people

    True, true…

    The Plaza

    The Plaza is nice, but I understand there’s some good shopping in Seattle, too.

    Kansas Motor Speedway

    People already think I’m a hick enough. I don’t go to auto racing events in an attempt to lessen the reputation. Seriously — I’ve never been to the Speedway. My family goes all the time though. I’m just not really into NASCAR, myself.

    Kansas City Royals (super cheap entertainment)

    If, by entertainment, you mean watching your favorite team lose. :) Seriously, Royals games are very cheap and really nice — Kauffmann is a great stadium, and it’s a nice, relaxed atmosphere. But I don’t go that often becuse the team is so bad. And, Seattle has them some baseball, too. :)

  12. 012 // Jeff Croft // 07.24.2007 // 2:17 PM

    Thanks for all the kind words, everyone! Our movers did in fact show up today and haul all our stuff away, so we’ll be heading out this evening. I think we’ll be in Seattle Thursday night.

  13. 013 // Sean S // 07.24.2007 // 2:51 PM

    Actually, I know of at least three Chipotle’s in the Seattle area. There’s even one in the same parking lot as a Whole Foods (in Redmond). Com’on, you don’t have that in Lawrence, do ya? ;)

  14. 014 // Jeff Croft // 07.24.2007 // 3:19 PM

    Sean: There’s a few more if you count the whole Seattle area, but I believe it’s only one in Seattle (in the U-district). That one is probably only 15 minutes away from my apartment, but I’m used to being able to walk there for lunch a few times a week. Fighting the traffic to Redmond isn’t really ideal, you know. :)

  15. 015 // Karl Peterson // 07.24.2007 // 8:12 PM

    Jeff, It’s great to hear that you’re moving to the Pacific NW. If you’re ever missing that small college town feel be sure to come visit Bellingham (2 hours north). From your descriptions they seem similar.

    Good luck!

  16. 016 // Grant Blakeman // 07.24.2007 // 8:39 PM

    Living in the denver/boulder area I forget how much I take chipotle for granted…

  17. 017 // Dave // 07.24.2007 // 9:03 PM

    So, I live in Philly. So it’s not like I know you much personally, but I’ve always been a fan of your site and your interests don’t seem to vary much from mine.

    I wish you nothing but luck in your move. I’ve made a couple of big moves myself recently and they’re scary and totally awesome (because, c’mon, what’s life without some risk and fun?) Besides, you’re getting to work at a totally kick-ass shop. Damn you!

    Anyway, enjoy Seattle. The week I was out there, I was enthralled by it. Best luck man!

  18. 018 // nic // 07.25.2007 // 12:19 AM

    Sioux Falls, huh?!

    You should swing by Electric Pulp before taking your left out west… They’ll be some free bomb pops waiting for ya.

  19. 019 // Dustin Brewer // 07.25.2007 // 5:47 AM

    Good luck on your move and I hope everything makes it to your new place.

  20. 020 // Michael R. Murphy // 07.25.2007 // 9:59 AM

    Congratulations on the big move Jeff.

    I made the jump from NY to the Northwest (Portland specifically) about a month ago and I LOVE it.

    Best of luck!

  21. 021 // Ryan Berg // 07.26.2007 // 1:38 AM

    For the 10 months I lived directly next to the Chipotle in Lawrence, I went there exactly one time. I walked the block to Qdoba for a queso burrito frequently, and was devastated by the loss in January. (Thankfully Knoxville just got a Qdoba) Thanks to the sad events at Yello Sub last week, I don’t doubt I’ll lose my new favorite burrito in town, from Big 12. Not that that’s the most important loss from the situation.

  22. 022 // dale // 07.26.2007 // 1:31 PM

    http://www.aguaverde.com/

    better than chipotle. better view.

  23. 023 // Jim Ray // 07.26.2007 // 8:55 PM

    I got one word for your Chipolte jonesin’ - tacos guyamas. It’s right down the street from Blue Flavor, you’ll forget you’d ever even said the word Chipotle.

  24. 024 // paulo // 07.27.2007 // 1:25 AM

    Best of luck and congrats on the move & sweet gig!

    Seattle is my second favorite city behind SF (I am biased. I was born in SF and it has always been my second home).

    I am concerned about one thing though… Chipotle. Maybe I have been spoiled by growing up in CA and living in San Diego for 5+ years where great Mexican food can be found fairly easily. Chipotle does not even land on the “half decent Mexican food” list. If Chipotle is one of your fave quick-ish food joints you will be pleasantly surprised by the vast amounts of amazing , fresh, food & seafood up there.

  25. 025 // Michelle // 07.27.2007 // 10:57 AM

    I’m going to forget you ever said you were excited about Durrant….. ;)

  26. 026 // Michael Sigler // 07.27.2007 // 2:30 PM

    Best of luck in Seattle, Jeff. Wish I had known you were open to the possibilities of the Northwest. I would have tried to persuade you to Portland and Jive Software. There is a Chipotle just two blocks from our office here in downtown.

    But if you simply must move to Seattle then I highly recommend Qdoba. Always preferred them to Chipotle.

    Looking forward to seeing your touch at BF.

  27. 027 // Jeff Croft // 07.28.2007 // 10:12 PM

    Hey guys — thanks again to everyone for all the kind words. We did, in fact, make it to Seattle Thursday evening. Our apartment is great — even better than expected (better view than we thought we had!). Our movers came with our stuff on Friday morning. It all got here, but some of it was definitely beaten up pretty badly. Nothing too valuable was hurt, really. Just a few pieces of old furniture we really wanted to replace, anyway. So I guess this will speed up that replacement. That was annoying, but in general everything has been great so far. We’ve been really busy with unpacking and such, so if you’ve tried to e-mail or call in the past several days and I haven’t responded, I’m sorry. I will get back, I promise!

    @dale: Thanks! That sounds good for sure — Michelle and I loves us some Mexican, so we’ll check it out.

    @Jim: I’m very doubtful it’ll make me forget Chipotle, but I definitely trust you that it’s really good, and I’ll definitely check it out — probably very soon. :) I’ll also probably call you this week sometime.

    Chipotle does not even land on the “half decent Mexican food” list.

    Say what you like, but that stuff tastes good. I don’t care if it’s not authentic or there are better restaurants out there — Chipotle still makes me happy, man. :)

    But if you simply must move to Seattle then I highly recommend Qdoba. Always preferred them to Chipotle.

    Qdoba is pretty decent, but to say they’re better than Chipotle is pure blasphemy! And that goes for you, too, Ryan Berg! :)

  28. 028 // Michael Sigler // 07.30.2007 // 11:57 AM

    I’ll refrain from furthering the Qdoba vs Chipotle debate.

    I am curious who you used for the move. There are definitely enough horror stories out there to make a man nervous about it. How did you go about choosing them?

    Oh, and you should get a “remember me” checkbox on this thing. I would comment more. :D

  29. 029 // Eric Florenzano // 07.31.2007 // 1:49 AM

    Did you know that Chipotle is owned by McDonalds? It’s something that, once you know, just makes total sense.

    Anyways, I’m a long time lurker, and I just wanted to say good luck with the move and with Blue Flavor!

  30. 030 // Matt // 08.01.2007 // 1:10 AM

    I’m sure the blueflavor guys are great and all, but honestly, no easy-access Chipotle would have been a deal-breaker for me. Carnitas burrito bol > leaflets.

    In all seriousness, congrats and good luck!

  31. 031 // Chip D // 08.06.2007 // 10:02 AM

    mmmm…. Chipotle….

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