In praise of where I live

[Mr Pootle]

I live in Headingley, a suburb of Leeds, in the County of West Yorkshire. I can walk out of my house, cross the road and find myself in a park. If I walk through the park I can by out in the country within 20 minutes without walking between any other houses.
If I go in other directions, there are supermarkets, butchers, bakers and greengrocers all just a few minutes away.
There are seven pubs within staggering home distance. There are ten or more restaurants I can walk to.
Headingley stadium hosts international cricket and rugby league matches. It's far enough away that it doesn't disturb me, but close enough if I want to watch a game.
Leeds is the fourth biggest city in England, with all the benefits that a big city can offer. A leading university, good hospitals, theatres, museums, an art gallery. The centre is three miles away. I can catch a train from there and be in London within two and a half hours or Edinburgh within three hours fifteen minutes.
I can drive to the east coast for a day out in Whitby or Scarborough.
The airport is 20 minutes from home. From there I can fly to Paris, Nice, Barcelona, Venice, Amsterdam and many other European destinations.
I'm sat at home in lockdown counting my blessings.
How about telling us about the good things where you live?

[moto-uno]

  I live in Burnaby ,B.C , and I doubt it'll get any better anywhere else ( different yes  ) , that's my story and I'm sticking with it  .  Peter

[Yeahoo Whoyah]

Best thing about where I live is the name: ELDORADO hills.  I wish there was an AMBASSADOR road and I lived in 3-bedroom CONVERT

[moto-uno]

   ^  , Love it ! , Peter

[cliffrod]

After many years of traveling and living in (mostly) the eastern half of the USA, we settled here in the NW corner of South Carolina.  Summers are pretty hot, but winter is more entertainment than serious cold like my birth home of Vermont.   We're on the edge of the mountains.  It's 2 miles to the nearest interstate, then 70 miles to Charlotte or approx 200 to Atlanta.  Its also approx 200 miles to Knoxville TN through the awesome Blue Ridge mountains and 200 miles to the ocean in either Charleston or Myrtle Beach.  It's much more populated around here than when I was young, but still not clogged with people.  Cost of living is very reasonable.  Nearly everything we need is available within a short radius. 

Here at home- We have a nearly two acre property on the edge of an older subdivision without strict rules, planted with a lot of edibles.  In fact I planted two black walnut seedlings this morning after digging "those weeds" from my mother's flower garden, plus multiple cherry trees, new leaf grapes & more in the past 1-2 weeks.    We lazy garden, with many herbs and greens growing year round plus a few actual vegetables planted each summer.  A few chickens to make my wife laugh. Not counting my kitchen that was finally sorted about 2-3 yrs ago,  I have three shops on the property and have worked from here almost exclusively since we moved here 17 years ago.  The sculpture studio was purpose-built and never varied or used for anything else.  While waiting for the stone that's on the truck now, I've  been cleaning & seriously reorganizing my model/wood shop (finished) and metal shop (nearly done) that tend to be abused compared to the studio  It will make working on my Guzzi and others a lot more fun.  After a lifetime of accumulating tool and equipment to make & fix things, I've finally reached some rationalized goals.  Seeing the shops come together lately is pretty fantastic. Not sure when I would have stopped to do all of this work otherwise.

Lately, it's been great to have even more reason to stay home and do our thing.   Going places means not being home, which is where we want to be.   We've built our world we want right here.  No matter, my wife says we've got too much stuff to move.

[Ncdan]

I live in Headingley, a suburb of Leeds, in the County of West Yorkshire. I can walk out of my house, cross the road and find myself in a park. If I walk through the park I can by out in the country within 20 minutes without walking between any other houses.
If I go in other directions, there are supermarkets, butchers, bakers and greengrocers all just a few minutes away.
There are seven pubs within staggering home distance. There are ten or more restaurants I can walk to.
Headingley stadium hosts international cricket and rugby league matches. It's far enough away that it doesn't disturb me, but close enough if I want to watch a game.
Leeds is the fourth biggest city in England, with all the benefits that a big city can offer. A leading university, good hospitals, theatres, museums, an art gallery. The centre is three miles away. I can catch a train from there and be in London within two and a half hours or Edinburgh within three hours fifteen minutes.
I can drive to the east coast for a day out in Whitby or Scarborough.
The airport is 20 minutes from home. From there I can fly to Paris, Nice, Barcelona, Venice, Amsterdam and many other European destinations.
I'm sat at home in lockdown counting my blessings.
How about telling us about the good things where you live?

Sounds like a great place to live mr pootle

[LesP]

How about telling us about the good things where you live?

I live on an island where time stopped in the 1980's.
The robots live over that horizon.

[knockerjoe]

What you fail to mention is that Leeds University hosted some of the greatest rock concerts
of all time. You indeed live in a great place 👍

[Guzzistajohn]

SW Missouri USA here. From where I live, in 20-30 minutes I can be in total seclusion in the woods, on a curvy smooth road or at a crystal clear creek or lake. The people are mostly polite and friendly. Glad to be from the Missouri Ozarks.





 

[Gliderjohn]

We live about 40 miles north of Wichita, KS in a rural area. After leaving home in 1973 came back in 2005 and had a home, etc. built a mile north of where I grew up. Many of the people I grew up with are still here as multi-generational farmers. For KS it is a nice area and the community spirit and support is still strong here.
Many nice rural but not exciting riding roads, both paved and non-paved. At least before the virus hit, many nice independent cafes, almost all good. Only about five hours from fantastic Ozark riding and about nine hours from the Colorado Rockies.
Here is a recent picture of our backyard.



GliderJohn

[Guzzistajohn]

We live about 40 miles north of Wichita, KS in a rural area. After leaving home in 1973 came back in 2005 and had a home, etc. built a mile north of where I grew up. Many of the people I grew up with are still here as multi-generational farmers. For KS it is a nice area and the community spirit and support is still strong here.
Many nice rural but not exciting riding roads, both paved and non-paved. At least before the virus hit, many nice independent cafes, almost all good. Only about five hours from fantastic Ozark riding and about nine hours from the Colorado Rockies.
Here is a recent picture of our backyard.



GliderJohn

  ^^looks like a good place to chunk a beetle spin John! ^^

[LowRyter]

Where I live ain't bad.  I live better than I ever imagined.   Nice house, nice car, nice bike.  Not broke.   Occasionally good weather.

I think every place would be better without the virus.

[Old Jock]

Ladies and Gentlemen

I give you Glasgow

[Joliet Jim]

About 40 miles south of it now in the sprawling suburbs but my home town. A little outdated but still conveys the feeling.

Hog Butcher for the World,
   Tool Maker, Stacker of Wheat,
   Player with Railroads and the Nation's Freight Handler;
   Stormy, husky, brawling,
   City of the Big Shoulders:

They tell me you are wicked and I believe them, for I have seen your painted women under the gas lamps luring the farm boys.
And they tell me you are crooked and I answer: Yes, it is true I have seen the gunman kill and go free to kill again.
And they tell me you are brutal and my reply is: On the faces of women and children I have seen the marks of wanton hunger.
And having answered so I turn once more to those who sneer at this my city, and I give them back the sneer and say to them:
Come and show me another city with lifted head singing so proud to be alive and coarse and strong and cunning.
Flinging magnetic curses amid the toil of piling job on job, here is a tall bold slugger set vivid against the little soft cities;
Fierce as a dog with tongue lapping for action, cunning as a savage pitted against the wilderness,
   Bareheaded,
   Shoveling,
   Wrecking,
   Planning,
   Building, breaking, rebuilding,
Under the smoke, dust all over his mouth, laughing with white teeth,
Under the terrible burden of destiny laughing as a young man laughs,
Laughing even as an ignorant fighter laughs who has never lost a battle,
Bragging and laughing that under his wrist is the pulse, and under his ribs the heart of the people,
                   Laughing!
Laughing the stormy, husky, brawling laughter of Youth, half-naked, sweating, proud to be Hog Butcher, Tool Maker, Stacker of Wheat, Player with Railroads and Freight Handler to the Nation.

[roadventure]

I live on an island where time stopped in the 1980's.
The robots live over that horizon.

Bribie Island (can't be cagey since the internet came to be...)

[mobiker]

Sounds like a truly nice place to live Mr. Pootle. Lets not forget that the Who's best album was recorded live at Leeds 

Central Missouri is nice. Twisty roads less than 10 miles away. Ozarks to the immediate south. A short day's ride to Arkansas - home to wonderful, twisty, lightly traveled mountain roads with fantastic scenery.

Great plains a couple of hours to the west. I've enjoyed the plains. They have their own kind of beauty. Something about wide open spaces and not being hemmed in 

Mississippi River a couple of hours west.

College town 20 miles to the north. Capitol 10 miles south.

Missouri River down the hill. Living along the riparian corridor of a major river with a huge drainage area is interesting in its own right. A different ecosystem. Lots of birds migrating. Wetlands. 200 mile long hiking and biking trail on an old railroad bed. Alluvium that is much better farm land than that up the hill. Enough better that the yield is worth dealing with the periodic floods. A truly huge flood is awesome (in a bad way) to see. The power and destructive capacity is hard to grasp. Decades ago it taught me as a young civil engineer, that ultimately, water was going to go where it wants to go regardless of where we want it to go.

I play poker in a house on stilts on the bank of the river. Every time we play cards, I think what a cool place to live.

[Mr Pootle]

What you fail to mention is that Leeds University hosted some of the greatest rock concerts
of all time. You indeed live in a great place 👍

I didn't manage to get a ticket for The Who, but saw The Stones, The Kinks, Leonard Cohen, Peter Green's Fleetwood Mac, Captain Beefheart, The Jeff Beck Band, Beck, Bogart Appice, John Mayall, Donovan, Elton John Ritchie Havens and loads more, while I sat on the floor in the university dining room, which held just a few hundred souls.
Some I missed were Derek and the Dominoes, Led Zepplin and Paul McCartney and Wings

[travelingbyguzzi]

Tukwila is a suburb 12 miles south of Seattle, WA. It is a congested Hell, but the climate is moderate, the economy is good, and Washington/Oregon have a committed and enthusiastic Guzzi population.

There is a small brewery in every small town in Wa & OR, & pot is legal in both states.

You can snow ski in the mountains in the morning and go to the beach in the afternoon.

Once you get away from the I-5 corridor, it is very nice, almost a state with a split personality.

Bill Lovelady.        IS
Eskimo Spy

[borderer]

I live a few hundred yards from the English border, around 400 live in the village, looking out of my window the cheviot hills start over the river about 50 yards away and the next civilisation is 50 miles south. I can ride 100 miles some days and not see a car lots of nice twisty roads.




Oh it is where the King of the gypsies lived!!

[LesP]

Bribie Island (can't be cagey since the internet came to be...)

Good work on the copy/paste/google regarding sand islands. 

I bought a place here sight unseen which didn't surprise a lot of people and could not be happier. (That I know of)

No offence to city dwellers but no thanks.
I have a golf course (non player) and national park (majority of the island) at the back fence so that should stay that way for the duration and the street is not jam packed house wise.
Airport and city an hour or so away, mountains by Australian standards to the right, Pacific ocean to the rear.
Its a pretty laid back place where every day is Summer with a cool breeze.




 

[coast range rider]

I live in a rural, agricultural Southern California valley below 6000 foot high mountains. Great twisties with light or no traffic. 12 month long riding season. 57 people per square mile in my zip code. 20 minute ride to a city of 150,000. 45 minute ride to beach at Pacific Ocean. It is referred to as Old California, and the gated community, as Mayberry R.F.D. (friendly and safe).

[GeorgiaGuzzi]

I live in west Georgia. As my handle implies, I am a Georgia native. I grew up in North GA, close to a small tourist trap called Helen GA. I learned to drive on the roads in the north GA mountains. Carrollton is a small university town. The University of West Georgia. A mid sized university imho. We have an awesome town square, and are small enough so that if I forget my wallet, the local parts store will tell me “pay for it next time you’re by”. However, Atlanta is just 45 short minutes away (35 if flying low) so whatever you want is within reach. We have 3 acres in the country with no HOA. I love it!!! Funnily enough, one of the major perks of where we live is a county recycling/garbage center is just 5 minutes away. Just drive the truck to work once a week and no worries about having to pay for garbage collection. We’ve got a garden and an herb plot and a fenced yard for our three old dogs to lounge in. I’m very grateful for what we have and recognize that if I choose badly in the future it could all go away. So that keeps me focused on looking forwards, not backwards.

[Buckturgidson]

I moved from Indy to Reno 18 years ago for better weather, and easy access to Sierra Nevada riding and skiing. The city is high desert, 4,500', and in a rain shadow. It can be dumping snow on the numerous nearby ski areas but snow rarely reaches our valley floor, and it usually is gone quickly. Other pros include:
-One of the lowest overall tax rates in the country, the polar opposite of nearby CA.
-Casinos provide revenue and make it a true 24 hour town. If you want prime rib or a taco plate at 3 am you can get it.
-Easy access to a major airport, 15-20 minutes from anywhere you live in the valley.
-It's pretty easy to get to one of the CA wine regions, like Amador County or Sonoma/Napa, or Yosemite for that matter.
-300 plus days of sunshine a year.
My only complaint is that it is essentially a cultural wasteland. If you want to hear an excellent symphony or opera performance, you have to go to San Fran, which is a pretty big hassle.

[Huzo]

Ladies and Gentlemen

I give you Glasgow

Sounds like a fair price John...

[vstevens]

I live in Headingley, a suburb of Leeds, in the County of West Yorkshire. I can walk out of my house, cross the road and find myself in a park. If I walk through the park I can by out in the country within 20 minutes without walking between any other houses.
If I go in other directions, there are supermarkets, butchers, bakers and greengrocers all just a few minutes away.
There are seven pubs within staggering home distance. There are ten or more restaurants I can walk to.
Headingley stadium hosts international cricket and rugby league matches. It's far enough away that it doesn't disturb me, but close enough if I want to watch a game.
Leeds is the fourth biggest city in England, with all the benefits that a big city can offer. A leading university, good hospitals, theatres, museums, an art gallery. The centre is three miles away. I can catch a train from there and be in London within two and a half hours or Edinburgh within three hours fifteen minutes.
I can drive to the east coast for a day out in Whitby or Scarborough.
The airport is 20 minutes from home. From there I can fly to Paris, Nice, Barcelona, Venice, Amsterdam and many other European destinations.
I'm sat at home in lockdown counting my blessings.
How about telling us about the good things where you live?

My daughter and I traveled to London for about a week and a half last summer.  My first time to Britain and my daughter's first time anywhere in Europe (if Britain is considered Europe).  It was glorious, the center of the universe.  The museums, history, art galleries, old lanes, canals, even the ruins of old Roman Walls, etc.  Nothing like it in the western US.  I'd love to make another trip sometime to see the rest of England, Wales, and Scotland. 

However - I do love where I live.  The sky is nearly always sunny.  Winter consists of a 'wet season' that isn't always very wet.  Summer heat can reach 90's and higher but the dry air tempers the affect.  A 15 minute drive to the Pacific Ocean, 40 minutes to the mountains of the Cleveland National Forest, and about an hour to the desert... which is absolutely gorgeous this time of year with great swathes of wildflowers (in spite of the virus).  Sports abound of every type.  History?  Not so much.  San Diego is a relative newcomer compared to anything in Britain and Europe.  Ages of Buildings are measured in decades, not centuries.  Art galleries and museums?   there are couple mediocre ones but San Diego tends to rest its laurels on the natural surroundings.  Nothing like the British Museum or national Gallery (which Hana and I literally spent several days exploring).   I was shocked the the British Museum is free, the National Gallery cost a pittance, and the Queen's gallery (which was displaying literally dozens of Leonardo Da Vinci drawings) was about 20 dollars.  The museums and galleries in San Diego cost more... for much, much less culture. 

Yes, the Southern California coast rules when it comes to natural beauty and pleasant climate.  But culturally it is lacking... (LA is another story). 

[Spuddy]

I live on the east slope of the Rocky Mountain front. Roughly located equidistant from Yellowstone and Glacier National Parks. Maybe 60 minutes from the largest contiguous wilderness in the Lower 48, the Bob Marshall. If you fish, trout streams abound. If you hunt, you can still access elk, pronghorn and deer. The longest lift line wait I experienced was perhaps 5 minutes at Big Sky.  If you ride, there are mountainous curves, broad valleys and desolate plains that look as if you are on the Moon.  With the third lowest population density in the US, a million or so residents are not too many. I live a few miles, as the crow flies, from Helena, Montana. But for the lack of fresh Chicago Deep Dish, it fits me well.

Spud   

[Scout63]

I live on the outer part of Cape Cod.  Great fishing, gorgeous beaches and where I was born so I can't seem to leave.  Downside is sandy asphalt, many very old drivers, summer mayhem and windy cold winters.  I love that everyone here lives in a great place.

[Buckturgidson]

I live on the outer part of Cape Cod.  Great fishing, gorgeous beaches and where I was born so I can't seem to leave.  Downside is sandy asphalt, many very old drivers, summer mayhem and windy cold winters.  I love that everyone here lives in a great place.

How is the SR 500 running? Love my SRX-6.

[Guzzistajohn]

I live on the east slope of the Rocky Mountain front. Roughly located equidistant from Yellowstone and Glacier National Parks. Maybe 60 minutes from the largest contiguous wilderness in the Lower 48, the Bob Marshall. If you fish, trout streams abound. If you hunt, you can still access elk, pronghorn and deer. The longest lift line wait I experienced was perhaps 5 minutes at Big Sky.  If you ride, there are mountainous curves, broad valleys and desolate plains that look as if you are on the Moon.  With the third lowest population density in the US, a million or so residents are not too many. I live a few miles, as the crow flies, from Helena, Montana. But for the lack of fresh Chicago Deep Dish, it fits me well.

Spud

You're the winner Spuddy! But those winters.....wow!

[Scout63]

How is the SR 500 running? Love my SRX-6.

It’s running great.  I took it out the other day in preparation for picking up the Matchless this Tuesday. The supertrapp has the perfect bark and triple disks are overkill.  It’s going to be hellish choosing between the two thumpers to ride, or the Commando, or the /5, or the Guzzi when finished. All that for less than the price of a new truck and I can look my mechanic in the mirror. We are truly a privileged lot.