I used my non-confrontational reason of wanting four seasons and no more hurricanes - he had just fixed my clogged pipes and good plumbers are gold anywhere, plus he turned out to be a neighbor, one street over.

Yesterday I got my first shocked “why would you want to leave Texas???” Even tho it’s a red area of Illinois, most people just showed simple curiosity about why I left Texas. This person was amazed I want to leave Texas at all.

I was a texascritter, but now I am escapedfromtexas critter

Kindred spirits, Pickles and I.

It’s 2025.