So, raise your hands. How many of my friends thought that I’d end up settling in Pocatello, Idaho?
Let me tell you, I never would’ve guessed.
I get asked fairly often (probably just to make conversation) how I am liking Pocatello. As I am ever-willing to over-answer a simple question here’s a full-on blog post. 😉
I look around our little townhome and feel sheer wonder at how blessed we are. Since moving here, a thousand little things have happened to make us feel like Idaho was the right place for us. We are close enough that only David’s schedule stands in the way of visiting family whenever we want. But even at that, we are attending his cousin’s wedding and the family reunion. Our family members have already come to us several times. There are stunning hikes everywhere. Tons of open range. Ski resorts an hour (max) in every direction. The city park has bouldering/rock climbing walls. Despite not having a Target, Pocatello seems to have everything else shopping-wise that I would ever want. There are parks (and kids Sawyer’s age) a-plenty. The university does Shakespeare in the park in the summer as well as live music in the evening. If I wanted to take classes at ISU it’s $5 per credit. Yes. $5. And did I mention everyone is ridiculously nice? That said…
Pocatello is small and rural.
My tummy still does a little turn when I hear people refer to this place by the oh-so-sophisticated name of Poky. I still prefer calling my new home Poke-A-Fellow.
It’s hard to say if I am in love with the area yet. I don’t know if anything will replace Redlands’ special place in my heart. But here are some simple experiences that paint a picture of what this community seems to be all about on first impression.
- We had a problem with our dryer when it was delivered. So until our new one arrived a family up the street (who is also one of the interns with David) offered their dryer. When they went out of town for the weekend, they offered to drop a key at our place just in case we needed the dryer. We didn’t end up needing it, but the fact that they offered floored me. We had known them for a total of one week! Our neighbors have been such sweet and invaluable friends.
- I called the DMV when I got here to see what documents I would need to register my car. A live person picked up on the second ring. When I asked her how much time I should set aside, she laughed at me. “Oh honey, you won’t need more than 15 minutes.” I only needed five. Guess how much it was to register and re-title my car? $90. Total. For two years. Holy cheap!
- The parking spaces at shopping centers here are huge! Pretty sure they are expecting a tractor.
- It is not uncommon to be the only person in the mall parking lot at any given entrance. And yes, it has been the middle of the day.
- Others who live in Idaho consider Pocatello a big city.
- Everybody packs a gun around here. Seriously, I’ve walked down main street and counted about five people openly carrying.
- This is the only city I’ve lived in where you can see a marmot checking out the storefronts on Main Street.
- Everyone here is ridiculously nice and down to earth.
- The residency has the most legitimate Significant Others group that I’ve seen since Grenada. I feel like I could reach out to any of these women (and men) any time and they would help in a heartbeat.
- Finally, David is happy. Like, really happy.
So how do I like Pocatello? I know it’s the right place for us. For sure.
