I long for rain, pine trees and wonderful seafood

Sometimes I take for granted how much I miss the Northwest when I'm not there. How long have I spent time there, you ask? Three months last summer, and about a month visiting Coos Bay over Christmas. And random vacations. But there's no other place that feels more like home to me. I cherish it when I'm there, and I miss it when I'm not. 

I miss the hiking, the wonderful and constant smell of pine, the fact that everything is still green in the winter, fresh, live crab and fish options about 15 minutes from home, rain (believe it or not), the feel of a coastal town, the dive restaurants that always tend to beat out most restaurants in Ohio (at least in Newark), and I miss the companionship, quite obviously.

Sure, I can hike in Ohio. But I've been to Hocking Hills in every season, and I've explored every mile they can offer. I haven't begun to tap the hiking and exploring in Oregon, let alone Washington and northern California. Plus, Hocking Hills doesn't have large, flowing mountain rivers, miles and miles of pine trees and moss, beautiful wild flowers or snow-capped mountains. And it's covered with people who don't know how to respect nature's beauty, littering, smoking and toting children who run around trampling plants. Hippies or not, Oregonians (and people in the Northwest in general) love their wild, untapped land, and know how to respect it, and keep it perfect for visitors in the future.

I feel so smothered in Ohio. I like the wild and free feeling of the Northwest, where I can enjoy a bonfire on the beach, seafood dive restaurants and I can be myself in a small-town atmosphere. I've reached my peak in Ohio, and I grow increasingly bored with the state.